# verses

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But he who keeps hating his brother is in the darkness and keeps walking in the darkness; he doesn’t know where he’s going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.


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<i> Look out for the enemy! A bit of poetry</i> Dear children, I am writing to you because your sins have been forgiven for His name’s sake <n>Verse 12 is an introductory cover statement; in verse 13 John divides the cover group into three sub-groups; in verse 14 he returns to the first two categories [I confess that I don’t understand the purpose of verse 14, unless it be that John wanted to enlarge on what he says to the young men but didn’t want to pass over the fathers].</n> 


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—fathers, I am writing to you because you have come to know Him <n>An increasingly adequate knowledge of God has everything to do with spiritual maturity.</n> who is from the beginning; young men, I am writing to you because you have overcome the evil one; <n>Spiritual warfare is not for ‘children’.</n> children, I am writing to you because you have come to know the Father—


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fathers, I have written to you because you have come to know Him who is from the beginning; young men, I have written to you because you are strong, and the Word of God remains in you, <n>For the Word to abide in you, you have to abide in it (John 8:31).</n> and you have overcome the evil one.


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<i> We must not love the world</i> Do not love the world, neither the things in the world; <n>The crucial issue is the values that the surrounding culture seeks to impose on us—materialism, relativism, humanism; these values are directly opposed to the Father’s values, and therefore to His love.</n> if anyone loves the world, the Father’s love isn’t in him.


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Because everything in the world—the craving of the flesh and the craving of the eyes and the pretension of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. <n>The world system is controlled by Satan (5:19), so that system with its values is against the Creator. As the Sovereign said in Matthew 6:24, it is impossible to serve two masters—the more so if one is God and the other is Satan!</n> 


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The world, with its craving, is passing away, but he who does God’s will remains forever. <n>Note that we have to do the will. “Whoever does the will of God, the same is my brother, my sister, my mother” (Mark 3:35). The Sovereign also said that it is a son who abides in the house forever (John 8:35).</n> 


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<i> A bunch of little antichrists</i> Children, it is the last hour, and just as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared, by which we know that it is the last hour. <n>One gets the impression that the early Christians expected the Lord’s return within their lifetime. The Creator is not bound by our notions of time.</n> 


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They went out from us but were not of us, <n>Those who have left the Christian community are often nastier than those who have never been a part of it.</n> for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us—they left so that they might be exposed, that none of them were of us.


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I have not written to you because you don’t know the truth, but because you do know it, and because no lie is of the Truth. <n>The Spirit of the Truth cannot lie (John 14:17, 15:26, 16:13; Titus 1:2), just as Satan can’t tell the truth (John 8:44) [if he ever does it is distorted so as to deceive].</n> 


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<i> We must abide in the truth</i> Who is the liar <n>The Text has the definite article—behind every liar is the father of lies. Those who claim that Jesus was only a good man, a great teacher, are on Satan’s side.</n> but the one denying that Jesus is the Christ? This is the Antichrist, the one denying the Father and the Son.


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Whoever denies the Son doesn’t have the Father either. <n>Some 20% of the Greek manuscripts add, “whoever confesses the Son has the Father also”, as in most versions. I take it that John is making the point that to deny either the Father or the Son is to deny them both—the addition is unnecessary. The 80%, including the best line of transmission, are correct. Note that John rejects Unitarianism (Sabellianism, modalism).</n> 


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So you, let what you have heard from the beginning abide in you; if what you have heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Father and in the Son.


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but really, you don’t need anyone to teach you because the Anointing that you received from Him abides in you; further, as the same Anointing teaches you concerning all things, and it is true and no lie—well just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.


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<i> Remember the accounting at our Lord’s return</i> And now, dear children, do abide in Him, so that whenever He appears we <n>One might expect ‘you’ instead of ‘we’, but evidently John is concerned about the results of his labors, as was Paul (1 Thessalonians 2:19).</n> may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.


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If you have understood that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness has been begotten by Him.


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<i> “We are children of God”</i> Consider how great a love the Father has bestowed on us that we should be called children of God! <n>Some 15% of the Greek manuscripts add ‘and we are’ (as in NIV, NASB, LB, TEV, etc.). The addition is out of place here, since John takes up that point in verse 2. The Father took the initiative in bestowing His love upon us; it is up to us to ‘consider’ and respond.</n> The world does not acknowledge us <n>Although perhaps 64% of the Greek manuscripts read ‘you’, the best line of transmission is with the 36% in reading ‘us’. John is making a general statement, so it is properly inclusive—first person.</n> for this reason: it did not acknowledge Him.


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Dear ones, right 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 will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is <n>This verse is directly relevant to the interpretation of 1 Corinthians 13:10-12.</n> 


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—everyone who has this hope upon him purifies himself, even as He is pure. <n>We will be completely exposed in His presence, and be fully conscious of it, so to avoid a bad scene we need to get a head start on the purifying.</n> 


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<i> “Whoever abides in Him does not sin”</i> Everyone who commits sin commits lawlessness as well; yes, sin is lawlessness. <n>Lawlessness is rebellion against a known standard.</n> 


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And you know that He was revealed in order to remove our sins—in Him there is no sin. <n>An important statement—that’s why He can be our Savior.</n> 


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Whoever is abiding in Him does not sin; <n>In order to sin one must stop abiding.</n> indeed, whoever is sinning has neither seen Him nor known Him. <n>An uncomfortable statement; again, deliberate sin indicates an inadequate knowledge of God.</n> 


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Dear children, let no one mislead you; he who keeps doing righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous.


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He who keeps doing sin is of the devil, <n>God demands holiness. Belonging to God involves living a holy life (see verse 10 below).</n> because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The Son of God was manifested for this purpose: to undo <n>Many versions render ‘destroy’, but I prefer ‘undo’—to undo a work involves undoing its consequences as well. In John 20:21 Sovereign Jesus said, “As the Father has sent me, I also send you.” So we are here to undo Satan’s works—there is certainly no lack of opportunity or challenge! However, Satan doesn’t take kindly to any such attempt, so you need to know who you are in Christ, and be living in submission to the Holy Spirit.</n> the devil’s works.


