Most Important Notes from BIBL 450 {2,593 words}
XXV. Lesson 25 - The Book of Revelation (chapter 15:1-16:21)
A. Revelation 15:1-8 prepares for the seven vial judgments. The last seven plagues will end God's wrath. The song of Moses mentioned in Revelation 15:3 is in Exodus 15:1-21. The smoke in Revelation 15:8 and Isaiah 6:1 is the sheninah glory cloud. The seal judgments are in Revelation , chapter six, the trumpet judgments are in Revelation, chapters eight and nine, and the vial judgments are in Revelation, chapter sixteen.
B. By Revelation 16:1, those without the mark of the beast are already dead. Psalm 116:15 says "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints." The blood of a dead person smells horrible, and Revelation 16:3-4 says that one-third of the sea, rivers, and springs will become either blood or as blood. In Revelation 16:6, they have blood to drink because they killed the saints and prophets. This is very similar to one of the plagues in Egypt. The angels in charge of the waters say that that judgment is perfect. The bloodthirsty got blood to drink. Daniel 11:40-45 describes some of the battle set up in Revelation 16:12. Two hundred million soldiers (Revelation 9:16) will be able to come across the dried up Euphrates river. The last judgment is finished.
C. Notice in Revelation 16:21 that the lost curse God rather than falling down before Him.
XXVI. Lesson 26 - The Book of Revelation (chapter 17:1-18:24)
A. In Revelation 17:1-6, a harlot is introduced, and a harlot is someone that is unfaithful. Sitting on a beast usually indicates control of the beast (Revelation 17:3). The beast with the seven heads and ten horns is a carryback to Revelation 13:1 (the kingdom of the Antichrist). The woman would have to be the false religion church of the Tribulation period. Religion will still be pretty much the same during the Tribulation. When churches start to compromise their theological positions, then that creates an opening for a one-world religion where everyone accomodates one another. The woman was arraigned in purple (Revelation 17:4) to symbolize a high level of living. The church (woman) will receive gifts that make it prosperpous. That is the significance of the purple. In Revelation 17:6, the Tribulation church will martyr those that become Christians during that time (seen in Revelation 11:7-12). A lot of persecution has always happened in the name of religion.
B. In Revelation 17:7-18, the mysteries of the woman and beast are given. It is not difficult, but it is a new revelation. The "once was, now is not, and will come up out of the Abyss and go to his destruction" could symbolize the original Roman Empire. That would also probably include all of the nations (geographical areas) that were in that empire, such as Spain and Portugal. "The book of life from the creation of the world will be" is complicated. It could be that those that do not get saved during the Tribulation will be blotted out, or it could be a reference to those that were not saved for all time. Rome is one of many cities that has seven hills. The five kings could represent five kingdoms with the Antichrist being the last one (Egypt, Babylon, Assyria, Mede-Persian, Roman). The Antichrist comes out of the seven kings. The ten kings are under the Antichrist. Revelation 17:15-18 speaks of some of the destruction that will happen during this time.
C. In Revelation 18:2, Babylon is almost always a symbol for evil and rebellion against God, and that goes all the way back to Nimrod at the tower of Babel. In Revelation 18:5-8, God will remember all the evil against Him and His people. In Revelation 6:10, they had asked how long before their blood would be avenged, and the time has finally come. In Revelation 18:9-20, her destruction comes very quickly. The mourning will be done by those that have sold their souls to the devil. This woman is not necessarily cast off at the end of the Tribulation. In Revelation 18:19, the mention of ships means that these events could have happened before the judgment that caused so many ships to be destroyed. The bowl, trumpet, and vial judgments are more or less sequential, with the exception of the seventh bowl and the seventh trumpet, and they cover the seven years. The intervening chapters are parenthetical. God was merciful for a very long time, but He eventually brought everything to an end.
