Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand. (Rev. 1:3)
These divinely authorized words of blessing were pronounced over nineteen hundred years ago and they were recorded for the benefit of the whole Christian Church in the Revelation, the last book of the Bible. Yet, sad to say, even at this critical period in earth's history, few believers really study the book of Revelation, let alone keep those things which are written therein.
Why?
Because the Revelation is considered
by many to be a closed book, a mystery book, a book of riddles
and bewildering symbols which cannot possibly be understood by
the average believer. The result is, the book is left unopened
by the majority in the church.
Others, who profess to have studied its
pages, contend that the book is of little practical value to the
committed Christian awaiting the Secret Rapture. Why? Because
most of the events it foretells, they believe, are going to occur
after the main body of the church has been caught away
to heaven. In other words, the book need not concern true believers
because they will not be on earth when the events it predicts
come to pass. References in the Revelation to God's people,
they maintain, concern the Jews and perhaps a few Gentile converts
who have, for some reason or the other, missed the Rapture.
But it does not concern the great multitude of believers from
all over the world who acknowledge Jesus Christ as their Saviour.
Believe it or not, these are the popular
opinions many Christians hold about the book of Revelation. And
so widespread are their views that multitudes of believers know
little or nothing about this greatest of Bible prophecies. But,
are their opinions correct? Is the Revelation a mystery book of
little value to the Gentile believer today? Does it have a message
for you -
for me?
A Voice In The Wilderness considers
it an inestimable privilege to place this booklet in your hands;
for we believe that the message of the Revelation was given by
the Almighty to His church to be understood. And it is
insulting God's sense of judgment to suggest that the book cannot
be understood. The very word 'revelation' means
'that which is revealed, made plain or disclosed.' The
title of the book 'The Revelation,' in other words,
is the very antithesis of mystery; so how can anyone sensibly
claim that it cannot be understood?
The book, we further, believe, has been
given to the church as a warning message; for God wants
His people to prepare themselves for the stormy future that lies
ahead. For, believe it or not, the church is not going to be
secretly caught away to heaven before the Great Tribulation.
Any believer, therefore, who persistently ignores God's warning
message, is courting disaster!
On the other hand, those who diligently
study the book of Revelation, allowing the Scriptures to interpret
themselves, will soon understand the prophecy. To their amazement
and delight they will come to find that they are in possession
of a spiritual survey map which charts the future
of humanity with awesome accuracy. Instead of the fear and uncertainty
which characterises the people of this world, they will have the
confidence and hope that belong to the enlightened people of God.
SYMBOLIC LANGUAGE
The book of Revelation is written mostly
in symbolic language. This, admittedly, does seem
daunting at first, but once the reader becomes acquainted with
symbolic language and learns how to interpret it, by comparing
scripture with scripture, the Revelation becomes a veritable
storehouse of information about the future of mankind. A symbol
is something which represents or stands for something else. Examples
of symbols used in the Revelation are:
Symbolic language is used throughout
the Bible but more so in the prophetic books. The parables of
Jesus are also good examples of how symbolic or figurative
language is used to illustrate and explain spiritual realities.
When interpreting the Revelation, therefore, it is important to
first establish if the language used is literal or symbolic,
or a mixture of both. Utmost caution should be exercised here;
because if a symbol is incorrectly taken in a literal sense, confusion
will result. Similarly, if a literal object or element is mistakenly
treated as a symbol, an equally warped picture of the future will
emerge and the reader will not be prepared for the reality of
last day events when they occur.
Bear in mind also that the Revelation is a prophetic warning message given by the Almighty to the church so that all believers may prepare themselves for the final events due to occur on earth. For the plain truth is this, JEHOVAH (Yahweh) the God of Israel wants His people to be ready for the last days. He wants every member of His church to have a clear understanding of what is going to happen just before His Son YESHUA (Jesus) returns. He wants us all to know what He is doing and what He is going to allow Satan to do. The Almighty does not want us to be terrified of the future, but to be patiently confident amidst the total confusion which is going to reign when this present civilization collapses in ruins about us. For even though Yahweh is going to protect His obedient followers in those difficult days, He still wants them to know about future events before they actually occur. The Revelation is, in short, another example of that divine trait whereby
Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets. (Amos 3:7)
Yes, it is God's will that all His church know of the future; and not only that we know what to expect, but that we come into line with His will soon, so that we may be accounted worthy to escape punishment.
Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.(Luke 21:36)
Make no mistake, an understanding of the will of the Almighty God as outlined in the Revelation will be of utmost value and importance in the very last days. Indeed, your life and the lives of your family could well depend on it. Remaining wilfully ignorant is a fatal mistake. The Almighty says in Hosea 4:6.
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee…
Oh, how true that statement is going
to prove with this end-time generation; a generation woefully
and wilfully ignorant of the truth, yet so eager to believe any
and everything but the Word of the Almighty God.
THE SEVEN CHURCHES
The Revelation begins with the prophet
seeing a vision of Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) the
Son of God, walking amidst seven candlesticks. A candlestick is
a symbol of a church group from which the light of God's truth
shines.
… and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches. (Rev. 1:20)
Seven
is the number which represents wholeness, completeness and totality.
The messages to the seven churches therefore are for the whole
church, the entire body of believers, Jew and Gentile alike, in
all ages. It is a mistake to think that most of the messages to
the seven churches apply to the church in past ages; or that this
or that church group is the Smyrna church, the Laodicean
church, the Philadelphian church etc. For the fact is that
in every church group in all ages, there were - and still are
- individuals to whom one or more of the seven messages apply.
You may be sure that even in your own
congregation there is the Laodicean believer who is in danger
of being 'spewed out' by God. There is also the Smyrna
group who are enduring great suffering for their Lord. There are
those who classify themselves as 'Jews' (true believers)
but who are not; and there are those who have not denied the Master's
name. Yes, almost every type of believer is present in the average-sized
church group. This is as true in our day as it was in the past.
The letters to the seven churches, in other words, are for your
church group and mine.
It is not the purpose of this booklet,
however, to explain the letters to the seven churches; because
with prayerful study most believers can arrive at a good understanding
of those messages by themselves. Instead, in this booklet our
aim is to briefly outline and explain the prophecy of the Seven
Seals which is introduced in Revelation chapter four.
Revelation Chapter Four
This chapter begins with the prophet
seeing a vision of the Almighty seated on His throne. In Jehovah's
(Yahweh's) right hand the prophet sees a scroll which is sealed
with seven seals. The only one in the universe who is qualified
to open the sealed scroll is Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus
Christ, the Son of the Living God). He is symbolized as the Lamb
of God (John 1:29). The heavenly hosts around the Almighty's
throne rejoice at the fact that at last someone has been found
worthy to open the scroll and tell its contents. From this we
may infer that the angelic host are intensely eager to learn about
the future of those things which must shortly come to pass.
Oh that the church on earth would display a similar interest
in the sealed scroll and the future of humanity. It is true, multitudes
are apparently interested in the future, because great sums of
money are spent each week by people who consult witches, fortune
tellers, astrologers and mystics of every shade and
type; but how few, by comparison, consult the Word of God
or study the prophecies in order to find out what the Almighty
says about the future? How very few!
We trust that when you have thoroughly
studied this booklet, you will have taken a great step forward
in understanding what the real future holds in store
for humanity at large and for yourself in particular. And though
the knowledge of it may initially fill you with dread, you may
be sure that if you place your trust in the Almighty and do
His will, your fears will gradually give way to a growing
sense of confidence, a confidence that will stand you in good
stead when the terrors of the last days begin to occur in your
neighbourhood.
THE FIRST SEAL
And I saw, and behold, a white
horse; and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given
unto him and he went forth conquering and to conquer.
(Rev. 6:2)
Here we are shown the first of the Four
Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the White Horse. The
rider on the white horse carries a bow and goes forth conquering
and to conquer. This means that he is victorious and invincible;
nothing can halt his advance. Before we explain what the white
horse represents, let us first draw the reader's attention to
the FIRST CLUE to understanding Bible prophecy. It is comparing
scripture with scripture: of letting the Bible
interpret itself; of searching for the meaning of one obscure
passage in another part of the Bible which describes the same
subject or event in a simplified way.
