BOOK OF REVELATION
Lesson 43 - Chapters 19 and 20
This is the 4th week that we have been dealing with Revelation chapter 19 because there is so
much here to examine and to learn from. The good news is that we'll finally finish with it today
and move on to chapter 20! Remember that chapter 19 revolves around what is taking place
mostly in Heaven, and so mostly in the spiritual sphere. And what is taking place is a noisy and
joyous celebration over the final demise of Babylon the Great.
We discussed in previous lessons that Babylon is representative of all that is evil and opposed
to God on earth. And that while Babylon the Great is real and physical, it represents multiple
entities that together form a kind of system, and it is also a spirit that has been alive and
passed down generation to generation; thus it has appeared in one form or another throughout
human history since Adam and Eve fell and sin entered the world. This means that elements of
Babylon existed in Christ's day (and before), it exists in our day, and it will exist at its ultimate
influence and wickedness in the End Times. Therefore the prophets of old wrote about her long
before John was given his incredible visions of the future.
I found one of the most descriptive and riveting narratives about Babylon in an unlikely place:
the tiny Book of Jude in the New Testament. It is worth our while to read it, but as we do I will
tell you in advance that although we will not find the word "Babylon" there, the description is
unmistakable especially since we have studied about Babylon in Revelation for so long. And it
is also worth mentioning that this book was written prior to John receiving his apocalyptic
visions; so without the benefit of John's visions what we find is that Jude is telling us about
what was happening in his day along with what the Lord has inspired him to write about the
future. You're also going to recognize much of what he is speaking about as being active in our
time.
READ JUDE 1 all
I want to draw your attention to the several statements Jude made about some within the
Messianic faith movement of his day that are people who cause divisions; those, who despite
their claims of righteousness and even salvation, follow their own ways, grumble and complain,
and have no understanding of the truth. They join in the religious festivals, share communal
meals with their brothers and sisters of the faith, but they bear no actual brotherly love and
care only about themselves. Jude compares them to waterless clouds and trees without fruit.
That is, despite their pleasant appearance and their professions of faith they are useless and
their behaviors exhibit none of the expected responses to their salvation. Even worse, they can
pollute the congregation of the faithful. Why? Because they don't have the Spirit.
After speaking about this issue as it was in his day in the first several verses, Jude transitions
to talking about an indefinite future in verse 18. He says that if we are part of such a fellowship
like he describes (whether in his time or in the future) then this is what we are to do:
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Jude 1:22-23
22
Rebuke some who are disputing;
23
save others, snatching them out
of the fire; and to yet others, show mercy, but with fear, hating even the clothes stained
by their vices.
Let me say this in modern, everyday terms. For those within your community of fellowship who
want to argue and dispute, to ensnare others into their deceived way of thinking, and to divide
the congregation, don't put up with it. Rebuke them; put them on notice that it will not be
tolerated. The hope is that they repent; but if they don't, then show them the door. But as
James, Jude's brother, also said, in other cases try to save the wrong minded person among
you from the wrong paths they have begun to head down. Jude says to try to snatch them out
of the fire; James says that to turn a wandering brother from his destructive path will save him
from death and cover many sins. And finally, in yet other cases, it is right to show mercy to
some who have gone off the divine reservation; but, be very careful and don't become so
tolerant (or naive) as to join them thinking that by getting closer to them by showing a level of
acceptance or rationalization of their behavior that this will win them back. We are to hate their
vices and make it clear that we do.
On the other hand, one chapter back in Revelation 18, we hear the Lord telling His people on
earth to "Come out of her!" Here's the point: the spirit of Babylon has been alive and infecting
God's people since long before Christ was born. It is not something new nor is it something
that we are to put up with, tolerate, or believe that we have the power to change it. It is one
thing to belong to a congregation with a person or two in it who carry that spirit of Babylon in
them because they can be, and must be, dealt with to purge that congregation of the dangers
these few scoffers present. It is quite another when the leadership of the congregation, and the
entire essence of the congregation (if not its very charter), represents the spirit of Babylon. In
that case we are to flee that organization and completely detach ourselves from it. These are
not instructions meant only for the people of the End Times, because such people and such
congregations and organizations have always existed; they span the ages.
In Revelation God is judging Babylon so harshly, and the residents of Heaven are rejoicing so
excitedly, because Babylon had not only murdered true worshippers of God but also caused
many more to fall away from a true faith and accept lies that have led millions, if not billions,
into eternal death. The spirit of Babylon remains alive within many of our Jewish and Christian
institutions and we must be on the alert to recognize them. And when we do, we must take the
appropriate actions that have been prescribed in the Bible no matter how difficult or
uncomfortable they might be. Our eternal futures hang in the balance.
