Part 17 | Who Can Stand?

Revelation 6:12–17 (ESV)

When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood, and the stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale. The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place. Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”

The Seals

The seals represent the pain, sorrow, and judgements that will come upon the world in the last days before He brings about New Creation. God is allowing to do its worst so that He might confront it head on.

Purpose of this chapter: To show God’s sovereignty in the midst of chaos and suffering

The fact that Christ holds the scrolls and breaks the seals, shows that God is in still control—even in the midst of the most horrifying circumstances—and he uses these for both judicial and redemptive purposes.

The First Four Seals: The Four Horseman

Rider on the White Horse: Conquest - Likely Symbolize Conquering Kings

The Red Horse and Rider: War (or Violence) - the malevolent behavior of humans one to another… this violence robs the world of peace.

Black Horse: Famine (Economic Woes) brought on by tyranny and national disasters

Pale Horse and Rider: Personification of Death: Conquest, Violence, & Famine, all lead to death. In addition to the bloodshed from war and death from famine, many will be killed by pestilence and wild beasts.

The Fifth Seal

The Souls of the Martyrs: Cry for justice and call for patience

The Sixth Seal: Answered Prayers:

Christ’s opening of the sixth seal, is God’s answer to the patient prayers of the martyrs.

When the sixth seal is opened, John sees judgment poured out on the wicked. He uses apocalyptic language to describe the impending judgement.

It seems clear, that this if the final judgement of which John is speaking.

Note: This is not a repeatable judgement like the first four seals (the four horsemen). This is the judgement where the wicked will finally realize that they are under the Creator’s wrath.

Revelation 6:12 (ESV)

When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood,

In this scene of judgement, the created order falls apart.

Note: John picks up a lot of this language from the OT Prophets

Earthquakes

The last day is signaled with an earthquake (a regular picture of final judgement in Rev.)

Revelation 8:5 (ESV)

Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth, and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

Revelation 11:13 (ESV)

And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

Revelation 11:19 (ESV)

Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.

Revelation 16:18 (ESV)

And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as there had never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake.

The OT used earthquakes to signify the judgement of God

Ezekiel 38:19–21 (ESV)

For in my jealousy and in my blazing wrath I declare, On that day there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. The fish of the sea and the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the field and all creeping things that creep on the ground, and all the people who are on the face of the earth, shall quake at my presence. And the mountains shall be thrown down, and the cliffs shall fall, and every wall shall tumble to the ground. I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Lord God. Every man’s sword will be against his brother.

Joel 3:16 (ESV)

The Lord roars from Zion,

and utters his voice from Jerusalem,

and the heavens and the earth quake.

But the Lord is a refuge to his people,

a stronghold to the people of Israel.

The Sun turns black and the Moon becomes like blood

Joel 2:31 (ESV)

The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes.

Isaiah uses these words to describes Babylon’s end:

Isaiah 13:10 (ESV)

For the stars of the heavens and their constellations

will not give their light;

the sun will be dark at its rising,

and the moon will not shed its light.

Stars fall and Sky Vanishes (again, picked up from Isaiah)

Isaiah 34:4 (ESV)

All the host of heaven shall rot away,

and the skies roll up like a scroll.

All their host shall fall,

as leaves fall from the vine,

like leaves falling from the fig tree.

Mountains are removed

Imagery or Literal?

There is debate amongst scholars as to whether or not the catastrophic events described in this verse are actual, literal events that will take place in the end or if John is, again, using apocalyptic imagery, attempting to describe something that words could not possibly do justice.

Given the book genre and the context, it seems like this language is metaphorical.

According to NT Wright, The OT would often use language like the sun turning black and the moon becoming like blood, and stars falling from heaven, and so on, in order to describe what we might call “earth-shattering events”

Consider the holocaust or the flattening of the twin towers: it is hard to describe those events with words, except through symbol and metaphor.

If these cataclysmic events were literal, why would the people be hiding in caves begging for death? It is because they must face the wrath of God. They would rather the earth swallow them whole than face God’s wrath.

*The images of the judgements in history are signs that point to the great and final judgment.

The Point: The World as we know it is over.

Revelation 6:15–17 (ESV)

Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”

The One Who is Seated on the Throne = the Father

The Lamb = Jesus

The Sacrificial Lamb is now a lamb of wrath. Lambs are some of the most docile animals, but now the Lamb comes in fury.

For those who have rejected Christ, it is too late to cry out for mercy. The time has come that the wicked will be judged.

Revelation 6:17 (ESV)

for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”

Who Can Stand?

Revelation 7:1–4 (ESV)

After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, that no wind might blow on earth or sea or against any tree. Then I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, with the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm earth and sea, saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.” And I heard the number of the sealed, 144,000, sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel:

Answer to question: Who can stand = Those sealed by God.