It is perfectly obvious that there is
only one future, and it follows that no matter how many Bible
prophecies there may be concerning the future, they cannot contradict
each other and still all be correct. Therefore, if one prophet
describes the future in symbolic language in one book,
and another tells of the same future in another part of the scriptures
in simple language, a comparison of one scripture with
the other will obviously direct us to the real meaning.
To help us understand the symbolic
language of the Revelation we will first consider another
Bible prophecy describing the same end-time scenes in simple
language. The prophecy we will look at is our Lord's famous
Olivet prophecy recorded in Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21.
In that prophecy the Master spoke of the end-time, the
period in earth's history which occurs just prior to his return
to earth. The Olivet prophecy is in plain language
with a minimum of symbolic references. The order of events in
the Saviour's plain language prediction, therefore, ought
to be similar to those described in symbolic language
in the Revelation, for both prophecies deal with the same events
in the last days. When we examine the two prophecies side by side,
that is exactly what we find. One complements the other, explains
and fills in details which the other lacks: and together they
provide us with a detailed picture of the world's future as it
will occur just before the Master returns to earth.
Using this method of allowing one scripture to interpret another, we find that the white horse of Revelation 6 corresponds with the Saviour's warning message in Matthew 24.4-5
And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
This is plainly a WARNING message: Take heed! says the Master. The vast majority of Bible prophecies are in a sense warning messages, given by the Almighty to warn people of approaching punishment or danger. In order to warn effectively, a prophet must do at least two things:
This is what the Master is doing in Matthew 24.4.
He is opening his truth-filled warning
message with the words 'Take heed!' and he closes
by pointing to a way of escape. The prophecy of the Seven Seals
is no different; for, like the great prophecy in Matthew 24, it
begins with a truth-filled warning message symbolized by
the invincible rider on the white horse and goes on to
point to a way of escape.
The colour white represents purity and
truth. (Isaiah 1:18, Rev. 19:8) The rider on the white horse corresponds
to the Messiah's truth-filled, warning message of 'take
heed' in Matthew 24.4. This rider symbolizes God's
Invincible Truth, which by its very existence warns us to
beware (take heed) of deception and counterfeit
in the church: the counterfeit baptism of the
Holy Spirit, the counterfeit Sabbaths being celebrated
by believers, the counterfeit messiah that is shortly
to arrive on the world scene and the counterfeit Bibles
which are currently being foisted on unsuspecting Christendom.
The rider on the white horse is even
now galloping across the globe and there is no power in the universe
that can check his advance. Yahweh's Truth is currently
demolishing the strongholds of human ignorance and error and there
is scarcely a country on earth where the light of the gospel has
not begun to shine. People may, of course, choose not to believe
God's Truth, but there is absolutely no way any person or government
can stop its advance. Yes, the events under the first seal have
already begun.
THE SECOND SEAL
And there went out another horse
that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take
peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and
there was given unto him a great sword.
(Rev. 6:4)
In this seal the symbolic language used is almost self explanatory. The rider on the red horse, we are told, was 'given a great sword' and power was given to him to 'take peace from the earth.' Clearly this rider represents bloodshed and war; for red is the colour of blood and a sword is the universally accepted symbol of war. And that is exactly how the Master put it when he followed his take heed warning with:
For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. (Matt. 24:7)
One doesn't need great spiritual insight
to recognize in this verse a picture of our day. Violence, bloodshed,
revolution and international turmoil are now commonplace and global
war is a constant threat. The world, it seems, is glutting itself
on an ever-increasing diet of violence, carnage and death; with
each blood-bath being dwarfed by the enormity of the next. Read
any daily newspaper, switch to any radio or TV station and the
same, sad catalogue of violence and bloodshed fills the news.
And always, above and behind it all, there lurks that fearful
spectre of a nuclear war -
a war which could well nigh obliterate life from this planet.
What's more, all the efforts of world leaders, politicians, economists, scientists and even the theologians of all the faiths, cannot stem the tide of slaughter which is threatening to engulf mankind. Nothing, it seems, anyone can say or do can prevent the on-coming holocaust. Only the Almighty can stem this tide of evil which He so accurately predicted so long ago. Yes, there is little doubt, the second horseman of the Apocalypse, the rider on the red horse, like the white horse before him, is even now breaking into a gallop; and the thunder of his hoof beats can be heard around the world.
Power was given unto him to take
peace from the earth,
said the divine messenger, and oh how true those fearsome words
have proved to be. Peace on earth is a vanishing memory and war
is taking its place. The prophet Jeremiah also predicted war on
a world-wide scale. (Jeremiah 25:15-38)
THE THIRD SEAL
Rev.6: 5: And when he had opened
the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And
I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair
of balances in his hand. 6: And I heard a voice in the midst of
the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three
measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil
and the wine.
From the parable of the labourers in the vineyard, we learn that
a denarius (translated 'penny' in this verse)
was then the ordinary wage for a day's work. (Matthew
20:2-13)
Here we are shown a symbolic picture
of hyper-inflation, crippling food shortages, rising prices and
mass starvation! The rider on the black horse represents
famine -
world famine! when food prices for even the barest of life's
necessities will sky-rocket out of control. Can you imagine the
world's economy so depressed that a man would work all day
for the price of a few loaves of bread? I'm sure that not many
of us can imagine this happening, even though rising food prices
are all too familiar. But, according to this prophecy, runaway
inflation coupled with frightening food shortages are due to occur
in the last days. Indeed, in many countries they have already
arrived, Prices are rising daily in all the markets of the world
and there is very little anyone or any government can do to stop
them.
The rider on the black horse may not be moving at speed in the West, but I can assure you that in the East, in South America and Africa he is out there in the field and he is soon to break into an earthshaking gallop. Famines generally follow war. In this and the Olivet prophecy Yeshua the Saviour confirms this when he says:
Nation shall rise against nation
and kingdom against kingdom and there shall be famines.
(Matthew 24:7)
THE FOURTH SEAL
And I looked, and behold a pale
horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed
with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of
the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death,
and with the beasts of the earth.
(Rev. 6:8)
The colour of the fourth horse is given
as deathly pale or sickly, yellowish green. Again comparing
the Revelation with the Master's Olivet prophecy we find that
the sickly pale horse symbolizes pestilence: deadly disease
epidemics and plagues that so quickly lay low millions
of humans engulfed in war and famine. This is not to mention the
agricultural pestilence (pests) that periodically wreck havoc
on our farms. When the pale horse breaks into a gallop it will
appear as though the finely tuned forces of nature have become
dislodged. Disease epidemics of all kinds will sweep across the
globe bringing death to millions of people, their cattle and their
crops. The severe food shortages pictured by the black horse will
most certainly exacerbate the problem of pestilence, as the world's
population, weakened by war and famine, struggles to keep alive.
To be sure, the rider on the pale horse has begun to ride and
death is following closely at his heels.
SUMMARY OF THE FIRST FOUR SEALS
1) First, there is the white horse:
the Almighty's truth-filled, warning message! which exposes
the various spiritual counterfeits that abound in our day.
2) Second, there is the red horse: whose rider wields a great sword which symbolizes violence, revolution, bloodshed and - war!
3) Third, there is the black horse: which pictures hyper-inflation, sky-rocketing food prices and mass starvation - famine!
4) And last of all, the sickly pale,
yellowish-green horse: which stands for disease
epidemics and plagues on an international scale -
pestilence!.
WAR, FAMINE, PESTILENCE, that terrifying trio which invariably overtakes civilizations given to sin. Reading through the prophecies of the Bible one can hardly fail to recognize the fact that warnings rejected are always followed by war, famine and pestilence; for that is the Almighty's way of dealing with those who persistently ignore His truth and reject His commandments.
… but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence. (Jeremiah 14:12)
And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they be consumed from off the land that I gave unto them and to their fathers. (Jeremiah 24:10)
The great prophet Jeremiah analysed the messages of all the prophets of God that had gone before him and summarized their work in these telling words:
The prophets that have been before me and before thee of old prophesied both against many countries, and against great kingdoms, of war, and of evil, and of pestilence. (Jeremiah 28:8)
Oh yes, divine warning is the opening theme of almost every Bible prophecy, and when rejected is always followed by war, famine and pestilence. But will mankind ever take heed and recognize this fact, that if warnings are rejected there always follows war, famine and pestilence? It is doubtful. People, it seems, are quite unable or unwilling to link national calamity with national sin. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse have, nonetheless, begun to ride, and as described in Revelation 6:8:
Power was given them over a fourth
part of the earth to kill with sword with hunger and with death.
