Keys to Understanding the Book of Revelation
Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while.
'To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron'. ( Psalm 149:8 )
'Yet she [ was ] carried away, she went into captivity; her young children also were dashed to pieces at the head of every street; they cast lots for her honorable men, and all her great men were bound in chains.' ( Nahum 3:10 )
We have noted throughout this study, several things; one, that national physical Israel was the subject of Jesus Revelation to His people, at least, in the context of adverse judgment, two, that this dragon or serpent, also called the devil and 'Satan', was not a fallen, spiritual being ( ? ), but was in fact, though not any certain man, but as John wrote 'the spirit of Anti-Christ' ( I John 4:3 ), an ordinary man, or men, who had not received, and continued to refuse to know the one true God, and His Son, Jesus the Christ!
We have also seen that Jesus, through John, relied heavily on the vivid imagery of the Old Testament prophets, referring back, as in the Gospels as well, to adverse judgments that God had made in times past toward His covenant people, as well ( ? ) as on those who had acknowledged no covenant with Him.
There has been a tendency, especially in the past hundred years or so, to relegate the book of Revelation to a prophecy of the end of all things ( renewal too ), to seemingly forget the former history of God's covenant people, and the fact that much, if not all, of these former judgments served to point forward to the Revelation of Jesus as the Christ, or God Himself.
'[Is ] this not laid up in store with Me, sealed up among My treasures?' ( Deuteronomy 32:34 )
'My transgression [ is ] sealed up in a bag, and You cover[b] my iniquity.' ( Job 14:17 )
'Then Jeremiah said to them, “Thus you shall say to Zedekiah, ‘Thus says the LORD God of Israel: “Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that [ are ] in your hands, with which you fight against the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans[b] who besiege you outside the walls; and I will assemble them in the midst of this city. I Myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger and fury and great wrath. I will strike the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast; they shall die of a great pestilence.' ( Jeremiah 21:3-6 )
'And the vision of the evenings and mornings which was told is true; therefore seal up the vision, for [ it refers ] to many days [ in the future ].' ( Daniel 8:26 )
'And he said, “Go [ your way ], Daniel, for the words [ are ] closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Many shall be purified, made white, and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand.' ( Daniel 12:9 )
Josephus noted this at least once, and even recorded the Roman general Titus as remarking on this, referring back to Jeremiah 21 above, that God had, in the past determined and purposed, and rendered an adverse judgment on His covenant-breaking ( Nehemiah 9 & 10 ) people, and their beloved city, in which they had begun to trust. It is interesting that Jesus related the binding of 'Satan' ( Mark 3:27, Luke 10:18 ) to the 'last days' of His Old Covenant people!
'And the LORD God said to the woman, “What [ is ] this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.' ( Genesis 3:13 )
'Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them, lest the LORD’s anger be aroused against you, and He shut up the heavens so that there be no rain, and the land yield no produce, and you perish quickly from the good land which the LORD is giving you.' ( Deuteronomy 11:16 & 17 )
'With Him [ are ] strength and prudence. The deceived and the deceiver [ are ] His.' ( Job 12:16 )
'All the men in your confederacy shall force you to the border; the men at peace with you shall deceive you [and ] prevail against you. [ Those who eat ] your bread shall lay a trap[a] for you. No one is aware of it.' ( Obadiah 1:7 )
The nation, from its inception, or genesis, had been beset by deceivers, but as James wrote 'Where do wars and fights [ come ] from among you? Do [ they ] not [ come ] from your [ desires for ] pleasure that war in your members?' ( James 4:1 ), and as Paul brings to mind in II Corinthians 11:3 and I Timothy 2:14, although Adam was not deceived ( he knowingly broke the covenant ); Eve was deceived and thus her husband, the federal head of God's ( Old ) Covenant people, allowed himself to be led astray, and for all intents and purposes, became the deceiver ( John 8:44 ) of the nations.
And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a[a] thousand years.
