The Revelation of Jesus Christ
To the Apostle John
Study
2 Chapters 4-8
The
Things Which Will Take Place After This (Chap. 4-22)
Chapter 4 – Worship In Heaven
We come to the third main division of Revelation. The
first three chapters described the Church Age from the time of the apostles until the Rapture. Beginning
with this chapter, the subject is “things which mist take place after
this.”
The church is never mentioned again as being on earth. What has happened
to it? The Lord at the end of chapter 3 took it to heaven! The saints are in place in heaven and the Lord now resumes His dealings with the nation of Israel. Then will begin the Great Tribulation. The
Lord deals with Jewish people concerning their past rejection of Messiah during this seven-year period.
Those who turn to Christ during the Trib. will be saved to enter God’s glorious Kingdom, but those who refuse
Him will be destroyed in the Lake of fire.
4:1 - A voice issues from the open door in heaven
commanding John to “Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after these things.” This is the voice of the Lord Jesus and His Spirit takes control of John in a special way. John immediately sees the Throne Room of God in all its wonder, the eternal Father
God sitting on His throne in majesty and splendor. He is described as being as
brilliant as two precious stones, the jasper clear as crystal (a diamond), and the carnelian, or sardius stone, a blood-red
ruby, beyond description, yet beautiful, powerful, and majestic. A rainbow of emerald surrounds
the throne, a pledge that God will keep His covenants, in spite of the coming judgments.
4:4 -Twenty four elders
surround Him – these may be angels, the redeemed people of both the OT and NT, or NT saints only (representing
the church). They are crowned and enthroned meaning they are saints
who have been judged and rewarded, representatives of the completed body of Christ. Their white robes indicate that their resurrection has already taken place
4:5 – The throne is one of judgment,
with terrifying lightening, thunders and voices. The seven lamp-stands of fire
represent the HS in His fullness and majesty. The seven represents perfection and completeness. The “sea of glass” before the throne reminds us of Exodus 24:10 when Moses, Aaron, and the
elders of Israel saw “God on His throne and under His feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone, and it was
like the very heavens in its clarity”
4:6-8 –The “four living creatures”
–are always associated with worship of God. Ezekiel 10:20 identifies
them as cherubim, the highest of the angels, the worship leaders of heaven. They
are “covered with eyes, front and back,” suggesting the omniscience of God. They never rest, indicating that God neither sleeps nor slumbers but is constantly working out His
plan. They parallel the way Christ is described in the Gospels: as a lion in Matthew, a
King; as a calf or ox in Mark, a Servant; as a man in Luke, as the Son of Man; as an eagle in John, the Son of God.
4:9-11 – Whenever
the four living creatures give glory to God, the 24 elders fall down, worship God, and cast
their crowns before Him, aware that God alone is responsible
for the rewards they receive. They give Him all the glory. Their crowns are rewards for things accomplished in His service.
Chapter 5 –The Lamb Opens the Seven-Sealed Scroll
The worship of Rev. 4 centers on the One Who sits on the throne – God the Father; the worship
of Rev. 5 focuses on the One Who sits on the right hand of the Father, the Lamb
of God, Jesus Christ.
John once again says, “I
saw,” and what he sees brings wonder with fear,
trembling and sadness. Jesus is once again revealed to Him, but this Jesus is
far different from the One Who was slain on the cross. The things revealed are
the completion of the work started by Christ years before, the humble carpenter now the Lion of Judah with a task ahead
that will end all history, as we know it.
5:1 – We are still
in the Throne Room of God and the Father on the throne holds in His hand a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals; the title deed to the earth,
the inheritance that belongs to Jesus Christ and is rightly His. The scroll unravels
the events of the Trib. period, and appears to be a summary of what God intends to do in bringing world history to a grand
finale. A Roman law required a will to be sealed seven times; sealed, rolled, sealed, rolled, etc. seven times,
each seal being broken. This seal is similar, revealing a special message of
what God will do to the planet earth at the “end time.” In Daniel 12:4, we read
that Daniel was instructed to “shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end.” In Rev., the scroll with seven seals is unrolled, and the words are finally revealed. All that is contained in chpt.6-22 is seen in the scroll.
5:2,3 – A strong
angel appeals for someone worthy to open the scroll and break the seals, but no one is found worthy in heaven or on
earth.