When we left off last time Yeshua had mounted a white horse and was leading a heavenly
army also riding on white horses. The white horses represent absolute purity; but the purpose
of their heavenly riders is to make war. This is a day of judgment. Those who are saved in
Christ will be spared; those who are not will be killed. But what is terrifying to contemplate is
that the era of being saved by trust in Christ will be over for a time. The era that we are still
living in (thank you Lord!) whereby we can recognize our sinful condition, repent, and seek
forgiveness in Yeshua, will have come to an end. The full number of those who will be saved
will have been achieved and there will be no further opportunity to join the ranks of those who
have been shown God's mercy until later after Armageddon.
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Christ has traded in His cross for a sword. He will come again but not to sacrifice Himself as
God's lamb; rather it will be to carry out the Father's judgment as a ruthless lion. The blood on
His robe will not be His own; it will be the blood of countless sinners who refused, earlier, to
avail themselves of the free gift of forgiveness and mercy. And when He has finished that task,
and is seated on His earthly throne, verse 15 says that He will rule God's Kingdom with an iron
rod. A rod is another word for a scepter. An iron rod is symbolic of the unbending rule of law,
overseen by an unbending King. Messiah will rule righteously, in love, but sternly and without
tolerance for sin. And what set of laws will He rule by? The only God given set that has ever
existed and ever been handed down: the Torah. The Law of Moses. Think not?
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Matthew 5:17-18
17
"Don't think that I have come to abolish the Torah or the
Prophets. I have come not to abolish but to complete.
18
Yes indeed! I tell you that until
heaven and earth pass away, not so much as a yud or a stroke will pass from the Torah-
not until everything that must happen has happened.
When does the Torah pass away? ONLY when the current heaven and earth pass away. And
we are but 2 chapters from being told of the very moment that the current heaven and earth
actually do pass away, and therefore of the moment when the Torah is retired.
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Revelation 21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and
the old earth had passed away, and the sea was no longer there.
The war that Jesus is galloping to fight, and the throne that He is about to occupy will not exist
on a new earth; rather it will exist on this present earth as we know it today. The Millennial
Kingdom (as some call it) that He will reign over will exist on the present earth as we know it
today. It is at the end of the Millennial Kingdom period (a 1000 year era) that the earth and the
heavens will be re-created.... reformed and remade... and this is the part of Revelation that I'm
so anxious to get to so that we can talk about it at length. I tell you from the heart, it is no fun to
spend so much time talking to you about judgment, destruction, and death. But the glorious
light at the end of the tunnel is beginning to appear.
Let's re-read a small portion of Revelation 19 to get it all fresh in our minds.
RE-READ REVELATION 19:15 - end
Notice in verse 15 the emphasis that it is the returning Christ who is the instrument of the
furious rage of God. And who He is will not be disputed among humanity because on His thigh
is written the words: King of Kings and Lord of Lords. I can only imagine what so many of the
un-saved on this earth will think when they see Him in all His glory. The myriads who in terror
will cry out: "OK, I can no longer deny it; now I believe!", moments before their physical deaths
that will also lead to their eternal deaths. Christ's rule on earth is being established.
The carcasses of the countless dead will be defiled and treated as no more than garbage
because in verse 17 an angel who flies about in the mid-heaven calls the unclean scavenger
birds to a great feast that God is providing for them. This is, of course, to be contrasted with
the wedding feast of the Lamb. Several lessons ago we discussed how the ancients viewed
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the structure of our planet and the cosmos. And without going over it all again, I'll just point out
that it was thought that the birds as well as the stars and the sun and the moon all occupied
the same space, and this space was called mid-heaven. So when we hear of an angel in mid-
heaven calling out to all the birds to come and ready themselves to feast on the decaying flesh
of the wicked, then the mental picture was of this angel hovering at the zenith of the sky so that
all that was below him could see him and hear him. Of course this structure of earth and the
heavens was only ancient myth; but it was nearly universally believed without question so that
is how it is described here by John.
It is fascinating how the Bible does not tend to indulge itself with graphic war details as is
usually found in extra-biblical literary works and that's because the Bible doesn't share the
same objective as those other works. What is important is not the strategy and the battle plans
and the tales of great heroes but rather of the triumph of good over evil. The list of those
bodies the birds are feasting on is intended to show us how all inclusive it is and of the
supreme finality involved. It includes every class of people without exception: government
leaders, military leaders, aristocrats, even their animals. All kinds of common people, whether
slaves or free men, regardless of their wealth or status are among the dead. And this is
because non-Believers and remorseless idolaters are found in every society, every culture, of
every race and ethnic group, at every level of wealth or poverty, in every corner of the earth.
Christ will spare none of them and the birds will not bypass any of them in their feasting.
