Revelation 9

Rev 19:11-20:15

Revelation 19:11–20:15 (CSB)

Then I saw heaven opened, and there was a white horse. Its rider is called Faithful and True, and with justice he judges and makes war. His eyes were like a fiery flame, and many crowns were on his head. He had a name written that no one knows except himself. He wore a robe dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. The armies that were in heaven followed him on white horses, wearing pure white linen. A sharp sword came from his mouth, so that he might strike the nations with it. He will rule them with an iron rod. He will also trample the winepress of the fierce anger of God, the Almighty. And he has a name written on his robe and on his thigh: King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and he called out in a loud voice, saying to all the birds flying high overhead, “Come, gather together for the great supper of God, so that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of military commanders, the flesh of the mighty, the flesh of horses and of their riders, and the flesh of everyone, both free and slave, small and great.”

Then I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and against his army. But the beast was taken prisoner, and along with it the false prophet, who had performed the signs in its presence. He deceived those who accepted the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image with these signs. Both of them were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. The rest were killed with the sword that came from the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds ate their fill of their flesh.

20 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven holding the key to the abyss and a great chain in his hand. He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. He threw him into the abyss, closed it, and put a seal on it so that he would no longer deceive the nations until the thousand years were completed. After that, he must be released for a short time.

Then I saw thrones, and people seated on them who were given authority to judge. I also saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and who had not accepted the mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed.

This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.

When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle. Their number is like the sand of the sea. They came up across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the encampment of the saints, the beloved city. Then fire came down from heaven and consumed them. The devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet are, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

Then I saw a great white throne and one seated on it. Earth and heaven fled from his presence, and no place was found for them. I also saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life, and the dead were judged according to their works by what was written in the books. Then the sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them; each one was judged according to their works. Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.

Today, 2 more views of this final battle (again, not a chronological account of literal future events, but a revealing of how God is going to fulfil His promises)

One view (ch.19) to echo Isaiah 66

“You will see, you will rejoice, and you will flourish like grass; then the Lord’s power will be revealed to his servants, but he will show his wrath against his enemies. Look, the Lord will come with fire  — his chariots are like the whirlwind  — to execute his anger with fury and his rebuke with flames of fire. For the Lord will execute judgment on all humanity with his fiery sword, and many will be slain by the Lord. “For just as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, will remain before me” — this is the Lord’s declaration — “so your offspring and your name will remain. All humanity will come to worship me from one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another,” says the Lord. “As they leave, they will see the dead bodies of those who have rebelled against me; for their worm will never die, their fire will never go out, and they will be a horror to all humanity.””

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭66‬:‭14‬-‭16‬, ‭22‬-‭24‬ ‭CSB‬‬

What happens to God’s enemies?

They are destroyed… dead bodies

at the same time glorious and devastating

Why is this Rev 19 picture of Jesus important?

things we’ve seen in Rev before

sharp sword, white robe, iron rod, wine press, MANY crowns,

this is the REAL God, not the counterfeit!

not the ‘wish version’

looks like the real thing in the ad, but when you get it, it fails to deliver every time!

He’s not covered in blasphemies, on Him is written “King of Kings and Lord of Lords”

Because the prevailing picture of Jesus in Australia in 2020’s is baby Jesus in a manger or blonde haired surfer Jesus patting a lamb.

No wrath, no majesty, just a lovely guy who wants you to be happy and good to everyone.

Jesus’ humanity IS crucial to understand and uphold, but if it’s ALL you have, that’s an impotent, powerless god who you get to determine how to respond to… take it or leave it, he just has suggestions, and a vague encouragement to love; whatever that means for you.

but how do the demons respond to Jesus?

Fear!

“I thought we had more time!”

“I know who you are!”

“Please don’t send me away!”

The 2nd view, in ch.20, is here to echo & fulfil Ezekiel 38ff

““Therefore prophesy, son of man, and say to Gog, ‘This is what the Lord God says: On that day when my people Israel are dwelling securely, will you not know this and come from your place in the remotest parts of the north  — you and many peoples with you, who are all riding horses — a huge assembly, a powerful army? You will advance against my people Israel like a cloud covering the land. It will happen in the last days, Gog, that I will bring you against my land so that the nations may know me, when I demonstrate my holiness through you in their sight... I will execute judgment on him with plague and bloodshed. I will pour out torrential rain, hailstones, fire, and burning sulfur on him, as well as his troops and the many peoples who are with him. I will display my greatness and holiness, and will reveal myself in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord.’”

‭‭Ezekiel‬ ‭38‬:‭14‬-‭16‬, ‭22‬-‭23‬ ‭CSB‬‬

““Son of man, this is what the Lord God says: Tell every kind of bird and all the wild animals, ‘Assemble and come! Gather from all around to my sacrificial feast that I am slaughtering for you, a great feast on the mountains of Israel; you will eat flesh and drink blood. You will eat the flesh of mighty men and drink the blood of the earth’s princes: rams, lambs, male goats, and all the fattened bulls of Bashan.”

‭‭Ezekiel‬ ‭39‬:‭17‬-‭18‬

The Revelation is the recapitulation, the summing up of everything that has come before

What happens to God’s enemies?

Destroyed.. dead bodies.. the next chapter tells us it takes 7 months (apocalyptic number, remember not a literal 7 months) to bury all the dead… and the land is cleansed.. no more death.

What about the 1000 years? The millennium!

1000 years is figurative!

otherwise to maintain a consistent hermeneutic (way of reading the Bible) you need to come up with crazy ways of reading Rev (doesn’t stop some people though!)