5:4,5 – John weeps
because no one is found worthy, but one of the 24 elders comforts him with the good news that the Lion of the Tribe of
Judah, the heir to David’s throne was qualified to open the scrolls, break the seals, and release the judgments. Jesus alone is qualified to be the Judge.
5:6 – John sees a
little Lamb (in Rev. our Lord is presented as both a Lion and a Lamb; as the Lion He is the Judge; as the Lamb, He is the sacrificial One, bearing the
sins of the world.), standing before the throne. He had seven horns (His omnipotence,
all powerful) and seven eyes (His omniscience, all knowing). These horns
and eyes represent the seven spirits of God, the full measure of the HS, sent out to all the earth (suggests His omnipresence). This Lamb is Jesus, no longer sitting on the right hand of the throne, he is at long
last ready to complete the work He started so long ago and what only He can achieve.
5:7,8 – Jesus the
Lamb, steps forward and takes the scroll from His Father’s hand as the Kingdom of the Messiah is given to Him by the
Heavenly Father. The 4 living creatures and the 24 elders fall down in worship;
each held a “harp and golden bowls of incense” – probably the prayers of the martyrs crying to Jesus to avenge
their blood (6:10) or they may be prayers of intercession for those believers in the Trib. period and for the nation Israel
5:9,10 – They sang
a new song of Redemption: It tells why the Lamb is worthy – because He
was slain, because He redeemed us by His blood, and because He made us kings and priests. The elders represent every tribe and tongue and people and nation – the gospel has been preached
to all the nations as He commanded.
5:11,12 – The millions
of angels with all the host of heaven join in a mighty song of worship and praise. We
need to join in the song because the Lamb was slain for us. He receives: power-over my life,
the church, the world, the universe; riches –over all my money, silver and gold; wisdom – all the finest of my intellectual powers; strength – power over my physical
strength for His service; honor –my single, pure desire to magnify Him in all
my ways for all my life; glory –my entire life devoted to glorifying Him; blessing –all my powers of praise for Him.
What am I without Him?
5:13,14 – The entire
creation burst out in song in honor, and glory, and praise for the Father on the Throne and for His Lamb, forever and ever! The finale! The 24 elders cry “Amen” and fall
down in worship.
The
Lamb Breaks the First Six Seals - Chapter 6
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
We turn a new page as heavenly praise turns to a description of the Great Tribulation,
which will take place on the earth. Chap. 6-19 describe this Tribulation period
which Daniel (Dan. 9:24-27; 12:1-2) and Jesus Christ refer to (Matt. 24-25; Mark 13; Luke 21).
We assume the pre-Trib. position that these things are yet to be; others believe that many of these events have taken
place throughout history, while yet others believe that we are living in the Tribulation period today.
A general outline for the nest several chapters, 6-16, contains three sets of judgments-
seal, trumpets, and bowls, all of which happen in order, one following the other.
1.
The Scroll With the Seven Seals is Opened: The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse:
·
1st Seal; a rider
on a white horse
·
2nd Seal: a rider
on a red horse
·
3rd Seal: a rider
on a black horse
·
4th Seal: A rider
on a pale horse
·
5th Seal: martyrs
·
6th Seal: a great
earthquake
2.
The Great Day Of His Wrath Has Come
·
7th Seal; Seven angels sound trumpets:
1.
1st Trumpet: trees
and grass burned up
2.
2nd Trumpet: bloody
seas
3.
3rd Trumpet; bitter
waters and springs
4.
4th Trumpet: partial
eclipse
5.
5th Trumpet: locust
plague
6.
6th Trumpet: demonic
horsemen
7.
7th Trumpet: seven
bowls of wrath poured out
3.
In Them the Wrath of God Is Complete:
1.
1st Bowl: terrible
sores
2.
2nd Bowl: sea life
destroyed
3.
3rd Bowel” bloody
rivers and springs
4.
4th Bowl; sun scorching
with great heat
5.
5th Bowl: total eclipse
6.
6th Bowel: Battle of
Armageddon
7.