THE FIFTH SEAL
Rev.6: 9: And when he had opened
the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were
slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
10: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord,
holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them
that dwell on the earth? 11: And white robes were given unto every
one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest
yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their
brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.
Here we are shown religious persecutions involving two groups of martyrs; a) the early martyrs who were slain for their faith before the four horsemen had taken the field, and b) the end-time martyrs who are to be slain after the horsemen (war, famine, and pestilence) have begun to ride.
The Early Martyrs
These are the martyrs who died before
the 20th century, died in their millions during the period known
as the 'dark ages.' They died, we are told, 'for
the Word of God' and 'for their testimony.'
The blood of these martyrs has still not been avenged; nor
are they rejoicing in heaven right now. Instead they were each
given a white robe (accredited with the righteousness of Jesus)
and told to rest, to wait for a little season till another great
martyrdom took place.
The End-time Martyrs
These martyrs would be killed 'as
they (the early martyrs) were.' In other
words they would be martyred for the very same reason that the
early martyrs died: that is, for the Word of God (the
Bible) and their testimony. In short, the martyrdom under the
fifth seal pictures an end-time martyrdom, a persecution of believers
in our day! There is a great deal of evidence to suggest that
in some countries this end-time persecution has already begun.
But it is scheduled to intensify and will no doubt reach the free
West in due course.
In his Olivet prophecy the Master also places this final martyrdom after the wars, famines and pestilence that are symbolized by the red, black and pale horses. He said this:
Matthew 24:9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake. 10: And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
The scene for this end-time persecution,
which culminates in the death of many leading believers, is already
set. Satanic forces are even now undermining the faith of many
Christians in the real Word of God and love within the
brotherhood is fading away. Jealousy, hatred, slander and outright
rejection are all too common in the churches today and many believers
are giving up their faith altogether. Added to this sad reality
is the fact that the real Word of God, the genuine Bible,
is being jettisoned in favour of scores of counterfeit
Bibles! Those who cling to the real Word of God will
soon be a target for persecution. See our article entitled Bible
Versions concerning this very serious matter.
Take warning dear reader that you are not deceived by Satan into rejecting the Word of God or into harbouring hatred in your heart towards fellow Christians; especially those who seek to do the Almighty's will. Because jealousy and slander are the stepping stones to betrayal; and betrayal is but one step away from a true believer's martyrdom. When that end-time tribulation arrives in your area it will test the faith of every believer almost to the point of destruction. But God in His infinite mercy has decreed that many will be saved through it all; be saved to stand in faultless splendour before the soul-searching gaze of the Almighty God!
But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. (Matt. 24:13)
That is, those who refuse to give up
their faith in the Almighty, even though they may be called to
give up their lives for Him. This end-time persecution is upon
us, so do not be surprised when it starts in your neighbourhood.
We are happy to report, however, that not all the church is scheduled
for martyrdom. Many will be spared and be miraculously protected
from the onslaught of the Evil One. They will live unscathed through
the very worst Satan can do and will stand before God in faultless
splendour in that last day. This reassuring prospect will be looked
at again when we examine Revelation chapters 9, 12 and 13.
THE SIXTH SEAL
Rev.6: 12: And I beheld when he
had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake;
and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became
as blood; 13: And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even
as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of
a mighty wind. 14: And the heaven departed as a scroll when it
is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out
of their places. 15: And the kings of the earth, and the great
men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty
men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in
the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 16: And said to the
mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of
him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
17: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able
to stand?
Speaking of these same events in Matthew's gospel the Master said this:
Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. (Matt. 24:29)
The prophet Joel writing of this same period wrote:
Joel 2: 30: And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. 31: The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come. 32: And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.
In the sixth seal the reader is given a preview of that same end-time celestial display. It will be witnessed throughout our galaxy. The language of these prophecies seems to indicate that besides their spiritual counterparts, these signs will also be literally fulfilled. In other words, the whole earth will be shaken to its very foundations; the literal mountains will heave and swell like the waves of the restless sea and every island will be shifted from its primeval moorings.
Jeremiah 4: 23: I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light. 24: I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved lightly. 25: I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled. 26: I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the presence of the LORD, and by his fierce anger.
Panic, blind, uncontrollable panic will
sweep across the globe when the events under the 6th seal occur.
Earth's terror-stricken inhabitants will incorrectly conclude
that the universe is beginning to disintegrate. The sun, we are
told, will become black as sackcloth. It will
disappear for a short period of time and the moon will glow
like blood. Falling stars (meteorites) in their
thousands will criss-cross the sky and the heavens will be rolled
back as a scroll. In that day, every man, woman and child
the world over will be filled with the fear of the Almighty and
nobody will then doubt his existence. Indeed, all mankind will
realize that the day of God's wrath has arrived. (Rev. 6:17)
The events under this seal have obviously
not yet happened. Admittedly there have been a few isolated instances
in history when unusually large numbers of meteorites have been
sighted from certain parts of the globe, or when the sun was darkened
for a few hours; but it is forcing the issue to suggest that those
local happenings are the fulfilment of this awesome 6th seal,
because they are not.
Why not? Simply because all the events under the 6th seal are to occur more or less at the same time, and will be witnessed by the entire population of the earth.
All these signs happen concurrently and that has never happened before: nor has the world's population ever exhibited the kind of blind panic described in Revelation 6:16 when mankind en-mass cried out:
'…hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.
Wait for the 6th seal. It is still future. When it occurs Yahweh's true followers will be galvanized into action. Gone forever will be their reticence in proclaiming the Gospel to the unconverted. Gone too their need to even convince people of the existence of God and His Son, the symbolic Lamb. For after the earthshaking events of the 6th seal, all the world will acknowledge the existence of the Almighty God and the prospect of the soon-coming Day of Judgment.
For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?(Rev. 6:17)
Oh yes, the world's population will accept
the fact that the Messiah exists; but it will be an acceptance
born of terror, not of love. Nevertheless, it is part of the Almighty's
plan to give mankind a final opportunity to choose between right
and wrong, between obedience and sin, between the worship of Yahweh
as specified in His commandments and the worship of Satan which
manifests itself in various human traditions. That final appeal,
that end-time work of inviting mankind to accept Yahweh's authority
will reach its climax immediately after the 6th seal, after
the state of widespread chaos and panic already described. It
will be a unique message, a special end-time work concentrating
on one aspect of the Everlasting Gospel, the Seal of the living
God!
The unique message concerning the Seal
of God is programmed to go to all the world between the 6th
and 7th seals. Indeed, its importance can only be appreciated
when one considers that the events of the 7th seal are held
up till that special message has reached the whole world.
In Revelation chapter 7 that unique, end-time message is introduced.
We will now turn our attention to that chapter and examine it
carefully; not forgetting that the 7th seal has still to be opened.
THE SEALING OF THE 144,000
Rev.7: 1: And after these things I
saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding
the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on
the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. 2: And I saw another
angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God:
and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it
was given to hurt the earth and the sea, 3: Saying, Hurt not the
earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the
servants of our God in their foreheads. 4: And I heard the number
of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred
and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children
of Israel.
After reading this passage the first
question that comes to mind is: What is the Seal of God? According
to the dictionary, a seal is a legal instrument, a device
that makes a ratifying impression on wax or some other receptive
substance to prove that it is genuine. The word 'seal'
in this context is synonymous with an owner's name, his signature,
his sign, his stamp, his brand or identification mark.
Yahweh's Seal, in other words, represents
His name, His signature, His stamp of ownership, the ratifying
sign He seeks to place in the foreheads of His followers.
The forehead represents the mind, the seat of a
person's intellect, allegiance and faith. We are told in this
chapters 7 and 14 that 144,000 believer's will accept the Father's
Seal or Name in their foreheads. This means they
will willingly accept Yahweh's ratifying seal in their minds.