The 144,000 - 12 by 12 by a huge number

1000 years is a day to the Lord

Or next week, 144 cubits, 12 foundations, 12,000 stadia length width and height.. that’s not giving us an architectural design! It’s a sign pointing to significance!

If we read it literally, we miss the point; it’s a poor reading!

Don’t let anyone tell you because you read it literarily, NOT literally, that it’s a bad reading; it’s the only way to understand what is being revealed!

What’s the better reading of Song of Solomon… that he’s in love with a goat for hair, clay for neck, sheep for teeth woman? No, we know that reading it literarily (how it’s meant to be read) is the way… the same is true for revelation.

Who are those reigning with Christ during the 1000 years?

it’s those who have died in Christ already

Revelation‬ ‭20‬:‭6‬ ‭CSB‬‬ “Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.”

‭‭hyperbole of the 1000 years, like we sing 10,000 reasons!

not that there is exactly 10,000 but that’s a really big number… THAT’S what John is saying here.

the second death has no power over YOU!

Remember, this is a letter revealing to the 1st century church the reality of the world from Jesus’ perspective!

Those who were being killed around them were reigning with Jesus now!

There isn’t a future 1000 years reign, we’re in it now

YOU will reign with Jesus for a thousand years!

don’t fear death!

why? The First resurrection - you have already!

YOU won’t taste the second death

Those dead in Jesus live

Those dead without Jesus, only come to life at the end for judgement.

[John 5 - “anyone who hears my word… HAS passed from death to life”]

2 Thessalonians‬ ‭2‬:‭1‬-‭8‬

“Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him: We ask you, brothers and sisters, not to be easily upset or troubled, either by a prophecy or by a message or by a letter supposedly from us, alleging that the day of the Lord has come. Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way. For that day will not come unless the apostasy comes first and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he sits in God’s temple, proclaiming that he himself is God. Don’t you remember that when I was still with you I used to tell you about this? And you know what currently restrains him, so that he will be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work, but the one now restraining will do so until he is out of the way, and then the lawless one will be revealed. The Lord Jesus will destroy him with the breath of his mouth and will bring him to nothing at the appearance of his coming.”

John‬ ‭5‬:‭21‬-‭29‬

“And just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son also gives life to whom he wants. The Father, in fact, judges no one but has given all judgment to the Son, so that all people may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Anyone who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him. “Truly I tell you, anyone who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not come under judgment but has passed from death to life. “Truly I tell you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and thosewho hear will live. For just as the Father has life in himself, so also he has granted to the Son to have life in himself. And he has granted him the right to pass judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not be amazed at this, because a time is coming when all who are in the graves will hear his voice and come out — those who have done good things, to the resurrection of life, but those who have done wicked things, to the resurrection of condemnation.”‭‭

1 Corinthians‬ ‭15‬:‭20‬-‭26‬ ‭CSB‬‬

“But as it is, Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead also comes through a man. For just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruits; afterward, at his coming, those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, [no millennium] when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign until he puts all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be abolished is death.”

Jesus rose

when He comes we all rise

then comes the end

1 Thessalonians‬ ‭4‬:‭13‬-‭18‬ ‭

“We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, concerning those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve like the rest, who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, in the same way, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For we say this to you by a word from the Lord: We who are still alive at the Lord’s coming will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the archangel’s voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are still alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.”

the return of Christ is the end of the age, not the beginning of a millennium.

what about satan though? I thought he was bound for 1000 years??

satan is bound now; not in the future.

Mark 3

“The scribes who had come down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and, “He drives out demons by the ruler of the demons.” So he summoned them and spoke to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand but is finished. But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can plunder his house.”

‭‭Mark‬ ‭3‬:‭22‬-‭27‬ ‭CSB‬‬

the strong man has been bound, and Jesus is plundering his house

Jesus was accused of casting out unclean spirits in satan’s power

Jesus says no, the Kingdom of God had come among them, and He had come to bind satan, and plunder his house.

This is why satan has given his power to the beasts; because he’s leashed.

Rev 20 tells us Satan will be unbound at the end in order to come to judgement

Luke 11:22 - satan is bound but still active

Jesus is the stronger one who has taken away his armour and divides his spoils

John 12:31

NOW will the ruler of this world be cast out!

Rev 12:9

satan is active, but powerless against the power of the gospel.

Jesus sends the 72

Luke 10:18-20

Return with joy! “Even the demons are subject to us in Your name”

Jesus responds “I watched Satan fall from heaven like lightning. Look, I have given you the authority to trample on snakes and scorpions (not literal ones… apocolyptic ones like we’ve read about in the revealing) and over all the power of the enemy; nothing at all will harm you. However, don’t rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

Authority is given in the context of preaching the gospel!

McCrindle

Nearly 2 in 3 people in Australia in 2022 said they would reply positively if asked to visit a church

Even just in our little corner of the world, we’ve seen dozens and into the hundreds of people respond to the Gospel with faith over the past 10 years… many of them growing in Christlikeness and joining a church plant or missionary endeavour over the past 5 years.

God is still saving people! And He’s using US do to it.

Rev 19-20 again show us that Jesus rules and reigns now

He has bound the strong man, and is redeeming those out of death into life… out of darkness into light… out of rebellion into His family… out of shame into joy…out of nakedness into clothes of righteousness… out of counterfeit into the real thing.

And we are lined up behind Him, plundering the spoils with Him

Not the material spoils of a worldly war, but brothers and sisters Jesus is drawing to Himself.

Have confidence! The deceiver is bound!

Have boldness! Jesus is drawing people to Himself!

Have joy! The gospel is saving people today!

Pray

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