7th Bowl: mighty earth
quake
The First Seal Judgment: A Rider On A White Horse (6:2)
6:1,2 - It begins! The Lamb breaks the first seal of God’s judgment on the earth. One of the 4 living creatures cries out “come and
see.” In response, a rider, possibly the Antichrist, carrying
a bow, comes forth on a white horse. In Scripture, a horse is often used as a
symbol of war. At the end time, Jesus returns on a white horse to settle the
Battle of Armageddon (19:11,12). The white color suggests that the rider wins
victories without bloodshed, peaceful victories. The Antichrist begins his takeover of
the world proclaiming peace. This rider has authority and position not earned
but given “a crown was given him.” He has a bow depicting military conquest, but no
arrows, meaning he conquers without physical war –
“He rode out to win many battles and gain victory.” His motive is to achieve
military victory. The crown he wears is a stephanos, which means “victor” as opposed to the
many crowns Jesus wears, “diademnata,” which are royal crowns. The
Great Tribulation begins with a new ruler rising to power, the same one predicted by Daniel (Dan. 7,9,11). In 2 Thess.2, Paul calls this coming world leader, “The man of sin,” “the man of perdition
(utter destruction),” and “the lawless one.” In v.4, Paul reiterates
the words of Daniel, spoken over five hundred years before, “this Son of perdition appears and exalts himself above
all that is called God or that is worshipped, so that he sits as God in the Temple of God, showing himself that he is God.” He is empowered by Satan.
6:3,4 – The second
living creature summons the second rider to come forth. He carries a great sword and rides on a horse that
is fiery red. A sword is used in hand-to-hand combat.
The second seal foresees invading armies in fierce person-to-person warfare.
This second rider takes peace from the earth. Satan is seen as the “great,
fiery red dragon (12:3), and probably relates to this horse. Many people are
killed and military power is place in the hands of one man, the Antichrist.
6:5,6 - The Lamb breaks
the third seal
and a rider holding a set of scales comes forth on a black horse. This represents famine, which often
follows war. A voice from among the living creatures announced that wheat and
barley were going to be sold at prohibitive prices. The scales were used to weigh
the rationed grain and are a symbol of famine. The scales indicate that the economic balance of things
will be altered. The creature warns, “Do not waste the oil and wine.” It seems likely that these luxury items are reserved for the rich, who often profit
in times of trouble.
6:7,8 – The fourth living being
calls forth the rider on a pale (green) horse, the color of a corpse. Death and the Grave are associated with the rider; death associated with the body and the Grave (Hades) with the spirit and the soul. By means of war, famine, disease (Ezek. 14:21), and wild beasts, a fourth
of earth’s inhabitants (about one and a half
billion people) are destroyed.
6:9-11 - The Lamb breaks
the fifth seal
and we are introduced to the first martyrs of the Trib. period (matt.24: 9), Jewish believers who go out and preach the gospel and who are
slain for their testimony. Their souls are under the altar in heaven- possibly the
altar of incense indicating the prayers lifted up for these saints. They are
told to rest just a little while longer until the full number of believers had been martyred.
What a time of horror and righteous judgment, for all have had the opportunity to come to Christ for redemption –“there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
6:12,14 – The
opening of the sixth seal by the Lamb sets off a great earthquake, which shakes the land and the sea, and the starry heavens are thrown into disorder. The sun is darkened and the moon turned red like blood. Stars…fell to the earth like ripe
figs when the tree is shaken violently. The sky was rolled up like a scroll –the
earth’s atmosphere will be drastically altered and the skies as we now know it disappears, as well as the mountains
and all of the islands.
6:15 – The upheaval
is so great that all of earth’s inhabitants, from kings and rulers to every slave and free person, are seized with panic. Recognizing that God was pouring out His wrath, they hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They cry out for the rocks to crush them rather than endure the judgment
of God and the wrath
of the Lamb.
Too late, they realize that no rebel is able to stand up against the Lamb’s fury.
Chapter 7 – God’s People Will Be Preserved
Chap 7 is a parenthesis between the sixth seal (6:12-17) and the 7th seal (8:1) and answers
the question posed at the end of chap. 6 – “For the great day of their wrath has come, and who will be able
to survive?” Two distinct groups of believers live on the earth at
this time; the 144,000 Jewish Evangelists (vv.1-8) and their converts, an innumerable multitude who come from every nation and language and become believers during the
Trib. The multitudes of sealed and saved people are possibly those saved through the ministry
of the 144,000 and by the ministry of the Two Witnesses whom God
will raise during the first part of the rule of the Antichrist (Rev.11). These
saved ones will face all the wrath of the Beast (Antichrist) and will seal their testimony in blood.
