How I Read the Book of Revelation

After you read this, you will either give me three cheers, or you will think I am nuts. If the latter is the case, I hope and pray that I will at least have challenged you enough to do some fresh reading and studying yourself on this subject, with these ideas and thoughts in mind.

The book of Revelation is a legal document - full of legal terms and written in the literary form of ancient legal agreements. It is also a deeply Jewish book - a book that draws heavily from the Old Testament scriptures. When I say heavily, I mean heavily - John is quoting from the OT constantly in this book, and the symbolism - including most of the beasts, visuals, numbers, descriptions, and language - in this book are straight out of the OT writings. Dozens of actual quotations from the OT scriptures and easily over 300 allusions to them in this book of prophecy alone! When a 1st century Jewish-minded individual (the letter's original audience) read this book, it would have been like they were reading a complex and in-your-face mash-up of all the sacred writings they grew up memorizing, studying, and teaching. This fact is important, because it is a prophecy primarily about - or shall we say primarily against - the ancient disobedient nation of Israel.

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The courtroom of heaven - after the opening words of encouragement to the churches, John witnesses a legal proceeding taking place in heaven (Rev. 4) - and it is a trial, a court case - complete with a judge, a defendant, representation for both sides, and witnesses.

The defendant on trial - the ancient nation of the twelve tribes of Israel. Her main charge - continuous and open adultery, whoring after other lovers - when she is married to God, the Lord. She was married to Him about 1,500 years earlier at Mount Sinai, and the marriage contract that they both signed was the Mosaic Law (See Lev. 26). Her counsel is the beast, fueled by Satan himself, the father of lies.

The Lord God is the judge in this case, and Christ the head prosecutor - God sits on His throne, as judge in heaven's courtroom - yet the trial cannot begin because no one had yet been found worthy to prosecute her (Rev. 5) - no worthy representation for the glory of God on earth. Until He appears - the One man worthy to open the scroll of the court proceedings (a sealed and binding legal document which also includes the charges, the verdict, and the sentencing for this adulterous woman on trial - Rev. 6).

The witnesses called against her - (two or three at least are required under the law) are the members of the infant Christian Church (Rev. 11)- who have stood against her, and have retained their white garments and and their testimony in the face of great tribulation. These righteous - who also include all the righteous prophets killed by the Jews (including Christ) throughout their wicked history - stand before the judge, their blood crying out for justice (Rev. 6:9-11).

She is found guilty, and as her sentence is given, it is unfolded in terrible waves of the wrath of God - four sevenfold judgments - the promised consequences for not keeping the marriage covenant that she (ancient Israel) had made with her King (as described in Lev. 26). Seven seals are opened, seven trumpets sounded, seven thunders utter their voices, and seven bowls of Gods wrath are poured out on her (Rev. chapters 6-17). However, God does not judge the righteous with the wicked - they are spiritually - "marked" or "sealed" and thus protected from His terrible wrath that is being poured out on Her. Both the righteous Jews out of every tribe of Israel who had washed themselves in the blood of the Lamb as well as the righteous gentiles from every non-Jewish tribe, language, people group, and nation (Both in Revelation 7). The carrying out of her sentencing climaxes ironically in stoning (see the last bowl of Gods wrath poured out at the closing of chap 17) - the consequence of anyone who committed adultery under the law of Moses.

The woman's accomplices revealed - (Rev. 12 & 13) Throughout this sentencing and these judgments being poured out, the adulterous woman ancient wicked Israel and her counsel, representation, and accomplices are made clear. She is adulterous and wicked ancient Israel, who has made herself drunk on the blood of the saints. The beast upon which she rides is Rome, personified in her lewd emperor Nero Caesar (the Hebrew letters of whose name add up to the numerical value of six hundred sixty six), who helps her persecute the saints of God. All who did not receive his "mark", or affirm Caesar as their King during the latter part of his tyrannical reign from 62-68 AD could neither buy nor sell and were sought out to be put to death. We know this "marking" is spiritual rather than physical because the righteous are also seen as sealed - with the "Mark of God" in their foreheads.

The sentence carried out (the closing action and resolution of the story) is envisioned beginning in chapter 18, as the city in which "was found the blood of all the prophets and the saints" (Rev. 18:24, compare with Jesus' closing statements in Mat. 23), and "Where our Lord was crucified" (Rev. 11:8) is seen lying in ruins, its smoke rising up to heaven. The divorce is complete - and the adulterous and wicked woman sentenced and put to death.