'For thrones are set there for judgment, the thrones of the house of David.' ( Psalm 122:5 )
'Hell from beneath is excited about you, to meet [ you ] at your coming; it stirs up the dead for you, all the chief ones of the earth; it has raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations.' ( Isaiah 14:9 )
'I watched till thrones were put in place, and the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment [ was ] white as snow, and the hair of His head [ was ] like pure wool. His throne [ was ] a fiery flame, its wheels a burning fire.' ( Daniel 7:9 )
'Jesus said to them, “Assuredly I say to you, that in the regeneration, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.' ( Matthew 19:28 )
'And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed [ one ] upon Me, that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.' ( Luke 11:29 & 30 )
To His followers; Jesus had promised that they would reign with Him, but even before this; we must remember the meaning of the name that God gave to His covenant people: 'Israel', which, according to tradition, means basically, 'prince with God' ( Genesis 32:28 ).
'When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?”' ( Revelation 6:9 & 10 )
'If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end. No one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house.' ( Mark 3:24-27 )
'And Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.”' ( John 9:39 )
'Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.' ( John 12:31 )
'But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever.' ( Daniel 7:18 )
As we continue in this study; we will see how this reign with Christ is synonymous with His covenant judgments. It was through these judgments, the binding of 'Satan', and the 'salvation' of His people, that the strong-man's house was plundered and love, not hate, grace, not law, was shown to have free reign.
But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.
Again He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: “Surely I will cause breath to enter into you, and you shall live. I will put sinews on you and bring flesh upon you, cover you with skin and put breath in you; and you shall live. Then you shall know that I [ am ] the LORD.'' ( Ezekiel 37:4-6 )
'For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.' ( Matthew 16:27 )
'Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.' ( John 5:28 & 29 )
And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame [ and ] everlasting contempt.
Quoting Daniel 12:2, which I have before, let me point out that when Jesus ( God ) came in the clouds of judgment in AD70, signalling the finality of the reign of terror ( death ), of the Old, or first Covenant; the necessary judgments determined those who woud reign with Christ, and those who be reigned over. Note that although the rest of the 'dead' did not live till 'the thousand years were finished'; the Scripture clearly implies that after 'the thousand years' ( ? ), even those who did not partake in the first resurrection, lived ( and live ), as well as the 'first-fruits' ( I Corinthians 15:23 )
Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison, and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number [ is ] as the sand of the sea.
'If one wished to contend with Him, he could not answer Him one time out of a thousand.' ( Job 9:3 )
'The chariots of God [ are ] twenty thousand, [ even ] thousands of thousands; the Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the Holy [ Place ].' ( Psalm 68:17 )
'If a man begets a hundred [ children ] and lives many years, so that the days of his years are many, but his soul is not satisfied with goodness, or indeed he has no burial, I say [ that ] a stillborn child [ is ] better than he— for it comes in vanity and departs in darkness, and its name is covered with darkness. Though it has not seen the sun or known [ anything ], this has more rest than that man, even if he lives a thousand years twice—but has not seen goodness. Do not all go to one place?' ( Ecclesiastes 6:3-6 )
There are many other examples throughout the writings of Scripture that indicate, even many times when a literal number can easily be understood, that a symbolic meaning is to be gleaned from the text. In this study we have noted many such passages pointing, maybe most famously, to places like Psalm 50, verse 10; where God told His people that 'every beast of the forest [ is ] Mine, [ and ] the cattle on a thousand hills', and Deuteronomy 7:9, where Moses reminds the people of God that 'the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments', but even as far back as the days of Abraham, as we read in Genesis 20:16, where Abimelech payed to Abraham the symbolic amount of one thousand pieces of silver ( Song of Solomon 8:11, Isaiah 7:23 ) to 'cover' any perceived transgression with his wife. Think of this event in reference to the price that 'Satan' symbolically paid for seeking to seduce the wife of God!
'The sons of Japheth [ were ] Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras.' ( I Chronicles 1:5 )
'You will come up against My people Israel like a cloud, to cover the land. It will be in the latter days that I will bring you against My land, so that the nations may know Me, when I am hallowed in you, O Gog, before their eyes.' ( Ezekiel 38:16 )
'And I will send fire on Magog and on those who live in security in the coastlands. Then they shall know that I [ am ] the LORD.' ( Ezekiel 39:6 )
'It will come to pass in that day [ that ] I will give Gog a burial place there in Israel, the valley of those who pass by east of the sea; and it will obstruct travelers, because there they will bury Gog and all his multitude. Therefore they will call [ it ] the Valley of Hamon Gog.' ( Ezekiel 39:11 )
As in many other cases in the history of Israel after the flesh; God used the nations around Israel to accomplish His adverse judgments on them, and though Gog and Magog were an actual people, and their descent from Adam can be shown; I believe that it is easily discernible that their involvement in the cloud-judgment of the Old Covenant 'children' of God was more symbolic than anything. ( this may be partially the reasoning behind those who deny that the adverse judgment on Jerusalem in AD70 was 'the time of the end' )
Other than several instances in the Hebrew Scriptures, referring to the enemies of God's people ( Joshua 11:4, Judges 7:12, I Samuel 13:5 ) this phrase, 'the sand of the sea', though often in other words, was most often indicative of God's blessing ( or cursing ) on His covenant people. Although we know that, in the accomplished destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple; Rome and its allies were most noticeably active: we can see through study of the works of Josephus and likely others, that the Jews themselves were indirectly, if not directly, their own worst enemies, or 'adversaries'!