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Whoever has been begotten by God does not commit sin, because His seed remains in him; actually, he is not able to sin, because he has been begotten by God. <n>This statement appears to be so contrary to our experience that it has given rise to all sorts of evasive action. When explaining this verse in a church I ask all who have been born of God to raise a hand (raising my own)—most do. I then ask, “When were you born of God, from your mother’s womb?” “Oh no”, they will say, “it was when I was saved / born again.” I then ask for a volunteer who was saved as an adult—‘John Doe’ offers, saying he was saved when he was 30. So I say, “Tell me, John, for the first 29 years of your life you were John Doe, right? Your family, your friends, everybody knew you.” “That’s right.” “So when you were saved at 30 did you stop being John Doe? Nobody knows you any more?” “Everybody still knows me.” “So for 29 years you were John Doe and you continue to be John Doe?” “That’s right.” “Ok, so what do you have that was born of God? It can’t be anything that was there during the first 29 years.” Well, the answers will vary according to the theological sophistication of the person, but the Bible speaks of a ‘new man’ or ‘new nature’ that the Holy Spirit produces in us. It is that new nature that is God’s ‘seed’ within us, and that seed cannot sin. But the old nature still exists, and it does indeed sin—recall the Apostle Paul’s struggle (Romans 7:13-25).</n> 


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<i> Children of God X children of the devil</i> In this the children of God and the children of the devil are distinguished: whoever isn’t doing righteousness is not of God, also whoever isn’t loving his brother.


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—not like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his <i>own</i> works were evil, while those of his brother were righteous.


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<i> We</i> know that we have transferred out of the death into the life because we love our brothers; he who doesn’t love his brother remains in the death.


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Whoever is hating his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding within himself. <n>Note the “is hating”—someone who murdered in the past can repent and be saved.</n> 


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<i> Love in deed and truth</i> We know the Love by this: He laid down His life in our behalf; we also are obligated to lay down our lives in behalf of our brothers.


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Now whoever has this world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart toward him—how does the love of God abide in him?


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and that, if our heart should condemn us, God is greater than our heart and knows all. <n>Well, the heart is ‘deceitful above all things’, so presumably Satan can use it to accuse us falsely, but the Righteous Judge has all the facts.</n> 


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<i> Confidence toward God</i> Dear ones, if our heart doesn’t condemn us, we have confidence toward God,


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and whatever we may ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight.


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Now this is His commandment, that we believe in the name <n>With reference to salvation the Text always has ‘believe into Jesus / His name’—a change of position is involved, from being outside to being inside, which also involves commitment. Here John is writing to those who are already inside, so it’s ‘believe in the name’. John was with Peter in Acts 3:6, 16 and 4:10, and may be calling on us to make similar use of the Name.</n> of His Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded.


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He who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. This is how we know that He remains in us: by the Spirit whom He gave us.


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<i> Various instructions Test the spirits</i> Dear ones, don’t believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.


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By this the Spirit of God is known: <n>Both the <i>Textus Receptus</i> and the eclectic (‘critical’) text have ‘ye know’, with 25% of the Greek manuscripts, so almost all versions so read. I wonder if this has contributed to the use of this passage as a ‘litmus’ test for demonization in some quarters. A better procedure is to use the discernment the Holy Spirit gives us. If we are to test spirits, then they most certainly exist!</n> every spirit that acknowledges Jesus Christ as having come in flesh is of God,


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and every spirit that doesn’t acknowledge Jesus Christ as having come in flesh is not of God; indeed, this is the spirit of the Antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming—actually, it is already in the world right now. <n>The ‘spirit’ of antichrist, an expression of Satan himself, has been around for a long time.</n> 


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Dear children, you are of God and have overcome them, <n>What is the antecedent of “them”? Presumably either the false prophets in verse one or the spirits of antichrist in verse two, or both. Well, the next verse seems to point to the false prophets.</n> because He who is in you is greater than the one in the world. <n>Jesus is greater than Satan.</n> 


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We are of God: he who knows God listens to us; he who is not of God doesn’t listen to us—by this we know the Spirit of the Truth and the spirit of the deception. <n>Well now, this would make a good litmus test, but we had better be walking with God if we try to use it!</n> 


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<i> Love one another</i> Dear ones, we must love one another, because the love is of God and everyone who loves <n>Of course this refers to <i>agape</i> love, not emotional or physical love. The world knows nothing of <i>agape</i> love, and Satan represents the opposite.</n> has been begotten by God and knows God.


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God’s love was made real within us by this: God sent His only begotten Son into the world in order that we might live through Him.


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In this is the love, not that we loved God but that He loved us—He even sent His Son as the propitiation for our sins.


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<i> As He is so are we in this world</i> No one has ever looked at God. If we love one another, God remains in us and His love is being perfected in us.


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Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him and he in God. <n>There is a big difference between ‘profess’ and ‘confess’; to confess Jesus is to submit to Him.</n> 


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Yes, we have come to know and believe the love that God has in us. God is love, and he who abides in the love abides in God, and God in him.


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The love is perfected with us for this: that we may have confidence in the Day of judgment, since just as He is so are we in this world. <n>An important statement—note that it is in this world, not the next. But who is the antecedent of “He”? Verse 13 mentions the Holy Spirit, while verse 14 mentions the Father and the Son, so perhaps it is God the Trinity. As the body of Christ we represent the triune God in this world.</n> 


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<i> There is no fear in love</i> There is no fear in love; rather perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment; so he who fears has not been perfected in love. <n>So why do we fear? Usually fear is directly tied to our self-centeredness—it is because of what may happen to us that we are afraid.To the extent that we identify with the interests of God and His Kingdom, we will be less concerned about ourselves.</n> 


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If anyone says, “I love God”, while hating his brother, he is a liar. Well, how can he love God whom he hasn’t seen, while not loving his brother whom he <i>has</i> seen?


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<i> Our faith overcomes the world</i> Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ has been begotten by God; <n>I suppose that John would say that ‘knowing’ and ‘believing’ are different things. Satan certainly ‘knows’ that Jesus is the Christ, but it doesn’t do him any good. How we act shows what we really believe, so to ‘believe’ that Jesus is the Christ requires that we submit to Him.</n> also, whoever loves the Begetter should love the one begotten by Him as well.


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For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; <n>The appropriate ways to demonstrate love differ according to the specific relationship involved; to demonstrate love for God is to obey Him.</n> His commandments are not burdensome,


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in that whatever has been begotten by God overcomes the world; this is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith.


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<i> Receive the witness of God</i> This is He who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ—not by the water only, but by the water and the blood. And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is the Truth;


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actually there are three who bear witness <n>Those who use the AV or NKJV are used to: “There are three that bear witness <i>in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness on earth:</i> the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one.” The words in italics are only found in five late Greek manuscripts (less than 1% of the total) and part of the Latin tradition, from which they came. To be more precise, the manuscripts are: (61)[16th], (629)[14th], (918)[16th], 2318 [18th], 2473 [17th], wherein the cursives in ( ) all differ from each other; the two that agree verbatim with TR were probably copied from it. The only one that is clearly early enough to have served as TR’s exemplar, 629, is far too different—it lacks the seven last words in TR, omits another five, changes five and adds two—19 out of 40 words is too much; the <i>Textus Receptus</i> is not based on cursive 629, so it must be a translation from the Latin (or its exemplar is lost). The shorter reading makes excellent sense. [Those who make ‘the three heavenly witnesses’ a litmus test for orthodoxy are either ignorant or perverse (or both).]</n> 


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If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater; for this is God’s testimony which He has testified concerning His Son.