The accomplices are also sentenced and judged, and the righteous receive settlements - (Rev 19 & 20) All under the Old Covenant then appear before the judge as well - and receive their just reward, either with the righteous of God, or with the woman, the beast, the devil and his angels. The end of the age has come - the end of the age of the Mosaic law - accounts under it are being settled, a new age is being ushered in, and the Lord is taking a New Bride.

Outside the courtroom, after the proceedings - No sooner than this legal proceeding finishes do we see the Lord and His representation greeting His new bride. He has already purchased her with His own blood out of every "tribe, language, people group, and nation" of the world (including the righteous of ancient Judaism), and has been waiting patiently until He is legally free from His previous wife before he holds the grand marriage celebration with his New One. This radiant woman appears (Rev. 21 & 22) - "The bride, the Lamb's wife" is seen coming out of heaven from God down to the earth. Two whole poetic chapters are spent detailing her radiant beauty, earth-cleansing effects, and glorious and everlasting qualities.

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Concluding thoughts - Countless varying interpretations of this book have shrouded it in a dark cloud of mystery and fear for many followers of Christ over the last two thousand years. But just as the right master key will open every difficult door, so I believe that the proper interpretational key will open every mysterious picture and statement in this book. A proper understanding of the timing, subject, and purpose of this book of prophecy will make it all clear - and bring much glory to God who divinely authored and preserved it for edification of the church throughout all subsequent generations!

For more on pertinent concepts in the book of Revelation which lend credence to this way of reading it, start follow this blog. In the meantime, here are some blogposts I have already made on these subjects so far as I have started blogging through this book, section by section, so far:
-An initial look at the vital time statements found within the book of Revelation
-On the copious evidence for the "early" date of the penning of this book
-On the poetic declatation in Rev. 1:7
-On the nature, timing, and purpose of this grand "second coming" of Christ
-My separate blog on how this view of Bible prophecy fits with Jesus' vital statements in the gospels, and with the important writings in the Acts & the epistles

This blogpost is dedicated to my kool-kat sister Ellen who my heart loves. She, like all of you, deserves to know what I believe to be the truth on this heavy biblical subject :)

Getting Revelation -Pt 12- The Sealing of the Faithful

At this point in the Revelation, a break is taken from detailing the judgment of God being poured out, and a very significant and comforting insertion is made. I recommend reading Rev chapter 7 now. The righteous would be sealed with God's protection and would not take part in His wrath, but rather would be gathered together into Him and receive their ultimate consolation. At least 2 passages, one from the OT book of Ezekiel, and one from the words of Jesus, are plainly alluded to in this sealing of the righteous.

Sealing: In the visions of Ezekiel, which also deal heavily with God's judgment upon the disobedient tribes of Israel, an angel is sent out to set a mark on the foreheads of all those who "Sigh and cry for all the abominations done in the midst of her (Israel)" (chap 9). The angel is told to "Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man on whom is the mark".

So a similar sealing of the righteous on their foreheads in the spiritual realm is pictured in Revelation 7. This is telling, for if the mark (or seal) placed upon the foreheads of the faithful in Rev. 7 is a spiritual one, representing Gods seal of approval on the just (rather than a visible, physical mark) protecting them from God's wrath, then the mark "Of the beast" on the foreheads of the wicked singling them out for His wrath (In Rev chapters 13-20) is no doubt a spiritual one as well. We will examine those passages later in Revelation when we reach them, but suffice it to say at this point that the mark of the beast is not a microchip or a barcode (not that these myths fit into the strict first century time-limit given to us by the Revelator anyway), but rather a literary symbol used before in apocalyptic literature to illustrate spiritual realities. Those who belong to him bear his righteous mark, and those who have rejected him bear the mark of the wicked, and both marks are visible in the spiritual realm. This apocalyptic language would have been well-known and quite plain to John's first century Jewish audience.

Just as in the days of Noah and Lot, the righteous would be taken out of the way before the judgment was poured out, as God never judges the righteous with the wicked. This was historically fulfilled in various ways (as recorded by Josephus and Eusebius and others) as God indeed kept the remnant of the infant Christian church in Judea safe when He finally poured out his wrath upon Jerusalem and the unbelieving Jews in the late 60's AD.