They will believe it, remember it, bear it in mind and be willing
to live by it. Obviously they will be moved to this high degree
of acceptance by the Holy Spirit. But do not make the mistake
of supposing that the Holy Spirit is God's Seal, because He isn't.
A believer is sealed by the Holy Spirit with the Seal of
God, just as a sheep is marked by a shepherd with a special
mark. But the shepherd is not the mark any more than the Holy
Spirit is the seal.
The Holy Spirit of God is the Agent who
does the sealing, but the Holy Spirit is not the Seal.
What, then, is the Seal or Sign of Yahweh the God of Israel? To
find out we will again resort to that reliable guideline of allowing
the scriptures to interpret themselves. When we do this we
find that Yahweh's Seal, the identifying sign he places in the
minds of followers is His LAW. Yes, the law of God is the Almighty's
seal and the Sabbath commandment in His law is the unique, ratifying
SIGN (signature) the Almighty places in the minds of His followers,
to signify to the universe that they are His special people.
In other words, God's people are to be signed and sealed. Here is proof of this astonishing fact.
Isaiah 8:16 Bind up the testimony , says God, seal the law among my disciples.
Hebrews 8:10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people.
Exodus 31: 13: Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the LORD that doth sanctify you.
Ezekiel 20: 12: Moreover also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them. … 20: And hallow my sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the LORD your God.
Exodus 13: 9: And it shall be for a sign unto thee upon thine hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that the LORD's law may be in thy mouth: for with a strong hand hath the LORD brought thee out of Egypt.
Hebrews 10: 16: This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;
These texts clearly prove that Yahweh's law, and the Sabbath commandment in His law, constitutes the identifying seal and signature He places in the minds of His followers. Consequently, when a believer remembers them, bears them in mind and keeps the Almighty's commandments, especially His Sabbath commandments, he/she is in effect declaring to the universe that Yahweh, the God of Israel, is his/her Father. And what, you may well ask, are the Almighty's Sabbath commandments?
The answer is:
If you would like to know more about
the Sabbaths of the Almighty and about the Sacred Calendar
which He is currently using to organize His work, write to us
for our free booklet entitled The Sacred Calendar of
the God of Israel.
When , you may well ask, does the sealing of the 144,000 take place? The answer is, the sealing begins shortly after the 6th seal and finishes just before the 7th seal. Indeed, the events of the 7th seal (the hurting of the earth, the sea and the trees etc.) are held up till the sealing of the 144,000 is finished,
Rev.7: 1: And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. 2: And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, 3: Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.
The four winds which are scheduled to hurt the earth, the sea and the trees are not merely physical winds like hurricanes, tornadoes, typhoons etc. They are far more than that. These 'winds' also represent the enormous spiritual authority and power angel or spirit-beings possess. Spirit-beings are themselves often referred to in the Scriptures as 'winds' and even the work of God's Spirit is likened to a 'wind.'
The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. (John 3:8)
The
four angels are granted authority to hurt, that
is to wreck havoc upon the earth, the sea, the trees
and the grass once the sealing of the 144,000 is finished.
And in measured onslaughts of destruction that is exactly what
we will find them doing at the 7th seal. See Trumpets 1 to 3 later.
THE INNUMERABLE MULTITUDE
Besides the 144,000 commandment keeping
Israelites who are sealed, and this number will
certainly include many Gentile believers who are grafted in the
Olive of Israel, (Romans 11:17-24) the prophet sees another mighty
throng -
an innumerable multitude -
from every nation, kindred, tongue and people. (Rev. 7:9)
It is not specified in chapter 7 whether or not these believers accept the Almighty's Seal at the same time as do the 144,000. But this much is certain, they will eventually all come around to keeping the commandments of God; and that includes the keeping of His weekly and annual Sabbath days. Here is proof of this amazing fact:
Rev.7: 13: And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? 14: And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15: Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. 16: They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. 17: For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.
Note the words, these are they which
came out of the great tribulation. These believers, in other
words go through the tribulation -
or at least part of it. We are expressly told that they shall
hunger and thirst no more, implying that they had already
experienced hunger and thirst during the tribulation. Remember
this important point.
The prophecy goes on to say that they
washed their robes. What does this mean? It means that
through the merits and power of the blood (life) of the Saviour
these believers now begin to keep the commandments. The figurative
phrase 'wash their robes' in chapter 7 is translated 'do
the commandments' in Revelation 22.14. The innumerable
host, in other words, will begin to keep the commandments of God.
They will clean up their lives (wash their robes) by bringing
them into line with the high and holy standards of Yahweh's law.
If this multitude hadn't accepted the claims of God's law at the time of the sealing, they will most certainly do so shortly after - during the tribulation. That is what these scriptures are impliedly saying.
In the blood of the Lamb .
What does this phrase mean? Blood is life. It also symbolizes life. (Lev. 17:14, Deut. 12:23) The blood of the Lamb, therefore, symbolizes the life giving power of the Messiah the Lamb of God. Washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb, in short, is a symbolic way of saying that this innumerable multitude of believers would begin to keep the commandments of God, accomplishing the seemingly impossible feat by the sanctifying power of the living Messiah. In their own strength it would have, of course, been utterly impossible to attain the high and holy standards required by God's law. But when aided by the power of the blood, the wonder-working, sanctifying and cleansing power of the Messiah's matchless life, they will reach the required standard of obedience. They will be pure, holy and perfect. Figuratively speaking they will then be clothed in white robes .
As the old hymn POWER IN THE BLOOD puts it:
Would you be whiter, much whiter than
snow?
There is power in the blood, power in
the blood.
Sin stains are lost in its life-giving
flow.
There is wonderful power in the blood.
In view of these texts, and there are
others, there is obviously no truth in the popular theory about
the church being secretly caught away to heaven before
the tribulation. In this chapter we can plainly see that
an innumerable host of Gentile believers will be on earth during
the tribulation.
Summary of Revelation Chapter 7.
1) The chapter briefly tells of that unique, end-time work of God - the sealing work.
2) The sealing work will begin after the fearsome events of the 6th seal have occurred: that is, after the great earthquake, after the sun is darkened, after the mountains and the islands have moved, and after the sky is rolled back as a scroll and after world-wide panic overtakes the peoples of the world. (Rev. 6:12-17)
3) The sealing work must however be finished before the 7th seal starts: that is, before the four angels begin to hurt the earth, the sea and the trees. (Rev. 7:1-3)
4) The Seal of Yahweh the Almighty God of Israel is His law, and the Sabbath days in His law represent His signature. They are the divine, identifying sign of sanctification which the Holy Spirit places in the minds of believers willing to obey Him. (Eze. 20:12 & 20, Isa. 8:16)
5) 144,000 believers accept Yahweh's Seal in their minds. They are Israelites, but some Gentile believers willing to obey the Almighty's commandments are numbered among them. (Rev. 7 and Romans 11:17-24)
6) The innumerable multitude from all nations will suffer hunger, thirst and scorching heat of the sun during the great tribulation. But they will eventually come out of it and wash their robes in the blood of the Lamb. That is, they too will begin to keep the commandments of God and will accomplish this seemingly impossible feat by the life-giving power of the Son of God.
7) At the end of the great tribulation
they will stand in the presence of the Almighty. And then God
will wipe away all tears from their eye. (Rev. 7:13-17)
THE SEVENTH SEAL
Let us now return to the mainstream of
the prophecy, back to the seals. The 7th seal, remember, has still
to be opened. Chapter seven was inserted between the 6th and 7th
seals simply because that is when the sealing work will occur
in the stream of time. But once the 144,000 are sealed, the four
angels standing at the four corners of the earth are allowed to
release the four winds which will hurt the earth, the sea
and the trees. The hurting of the earth, the sea and the trees
is in fact the beginning of the 7th seal.
The 7th seal is divided into seven
sub-sections, each introduced by a Trumpet blast. The seven Trumpets,
in other words, constitute the 7th seal; they are the 7th seal
in terrifying detail.
Remember this important point, for great confusion will result if the seven seals and the seven trumpets are treated as two separate prophecies. The 7th seal is introduced with these words:
Rev.8: 1: And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour. 2: And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets.
The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up. (Rev. 8:7)
At this Trumpet, mighty continents housing
millions of human beings will be devastated by hail and fire mingled
with blood. Similar scenes, though on a much smaller scale, were
witnessed in ancient times at the destruction of Sodom and Egypt.