Four Corners of the Earth?

- Not that the world is flat, but symbolic of the entire world.

Four Angels: God grants the four angels governance of the world for His sake

The four winds symbolize the judgement that is about to come on the entire world

The angels are temporarily holding back the winds (judgements) so that they are not unleashed on land, sea or trees. So, this vision takes us back to the time before the 6th seal is unleashed.

Fifth Angel

As the four angels are about to release the four winds upon the earth, another angel approaches and commands them to wait until God’s servants are sealed on their foreheads.

This “sealing” is symbolic. It symbolizes protection granted to those who belong to God.

CF: Rev. 9:4

Revelation 9:4 (ESV)

They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green plant or any tree, but only those people who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.

John again draws from the OT

Ezekiel 9;

Because of Jerusalem is about to be judged because of their sin, and those who have turned from God will be annihilated.

But a mark is put on the foreheads of those who are broken over the pervasive wickedness.

Ezekiel 9:4 (ESV)

And the Lord said to him, “Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it.”

The people who have God’s mark on their foreheads are put in contrast with those who have the mark of the beast on their foreheads.

Revelation 14:9 (ESV)

And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand,

Those who have the mark of the beast will experience God’s wrath.

Those who have the mark of God will experience God’s blessing and protection.

John Hears a Number

Revelation 7:4 (ESV)

And I heard the number of the sealed, 144,000, sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel:

144,000 made up from every tribe of Israel

God knows each of His sheep by name. He knows who belongs to Him.

John 10:3 (ESV)

To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

Thomas Schreiner:

Hebrews–Revelation (Comment)

The list of tribes doesn’t match any rendition of the tribes in the OT. Judah may be first since Jesus the Messiah, head of the people of God, comes from Judah. What is also striking is that Dan is omitted, perhaps because of the evil associated with that tribe (Judges 18). Instead we have Joseph and Manasseh. This is curious, as Manasseh descended from Joseph, and thus we would expect Ephraim and Manasseh. These peculiarities in the listing suggest a symbolic reading.

Different Views of the 144,000

Literal number of Jews from each tribe who become believers in Jesus

Dispensationalists: See the 144,000 as the number of Jews who will be saved during a final, literal seven year tribulation.

They think all other believers have been raptured at this point.

More Convincing View: 144K is symbolic of all Christians throughout history, both Jews and Gentiles.

Why Does 144K Represent the Church?

1)Apocalyptic Literature: Numbers are regularly symbolic

144k = 12 x 12 x 1000

12 is a number of completeness and 1000 represents a great multitude

Thus, the number should be seen as representing the whole people of God.

2) John hears 144,000, but then turns and sees a great multitude, with too many to count.

Revelation 7:9 (ESV)

After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands,

This is the same pattern as the vision of Christ in the fifth chapter

John hears a Lion but turns and sees a Lamb

These are the same entity.

It is highly likely that the 144K and the Great multitude, then are the same people.

3) I don’t believe their are two peoples of God

Dispensationalists insist that Israel and the Church are two different entities.

But the NT seems to refute this explicitly.

Romans 2:28–29 (ESV)

For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God.

John has called some of the Jews the synagogue of Satan

“The Whole Book of Galatians and much of Romans seem to refute two peoples of God.

Revelation 7:13–16 (ESV)

Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” I said to him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

“Therefore they are before the throne of God,

and serve him day and night in his temple;

and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.

They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore;

the sun shall not strike them,

nor any scorching heat.

“Coming Out of the Great Tribulation”

Some believe this refers to the final seven years before Christ’s return.

The phrase “Great Tribulation” is a general term with multiple meanings.

Matthew 24:41 uses the phrase to denote the destruction of Jerusalem that happened in AD 70

It is likely that John sees the Great Tribulation, in the same way the Bible speaks about “The Last Days”

Namely, the time between Christ’s Resurrection and His Return

Robes of White

The multitude are clothed in white garments.

White Robes in Rev. represent the righteousness of God’s people

Their robes are white not because of their own righteousness, but because the blood of Jesus has been applied to their lives, cleansing them from their sin.

Those who have endured great tribulation and have robes of white, are before God’s throne.

This seems to be a preview of New Creation, when every tear will be wiped from their eyes.

The use of the world “temple” is symbolic, representing God’s presence.

Revelation 22:3 (ESV)

No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him.

Response

Praise God for the multitudes that will come to Him and thank God. Thank God that our sins are forgiven and that we shall forever be with the Lord as part of His New Creation.

We will forever be “with the Lamb” for all eternity, which will bring us unspeakable joy.

Motivation for evangelism. God’s wrath can be worse than we could ever imagine and His salvation would be better than we could ever hope for.

Make sure you are in the Lord.