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He who believes into the Son of God has the witness within himself; he who doesn’t believe God has made Him <i>out to be</i> a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has testified concerning His Son.


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I have written these things to you who believe into the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life, really believing into the name of God’s Son. <n>A person’s name represents that person.</n> 


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<i> Our confidence</i> Now this is the confidence that we have toward Him: if we should ask anything according to His will, He hears us.


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And if we know that He hears us, whatever we may ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of Him.


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<i> Sins not leading to death</i> If anyone should see his brother sinning a sin not leading to death, let him ask, and He will give him life for those who do not sin unto death. There is sin leading to death; I am not saying that he should make request about that.


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All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not leading to death. <n>The way John phrases this, ‘there is sin not leading to death’, almost gives the impression that most sin does lead to death. Well, “the wages of sin is death”, both physical and spiritual. Christ’s sacrifice can save us from spiritual death, but not the physical. So is John referring to a premature physical death? But verse 16 is about a ‘brother’ sinning. Consider what is said in Hebrews 10:26-31.Because, if we deliberately keep on sinning after having received the real knowledge of the Truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 just a certain fearful anticipation of judgment and fierce fire that is ready to consume the hostiles. 28 Anyone who rejected Moses’ law died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be deemed worthy who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has regarded as unholy the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know Him who said, “‘Vengeance is up to me’, says the Lord, ‘I will repay’.” And again, “The LORD will judge His people.” 31 It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the Living God!Note the ‘after having received the real knowledge of the Truth’ and ‘by which he was sanctified’ (see also verses 32-36). I fear that what I was taught in Seminary on this subject does not square with the Text. I am not aware of any passage that spells out the sins that do and/or those that don’t. I suppose that a request about a sin leading to death simply will not be granted.</n> 


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We know that whoever has been begotten by God does not sin; <n>This statement is very similar to the one in 3:9—please refer back to the note there.</n> rather the one who was begotten by God preserves himself, and the evil one does not touch him. <n>“The evil one does not touch him” has given rise to the catastrophic idea that Christians cannot be demonized; but let’s analyze the situation a bit. Wherein might the “touch” in the Text consist? It can’t be temptation, because Christ Himself was tempted (Mt. 4:1-11); it can’t be an attack on the body, because the Apostle Paul was so attacked (2 Corinthians 12:7); it can’t be an attack on the mind, because the Apostle Peter was so attacked (Matthew 16:22-23). So wherein might the ‘touch’ consist?Consider Ephesians 6:12—“our wrestling match” is against wicked spirits (wrestling is direct, physical, violent—it is impossible to be in a wrestling match and not be “touched”). Consider also 1 Peter 5:8—why “be vigilant” if that lion can’t touch us? You may be absolutely certain that believers can be and are demonized! The crucial thing is a <b>conscious</b> submission to the Holy Spirit (while controlled by the Spirit you will never be controlled by a demon).But just who is it that the evil one doesn’t touch? The one begotten by God, or born of God—but who is the “born of God”? Since only Jesus was literally born of God from His mother’s womb, the rest of us receive the “new man” at regeneration, so the believer as a whole person is not in view. Please refer back to the note at 3:9.</n> 


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We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies in <i>the power of</i> the evil one. <n>The verb ‘lie’ here is used for lying on a bed—your whole weight is resting on it. A bed has no volition, but Satan does; the picture is one of control. All human cultures have features that serve Satan’s purposes, but some have more than others. Any true follower of Sovereign Jesus needs to evaluate the culture that surrounds him and reject those features that are contrary to God’s values.</n> 


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<i> Conclusion</i> We know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. <i>He</i> is the genuine God, and the Life eternal.


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Dear children, guard yourselves from idols. <n>The most dangerous ‘idols’ are not made of wood, plaster or stone. Things like money, power, prestige, social standing and non-biblical worldviews are more dangerous.</n> Amen.


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<i> Salutation</i> The elder, to the elect lady <n>Commentaries are divided between understanding the ‘lady’ to be a specific woman or a local congregation. It seems to me more probable that the clause “also all who have known the truth” would apply to a congregation—a congregation would be more widely known and loved than an individual woman. The ‘elect sister’ in verse 13 would be another congregation.</n> and her children, whom I love in truth—and not I only, but also all who have known the truth—


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because of the Truth, <n>I take ‘the Truth’ to refer to the Holy Spirit because of the following clause, “will be with us into the age / forever”—‘truth’ as a package of true propositions could be said to abide in us, but to be with us forever fits better with a Person. The truth is a basic characteristic of the Holy Spirit (John 14:17, 15:26, 16:13, Titus 1:2).</n> who abides in us and will be with us into the age:


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Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from the Lord <n>Some 8% of the Greek manuscripts omit ‘Lord’ (as in NIV, NASB, LB, TEV, etc.), but the 92% are doubtless correct. “The Lord Jesus Christ” is now the proper name of Jehovah the Son.</n> Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, will be with you <n>The Greek manuscripts are about evenly divided between ‘you’ and ‘us’, but the best line of transmission has ‘you’. I imagine that the difficulty arose from the use of the future indicative with the verb ‘to be’, when the optative or subjunctive would be expected. We expect “may mercy . . . be with you,” not the affirmation that it will be. If “in truth and love” is understood as modifying the pronoun, then the use of the indicative is explained. Anyone who is in truth and love will have grace, mercy and peace.</n> in truth and love.


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<i> Walk in Christ’s commandments</i> It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in truth, just as we received commandment from the Father.


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And now I put a request to you, lady (not as though writing a new commandment to you, but one that we have from the beginning): that we love one another.


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And this is the love, <n>The Text has the definite article with ‘love’—from God’s point of view, the way we express ‘the love’ He is looking for (as opposed to any number of other loves) is by obeying Him. The Text has “that we walk . . .”—I render ‘live’ because I take that to be the real point.</n> that we live according to His commandments—this is the commandment, <n>‘The commandment’ is to live according to His commandments. It is a different way of stating what the Lord said in Matthew 22:37-38. ‘Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment’.” (See also Mark 12:30 and Luke 10:27.)</n> just as you heard from the beginning, that you should live according to it.