(Gen. 19:24, Exodus 9:24) The God of Israel then literally rained
hail and fire on mankind because of their grievous sins and stubborn
refusal to acknowledge His authority. The same thing is due to
happen at the 1st Trumpet. We are also told that one third of
the world's forests and all the green grass will be burnt up.
As foretold in Rev. 7. 1-3 the four winds are
beginning to hurt the earth and the trees.
What these events do to the agricultural
output of the world is difficult to imagine: but it is quite obvious
that this 1st Trumpet ushers in the terrible Time of Trouble!
a time of international turmoil and terror unparalleled in the
history of humanity.
Rev.8: 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; 9: And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.
At this Trumpet one third of the earth's
oceans will congeal like the blood of a dead man. The sea, like
the earth and trees before it, is being hurt as foretold
in Rev. 7.1-3. All the traffic on the ocean/s involved will
stop; and all the fish in those waters will perish. In addition
to these immediate effects, there will be other awesome repercussions,
such as freak weather conditions, lack of rain water, fresh air
and oil. The oceans of the world, as any ecologist will confirm,
regulate the weather and help purify the very air we breathe.
So the death of even one ocean is a catastrophe of unimaginable
magnitude. This Trumpet, in short, will disrupt the weather, the
agricultural output, the economy and the physical welfare of the
whole human race.
At about this time the sun will begin
to scorch the earth, for the cooling effect of the oceans will
have diminished and drought will become a world-wide problem.
Hunger and thirst will then become as common in the West as they
are today in the East. The Great Tribulation will have
then entered its second terrifying stage.
Rev.8: 10: And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters; 11: And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.
Like the 1st and 2nd Trumpets before
it, the 3rd Trumpet causes untold damage and distress on earth.
A third of the rivers and fountains of water are now polluted
and many people die as a result. The question is often asked,
Could not the terms earth, sea, trees, grass, ships
and fish be symbolic?
A Voice In The Wilderness does not deny
that possibility for it obviously does exist. Indeed, some of
the terms (trees, grass, fish etc.) could easily be taken
to represent people and scriptural texts found in support. The
main reason why we favour the literal translation, however, and
avoid references to people, is because 'a third of mankind'
is scheduled to die under the 6th Trumpet That frightening
fact by itself, which is expressed twice in Revelation 9 verses
15 and 18, compels us towards the opinion of that the hurting
of a third of the sea, a third of the ships, a third of the rivers,
a third of the trees and all the green grass cannot also
refer to people, but must -
at least on a lower plane -
refer to the literal sea, ships, rivers, fish, trees and grass.
Indeed, it is difficult to imagine what else they could be, especially
when we remember that a third of the human race is scheduled to
die at the 6th Trumpet. Nevertheless, and we say this without
reservation, symbolic representation may still be present here;
but to date we have not come across any person capable of explaining
away the anomalies such an interpretation would create.
And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise. (Rev. 8:12)
The punishment hitherto confined to this
planet now mounts up to the heavens. The sun, moon, and stars
are somehow smitten and begin to shine with a greatly diminished
beam. How this almost unimaginable catastrophe is brought about
is not explained, but it is obvious that if this trumpet is understood
in a literal sense, then physical light as we know it will be
greatly reduced on earth.
Once again we ask the question: Could
it be that this Trumpet presents a symbolic picture of
heavenly powers, and that the sun, moon and the stars in this
instance actually stand for spiritual agents of light and energy
- perhaps
angel beings?
The possibility obviously must exist, especially in view of the plain statement like: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches. (Rev. 1:20) If this were the case, then this Trumpet's reference to darkened stars could well present a drastic reduction in angelic authority throughout the universe. A third of the angelic host - would be smitten by God, and their privilege and ability to radiate spiritual light taken from them. This Trumpet, then, may be the prelude which is mentioned in Revelation 12:9.
And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
Yes, the 4th Trumpet could well have
symbolic overtones; but whatever its interpretation, it sets the
scene for another dark age -
a spiritual twilight zone in time -
when light from heaven will diminish greatly and Satanic activity
on earth will increase sevenfold.
The picture presented so far is undoubtedly
grim and the reader is probably wondering if there is any good
news in this catalogue of catastrophe; any protection for the
true believer in the terrible Time of Trouble. We are happy
to report that there is a great deal of good news and a most encouraging
degree of protection; but these blessings are conditional, being
reserved for those who genuinely endeavour to obey God. (Read
Deuteronomy 28 for proof of the principle that the blessings of
God are reserved for the obedient.)
We have already seen that the Seal of
Yahweh the God of Israel is His law, and that His Sign
(signature) is the Sabbath commandment in His law. We have
also seen how that 144,000 believers will at that time accept
the Almighty's Seal in their minds, and will begin keeping the
commandments of God with faultless dedication and effect. The
blessings which follow that kind of obedience will be beyond comparison
and will manifest themselves in many miraculous ways during the
Time of Trouble. One of the blessings will be that of divine
protection. A perfect example of the protection afforded the
144,000 sealed believers in the Time of Trouble is given in Revelation
chapter 9, which outlines the event of the 5th Trumpet. In verse
4 we note -
with great relief -
that at that time all sealed believers (those who obey Yahweh's
law) will be supernaturally protected from torture and abuse.
All others will suffer. This matter of divine protection is
dealt with later. Yes, there will be protection during the Great
Tribulation, but it will be reserved for those who obey the Almighty
God and bear His Seal. Of all mankind, they alone will be kept
from Satan at the time of the end, and will walk unscathed through
the fiery trials just as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego did in
ancient Babylon. (Daniel 3) Indeed, those bygone experiences
in Daniel's day were especially staged by the Eternal as miniature
demonstrations, prophetic prototypes of a mighty deliverance
which is to be repeated on a world-wide scale before the entire
universe, when the Almighty will once again miraculously protect
His obedient servants form the terrors of the Evil One.
Bearing these reassuring thoughts in mind, let us now return to the prophecy of the seven seals, for there are still three trumpets to explain. The last three Trumpets (5, 6 and 7) are so fearful that even by angel standards they are classified as 'Woes.'
And I beheld, and heard an angel flying
through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe,
woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the
other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet
to sound! (Rev.8:13)
The Fifth Trumpetst Woe)
Rev.9: 1: And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. 2: 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. 3: 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. 4: 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. 5: 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. 6: And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.
No one will deny, but that here before us is a picture of absolute terror, when for 5 months earth's mighty population, all except the sealed servants of Yahweh, will be tormented by a host of merciless beings who are to arise from the bottomless pit. For obvious reasons we will not dwell on this frightening aspect of the prophecy once having presented it. Instead, we will briefly answer the following questions and point to a way of escape.
1) What is the bottomless pit?
2) And who are the beings that
ascend out of it?
The general lack of interest in the Revelation
has over the years resulted in a dearth of information about the
bottomless pit. But it is obviously a subject which
all the world should know about; for is not mankind going to be
tormented for 5 months by beings which come out of the bottomless
pit? The answers to those two questions about the bottomless
pit and it occupants are of vital importance, so let us closely
study the matter.
The original Greek word abussos
is translated in the Bible (in Rev. 9:1) as bottomless
pit. Some Bible dictionaries render abussos as 'abyss.'
The word abussos means exceedingly deep gulf or pit.
Abussos is also used in Luke's gospel where it is translated
simply as the deep. In the incident recorded in
Luke 8. 26-36 we are given an important clue as to what the abyss
is and how frightened evil angels are of being sent there. If
the reader will turn to Luke's gospel he will see (in verse 31)
how certain devils who had taken possession of a man were themselves
terrified of being ordered into the abyss. They literally begged
the Messiah for permission to enter a herd of swine rather than
be sentenced to the abussos -
the exceedingly deep pit.
From this incident we can see that the abussos, the bottomless pit is a place or condition which evil angels dread; a kind of spirit penitentiary or dungeon which existed thousands of years ago. Strong's concordance describing the 'bottomless pit' says it is a:
"pit of immeasurable depth, a very deep gulf or chasm in the lowest parts of the earth used as the common receptacle of the dead and especially as the abode of demons."