They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them.
'Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty men. So he went up to him; and there he was, sitting on the top of a hill. And he spoke to him: “Man of God, the king has said, ‘Come down!’” So Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, “If I [ am ] a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” And fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty. Then he sent to him another captain of fifty with his fifty men. And he answered and said to him: “Man of God, thus has the king said, ‘Come down quickly!’” So Elijah answered and said to them, “If I [ am ] a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” And the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.' ( II Kings 1:9-12 )
'Therefore he sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city. And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who [ are ] with us [ are ] more than those who [ are ] with them.” And Elisha prayed, and said, “LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain [ was ] full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.' ( II Kings 6:14-17 )
In both of these examples, of which more could no doubt be gleaned; Elijah, in whom we can see a picture, or type, representative of the people of God, and in a sense, maybe, of Christ Himself, and his successor, Elisha, are prominently figured in a glorious picture of the salvation, both physical and spiritual, of the people of God!
When the enemies ( adversaries ) of the people of God fought against His people; God brought down the fire of His wrath against them, both literally and figuratively, to destroy them, and their works. As we have noted already, I believe, in this study, the phrase 'fire from heaven' ( or like phrases ) often referred to actual, literal 'fire from heaven' ( lightning, meteor shower, etc. ), but often held a more symbolic meaning, even when portrayed in a physical way. In Genesis 19:24; we read that 'the LORD rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah, from the LORD out of the heavens', and though this was likely a literal fire ( meteor shower? ), we know that it was really just a physical representation and manifestation of God's wrath on the sinful acts of man ( II Peter 3:7-12 ). We read, in I Kings 18:20-40, about Elijah's victory ( God's really ) on Mt. Carmel, over the prophets of Ba'al, and in verse 38, that 'the fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that [ was ] in the trench', where God sent literal fire from heaven, showing, not only His acceptance for the sacrifice of Elijah, but also proving His power, as opposed to the powerlessness and inability of those idols. There are more examples, like that of Elijah above, where 'fire came out from before the LORD' ( Leviticus 9:24 ). After King David had sinned against the Lord by numbering his people, and then repented by making an offering before Him, God showed His acceptance of his sacrifice when 'He answered him from heaven by fire on the altar of burnt offering' ( I Chronicles 21:26 ), and in II Chronicles 7:1; after Solomon had completed the Temple, how God showed His approval and acceptance when 'fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices'.
The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where[b] the beast and the false prophet [ are ]. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
'How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer,[b] son of the morning! [ How ] you are cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations! For you have said in your heart: I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation on the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High. Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the Pit. Those who see you will gaze at you, [ and ] consider you, [ saying ]: [ is ] this the man who made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms, who made the world as a wilderness and destroyed its cities, [ who ] did not open the house of his prisoners? All the kings of the nations, all of them, sleep in glory, everyone in his own house; but you are cast out of your grave like an abominable branch, [ like ] the garment of those who are slain, thrust through with a sword, who go down to the stones of the pit, like a corpse trodden underfoot. You will not be joined with them in burial, because you have destroyed your land [ and ] slain your people. The brood of evildoers shall never be named. Prepare slaughter for his children because of the iniquity of their fathers, lest they rise up and possess the land, and fill the face of the world with cities.' ( Isaiah 14:12-21 )
Excuse the lengthy quote, and though this passage requires a more lengthy and in-depth exegesis than I am willing to give it right now; but it shows us several things; first; while this passage, which I have mentioned before, has traditionally been made part of the foundation, so to speak, of the doctrine of 'Satan': read in the context of Scripture and of the present study; it can be shown, I believe, to refer, not to the fallen spiritual being ( ? ), traditionally known as 'Satan' ( the Adversary ), but, through the example of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, one of the enemies of God's people; ultimately of the apostate 'children' of Israel in general, and their leaders, in particular. Isaiah's highly symbolic language here, also chips away at the traditional doctrine of Eternal Torment, showing, I believe, that John's language of continuing permanency in the Revelation speaks more of a finality, of a contiual stigma attached to one's name, or memory.