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<i> Beware of deceivers</i> Now many deceivers have come into the world, <n>Some 82% of the Greek manuscripts have “come into” rather than “go out into”. The 18% presumably have the deceivers going out from the church into the world, but that is not John’s point. The deceivers have been introduced into the world by Satan, the original and boss deceiver.</n> who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in flesh <n>The Text has ‘coming’, not ‘having come’, so evidently John is referring to Christ’s second coming, which will certainly be ‘in flesh’. Recall the word of the angels in Acts 1:11, “This very Jesus who is being taken up from you into the sky, He will come again in the precise manner that you observed Him going into the sky.” The angels are emphatic; the return is going to be just like the departure. I take it that the Lord will return with the same glorified human body, visibly, come out of a cloud, and His feet will touch down at the same spot where they left (see Mt. 24:30, “coming on the clouds”, and Zech. 14:4, “His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives”).</n> —this is the deceiver, even the Antichrist! <n>John is affirming the real source of the idea that Christ will not return in bodily form.</n> 


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Look to yourselves, so that we not lose the things for which we worked but may receive a full reward. <n>Some 17% of the Greek manuscripts put this verse in the 2nd person plural throughout (as in NIV, NASB, TEV, etc.), but the 83%, including the best line of transmission, are correct. John is concerned about the results of his labors (see 1 John 2:28), as was Paul (1 Thessalonians 2:19).</n> 


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Anyone who turns aside and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; <n>If you turn aside, you’re out.</n> but whoever continues in Christ’s teaching does have both the Father and the Son.


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If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house; do not even tell him, “I wish you well,”


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because whoever tells him, “I wish you well,” participates in his malignant works. <n>People who do not believe and teach what Christ taught are on the other side.</n> 


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<i> Farewell</i> Although I had many things to write to you, I did not wish to do so with paper and ink; instead I hope to come to you and speak face to face, so that our joy may be complete.


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Dear one, I pray for you to prosper in every way and to be healthy, just as your soul prospers. <n>This prayer challenges me. Do I really want my physical health to be a reflection of my spiritual health?</n> 


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Because it gave me great joy when some brothers came and testified to the truth about you, how you are walking in Truth. <n>There is no article with ‘truth’ here (or in verse 4). To love someone in truth means to truly love, presumably, but to walk in truth doesn’t mean to truly walk; a different meaning is required—the principal candidates would be God’s Word and the Holy Spirit.</n> 


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<i> Gaius is commended</i> Dear one, you are faithful in whatever you do for the brothers, and for the strangers


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who testified to your love before the church—you will do well by sending them on their way in a manner worthy of God,


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because it was for the sake of the Name <n>Users of the AV and NKJV are accustomed to “His name”, which is based on some 15% of the Greek manuscripts. I take it that the 85%, including the best line of transmission, are correct in reading “the Name”. Both readings refer to the Lord Jesus Christ, presumably, “the name which is above every name” (Philippians 2:9), and at which every knee shall bow.</n> that they went out, accepting nothing from pagans. <n>The word rendered ‘pagans’ is often translated ‘nations’ or ‘Gentiles’, but in this context the reference is not to nations, nor to non-Jews. The reference is probably to non-Christians. But what of the principle involved here? It seems clear that John is in agreement with the decision not to accept financial support from unbelievers. Would this be because of possible ‘strings’ attached, or is something going on in the spiritual realm?</n> 


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We therefore ought to welcome such, so that we may work together for the Truth. <n>John is talking about giving hospitality, a place to stay and food to eat, but also about giving a good send off.</n> 


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<i> Diotrephes is criticized</i> I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who wants to dominate the others, does not acknowledge us. <n>I believe this is the main reason for this letter—since Diotrephes censored the letter that John wrote to the church, he now writes to an individual, to get around the censorship. Unfortunately, Diotrephes-types are still with us, and not even unusual.</n> 


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So if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, slandering us with malignant words. And not satisfied with that, not only does he himself not receive the brothers, but he forbids those who want to do so, kicking them out of the church. <n>One wonders where he got the power or authority to be able to do this.</n> 


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<i> Demetrius is commended</i> Dear one, do not imitate what is bad, but what is good. He who does good is of God, but he who does evil has not seen God. <n>John is good at making flat statements, which most of us find to be uncomfortable, because we would like to think there are exceptions. Don’t unbelievers do good things? If a pastor does something bad, does that mean he doesn’t know God? Just as all truth is from God and all lies are from Satan, all genuine good is from God and all evil is from Satan. I imagine that John would insist that anyone who has really seen God will not do evil.</n> 


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Demetrius is well spoken of by everyone—even by the truth itself. Yes, we also speak well of him, and we know <n>I follow the best line of transmission here, using the first person, albeit representing only 23% of the manuscripts. We expect the second person (61.5%; there are two further variants), and it would be almost unthinking for copyists to make the change, but on reflection the first person makes good sense.</n> that our testimony is true.


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rather I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face. Peace to you. The friends <i>here</i> greet you. Greet the friends <i>there</i> by name.


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<i> Salutation</i> Jude, slave of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, <n>Both James and Jude were half-brothers of Jesus (same mother) but were themselves full brothers. Jude avoids any special claim to that half-brotherhood and declares himself a slave.</n> to the called, those who have been sanctified <n>Rather than “sanctified”, about 9% of the Greek manuscripts read “beloved” (as in NIV, NASB, LB, TEV, etc.).</n> by God the Father and preserved through <n>‘Jesus Christ’ is in the dative case, without an explicit preposition, so we are faced with an ambiguous construction—it could be ‘by’, making Jesus Christ the agent; or if the Father is the agent it could be ‘for’ or ‘in’ as well as ‘through’.</n> Jesus Christ:


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May mercy and peace and love be multiplied to you. <n>The verb is in the passive voice, so these things will be supplied by an outside power.</n> 


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<i> Why he is writing</i> Dear ones, while I was really intent on writing to you about the salvation we share, I had a compulsion <n>I believe he is claiming inspiration here.</n> to write exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith <n>Wherein might “the faith” consist? Jude evidently contrasts it with what the “certain men” of verse 4 believe, teach and do, as explained in the following verses. I take it that for Jude “the faith” refers to the sum of Biblical values, the Biblical worldview or philosophy of life.</n> once for all committed to the saints.


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Because certain men, who were marked out for this condemnation long ago, <n>This is one of a very few texts that could be used to defend the doctrine of preterition, or double predestination (that the lost are predestined to be lost).</n> have sneaked in; they are godless, perverting the grace of our God into licentiousness and denying the only Sovereign God, <n>About 13% of the Greek manuscripts omit “God” (as in NIV, NASB, LB, TEV, etc.).</n> even our Lord Jesus Christ.