It is from somewhere within that unlit dungeon that a myriad symbolic locusts will arise at the 5th Trumpet or 1st Woe. (Rev. 9:1-3) What are these locusts that torture mankind for five months? They are evil angels, devils of mind-bending depravity who were sentenced to the abyss long before the early Christian era. At this very moment (August 1998) they are still chained and completely immobilized within the blackness of the abyss, held there in total darkness awaiting the judgment of the Great Day. Here is proof of this astounding fact.
For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; (2 Peter 2:4)
And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. (Jude 6)
Yes, fallen angels are at this moment held captive in the abyss, the bottomless pit, fettered in a way we humans do not properly understand, so the symbol of a 'chain' is used to help us. At the 1st Woe, a mighty angel (star) will be divinely authorized to open the abyss, and out will pour this host of devils like the smoke of a great furnace. (Rev. 9:1-5) The only people on earth who will be protected from their sadistic onslaught will be the ones who bear in their foreheads the Seal of the God of Israel. All others will be tormented. Here is proof of this frightening fact.
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..(Rev. 9:4)
Without labouring the point, we will
at this stage again respectfully remind the reader to seriously
consider accepting Yahweh's Seal, for fearful indeed will be the
lot of those who reject it. References in this woe to Abaddon,
the king of the bottomless pit (verse 11) are covered later where
the identity of this king who is to ascend from the bottomless
pit is considered.
Revelation 9:12 brings us to the end
of the 1st woe (the 5th Trumpet). The reader will have noticed
that even though the scenes portrayed here are fearsome, divine
protection is assured to those who have God's Seal, especially
from the terrors of Abaddon the Destroyer from the Abyss.
The Sixth Trumpet (The 2nd Woe)
Rev.9: 12: One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter. 13: And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, 14: Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates. 15: 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. 16: And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them. 17: 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. 18: 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.
The events that occur at the 2nd Woe
are so catastrophic that nothing we can say or write will adequately
describe them. Here is a woe that defies the imagination and leaves
even the enlightened believer aghast; and because of this we will
simply list the three main events scheduled to occur at this Trumpet
and then very briefly explain them.
To begin with, the reader must bear in
mind that the record of the 2nd Woe begins in Rev. 9.12, continues
right through chapter 10 and ends at Rev. 11 verse 14. The
events that are described between these two scriptural boundaries,
therefore, are contemporary, they occur during the same period
of time, that is - during the 2nd Woe. This is
an important point to remember, especially when trying to interpret
the events of Revelation chapter 11, which deals initially with
the overthrow of Jerusalem and the work of the Two Witnesses.
The three main events scheduled to occur at the 2nd Woe (the 6th Trumpet) are as follows:
Let us now consider these three events
and discover what is going to happen on earth at the 2nd Woe.
The Great River Euphrates mentioned in Revelation 9: 14 is not
the natural stream of water which flows in the Middle East, but
a great spiritual outflow upon which sits that mighty metropolis
of evil, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS! The
literal Euphrates on earth, real enough though it is, is merely
the physical replica or shadow of the Great River Euphrates
above. At this point we will briefly explain the second, vital
clue to understanding Bible prophecy.
The first clue is
to realize that certain prophecies in God's Word are written in
symbolic language. To understand them one must compare scripture
with scripture and allow the Bible to interpret itself. This
process was explained earlier.
The second clue is to know that
certain realities in the spirit realm above are reflected or duplicated
in some physical way on this earth. In other words, here below,
in a very real and measurable form, we find miniature models,
transient earthly counterparts, scaled-down physical replicas
of the mighty spiritual originals which exist in the realms
above. There is, then, this significant difference between a symbol
and a model. Symbols are used in Bible prophecy
to represent the qualities, characteristics, procedures, work
and purposes of human or spiritual agencies. Whereas models
are miniature copies or replicas of the agencies themselves.
For example, consider a candlestick. It is used in Bible prophecy
to symbolize the church's duty or purpose to shed spiritual
light. A candlestick is a symbol of a church group, not
a replica of one. The literal Euphrates, on the other hand, is
a model, a scaled-down physical replica, a miniature copy of
the spiritual Euphrates above. The prophecy of the Revelation
has a great deal to say about these earthly counterparts;
and as we study them here below we are able to learn a great deal
about what is happening in the realms above.
Returning to the prophecy with this second
clue in mind, we find that at the 2nd Woe four mighty angels are
released from somewhere within the Great River Euphrates. They
are obviously beings of awesome authority and power, and in the
echelons of evil they stand as near to Satan as the four living
creatures do to God. (see Rev. 4:6-8 where the throne of the Almighty
is briefly described)
One Third of Mankind Slain
Marshalling an army of some two hundred
thousand, thousand (200,000,000) these four demons slaughter
one third of mankind! Statisticians tell us: that in the
year 1500 the world's population stood at around 500 million.
By the year 1800, just 300 years later, it had doubled and topped
the 1000 million mark. By the year 1930, a mere 130 years later,
it had doubled again and stood at 2,000 million. And by the end
of this century, barely 18 years hence, it will have rocketed
to over 6,000 million souls! That's how fast the world's
population is growing.
This prophecy states that at the 2nd
Woe, one third of mankind will be slain. That's 2 billion people!
Let the reader pause for a moment and consider that stunning fact; for it means that in the near future, even at the present count, some 2,000,000,000 people are going to die at this Woe. This colossal figure of two thousand million represents the combined populations of China, and India. Or, put another way, all of Europe, the U.S.A Canada, Russia, Japan and several other nations besides. How this coming holocaust will be brought about is not fully explained; but it is going to happen nonetheless, for the scripture must be fulfilled. I repeat: One third of earth's population are scheduled to die under this 2nd Woe! We could, of course, speculate as to what type of warfare, if any, will bring this about (nuclear, biological, chemical, radiological, electronic or conventional) but we will not, because we could be totally wrong. The prophecy simply states that:
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. (Rev. 9:15)
Strange as it may seem, the remaining
two thirds of mankind do not link this massive slaughter with
personal or national sin: for we are told that at
that time people will still be unrepentant and will continue in
their witchcraft, idolatry, deception and blasphemy. (Rev. 9:20-21)
Here is spiritual blindness (or is it stubborn pride?) as its
worst. Chapter 10 is inserted into the mainstream of the prophecy
at this stage and the scene changes somewhat.
The reader must, however, bear in
mind that the 2nd Woe is still in progress and will remain so
till Revelation 11 verse 14 is reached.
In chapter 10 we read of how the prophet
is given a little, open book. He is told to eat
it. The open book could either be the prophetic book of Daniel,
which was to be kept sealed or shut till the time of the end when
it would be understood (Daniel 12:4). Or it could be the seven-sealed
scroll which the Lamb had just taken from the Almighty's hand
and opened seal by seal (Rev. 5:1-5). Either way, the message
of the open book is sweet to the taste; that is, to those who
figuratively eat, understand and believe it.
But the reality of this Woe, when witnessed, is very, very bitter
indeed. 'One third of mankind is slain!' That,
dear reader, is a bitter prospect by anyone's standards. The
bitterness will be bearable, however, especially when one considers
that the prophecy does not have long to run. The end of all things
will take place, we are told, in the days of the seventh
angel, when he begins to sound his trumpet. (Rev. 10:7)
The message of Revelation 10 is one of great encouragement, for it reminds all believers of two things:
Having briefly considered the message
of Revelation chapter 10, let us now return to the mainstream
of the prophecy and continue with the events of the 2nd Woe.
Jerusalem's Capture
The second event scheduled to
take place at the 2nd Woe (6th Trumpet) concerns the
holy city of Jerusalem, which is to be captured by the
Gentiles and dominated for a period of 42 months.
But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months. (Rev. 11:2)
We know that the term 'holy' or
'great city' means Jerusalem because in verse 8 it identifies
this city as 'where also our Lord was crucified.'
That means - Jerusalem. The rising tension in the
Middle East strongly suggests that an all-out attack on Jerusalem
is not only inevitable -
but near. The whole Arab world, and many other nations
besides, are lining up against the tiny nation of Israel, and
it will not be long before the predicted attack will occur and
Jerusalem will be captured.