Many come to Christ and the Beast reacts with rage at those who will come to believe.
God is telling us through this book and through John how He will love and care for His own, sealing and strengthening
many for this terrible time.
7:1-3 - Four angels are seen
standing at four strategic places on the earth. They hold back the winds blowing from the four
corners of the earth until the sum of God’s people are sealed before anything further takes place. Nature and heaven
are silent as another angel comes from the east, carrying God’s seal. This
angel shouts a command to the four restraining angels, “Wait, don’t hurt the land or the sea or the trees until
we have placed the seal of God on the foreheads of His servants.” God
always call His own. There are two
different groups of people in this section; one group is
Jewish, the
other is Gentile. One group goes through the Trib. untouched; the other is martyred
to the very last man. Phillips describes these two groups of people as that multitude of Jew’s
who “are sealed to defy Satan’s secular dominion,” and those countless Gentiles who are “saved to deny the totality
of Satan’s spiritual domain.”
7:4-8 - Who are the sealed ones? These are 144,000 redeemed Jewish believers (7:3-8): called servants of God (v.3); are sealed on their foreheads (v.3); come from “all
the tribes of the sons of Israel (v, 4).
The Saved Saints (7:9-17)
7:9-11 – “After
this, I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation, and tribe, and people and language, standing in front of
the throne and before the Lamb.” Jesus is still the Savior, even through the Trib. period. Countless
ones (millions?) will be saved during this time. Not a single tribe or tongue
is missing. The more the beast destroys, the more that Christ and His Spirit
save. The church may not reach out to the entire world today, but the Tribulation saints will! Joel 2:28 says that God “…will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh.”
Matthew 24:14 says that “this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations,
and the end will come.” The end is the end of the Trib. period that
ends with the return of the Messiah in all of His glory. Amen!
What they say – “Salvation
belongs to our God who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb.” They
praise God for His grace, His salvation. They had all paid the price of martyrdom for their faith, yet they praise
God! They understood the price that Jesus paid for us and are in awe. So many people today shrug off Christ’s work and even choose to ignore it. What a terrible price they will pay.
They thank God for His gift. “Salvation…from
the Lamb.” They are in heaven, not because of their martyrdom, but because they endured to the end, not because they came through
the Great Trib., but because of the Lamb! All of heaven falls down before the
throne and cries out in worship, ”Amen!
Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honor, and power, and might, belong to our God forever and ever. Amen!
7:13,14 – One of
the elders tells John who the people standing in front of the throne praising God are.
He explains that these were the martyrs who had come out of the Tribulation.
They washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
7:15-17 – The elder
explains their present location and service. Bible scholars are unsure if this
scene takes place before heaven’s throne and in heavens temple, or if it represents the throne of God and His temple
during the Millennium, located in Jerusalem during the Kingdom Age (Ezek. 40-44). Either
way, the are blessed:
q In perfect nearness: “That is why they are standing before the
throne of God
q Perfect service: and serve Him day and night in His temple
q Perfect fellowship: He who sits on the throne will live among them and
shelter them
q Perfect Satisfaction: They will never again be hungry or thirsty
q Perfect Security: and they will be fully protected from the scorching
noontime heat.
q Perfect Guidance: For the Lamb who stands in front of the throne will
be their shepherd and will lead them to the springs of living water.
q Perfect Joy: God will wipe away all their tears.”
Chapter 8 – The Seventh Seal and the Start of the Seven Trumpets (Chap 8,9)
8:1-5 The Lamb is still
before the throne, the only One worthy to open the scroll and break the seals. A
great and awesome silence comes over heaven for about ½ hour. Seven seals exist;
six have been opened. The seventh seal reveals seven angels with seven trumpets given
to them. As the angels blow their horns, the seven judgments are revealed. Before the trumpets sound, another angel stands before the throne with a golden censer
filled with “a great quantity of incense mixed with the prayers of the saints.” These may be the cries of the martyrs in Rev.6: 10, “How long O Lord?” The angel fills the censer with fire from the altar of God and throws it down to earth. Judgment is about to take place –their prayers are about to be answered. Noise, thunders and lightening are heard, breaking the silence. A
terrible earthquake takes place on the earth. God is giving His approval to proceed. The “Day of the Lord’s
Wrath” has come!