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<i> Examples from ancient history</i> So I want to remind you, though you already know this, that the Lord delivered a people out of the land of Egypt yet later destroyed those who did not believe. <n>It is not wise to presume upon God’s goodness—He demands commitment.</n> 


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And the angels who did not keep their proper domain but deserted their own dwelling He has kept bound in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day. <n>Comparing this passage with 1 Peter 3:19-20 and 2 Peter 2:4-5 and Genesis 6:2, 4, it seems clear that certain angelic beings cohabited with women, producing a mongrel race, the <i>nephilim</i>. (The phrase ‘sons of God’ in Gen. 6:2, 4 is a translation of the Hebrew phrase <i>bene-haelohim</i>—the only other places this phrase occurs are in Job 1:6, 2:1 and 38:7, where the reference is clearly to angelic beings.) This was such a heinous crime that God incarcerated them millennia before the victory of Christ (that would justify the procedure; that’s what He went to announce, as mentioned in 1 Peter 3:19). It was also a master stroke by Satan—since the male sperm transmits the human nature (Hebrews 7:9-10, Romans 5:12) and determines the blood of any child, if Satan had succeeded in contaminating the whole race, the Messiah could not be born and Genesis 3:15 could not be fulfilled.</n> 


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So also Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns—who gave themselves up to fornication and went after a different kind of flesh <n>Recall that they wanted to rape the angels. Whatever kind of ‘flesh’ an angel has when he materializes, it is not human.</n> in a manner similar to those angels—stand as an example, undergoing a punishment of eternal fire. <n>Just as ‘eternal life’ refers primarily to a quality of life, I take it that ‘eternal fire’ here refers to a quality of fire—at the destruction of Sodom God used ‘brimstone and fire’ (Genesis 19:24), and the eternal Lake contains ‘fire and brimstone’ (Revelation 20:10).</n> 


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<i> Evil men are in the church</i> Likewise these dreamers in their turn both defile flesh <n>The Text has just those two words, ‘defile flesh’, which makes it difficult to be dogmatic about the meaning; perhaps the most common interpretation takes it as referring to their own bodies, presumably by unnatural sex.</n> and reject authority and slander celestial beings. <n>The Text has ‘glories’, but because of verse 9 it seems likely that the reference is to angelic beings.</n> 


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Yet even Michael the archangel, when taking issue with the devil—he was arguing about Moses’ corpse <n>Where did Jude get this information? I always assumed that Moses went up Nebo alone (and since he didn’t return there would be no human witness), but the Text doesn’t actually say so. Could it be possible that Joshua went along? Whether Joshua wrote it or God revealed it to someone, I take it that a written record was made and that Jude had access to a copy in his day. Being true information the Holy Spirit moved him to include it in his letter, which became the only inspired account of those details.</n> —did not dare to pronounce a reviling judgment, but said, “May the Lord rebuke you!” <n>For years I wondered why God included verse 9 in an inspired letter; what difference does it make what happened to Moses’ corpse? I now understand that the corpse is a mere prop, the crucial thing being the relationship between the two boss angels—one the leader of the good ones and the other the leader of the bad ones. We understand from Isaiah 14:12-15 and Ezekiel 28:12-17 that Lucifer was created the number one angel, but when he rebelled against the Creator I assumed that he was demoted. In such an event Michael (I assume he was the original number two) the archangel (there’s only one) would be superior to Satan and be able to order him away. But the Text says he didn’t ‘dare’ to be disrespectful, but had to content himself with appealing to God for help. Against my inclination, I feel obliged to conclude that Lucifer (now Satan) was not demoted—he continues higher in rank than Michael. The same would hold for the other angelic beings that followed Lucifer (Daniel 10:13, 20-21; Ephesians 6:12)—they maintain their original rank. However, what Michael didn’t dare do, we can. According to Ephesians 1:20-21 and 2:6, we who are in Christ are seated with Him far above all principality, power, etc. (the angelic hierarchy, good and bad). In Christ we are above Satan and may rebuke him directly (but don’t forget James 4:7).</n> 


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But these speak abusively against whatever they do not understand, while whatever they know by instinct, like unreasoning animals—by these things they are ruined. <n>Those people were evidently rather crass materialists, controlled by their body’s appetites.</n> 


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Woe to them, because they have taken the way of Cain, <n>Since people and animals were vegetarians before the Flood, Abel did not raise sheep for food—so why did he do it? It seems to me obvious that God must have given Adam instruction, after the Fall, about the necessity of animal sacrifice to cover their sins. To Cain, the rationalist, that didn’t make sense, so he chose to worship God in his own way. When rejected he rebelled against God and even killed his brother; those who choose evil usually hate the good, because the good show them up.</n> have rushed into Balaam’s error for profit, <n>Balaam prostituted his divine gift for material gain.</n> and have destroyed themselves in Korah’s rebellion! <n>Korah rebelled against God’s established order—he wanted to be priest but was not a descendent of Aaron (though he was a Levite). He wasn’t satisfied with the place God had allotted him.</n> 


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These men are hidden reefs at your love feasts, joining the feast without fear, caring only for themselves; they are clouds without rain, carried along by winds; they are late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead (having been uprooted);


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they are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their own shameful acts; they are wandering stars, for whom the black of the darkness has been reserved forever. <n>‘The darkness’ is characteristic of Satan’s kingdom. Those who promote humanistic, relativistic, materialistic ideas and values in the church are really ‘party-crashers’, agents of Satan’s kingdom. Jude’s description of such people could scarcely be more violent or abusive—they have a special spot reserved in a really black corner of the darkness, throughout eternity. Servants of Satan who pretend to be Christians are too despicable for words.</n> 


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Now even Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men saying: “Look, the Lord is coming with ten thousands of His holy ones


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to execute judgment on everyone and to convict all the godless among them of all their godless deeds that they have godlessly perpetrated, also of all the harsh things they have spoken against Him—the godless sinners!” <n>Since I believe that Jude was inspired by the Holy Spirit in writing this letter, then I understand that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, actually did write a prophecy and copies still existed in Jude’s day. If the language spoken before the Flood was a type of Hebrew, as I assume, then Jude could easily read it. No copies of this prophecy in Hebrew are known today, though Jews are reported to have used one as late as the 13th century A.D. A few supposed copies in other languages have been found.</n> 


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These men are grumblers and complainers, living according to their own evil desires; they talk big, flattering people to gain advantage.


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<i> Exhortation</i> But you, dear ones, remember the words that were spoken before by the Apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ:


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how they told you that in the last time there will be scoffers who live according to their own godless desires.