XXVII. Lesson 27 - The Book of Revelation (chapter 19:1-21)
A. Rejoicing with those in Heaven (Revelation 19:1-6) - a huge number of people are shouting, "Hallelujah." This is a four-fold doxology, which continues with "Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for true and just are his judgments." The future aspect of salvation is called glorification, and that point, we will be saved from the very presence of sin. The glory of God is the manifest excellence of His character, perfect in all of His attributes (holy, righteousness, love, mercy, and so forth). The harlot is world religion at its worst. Amen is agreeing with the speaker or the person performing an action, and it means that something is right. In Revelation 19:4, the amen was in reference to falling down and worshipping God.
B. The Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:7-10) - this is the only mention of it in the Bible, and it is at the end of the Tribulation, not the beginning. The Lamb is Christ, and the wife or bride is the church. Revelation 19:9, John is commanded to write, and that was one of fourteen times. Because of those separate writings, one can conclude that he probably did not write the whole revelation at one time. The key verse of Revelation is Revelation 1:19 ("Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take place later."). John was invited and told to write. In Matthew 26:29 at the Last Supper, Jesus mentioned when He would drink wine again until He was with His disciples in Glory, so based on that, it would have been at the end of Tribulation.
C. In Revelation 19:11-16, the rider comes (The Second Coming). Jesus is Faithful and True. He is King over all the world. The dipped in blood symbolizes His death for our sins. In Revelation 19:14, no one knows where heaven is because it is invisible, but it could be closer to earth than many people would think. It's location is an unknown. The sword in Revelation 19:15 is the Word of God.
D. The Battle of Armageddon (Revelation 19:17-21) - The battle will be in Megiddo, and the fowls of the air will eat the dead. This battle parallels Ezekiel, chapters thirty-eight and thirty-nine(:). The beast and the false prophet were all cast into the lake of fire.
XXVIII. Lesson 28 - The Book of Revelation (chapter 20:1-15)
A. The key symbolizes rule over the bottomless pit, and the chain symbolizes confinement. Satan is a spirit, so how can he be confined. In Jude 1:6 and II Peter 2:4, the evil forces are bound in "everlasting chains of darkness." All this really means is that they cannot get away. The devil or Satan is called a serpent, and that points back to Genesis 3:1. If the post-Tribulation view were correct, then the devil would be bound right now, and he does not appear to be. He was around to tempt Jesus in Matthew 4:1-11 and to buffet Paul in II Corinthians 12:7-10. The one thousand years is probably literal, and it is mentioned in several verses in this chapter.
B. When Satan is bound, he will not deceive the nations anymore for one thousand years. The seven-year Tribulation is passed, and then begins the Millennium (one thousand years). At the end of the Millennium, a final battle at Gog and Magog will occur (Revelation 20:8). The Millennium will be perfect government, and Christians will help Him reign (Revelation 20:6). At the end of the Millennium, the devil is released so that he can tempt those on the earth that were never tempted for one last time (the parable of the goats and sheep). The saints of the church age will be raptured and resurrected, the Tribulation saints will have died and been resurrected, too, and those two groups will come together and reign with Christ for one thousand years. In Daniel 12:1-2, the saved children of Israel (the Old Testament saints) will be raised, too. This will be the first resurrection. But the rest of the unsaved dead will remain in their graves until the end of the Millennium, and this will be the second resurrection. The Millennium is described in Isaiah 2:6-22. In Joel 3:17-18, that prophecy will come first. Many passages in the Old Testament describe the Millennium. Luke spoke about Jesus' rule, too, but the promises have not been satisfied yet. His rule and reign, which is discussed throughout the Bible, will be during the Millennium.
C. At the end of the Millennium, Satan will be released and that will lead up to the Battle of Gog and Magog. There will be many people with Satan (Revelation 20:8), but they will be quickly wiped out. Note that the devil never gives up. He fights the Lord right up until the end. His punishment will be eternal. His punishment was intended for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41), not for man. That will be called the White Throne Judgment. Matthew 11:19 (The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and 'sinners.' But wisdom is proved right by her actions." ) and Matthew 20:4 ("He told them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' ") supports the belief that God will do right concerning those that have not reached the age of accountability.