'And He said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.' ( Luke 10:18 )
The immediate context of Jesus words above, shows us that it was because of the 'fall' ( from grace? ) of their adversary, that they were able to pursue the ministry of reconciliation, 'introducing' the people of God to the true kingdom of God, in Jesus the Christ. As above, and throughout this study, I believe that it shows us, as well, that as their primary adversary was soon to be defeated, indeed had already begun to fall, the Gospel which they were proclaiming was given freer expansion, as it spread, unhindered ( relatively ) throughout the world.
Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them.
'I watched till thrones were put in place, and the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment [ was ]white as snow, and the hair of His head [ was ] like pure wool. His throne [ was ] a fiery flame, its wheels a burning fire.' ( Daniel 7:9 )
It is obvious from John's language here, and surrounding, that this judgment was by God Himself, as Daniel wrote, 'the Ancient of Days'! Although there is to be seen a sense of finality in this judgment ( and it is, eschatology speaking ), this is obviously meant in a hyperbolic and symbolic way, as John is speaking of the Old Covenant economy ( 'heavens and earth'-II Peter 3:5-13 ), for he, in much the same sense as in the beginning of the next chapter, as we'll see, says that 'there was found no place for them', speaking of those ( present, at that time ) 'heavens and earth'. Why would/how could he say this if he was referring to the physical sky and terrene globe, as some have speculated that Jesus speaks of in Matthew 24, Luke 21, and Mark 13, and to which Peter refers in II Peter 3. See also Joel 2:30, Jeremiah 4:23, Isaiah 13:10 & 13, Psalm 50:4, and Deuteronomy 28:23 ( Deuteronomy 32:1, I Chronicles 16:31, Isaiah 1:2 ).
And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God,[c] and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.[d] And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
'A fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him. A thousand thousands ministered to Him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court[b] was seated, and the books were opened.' ( Daniel 7:10 )
I have noted before, I believe, in this study, that John often repeats himself in order to show a sense of urgency and finality, using a form of parallelism, saying the same thing twice, or more, in different words. I believe that this is the case, in a manner of speaking, above. The 'dead, small and great, standing before God' refer, I believe to those same 'heavens and earth' which fled from before His face ( think of the 'children' of Israel, in Exodus 20: 18-21 ), and for whom 'there was found no place'.
We have noted, throughout this study that 'the sea', in apocalyptic literature, such as this is, refers to the Gentile nations, especially those surrounding the nation of Israel. John, when he reported that 'sea gave up the dead who were in it', was speaking not so much of a physical resurrection of those who died biologically ( though I believe this could be included ), but of those people of God, not just Israelites by physical birth, who were scattered across 'the face of the earth', and who had been imprisoned ( blinded ) under the darkness and death of the Old Covenant economy.
'For many nations and great kings shall be served by them also; and I will repay them according to their deeds and according to the works of their own hands.' ( Jeremiah 25:14 )
Although this parenthetical statement refers, in its immediate context ( and by name ) to Babylon; as they ( Babylon ) were but one of the many enemies ( adversaries ) of the covenant people of God; it also speaks of Old Covenant Israel ( according to the flesh ) of whom Paul wrote ( II Corinthians 11:15 ), 'whose end will be according to their works'.
After this judgment was made; the death of Adam, and thus the corrupting grave itself, were cast into the consuming ( Hebrews 12:29 ) 'lake of fire', and ceased to exist for believers in the Christ of God. Obviously; John and Jesus were not speaking of biological death, for we know that Christians still 'pass' from their physical bodies, but of a separational death, the 'death' that Paul wrote of in place like Romans 6:23, and I Timothy 5:6.
Praise God, that through His Son Jesus the Christ, the New Covenant; we have been made partakers in that first resurrection, being written in the Book of Life, and did not have to endure that Judgment, and must no longer fear either the death of Adam, or biological death!
For His Kingdom,
Charles Haddon Shank
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