Please note that the 42 month duration
of Jerusalem's subjugation is 42 literal months, which is 1260
days or three and a half years. The principle of reckoning a day
for a year and arriving at 1260 years does not apply in the prophecy
of the Revelation. Some commentators have used that principle
here and as a result have been obliged to begin this Woe in the
distant past, some 1260 years ago. Because of this misapplication
they have been unable to point to any time since the Revelation
was given (AD96) when a 'third of mankind was slain,' or
when 'Jerusalem was under the heel of the Gentiles for
1260 years.' Never in history has a third of mankind been
slain; nor has Jerusalem ever been trampled under foot by Gentiles
for an exact period of 1260 years, or days for that matter. Any
historian will confirm that Jerusalem has been over-run by Gentile
armies several times in its long and tumultuous past, but never
for an exact period of 1260 years. So the day for a year
principle cannot possibly apply in the book of Revelation.
The only remaining alternative is that
at the 2nd Woe -
which is still future -
the present Middle East crisis will erupt and after another blood-bath
the city of Jerusalem will be captured by the Gentiles. The exact
42 months period of brutal domination will then begin. Grim though
this prospect may appear to those of us who worship the God of
Israel, all is not lost, for the Messiah is scheduled to return
to earth and to liberate Jerusalem from Gentile rule.
Speaking through the prophet Zechariah, Yahweh the Almighty God of Israel has this to say about the end-time capture and liberation of Jerusalem.
Zec.14: 1: Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. 2: For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. 3: Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. 4: And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. 5: And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee. 6: And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark: 7: But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light. 8: And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be. 9: And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.
This amazing prophecy about Jerusalem
being attacked, captured and then miraculously delivered by the
Messiah who is to descend upon the split Mount of Olives has obviously
never been fulfilled. In other words, it has still to happen;
and happen it will in the near future. All the events in
the Middle East indicate that the final scenes are set; the mounting
tension, the anger of the nations at Israel's behaviour, the utter
fruitlessness of the various peace talks, the trade and arms embargoes,
the outbreaks of anti-Semitism around the globe, all these
indicate that a multinational attack on Jerusalem is not only
certain but imminent.
We may be absolutely sure, however, that in spite of all these foreboding signs, pregnant with peril as most of them are, behind and above them all the Almighty God of Israel is working His twofold plan out. And that plan is this:
Measure the Temple
The 42 month subjugation of Jerusalem,
followed by its dramatic liberation by the Messiah, will accomplish
the first part of the plan. And the instruction to rise and
measure the Temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship
therein (Rev. 11:1) will trigger the second. Let me explain
further.
Following the clue of comparing scripture with scripture, we will turn to the prophecy of Ezekiel where in chapters 40 and 43 a similar instruction to measure the Temple of God was carried out. In the vision of Ezekiel, the prophet is given detailed measurements of every conceivable part of the temple: the wall, the gates, the chambers, the pillars and posts, the steps, the galleries, the courts and even the territory on which the temple stood. All were accurately measured and the specifications cover several chapters of Ezekiel's book.
"And why." you may well ask, "was the temple measured? What was the Almighty's purpose in ordering that painstaking exercise?"
The answer is, the temple was measured so that God's people could see, investigate and learn to live by the laws and principles which govern true worship of Yahweh the God of Israel. Here is proof of this astonishing fact.
Ezekiel 43: 10: Thou son of man, shew the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities: and let them measure the pattern. 11: And if they be ashamed of all that they have done, shew them the form of the house, and the fashion thereof, and the goings out thereof, and the comings in thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws thereof: and write it in their sight, that they may keep the whole form thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them.
The order to rise and measure
the Temple, in other words, is the Almighty's way of drawing
His people's attention to the principles and laws of the Temple
in Heaven: the sacred original of which the earthly temple was
but a copy. And this is precisely what He aims to do during the
2nd Woe, while a third of earth's mighty population is perishing.
He will then open the eyes of the innumerable multitude of believers
to the eternal principles and laws of the Temple in Heaven, its
layout, its structure, its services and its divine purpose.
And many believers who had previously rejected the commandments
of God at the time of Sealing will at this Woe begin to understand
and obey the regulations of the Temple which governs the worship
of Yahweh the Almighty God of Israel. They will then repent
of their sins and begin to keep the commandments of God in accordance
with His will.
The Ark of the Covenant
Towards the end of Revelation chapter
11 the prophet John tells of the heavenly Temple being opened.
What did he see inside that sacred place? He saw, believe it or
not, the Ark of the Covenant, the heavenly original
which contains the Ten Commandments. Please note
that John saw this some 60 years after the resurrection, so the
commandments were not cancelled at Calvary as many Christians
suppose.
And the Temple of God was opened in heaven and there was seen in his Temple the Ark of his Testament. (Rev. 11:19)
Yes, the Ark of the Testament, in which is deposited the original version of Yahweh's perfect law, (the eternal constitution of the mighty universe) is still within the heavenly Temple and John saw it over 60 years after the resurrection. The reader may be sure that at the 2nd Woe, when the Temple in heaven is measured, those same principles and laws enshrined within the Ark of the Covenant will arouse the interest of believers all over the world. Then many will be ashamed of their hitherto rebellious attitude towards Jehovah's laws and will begin to keep His commandments just as He directed in the vision of Ezekiel.
… write it in their sight, that they may keep the whole form thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them. (Ezekiel 43:11)
This measuring of the Temple, in short,
is a divine call to obedience, a call which is directly linked
with the message of the Two Witnesses, who we will now consider.
The Two Witnesses
The
third major event to occur during the 2nd Woe
(6th trumpet) will be the powerful work, death and
resurrection of the Two Witnesses.
Rev.11: 3: And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. 4: These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. 5: And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. 6: These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will. 7: And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.
Who are the Two Witnesses, the two symbolic olive trees that stand before the God of the earth? They are two spirit-filled beings who come down from the Temple in Heaven. The prophet Zechariah tells of them in the following words:
Zechariah 4: 11: Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof? 12: And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves? 13: And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord. 14: Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the LORD of the whole earth.
Though we cannot at this stage be certain as to the identity of the Two Witnesses, because their names are not given, these scriptures tell us the following facts about the Two Witnesses and their work.
a) They are two spirit-filled sons of oil who stand in the very presence of the God of the whole earth. (Zech. 4:14, Rev. 11:4)
b) Like the two angel messengers who visited Sodom before its overthrow (Genesis 19), they will come down to the earth just before the end of this age to give mankind a final warning before the seven lasts plagues devastate the earth.
c) They will preach for a period of 1260 days, which is 42 months, the exact duration of Jerusalem's final subjugation. (Rev. 11:2-3)
d) Being filled with the Spirit of God, they will have supernatural powers, and no humans will dare restrain them for fear of speedy retribution. (Rev. 11:5)
e) At the end of the 42 month period they will be murdered by the Beast who rose from the bottomless pit at the 1st Woe. Their bodies will then be exhibited in the occupied city of Jerusalem, where the Lord was crucified, and the world will rejoice at their apparent end; for they and their message where most unpopular. (Rev. 11:7-10)
f) Then after three and a half days they will be raised to life and will ascend to heaven in full view of their enemies. (Rev. 11:11-13)
g) The 2nd Woe or 6th Trumpet will end at the time of their resurrection. (Rev. 11:14)
It is not necessary at this point in
time to further identify the Two Witnesses, because when they
do eventually arrive on the earth the whole world will speedily
become aware of their presence. There will be no mistaking them
or the absolute authority with which they preach. Even in the
city of Jerusalem, which at the time will be under the Gentile
heel, they will declare the message of God with awesome effect.
No earthly authority will dare restrain them, for like Elijah
of old they are able to reduce their opponents to ashes; and like
Moses and Aaron, can cause all manner of plagues. (2 Kings 1,
Exodus chapters 7 to 12)
Many and varied have been the claims
and interpretations concerning the Two Witnesses, but not one
of them meets all the conditions listed above. Nor is that surprising,
for these two divine messengers can only appear on the world's
scene at God's appointed time, which is when a third of the world's
population is being slain and the city of Jerusalem is under the
Gentile heel. When they do arrive, however, they will bring to
all mankind a final appeal from God. Their message will be, in
fact, the same call to repentance and obedience which every
true prophet of God has delivered since the days of Enoch. Multitudes
of believers from every nation, kindred tongue and people will
heed their call and begin to obey God's law. This will be the
time when the innumerable multitude (see page 12) will wash
their robes and come into line with the eternal principles
of God's law which is within the Ark of the Covenant
inside the Temple of Heaven.