Gathering from four winds: Jesus was the first to describe this gathering of the faithful at the end of the age "from the four winds" - and this mention of the four winds in Rev 7 is no doubt a direct allusion to the words of Christ: "And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." (Mat 24:31 & in Luke 21 & Mark 13) Let it first and most importantly be noted that this promised gathering of the elect from the "four winds" was clearly promised by Christ to take place before his disciple's generation had passed from the scene (Mat 24:34). As we detailed in an earlier installment, John reiterates this first-century time constraint in the opening and closing chapters of Revelation quite clearly as well.

It was highly anticipated by the first century churches as evidenced in their writings during the period between Christ's earthly ministry and the final destruction of the holy city and temple in 70AD:

2 Thes 2:1 - "Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him..." They clearly believed they would be gathered unto him at his coming.

1 Cor 15:52-53 - "Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep (die), but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." They believed they would witness his coming (they would not all die, which means some of them would live to see it also), and would be changed forever at the sound of that last trumpet.

1 Jo 3:2 - "Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is." They believed that when He appeared, they would see Him, and be like Him!

***See also 1 Thes 4:13-17 & 1 Pet. 1:1-4

As is apparent, this promised gathering became the focus of the ultimate hope of the first century persecuted Christian church - an event that they fully expected to experience within their lifetime, just as Christ promised. Rev. 7's picture of the sealing of the righteous and their gathering together unto Christ is a beautiful picture of the fulfillment of the common hope of the first century church body. Maranatha! The Lord comes!

Next installment - The significance of those who were gathered: the 144,000 Jews and the gentiles without number, and their eternal inheritance.

Getting Revelation -Pt 11- The Sky is Falling

Rev. 6:12-17 - This passage is the most plain and obvious reference to the destruction of the Jewish nation in 70AD in this entire book. To the average reader it may not be so, but to anyone more than casually familiar with the major and minor prophets of the OT, and the four gospels in the NT, the connotations of this passage are clear and in-your-face.

Let us start with the first few verses here - 6:12-14 - "I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place."

Now compare the descriptions above with a few similar Old Testament passages:
Is. 13:9-13 - A prophecy foretelling the fall of the ancient kingdom of Babylon - "the stars of heaven and their constellations Will not give their light; The sun will be darkened in its going forth, And the moon will not cause its light to shine."
Is. 34:3-5 - A prophecy concerning the coming destruction of the old city of Edom - "All the host of heaven shall be dissolved, And the heavens shall be rolled up like a scroll; All their host shall fall down As the leaf falls from the vine, And as [fruit] falling from a fig tree."
Ezek. 32:7-8 - A prophecy against the ancient city of Egypt, foretelling her destruction - "When [I] put out your light, I will cover the heavens, and make its stars dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, And the moon shall not give her light. All the bright lights of the heavens I will make dark over you, And bring darkness upon your land,' Says the Lord GOD."

All of these passages utilize the very poetic and metaphorical language of the old Jewish prophets (apocalyptic language) to foretell the fall of an ancient city. They use physical descriptions of disturbances in earth and heaven (earthquakes, mountains melting, the heavens shaking, the stars going dark, the moon and sun going dark, etc) to foretell the utter destruction of wicked nations. The language is not to be taken literally of course (if it was, then the earth and the universe has been destroyed numerous times already according to scripture :) - it was simply foretelling the divine "wiping out" of a wicked people group.

No doubt the first century Jews knew this symbolism very well and that is why, when Christ came along, he himself quoted these same passages from the prophets when foretelling the destruction of Jerusalem in his Olivet discourse. Read Mat. 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21. He quotes these passages in response to his disciples question of when their first century Jewish temple (Herod's temple), with all its massive stones and beautiful buildings, would be destroyed:

"Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the land will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory."

So, Revelation 6 was not describing the end of the physical world and universe, but rather the final and utter destruction of the ancient Jewish city and nation.

This fact is further solidified by the next few verses in our study - Rev. 6:15-17 - "And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains and rocks, 'Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?'"

This is a direct allusion to the words of Christ as he was being led away after being beaten to be crucified - Luke 23:28 - "And there followed him a great company of people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented him. But Jesus turning unto them said, 'Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children. For, behold, the days are coming, in the which they shall say, Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the paps which never gave suck. Then shall they begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us; and to the hills, Cover us.'"

Suffice it to say that this passage of the opening of the sixth seal in Revelation is a direct fulfillment of the words of Christ against the Jews just a few decades earlier. The seven-fold judgment of God against the twelve tribes of Israel, as foretold by Moses himself, was finally and forever coming to pass.

In the next installment we will proceed with Revelation chapter 7.