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These are the ones who cause division; they are ‘soulish’, not having a spirit. <n>There is no definite article with ‘spirit’, so Jude is probably not referring to the Holy Spirit here. He says that the people being described are characterized by soul, not having a spirit. In which case, the reference is to humanoids, the offspring of demons with women; like it was in the days of Noah (note Genesis 6:4—“<b>and also afterward</b>”). Don’t forget our Lord’s words in Matthew 24:37. If/since there are such humanoids among us today, our total ignorance on the subject is having very serious consequences in the culture at large.</n> 


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keep yourselves in God’s love, <n>This is an interesting concept; we are to keep ourselves in God’s love. Two of the means toward that end are given in verse 20.</n> looking forward to the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ into eternal life. <n>Our final entrance into eternal life is stated to derive from our Lord’s mercy.</n> 


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Now be merciful to some, making a distinction; <n>Verses 22 and 23 have given all sorts of exercise to commentators (and to copyists who produced Greek manuscripts, before them). Considering the violent description that Jude gives to the godless who have sneaked into the church, he presumably intends that such be identified and excluded without ceremony. So I take it that verses 22 and 23 refer to people in the church who have been influenced by those godless ones, in varying degrees. Some who are still wavering need to be treated with mercy, not harshly (vs. 22). Others have pretty well sold out to the values of the godless and are almost to the point of no return—it will take energetic, if not desperate, action to snatch them from the jaws of hell (vs. 23). You can’t ‘snatch’ without direct contact, and there is the danger of contamination.</n> 


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but others save with fear, snatching them out of the fire, hating even the garment stained by the flesh. <n>1 John 2:15 says: “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” In a similar vein Jude warns against allowing oneself to be contaminated by anything attached to the people who are being rescued—everything about them will be contaminated by Satan’s germs.</n> 


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<i> Doxology</i> Now to Him who is able to keep them <n>Virtually all versions in English read ‘you’, following some 30% of the Greek manuscripts; but the 68% (there are two further variants), including the best line of transmission, read ‘them’, and in the context ‘them’ makes good sense. Jude is assuring his readers that it is worth the effort to snatch people from the very jaws of hell (v. 23), because God is able to secure them (one’s natural tendency would be to doubt that). In commenting the parable of the lost sheep, the Lord Jesus affirmed that “there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.” It seems that God gets special pleasure out of cheating the Lake. Remembering that every human being bears the image of the Creator, we can understand why.</n> from stumbling and to present them before His glorious presence without fault and with exultation—


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to God our Savior, who alone is wise, <n>About 8% of the Greek manuscripts omit “wise”, leaving ‘to the only God our Savior’ (as in NIV, NASB, LB, TEV, etc.).</n> be glory and majesty, power and authority, both now and throughout all the ages! Amen.


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<i> Introduction</i> Jesus Christ’s revelation, which God gave Him to show to His slaves <n>Whose, the Father’s or the Son’s? Probably the Son’s, but in practice it makes little or no difference.</n> —the things that must occur shortly. <n>The Text actually says, “with speed”. Since to God 1000 years = one day, it’s only been two days!</n> And He communicated it, sending it by His angel to His slave John,


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who gave witness to the word of God, even the testimony of Jesus Christ—to all that He saw, <n>Most, if not all, versions have “he saw” (referring to John, not Jesus) and omit the rest of the verse. The manuscript evidence is seriously divided at this point. My translation reflects two of the three main independent lines of transmission, including the best one (as I see it). See 22:20, “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming swiftly!’ Oh yes!! Come Lord Jesus!” The whole book is what Jesus Christ is testifying, is revealing; as an eye witness.</n> both the things that are and those that must happen after these.


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Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and keep the things that are written in it; <n>John is obviously claiming divine inspiration for what he is writing. You won’t be blessed for reading or hearing a newspaper or a magazine.</n> because the time is near.


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John, to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace and peace to you from <n>The sequence “from..., and from..., and from...” suggests three persons. The third, Jesus Christ, has to be the Son. The seven-fold Spirit would be the Holy Spirit. So “Him who is, was and is coming” must be the Father. Just over half of the Greek MSS add “God” after the first “from” to make the connection overt (but the best line of transmission does not).</n> Him who is and who was and who is coming, and from the seven-fold <n>Although the evidence is badly divided, I take it that the original reading is “the seven spirits which is”. A plural subject with a singular verb is anomalous, unless we understand “seven-fold Spirit which is”. If the Deity is three in one, why might not the Holy Spirit be seven in one?</n> Spirit who is before His throne,


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and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, <n>When and how was He “the faithful witness”? Throughout His life on earth He was the faithful witness to the Father’s character, what the Father was doing, what the Father was saying. Here He is the faithful witness to what is going to happen.</n> the firstborn from among the dead, <n>We have two readings here: one is clearly “from among the dead” while the other is ambiguous, meaning either “from among the dead” or “of the dead”. With the latter option, “firstborn” could have the derived meaning of ‘lord’ or ‘boss’. I take it that the better option is to read “from among”, in which case “firstborn” has its primary meaning. Death is pictured as a huge womb, pregnant with all the dead, and Jesus Christ was the first one out, literally the “firstborn”—but only the first!</n> and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins with His own blood


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 —indeed, He made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to <i>Him</i> be the glory and the dominion for ever and ever. Amen.


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Take note, He comes with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, including those who pierced Him. <n>The soldier who actually pierced His side on the cross, and the religious leaders who brought the situation about, are presumably in Hades. I take it that we are being told that the dead will also see Him when He returns to reign.</n> And all the tribes of the earth will beat their breasts [in dismay] because of Him. Yea, verily! <n>That’s how people used to talk—you may prefer “Yes, indeed!” or “Even so, amen!” The certainty that all tribes will beat their breasts is being emphasized.</n> 


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“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” <n>To be the first and the last you have to be the biggest, all the time.</n> says the Lord God, “He who is and who was and who is coming, The Almighty.” <n>In verse 8 the Father speaks, putting His weight behind what is being written.</n> 


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<i> John is commissioned</i> I, John, your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and endurance <n>“The tribulation and kingdom and endurance”—that there is only one definite article for the three nouns presumably indicates that the three are regarded as a single package. To participate in the Kingdom in this life involves tribulation and requires endurance.</n> in Christ Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the Word of God and on account of the testimony of Jesus Christ. <n>Presumably the witness that John gave about Jesus Christ.</n> 


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I was in spirit <n>There is no definite article with “spirit”, so to capitalize the word is arbitrary. It could refer to the Holy Spirit, but I think it more likely that it refers to John’s spiritual condition.</n> on the Lord’s day and I heard a voice behind me, loud as a trumpet,


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saying, “Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”


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And there I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. <n>It was at that point that he turned.</n> And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands,


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and in the midst of the seven lampstands one similar to a son of man, <n>The Lord Jesus referred to Himself as “the Son of the Man”, always with the two definite articles, but here there are no articles (in the Greek). John saw a human like form, very different from the Jesus he had known.</n> clothed down to the feet and girded at the nipples <n>Since the figure was clothed, the nipples would not be visible, so the point is presumably to give the position of the belt—across the middle of the chest. Since no further mention is made of the belt, in the letters, it is hard to know what purpose it served. But see 15:6.</n> with a golden belt.