The vast majority of mankind, however,
will reject the Two Witnesses and their powerful call to repentance,
faith and obedience. Why? Because at about that time the most
diabolical Agent of Evil this world has ever seen will be parading
the earth and seducing its inhabitants into serving Satan. The
Two Witnesses will be murdered by this being, who is symbolically
referred to in the Revelation as the Beast.
See AVITW articles the Two Witnesses and Who/What is the Antichrist for more information on these beings. This brings us to the end of the 6th Trumpet, the terrifying 2nd Woe, when within a short space of three and a half years:
The second Woe is past; and behold
a third woe cometh quickly.
(Rev. . 11:14)
The Seventh Trumpet (The 3rd Woe)
Rev.11: 15: And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. 16: And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, 17: Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned. 18: And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth. 19: And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.
The 7th Trumpet brings us to the climax
of human history, when another mass-confrontation between good
and evil will take place. It will commence with a spiritual
election which will test the allegiance of every
soul on earth; will then progress through the unimaginable terrors
of the seven last plagues (called the Wrath of God) and
end with the total overthrow of Satan and his system.
Fearsome though the events of this Trumpet are, and this is why it is called a Woe, great joy will overwhelm the heavenly host at its sounding (Rev. 11:15), for only then will the mystery of God be finished. We know this from the following verse.
But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets. (Rev. 10:7)
To most people God is a mystery and His
involvement with mankind is even more mysterious than His invisible
presence. How often have we heard people say: "If God
is a God of love and is all-powerful as He claims to be, why doesn't
He put an end to human suffering?" Or "What
is God doing about the rising tide of crime? Why doesn't He use
His power to prevent sickness, sorrow, pain and death? Doesn't
He care?"
Questions like these, many of them awash
with tears, are repeatedly voiced by people all over the globe.
And, as conditions worsen, the same apparently cruel response
comes back from heaven -
a bewildering, deathly silence. At the 7th Trumpet (the 3rd Woe)
that silence will be broken. The mystery of God,
hidden from most of humanity since the dawn of time, will be finished
and made plain. All the questions about God's strange dealings
will then be answered.
Analysing the main events of the 3rd Woe we discover that they fall into three distinct categories involving authority, anger and reward. These three are summarized in the following words. The words in bold type are ours.
Rev. 11:17: Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned. (AUTHORITY) 18: And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come (ANGER) and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth. (REWARD)
Most of the remaining chapters in Revelation
tell of the final scenes on earth just before the end of this
age, and in varying degrees they deal with either a call to recognize
Yahweh's authority, the outpouring of His anger
or the distribution of His rewards. Let us now very briefly
consider these chapters. It would obviously help a great deal
if the reader read each chapter before the explanation.
REVELATION 12
In this chapter we are given a symbolic
overview of Satan's age-old revolt against the authority of God,
a revolt which began in the distant past but still manifests itself
in hatred for the people of Zion, the Messiah of Israel and all
commandment-keeping believers down to this present day. In vision
the prophet is shown a 'woman clothed with the sun and standing
on the moon.' A symbolic dragon then tries to devour
her child at its birth, but the boy is caught up to God and to
His throne. The dragon then turns on the woman in an effort to
kill her, but she is miraculously lifted out of his reach and
taken to the wilderness, where she is nourished for a period of
three and a half years (verses 13-14). In a fit of fury the dragon
then turns on the woman's remaining offspring, the 'remnant
of her seed,' who are still in human society and who keep
the commandments of God (verse 17).
The woman in this vision,
who is seen standing on the moon, represents the ekklesia
of Yahweh, the spiritually called
out ones, the 'wife' or church of the Almighty,
whose faithful members make up the Israel of God.
The 'man-child' who is to rule all nations with the rod of iron (absolute authority) is Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ), the only begotten Son of the living God.
The 'dragon' is Satan the Devil,
the leader of the revolution against the Eternal. During this
Woe, the Almighty will miraculously protect his spiritual 'wife',
the church, from Satan's wrath, especially those of Zion who are
clothed in His righteousness and who take their stand upon the
requirements of His calendar -
which is symbolized by the moon. If you would like to know about
Yahweh's Calendar and of His sacred festivals which are
directly linked to these prophecies in Revelation, write for our
free booklet entitled The Sacred Calendar of the God
of Israel. The booklet will introduce you to the amazing time-element
in Yahweh's schedule of salvation, something so few believers
know anything about.
REVELATION 13
This chapter is a forecast of the strangest
spiritual election ever to be staged in the history of
humanity. The electorate will be the citizens of every
nation and the main issue will concern obedience to the law of
Yahweh the Almighty God of Israel.
Satan's visible representative on earth
at the time will be the Man of Sin, the Antichrist,
the coming World Dictator. He will be a being of commanding
presence and power, and will exercise all the authority of the
Devil himself. The Man of Sin is symbolically referred to in the
Revelation as the BEAST! According to the prophet John,
the Beast is scheduled to make a personal appearance on
earth at this Seal, and will govern the whole of the world for
a period of three and a half years. The vast majority of mankind,
we are told, will worship him in abject terror, demonstrating
their acceptance of his authority by doing his will and receiving
his Mark.
Those who refuse to accept the Mark of the Beast will lose the right to buy and sell. In other words they will be totally barred from the world's markets, banks and other economic institutions. On the other hand, those who do worship the Beast will receive the full measure of Yahweh's anger, which is to be poured out undiluted on mankind in the form of the seven last plagues.
A symbolic description of this coming World Dictator is given below:
Rev.13: 1: And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. 2: And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. 3: And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
4: And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? 5: And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. 6: And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. 7: And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. 8: And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. 9: If any man have an ear, let him hear.
The Apostle Paul writing in plain language about the same being - the Man of Sin - said this:
2 Thessalonians 2: 1: Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, 2: That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 3: Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 4: Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. 5: Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? 6: And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. 7: For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 8: And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.
Yahweh's warning message against worshipping the Beast and accepting his Mark is as follows:
Rev.14: 9: And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, 10: The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: 11: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
Who will dispute but that here before us is a prophetic warning of unparalleled importance; which we must understand if we wish to escape the wrath of the Almighty. The two burning questions that immediately come to mind are:
THE BEAST OF REVELATION 13
Countless millions of words have been
penned over the centuries as to the Beast and almost every major
political or religious power has at some time been classified
as being the Beast, the Antichrist!
The Beast we are told is:
The list is long and confusing to say
the least, but it is obviously an important issue which we must
settle if we want to escape the wrath of the Almighty God. And
so we ask, which one of these -
if any -
is the Beast? Before we give our answer let us make one point
clear; the Scriptures do not state in plain and simple language
who the Beast is. Nonetheless, we are given a number of vital
clues as to his identity, clues which we must bear in mind
if we are not to be taken in by every plausible theory that comes
our way. Six clues as to the Beast's identity are considered
below for the reader's guidance.
CLUE ONE … He is the Lawless
One
Elsewhere in the Scriptures we are told
that this same blasphemous power, who is scheduled to arrive on
the world scene just before the return of the Messiah, is the
Lawless One, the Wicked One, the Man of Sin.
(2 Thess. 2:1-9)
He is the Lawless One because he not only breaks God's law, but vainly imagines that he can change it. The commandment he is particularly interested in trying to change is the one dealing with the sacred seasons, with TIME. This, of course, is the Sabbath commandment; for that is the only one which deals with the element of time. (Daniel 7:25)
He ... shall think to change times and laws.
This first clue, in short, tells us that the Beast is an outlaw, a blatant sinner, whose main objective is to change the times in Yahweh's law. In other words, he thinks he can change the Sabbath commandments; for these are the only ones dealing with the element of time.
CLUE TWO … He existed before
the vision of the Revelation was given.
Our next clue comes from the lips of
a mighty angel who plainly tells us that the Beast was in existence
before the Revelation was given, but was not alive at the
time it was given.
The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit…(Rev. 17:8)
This is a vitally important clue, for it means that when establishing his identity we will need to look for a person or