Getting Revelation -Pt 10- The Fifth Seal Broken

Rev 6:9-11 - The Fifth Seal Loosed

Underneath the altar in heaven the souls of them that were killed for the word of God and their testimony are seen. With a loud voice they cry out to the Lord "How long will you wait before judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell in the land?" White robes are given to each of them and they are told to rest yet for a little while longer till their kinsman and fellow servants are killed as they were.

This brief peek at the souls of the martyred and their position before the Lord, Holy and True, is indeed both comforting and revealing. Many things could be said about these verses, but for sake of brevity, here are a few which are particularly pertinent to understanding the overall aim of the book of Revelation:

1. They are under the altar (of incense in the holy place), and are told to rest a little while longer. The souls of the dead in Christ are resting, awaiting a future event in time (but not long into the future - probably just a few more earthly years - and they are told to rest just a little while longer).

2. God was waiting for a full number of the Christians to be martyred before avenging them all and bringing the judgment which the prophets (beginning from Moses and including both john the baptist and Jesus Christ) foretold upon their oppressors, primarily the unbelieving Jews. And that judgment was almost upon them.

3. Them that "dwell on the earth" (as it is in most translations) is probably more accurately them that "dwell in the land" (see the Greek word for earth or land which is 'ge' - Young's literal translation calls it the 'land'). This phrase ('them that dwell in the land') is used at least 10 times in the book of Revelation. It seems a consistent literary mechanism used by John in his vision to poetically refer to the land of Judea - and specifically the city of Jerusalem - the primary object of God's wrath in this book. Furthermore, the dead are waiting for their fellow bondservants and brethren (the Greek word for 'brethren' here most often refers to blood relatives) to be killed as they were (more than likely a reference to the same barbaric methods utilized to kill them).

4. This poignant picture would have been incredibly comforting and edifying to those Christians around Asia minor who were the audience of this book and were experiencing the most intense persecution of the infant church to date. Nero Caesar was the first (and only, according to most historians) emperor of Rome to turn against the Christians. He made the hunting and killing of Christians legal across the Roman world during his reign, which gave the Jewish leaders great boldness to persecute and martyr many Christians. Nero also gorged himself on the diet of those who followed "The Way" (from 62-66AD, immediately preceding God's judgment on the first century Jewish nation from 66-70AD) - they were killed by gladiators and wild animals in the coliseums, hung on crosses by the thousands, and used as human torches to light Nero's gardens at night. The message of hope which John's Revelation carried to those still living (many of whose brethren had already been murdered) was comforting to say the least - it assured them that God was still in control, that their prayers for deliverance had been heard, and that although more of them would die, in just a few short years their redemption would finally arrive.

The fact is, we can be confident that the martyred souls pictured here were specifically referring to the righteous killed in and around the land of Judea up until the first century AD, and that their oppressor whom God was about to judge was indeed the ancient wicked nation of the twelve tribes of Israel. This is confirmed by the words of Christ (which John's apocalyptic description here seems to be echoing):
"Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!... you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation... See! Your house is left to you desolate;" (Matthew 23:29-38 - I recommend a thorough reading of the whole chapter)

It is not difficult to see that this scene which the opening of the fifth seal in Revelation unveils for us - of the souls of the slain in heaven and God promising them vengeance in a "little while" - goes hand in hand perfectly with Jesus' foretold judgment upon that last and most wicked generation of ancient Jews. I would say further that it is no coincedence that the terrible destruction of Jerusalem and the thorough levelling of her glorious temple came within (almost exactly) forty years - "one generation" - after Christ's crucifixion at their hands. Revelation is a beautiful yet terrible apocalyptic picture of that final end for the ancient Jewish polity and their Mosaic religious system.

Getting Revelation -Part 9- The First Four Seals Broken

As the 7 seals, 7 trumpets, and 7 vials (John is told not to write what the 7 thunders uttered) are revealed, it becomes apparent that they are all apocalyptic descriptions of one and the same event. Each set of seven starts slow and builds in intensity until it reaches its climax, and there is a definate climax with each. They very poetically and accurately illustrate the events surrounding the systematic siege and destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman legions under the command of Titus which lasted three and a half years from 66-70AD, just a couple of years after John saw this vision.

The seven seals starting in Revelation 6 -
The first four seals that are broken send out four different colored horses with riders representing the unfolding judgments upon the land. This allusion seems to be from the four horseman of Zechariah 1 who are revealed as God's mystical seers who keep watch over the nations of the land.