8:6,7 We have now come
to the middle of the Tribulation period. The trumpet judgments take us on to the time when
Christ descends to earth, destroys His enemies, and ushers in His kingdom. The
first four judgments affect man’s natural environment; the last three affect man himself. The seven angels prepare to blow their trumpets.
8:7 The First Trumpet- The trees and grass burned up
When the first angel blew his trumpet, a third part of the earth, trees, and grass were burned up by hail and fire mixed with blood. This may be volcanic eruptions caused by the great
earthquake (8:5). The steam and water thrown into the sky by such eruptions could
condense into hail and fall to earth along with the fiery lava. This would be
an ecological disaster that would have a dramatic effect on the quality of entire world’s life. The food supply would be dramatically cut, the benefits of having trees for food, shelter and lumber are
all gone. We depend on trees to supply us with the oxygen we need and animals
depend on the grass for food – everything as we know it will change.
8:8,9 The Second Trumpet – The Boiling Sea –Sea
life and ships destroyed
The second angel blew his trumpet and something like a great flaming mountain was thrown into the
sea, turning a third of the sea into blood, destroying a third of marine life, and wrecking a third of the ships. Man’s food supply is further
decreased and the means of obtaining food from distant places is reduced.
8:10,11 The Third Trumpet – The Blazing Star – Rivers and Springs made Bitter
The third trumpet is blown and a blazing
star called Wormwood falls from the heavens, causing a
third of man’s fresh
water supply from rivers
and springs to become bitter. The bitter water was also poisonous, since many men died. We
see Wormwood mentioned as one of God’s judgments in Jer. 9-16, 23:15.
8:12 The Fourth Trumpet –The Blackened Sky, the Moon
and Stars Darkened
The fourth trumpet blows and the heavens are in chaos. The stars, moon, and the sun
are under God’s control and He uses them as a reminder that He is the
One to be worshipped. Jesus predicted there would be
“signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars” (Luke 21:25). The
OT prophets spoke of this coming day of darkness (Is: 13:10; Jer. 14:23; EZ. 32:7-8); Joel 2:31, 3:15). The sun, moon, and stars are well established symbols in the Bible for ruling authorities. Under this trumpet, the world order of things as we know it is broken up, the
establishment destroyed as chaos spreads, wars, disasters, death, famine and disease ravage the world. The church is gone, the only real light the world has ever known and the world is plunged into darkness.
The light of the Antichrist will shine at first; coming into prominence at the exact time the world most
needs leadership and guidance. His charms calm the people and he brings peace
and economic stability with him. He will make a pact with Israel, guaranteeing
security to the land and to the city of Jerusalem. Russia and China will
be put on hold for a time, and the Arabs are temporarily pacified. A sense of
calm settles over the world, which has been in chaos since the rapture of the church.
The world is being prepared for the coming of the Beast.
Political unrest, especially in the Middle East and in the Arab worlds, never ends.
Terrorist attacks are a daily occurrence, as the threat of Islam spreads through out the world. The U.S. is falling apart morally and spiritually and soon will lose its leadership role in the world. These are all tools in Satan’s hands, preparing the world for that time when
God hurls him from heaven. He knows his time is short and he plans to take as
many with him into the fiery pit as possible. And, because the world is morally
weak, he will be able to build a new World order, the “Brave New World,” the Beast as Messiah.
These first four trumpets were trumpets
of war, and out of the chaos and destruction they cause,
this new king
will burst onto the scene. He will be the Messiah everyone wants, a charmer, a man of decisiveness but of peace, a solver of problems,
a man who brings answers to the problems of the religious, political, and economic powers of the world. Satan the great deceiver is finally in control - - -or is he?
Another angel is sent to warn the world, “Woe, Woe, Woe to those that dwell
on the earth at the blast of the other trumpets which the three angels are about to blow.” What is coming is far more terrible than anything
the world has ever experienced. What a terrible time awaits those who do not
know Jesus as Lord and Savior!