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Now His head, that is His hair, was white, like wool, as white as snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire;


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and His feet were like fine brass, as when refined in a furnace; and His voice was like the sound of many waters; <n>A low (or loud) roar that pervades the atmosphere—it’s awesome, and you can’t get away from it.</n> 


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and He had seven stars on His right hand and a sharp two-edged sword coming out of His mouth; and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength. <n>Comparing this with verse 14 it is evident that only the part of the head covered by the hair was white, the face (probably no beard) was like the sun.</n> 


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And when I saw Him I fell at His feet as if dead. And He placed His right hand <n>But He had seven stars on that hand! Presumably the stars were on His open hand, so He rested the back of His hand on John. Since the seven stars represented the messengers of the seven churches, what might the symbolism be?</n> upon me saying, “Do not fear. I am the First and the Last,


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even the Living One—I became dead, to be sure, and <i>now</i> I am living for ever and ever! Oh yes!! And I have the keys of Death and of Hades! <n>Oh praise God! Satan used to have the keys, Heb. 2:14, but now Jesus has them, because He did indeed vanquish the devil.</n> 


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Therefore <n>In verse 8 the Father guarantees the veracity of the prophecy; here the Son, who conquered death and lives forevermore, does the guaranteeing.</n> write the things that you have seen, and the things that are, and the things that are going to occur after these. <n>I take it that the precise form of the original text here has the effect of affirming the certainty of the coming events. This verse is often taken as giving the outline of the book: “what you saw” = chapter 1; “things that are” = chapters 2-3; “things to come” = chapters 4-22.</n> 


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The mystery of the seven stars which you saw upon my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars are the messengers <n>The Greek word <i>αγγελος </i> may mean messenger or angel (they are often messengers). Since 2:20 says “your wife”, referring to the messenger, we should presumably understand “messenger” here as referring to a man. It is possible that messengers from these churches were visiting John, on Patmos, or had visited him earlier.</n> of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands that you saw are seven churches.


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<i> The seven letters <n>These letters have received a variety of ‘interpretations’. The basic meaning is obviously the literal one—these were actual churches at the time that John wrote, and each one was exactly as described in its letter. By way of application, these churches may also be taken as symbolic—at any given moment throughout the history of the Church local churches may be found to be similar in character to any one of these seven. It is also possible to see these seven churches as prophetic of the general course of the Church through time, and in that event we are presumably in the last or laodicean age.</n> To Ephesus</i> “To the messenger of the church in Ephesus write: These things says He who holds the seven stars on His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands:


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‘I know your works, yes the labor, and your endurance, and that you cannot stand those who are evil. And you have tested those who claim to be apostles and are not, and found them <i>to be</i> liars;


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So think about from where you have drifted <n>They had not taken a sudden fall, they had drifted from their moorings, a process so gradual that it may go unnoticed for quite some time. It can happen to us too.</n> and repent, and do the first works, or else I will come at you swiftly and remove your lampstand out of its place <n>In fact, Ephesus did lose its lampstand.</n> —unless you do repent.


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But you do have this, that you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, <n>We don’t know for sure who or what they were. The etymology of the word suggests ‘laity conquerors’, perhaps the beginning of the system where the clergy dominates the laity. Once someone has a ‘guaranteed’ position their lifestyle often becomes licentious.</n> which I also hate.


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‘He who has an ear <n>That’s right, just one ear. In other words, we had better pay attention!</n> let him hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches. <n>At this point it becomes very clear that God is giving a general application to these letters. The first one was written to a literal church in literal Ephesus, in literal terms, but <b>all</b> of us are to pay attention to the spiritual principles and lessons involved.</n> To the one who overcomes <n>So what happens if you don’t overcome??</n> I will grant to eat of the Tree of Life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of my God.’ <n>The Tree of Life is first mentioned in Genesis 3:22-24; it must have been transplanted out of the Garden of Eden before the Flood, unless it was a replica of the original in God’s Paradise.</n> 


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<i> To Smyrna</i> “And to the messenger of the church in Smyrna write: These things says the First and the Last, <n>Here, and in 1:17 and 22:13, the glorified Christ calls Himself “the First and the Last”—comparing with Isaiah 44:6 we have one of several demonstrations that Jesus Christ is Jehovah [Mormons and JWs deny that He is Jehovah].</n> who became dead and came to life:


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‘I know your works and affliction and poverty (but you are rich), and the slander of those who claim to be Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. <n>You had better believe that there is a ‘synagogue of Satan’ near you! Why do you suppose that 1 Peter 5:8 says to “<b>be vigilant</b>”?</n> 


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Do not fear any of the things that you are about to suffer: Take note, the devil is really about to throw some of you into prison, so that you may be tested, and you will have an affliction of ten days. <n>The Lord does not promise us a free ride, bed of roses, or whatever. Here they are given specific advance warning—bad times ahead.</n> Stay faithful until death and I will give you the crown of life. <n>So what happens if you don’t stay faithful? Note that the Lord does not register any complaint against Smyrna. If you are being persecuted for your faith it tends to keep you pretty close to the Lord. Also there is no incentive to pretend.</n> 


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‘He who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches. The one who overcomes will absolutely not be harmed by the second death.’ <n>Revelation 20:14 makes clear that “the second death” is the Lake of Fire. The first death is the physical one; the second is the spiritual one—eternal separation from the Creator, in whose image we are. Of course the redeemed go into eternal life, not death, so the “second death” holds no threat for them. But there is the little matter of ‘overcoming’.</n> 


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<i> To Pergamos</i> “And to the messenger of the church in Pergamos write: These things says He who has the sharp two-edged sword:


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‘I know your works, and where you live, where Satan’s throne is. And you hold my name fast and did not deny my faith during the days in which Antipas was my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan lives.


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‘Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you have there adepts of the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to throw a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things offered to idols and to fornicate. <n>Why are fornication and adultery becoming more and more common in ‘Christian’ circles today? They come with idolatry—the church is riddled with humanism, relativism, materialism, spiritism, etc., false gods all. One wonders how many Christians today have a world view that is strictly Biblical, without any admixture of the world’s values.</n> 


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Thus <n>Birds of a feather flock together; if you start sinning in one area, before long it’s two.</n> you also have adepts of the doctrine of the Nicolaitans as well.


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Repent! Or else I will come at you swiftly and will fight against them <n>Notice that the pronoun changes—it is specifically against the Nicolaitans and Balaamites that He will fight.</n> with the sword of my mouth.