The first seal loosed: "And I looked, and behold, a white horse. He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer."

Let us not miss the obvious - war is signified here. A white horse and a crown represents rule and dominion. A bow is in his hand, which is a weapon of war for use at a distance. The crisis is has begun but not yet arrived at Jerusalem - At the outset of the great Jewish war, the Roman armies did not come immediately to Jerusalem, but fought in areas around Judea as they advanced toward the great city. The approaching crises caused most Jews around the countryside to actually flee into Jerusalem, behind the supposed safety of its massive walls, where the majority of the nation shut themselves in.

The second seal loosed: "Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth (or 'land' - see the Greek text or Young's literal translation), and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword."

Now it is not a bow, but a sword (also the symbol of war and death), because forces have joined together in close combat. Peace is taken from the land and the death toll begins. The Roman legions surrounded the great city and began systematically laying siege to it, slaughtering all who tried to flee its protection. The Jewish armies within fought fiercely against them, but to no great avail.

The third seal loosed: "I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, 'A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine.' "

The picture here is of basic food becoming scarce - the staples of their diet being carefully weighed out and becoming nearly unaffordable (a denarius was a full day's pay in the first century Roman world economy). As the siege on Jerusalem dragged on for months and then years, with nothing going out or coming in, conditions quickly grew fatal for the hundreds of thousands trapped within its walls. Food became so scarce that when the 3.5 year siege finally came to an end, more had died from starvation (and from the warring Jewish factions within the city) than at the hand of the Roman armies. A terrible plight indeed - but more to come on that as we examine later passages of this book.

The fourth seal is loosed: "Behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth."
After proclaiming the approaching siege, the arrival of it, and the resulting famine, the most ominous figure, death and the grave is pictured - carrying the many awful mortal effects of war with it.

First of all let us notice that the four judgments mentioned here are a direct allusion to the Lord's "Four severe judgments on Jerusalem" foretold in Ezekiel 14:21. The "fourth of the land" mentioned here is probably because as these sets of sevenfold judgments are revealed, the descriptions grow more and more severe and are laid out in greater and greater detail as they continue (with the 7 trumpets in chapters 8 & 9, and 7 vials in chapter 16). In the next set of judgments it is "a third of men" (more than just a fourth) - and the final set of judgments "fill full the wrath of God" and seems to include all of the men. Some understand the beasts of the earth to mean wild animals picking off the few remaining who escape the war, and others see the beasts as a way of describing the type of violent and unmerciful men who kill without hesitation or prejudice (either way, death at the hand of wild beasts is part of Moses' promised judgments upon the disobedient 12 tribes of Israel in Leviticus 26:22).

As you can see, both the Jewish apocalyptic way in which these judgments are laid out, as well as the many constant quotations and allusions from the Jewish prophets are a striking indictment to the ancient nation of Israel - final judgment has arrived, and this time there is no mercy. The final bell has tolled and the temporary old covenant system is being erradicated to make way for the new and everlasting one. Heb 9:8 says that the way into the most Holy Place (of the New covenant) could not be opened while the old temple still stood - which is why Revelation is so significant. It isn't just a book of random prophecies about cataclysmic events like Nostradamus or like modern Hollywood "End of Days" movies - rather it is a book of the fulfillment (as is all of scripture) of all things covenantal - it testifies to the final removing of the old temple and temple system, and the inauguration of the New and Everlasting system. The old had to be removed before the new could be fully in effect! More to come on that of course...

The next installment in this series will proceed with Rev. 6:9 and forward :)

Getting Revelation -Part 8- Four Sevens

One more important parallel to note in scripture before examining the loosing of the seven seals beginning in chapter 6. In Revelation we find four sets of seven judgments unleashed upon the Jews: 7 seals, 7 trumpets, 7 thunders and 7 vials. A large part of Revelation describes the awful events which take place upon the land as these 4 sets of seven judgments are revealed.

This is an important scriptural parallel to the curses described in the Mosaic law in Leviticus 26:
But if ye will not hearken unto me, and will not do all these commandments;... (26:14)
..And if ye will not yet for all this hearken unto me, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins... (26:18)
...And if ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins... (26:21)
...And if ye will not be reformed by me by these things, but will walk contrary unto me; Then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins... (26:24)
...And if ye will not for all this hearken unto me, but walk contrary unto me; Then I will walk contrary unto you also in fury; and I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sins... (26:28)
...These are the statutes and judgments and laws, which the LORD made between him and the children of Israel in mount Sinai by the hand of Moses. (26:46)

I recommend reading through the entire passage. When one reads the historical account of the great seige on Jerusalem and the great Jewish massacre from 66-70AD, the accuracy of the judgments foretold by Moses are striking.