XXIX. Lesson 29 - The Book of Revelation (chapter 21:1-27)
A. The New Heaven and the New Earth (Revelation 21:1-8) - The first view is that God rolled up the old heaven and earth like a scroll. Matthew 24:35 says that the old will pass away but that the Word of God will never pass away. The second view is that the entire earth might be destroyed through the works of the Tribulation (II Peter 3:11-12). John identified himself as the author of the Book of Revelation in Revelation 22:8. People will not be sad in heaven. There will be anymore death, sorrow, or pain (Revelation 21:4). People will be continually young forever. Everyone will probably be in a type of grownup state. Sometimes, John is told to write, and sometimes, he is told not to write. That shows that the whole Book was written in segments, not all at one time. Revelation 21:6 is a clear affirmation that salvation (eternal life in Christ) is free. That verse says, "He said to me: 'It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life.'" We will be called sons of God. For the lost, the second death is defined as the spiritual death as having never been remedied. They will have existence, but they will not have quality of existence.
B. The New Jerusalem (heaven) (Revelation 21:9-27) - No one knows where heaven is because it is invisible. The church and Israel are not the same. Each one has its own distinct and separate program. The great mystery is that they meet together in heaven. Some people have defined it as a cube with 12,000 furlongs (1,500 miles) going in each direction. Others have defined it as a giant pyramid. This tremendous city will be placed somewhere on the earth, and people will be able to go in and out of it. The new Jerusalem will be the capitol city on the earth. The twelve gates were probably for the twelve sons of Jacob, and they indicate easy access. Revelation 21:27 shows that the sin nature will be eradicated when we are in heaven, and the logical time for that to happen will be at the Rapture. There will not be a moon or a sun because Jesus will be the light.
XXX. Lesson 30 - The Book of Revelation (chapter 22:1-21)
A. In Revelation 22:1-3, John wrote about the river of the water of life and about the tree of life. Adam and Eve ate from that tree in addition to eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The tree of life pictures the quality of life that people have with God. The leaves of the tree will heal the nations, so nations will be there. The curse that is on the earth will not exist any longer. Instead of curse, there will be blessing. His servants will serve Him, and we will be servants. An interesting point is that James, the brother of Jesus, always called himself the servant of Christ, not the brother . Revelation 2:7 says that the tree of life is in the midst of the paradise of God. Paradise is in heaven. In II Corinthians 12:3-4, the Apostle Paul was caught up to paradise, the third heaven. Jesus told the thief on the cross that he would be with Jesus in paradise on that very day. Abraham (Genesis 18:1-3) and Moses (Exodus 24:9-11) saw God and did not die. They did not see Him in Spirit form. They saw a manifestation of Him. In Revelation 22:4, He may manifest Himself in a way that lets Him be seen.
B. In Revelation 22:7, people will try to keep the words of this book during the Tribulation. They will see that they have been left behind, but they will have the Bible to help them. They will keep the word, and they will die as martyrs for Christ. In Revelation 22:8-9, the angel would not accept worship from John. He told him to get up. When Moses saw God in Exodus 3:2, and Joshua saw Him in Joshua 5:13-15, they were both told to worship the angel. So, that angel must have been Christ because angels will not receive worship.
C. Hebrews 9:27 talks about man dying once and then the judgment. In Revelation 22:11, everything will be settled by that point. That verse says, "Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy."
D. When Jesus comes, we will be rewarded for those things done for Christ with the right attitude. Just going to church probably will not cut it. Revelation 22:18-19 warn people to not try to change any of the prophesies of this Book. In Revelation 22:19, tree of life and book of life was confused by Erasmus because the two Greek words only had one letter difference. Dr. Borland thinks that tree of life is the correct word.
Tom of Bethany "He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." (I John 5:12)
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