Despite this gruesome scene, while it represents the final insult and offense to the dead (not
getting a proper burial was a horror to ancient Hebrews) it also is necessary for these birds to
do their grisly jobs because otherwise the survivors (all Believers) would have to spend a great
deal of time burying millions and millions of corpses. The disease that would result from so
much rotting flesh laying exposed would be inevitable..... remember..... all this is going to be
happening on this present earth that will be horribly war torn and still suffering from the many
calamities that the Lord has sent upon it. So planet earth will be anything but a paradise in the
first few years of Christ's reign.
Verse 19 speaks of the Beast and the kings of the earth.... that is, the leaders of nations....
coming with their armies to do battle against Christ and His army. That the previous verse has
an angel calling the scavenger birds to a feast is essentially giving away the results of this
battle before it happens. That is, the defeat of the nations is assured. A question often asked in
Christian circles is: who will be doing to fighting? While for certain the opposition will be human
armies, that will not be the case with Christ's army. Nothing here implies that the still-alive
Believers living on earth will be joining the battle. However, here is my speculation about this. I
do think that earlier passages tell us that indeed Believers.... and especially Believers in
Israel.... including a large number of believing Jews.... will gather and prepare to do battle
against the Anti-Christ and his forces, knowing that they will be outnumbered perhaps 1000 to
1. After all, this is going to take place in the Jezreel Valley in Israel and Believers will know
God's Word and what is to take place. However, while both sides are envisioning a geopolitical
battle of human armies (that the circumstance seems to demand), Christ and those angels
(and perhaps souls of the righteous dead in Heaven) will come and supernaturally intervene to
make the battle a short one. We don't read of any protracted fighting, not even of any Believers
dying as God's earthly soldiers.
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We should not neglect what Ezekiel has to say about what seems to be the same event. And
as you'll soon hear, this is where Gog and Magog come in as part of the many nations coming
to battle at Armageddon. Open your Bibles to Ezekiel 39.
READ EZEKIEL 39:1 - 22
Since Ezekiel was part of the Babylonian exile of the 6th century B.C., and since the next exile
that Israel would face is the Roman exile in the 1st century A.D., then clearly this battle with
Gog and Magog has yet to take place and is still future to us. About the only place I can fit this
scene in Ezekiel 39 is at Armageddon. What I want you to notice is that Gog and Magog
believe they're coming to fight Israel. That is, they're not thinking that they are going to be
fighting a supernatural army of ghost-like souls of departed Believers and of angels but rather
of flesh and blood soldiers. Similar to Revelation, the enemy Gog and Magog come, they are
defeated (but with no explanation of the battle) with every last one of them killed, and then the
birds come to eat the flesh of the millions of corpses.
So the role that Israel seems to be playing in this battle is about what happens afterward.
There is no mention of some glorious or improbable victory by Israeli soldiers. The remnant of
Israel (that I claim are all Believing Jews) merely goes out to gather up the weapons of war
abandoned by the now completely wiped out armies of the nations and uses them for fuel for 7
years. And of course we find very similar wording in Ezekiel 39 as we find in Revelation 19
about scavenger birds being gathered to have a great feast on the flesh of the enemy; a feast
that God calls a "sacrifice".
Interestingly in Revelation 19 the Beast was not killed but rather taken captive, as was the
False Prophet. We are told that it is was the False Prophet who had done the miracles that had
deceived so many people into taking the mark (666) of his boss, the Beast, onto their bodies
as a symbol of their allegiance to him (although because these people were deceived they no
doubt thought what they were doing was good). And, says the verse, this False Prophet
influenced those he led to "worship" the image of the Beast. Worship is strictly an activity that
takes place in the religious sphere. Therefore the worldwide church of Babylon (my name for
it), taken over by the False Prophet after Babylon's demise, became a tool in Satan's hand.
Those thinking they were Believers and God worshippers of course accepted supernatural
miracles. And when this charismatic leader brings about these miracles at his command then
millions of the former worldwide church of Babylon, that is now the worldwide church of the
False Prophet, will naturally follow his every edict. I promise you, they would NOT do that if
they knew the Word of God. But fellow Believers, for centuries a goodly portion of the Church
has either discarded entirely the first part of the Bible that makes proper interpretation of the
second part possible, or they set the Bible aside in favor of manmade doctrines that sound
good and promote certain agendas, or (as is happening in our day) they question the veracity
of the Bible on the grounds that it is much too old and primitive to be taken seriously in modern
times. So a kind of humanized and tolerant Christian philosophy replaces what God's holy
Word actually teaches and commands us.
Chapter 19 ends with the Beast and the False Prophet thrown into the Lake of Fire. There is a
theological debate that has gone on for centuries about what the result of being thrown into the
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Lake of Fire is. One side says that it is the complete annihilation of the physical and spiritual
essence of a person. The other side says that this means that the Beast and the False
Prophet were thrown into a place of eternal torments of their souls. I must say that there is
pretty good argument for this second position because as we'll soon read in Revelation 20:
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Revelation 20:10
10
The Adversary who had deceived them was hurled into the lake
of fire and sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet were; and they will be
tormented day and night forever and ever.