There is no doubt in my mind that the 4 sets of seven judgments described in the book of Revelation caused the original recipients of the book, who in most cases knew the Torah to the letter, recall the 26th chapter of the book of Leviticus. They knew that the curses of those who broke the law were being detailed and that John was telling them that the final end of the Jewish nation (the original twelve tribes of Israel) was upon them.

In the next installment, we will examine the first set of seven judgments - the loosing of the seven scrolls in heaven.

Getting Revelation -Part 7- A Peek Into Heaven

Chapter 4 of Revelation is where John is taken into heaven and sees the Lord, seated on his throne, with his heavenly attendants around him worshipping him. I will not go into the significance of the numbers and symbols here for the sake of time, but let it suffice the reader to understand that the angels with six wings singing "Holy holy holy" is a reference to Isaiah chapter 6 when Isaiah is given a peek into heaven, and the living creatures with 4 faces is a reference to Ezekiel 1 when the prophet Ezekiel is given a peek into heaven. The borrowing of these symbols from the ancient Jewish prophets would have been obvious to the original audience of Revelation, who were predominantly Jewish Christians, having memorized or studied the prophets from their youth up. In an earlier study we found borrowed passages from Daniel as well.

All of this imagery originally found in the prophetic books (which deal with the nation of Israel) being utilized here tells us at least a few key things:
1. John the revelator and his vision are in the same class with, and share a parallel ministry with the prophets throughout Israel's history.
2. His book deals with the same subject that the books of Isaiah, Jeremiah and Daniel do: That of the awful judgment upon disobedient Israel, and the final institution of the everlasting kingdom of God at the end of the age. They saw it afar off -- he's saying it would be fulfilled within a few short years of when he penned it.
3. This book was meant to be read and understood by a Jewish audience. Why chalk a book so full of imagery that only the ancient Jews would recognize and understand, unless the message of the book was to them -- that it was foretelling events that the ancient Jews would see fulfilled with their own eyes, and which would directly impact their own first-century nation?

After John sees the Lord on his throne with the angels and elders surrounding him in worship, his attention is directed to a scroll, sealed with seven seals, whom no one in heaven or earth, except the lamb of God (the crucified Christ) is worthy of opening. The four creatures and the 24 elders, symbolizing the international church of Jesus Christ (vs 8-10), fall down before the lamb of God and worship him for purchasing them with his own blood on the cross out of every nation, tribe and language of the earth.

As we will study further in chapter 6, as the lamb looses the seals of the scroll, terrible judgments are unleashed upon the land, and in particular the Jews (more on that in the next installment). It would seem then that this imagery with the scroll and the lamb is signifying that not only did Jesus' sacrificial death give salvation to those who would believe, but also gave him the right to unleash these judgments. Could it be that this scroll is symbolic of the "bill of divorce" which God made out to his idolatrous and adulterous wife, the twelve tribes of Israel (Jer 3 and elsewhere) hundreds of years earlier? The price of adultery under the mosaic law was death by stoning. Israel had committed adultery against her groom, with whom she had entered into a covenant of marriage. However, God could not justly proceed with their "stoning" (all the curses of breaking the Mosaic law found in Leviticus and Deuteronomy) until their Messiah (and judge), the Son of man, had come and had given ample time for all those who would repent and believe on His Son to do so and be saved from the coming wrath. Now, nearly 40 years (one generation) after Christ's ministry, it was time for God to finally cast his adulterous wife away and take his new bride, the everlasting international church of Jesus Christ (out of every tribe, tongue and nation) to himself.

As Jesus foretold, His crucifixion at their hands would be the last straw. In his parables against them, he illustrated this... "Then last of all he sent his son to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.' But when the vinedressers saw the son, they said among themselves, 'This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.' So they took him and cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vinedressers? They said to Him, "He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease his vineyard to other vinedressers who will render to him the fruits in their seasons." (Mat. 21:37-41)

Only Christ's death opened the door for God to unleash His final wrath on the twelve tribes of Israel, bringing in the end of the age of the old covenant.

In the next installment we will begin following the unleashing of these judgments as the seals on the scroll are broken one by one in chapter 6!