This statement seems rather conclusive that the Lake of Fire is more or less what Christianity
calls Hell. And that the souls of the wicked dead that are imprisoned there are not destroyed
but rather live in that nightmarish state eternally. Frankly, the major reason the first suggestion
that souls are completely annihilated in the Lake of Fire even remains as part of the debate is
the theological position that a benevolent and loving God would never allow a person's soul.....
not even the most wicked of persons..... to suffer eternally. But as we see over and over again,
church doctrines often have little to do with what the Holy Scriptures actually say and they
remold the character and nature of God into their own image. Rather these doctrines often
merely fulfill a person or a group's wishes about how something, or even God, should be in
their eyes.
Finally notice verse 21 that says how all the soldiers of the Beast's armies died; it was by
means of the sword that goes out of the mouth of the rider of the horse. As we discussed last
time, this sword is not a military implement of war, but it can kill. Rather the sword is symbolic
of the Word of God that divides, elects, and separates and sends some to everlasting life with
Him, and the remainder to everlasting darkness and death. Point being that while Gog, Magog,
and all the armies of the Beast came expecting to fight a human enemy whom they
believed could be easily overwhelmed, they were actually confronted by God. The battle was
brief and gruesome as Heaven's forces supernaturally obliterated the evil army and the only
prisoners taken were the Beast and the False Prophet; all others were killed on the spot.
The final words of Revelation 19 are: and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh. God
has seen fit to emphasize this matter of the dead soldiers being eaten by scavenger birds
because not even in death were these unrepentant sinners and enemies of God shown the
most meager of divine mercies such as an honorable burial. Let's move on to Revelation
chapter 20.
READ REVELATION CHAPTER 20 all
As Charles Feinberg characterizes it, chapter 20 is the Continental Divide of Scripture. The
reason is that depending on how one interprets these passages, one will either accept the
notion of a 1000 year reign of Christ over a literal and physical Kingdom of God on earth (this
is the Pre-millennial position) or that there is no actual 1000 year reign of Christ or physical
Kingdom of God on earth (this is the Amillennial position). For them, Satan was bound up by
Christ before He ascended to Heaven, and so to this day Satan has had no influence on earth
and thus no influence on the Church. A third Millennial position called Post-Millennialism
argues that as the Church age nears its close the Millennial era begins, and when Christ
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comes it signals the end of the Millennial era as opposed to its inauguration.
The Amillennial position requires one to heavily allegorize and in some cases ignore Old
Testament prophecy. What we call the Pre-millennial view was generally that of the Earliest
Church Fathers and incorporated the Jewish viewpoint. Only after the Church became
thoroughly gentile and everything Jewish was rejected was this Pre-millennial view also
rejected. It was Augustine who first argued against it and spiritualized that which otherwise is
literal and physical. In my view the Post-Millennial position defies a straightforward reading of
the pertinent Bible passages and employs a nearly purely allegorical approach of interpretation
Therefore I will be speaking to you from the Pre-Millennial position in the respect that the Bible
clearly calls for a literal, physical 1000 year Kingdom of God on this present earth that begins
once Christ literally returns. However that by no way means that I accept Dispensationalism or
any of the several Pre-Millennial doctrines championed by various denominations that includes
certain timelines of events, the replacement of Israel by the gentile Church, and definitions of
some important Scriptural terms that I think can be quite off the mark.
The foundational context upon which this chapter can be properly interpreted is this: here we
find the inauguration of the Millennial Kingdom made possible by God Himself subduing
Satan's power and activities on earth. No longer can the Adversary deceive the nations and no
longer does he have wicked henchmen to do his bidding. The congregation of Believers that
upon the inauguration of the Millennial Kingdom accounts for all humanity left alive on this
planet is no longer in mortal danger from the enemy who wants to wipe us out.
Another important element of chapter 20 and the Millennial Kingdom is that it is distinct and
separate from what occurs in chapter 21, which tells us of the advent of a new heaven and
earth; or as some might think of it a re-creation of the current heaven and earth. I have read
the works of some Bible commentators who conflate the Millennial Kingdom with the new
heaven and earth. I cannot agree with this on a number of levels especially because it conflicts
with Ezekiel's prophecies. Without some severe twisting of words and re-ordering of biblical
events, it seems evident to me that the end of Millennial Kingdom (which exists for a finite
period of 1000 years) also marks the beginning of a totally new heaven and earth (which exists
for an infinite and eternal period).
We'll begin to tackle chapter 20 next time.
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