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‘He who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches. To the one who overcomes I will grant to eat from <n>“From” is literal, maybe too literal; perhaps we should render “some of” the hidden manna.</n> the hidden manna. And I will give him a white pebble, and on the pebble a new name written, which no one knows except the receiver.’ <n>Our name identifies us to other people, so what good is a name that no one knows? Except that the giver knows, obviously. So maybe the private name has to do with a private relationship, between giver and receiver! Eating “hidden manna” also sounds sort of private.</n> 


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<i> To Thyatira</i> “And to the messenger of the church in Thyatira write: These things says the Son of God, <n>If anyone was still in doubt as to the identity of the One who is dictating these letters, the doubt stops here.</n> He who has the eyes like a flame of fire and the feet like fine brass:


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‘I know your works <n>Each of the seven letters begins with this phrase, ‘I know your works’. How we act reflects our world-view, what we really believe.</n> —the love, the faith, the service—and your endurance; in fact your last works are greater than the first. <n>Wow, here’s a church that has it all—love, faith, service, endurance—and it’s growing, doing more and more! Yes, well, but, then there’s the rest of the story.</n> 


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‘Nevertheless I have against you that you tolerate your wife Jezebel, <n>About three fourths of the Greek manuscripts read “your wife” rather than “that woman”. The main group that reads “that woman” reflects a tradition that is full of obvious corruptions, and so does not inspire confidence. The original reading is doubtless “your wife”.</n> who calls herself a prophetess and teaches and deceives <i>my</i> slaves <n>The Lord uses an emphatic possessive pronoun here—she is messing with <b>His</b> slaves.</n> to fornicate and to eat things offered to idols.


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I even gave her time so that she might repent, but she does not want to repent of her fornication. <n>If someone refuses to repent they are beyond help; judgment has to come.</n> 


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<i> So</i> , I am throwing her into a <i>sick</i> bed and those adulterating with her into great affliction, unless they repent of <i>her</i> works. <n>Two thirds of the Greek manuscripts, including the most dependable group [in my opinion], have “her” works, not “their” works. In verse 20 the Lord emphasized that they were His slaves. If the original reading is “her” works, as I believe, then what is involved here is spiritual adultery—she was not literally sleeping with a variety of men in the church. No matter how much love, faith and service there may be in a church, the Lord will not tolerate idolatry, which is spiritual adultery.</n> 


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And I will execute her children; <n>Literally ‘kill by death’—so how else can you kill someone if not by death? Those who are familiar with the KJV will recall the phrase ‘let him die the death’, which in the context implies execution. I take it that “her children” does not refer to her literal sons and daughters, but to her ‘spiritual children’, those who have bought into her teaching and life style. The Lord wants to eradicate her ‘genes’, as it were. But why doesn’t God kill Jezebel herself, instead of her children? I imagine that God uses evil people, like Jezebel, to put the rest of us to the test, to see whose side we really are on. Those who go along with a ‘Jezebel’ don’t really want God.</n> and all the churches will know that <b><i> I</i> </b> am the One who searches minds and hearts, and I will give to each one of you according to your works.


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‘Now to the rest of you who are in Thyatira I say—to as many as do not hold this teaching, those who have not known <n>“Known” implies experiential knowledge. Note that the Lord links Jezebel’s teaching directly to Satan, and those who are doing it are deeply involved with him (whether or not they fully understand the implications—if they are ‘deceived’ [v. 20] then they may indeed not understand).</n> the depths of Satan, as they say—I am not putting any other burden on you;


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just hold fast what you have until I come. <n>They were doing quite well, generally—see note 9 above. So if they throw off Jezebel’s influence they’ll be all right.</n> 


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And <i>as for</i> the one who overcomes and keeps my works <n>“Keeps my works until the end”—it is not enough to hold to the right doctrine; the Lord wants to see us reproducing His works (John 14:12). Notice that our participation in the administration of the millennial kingdom is at stake.</n> until the end, I will give him authority over the nations;


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—just as I have received from my Father. <n>The Lord is evidently referring to Psalms 2:7-9. In that event He is declaring that He is the “Son” in verse 7 and that He did indeed ask for and receive the nations as an inheritance. If we are co-heirs (Rom. 8:17) then we are involved in the outworking.</n> And I will give him the morning star. <n>In Revelation 22:16 the Lord declares Himself to be the “morning star”. In Isaiah 14:12 Satan is called “day-star, son of the morning”, but that was what he was before he fell. The planets Venus and Mercury are the “morning stars” we see in the sky at dawn. But the Lord here says the morning star. I guess we’ll find out what He means when we get there.</n> 


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<i> To Sardis</i> “And to the messenger of the church in Sardis write: These things says He who has the seven spirits of God <n>In 1:4 “the seven Spirits,“ which I rendered as “seven-fold Spirit”, has to do with the Holy Spirit. Here I think not—the Lord ‘has’ them like He has the seven stars. Perhaps the reference is to Isaiah 11:2.</n> and the seven stars: ‘I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, yet you are dead.


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Wake up! And strengthen the remaining things that you were about to throw away, <n>“That you were about to throw away” is the reading of about ⅔ of the Greek manuscripts, including the most dependable group, as opposed to “that were about to die”. They had probably already stopped believing in a variety of Biblical truths and were on the verge of dumping the rest, like the theological modernist or liberal of our day. Not surprisingly, they were short on works as well.</n> for I have not found your works to be fulfilled before my God.


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So remember <i>how</i> you have received and heard, and hold fast and repent; because if you do not watch I will come upon you like a thief, and you will <i>not</i> know what hour I will come upon you.


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‘But you do have a few names in Sardis who have not defiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, because they are worthy.


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The one who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments, and I will <i>not</i> erase his name from the Book of Life, <n>The Text is very clear—the glorified Christ said “erase”. You can’t erase something that isn’t there! By the grace of God my name is in the Book of Life, but what happens if I don’t overcome? In all seven letters our risen Lord places heavy emphasis upon our human responsibility. God will take care of His side; we had better take a careful look at our side.</n> and I will confess his name before my Father and before His angels. <n>Comparing this statement with Jesus’ statement in Mt. 10:32-33, confessing is the opposite of denying. Since eternal destiny is at stake,the confessing/denying must involve what we are and do, not just our words. Confessing has to do with overcoming.</n> 


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<i> To Philadelphia</i> “And to the messenger of the church in Philadelphia write: These things says the Holy, the True, He who has the key of David, who opens and no one can shut it, except He who opens, and no one can open: <n>The evidence is badly divided with reference to the wording of the last half of the verse. The translation given here reflects over half of the Greek manuscripts, including the most dependable group. We are accustomed to the more balanced form, but the basic point remains the same.</n> 


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‘I know your works. Look, I have set before you an open door, that no one is able to shut; because you have a little strength and have kept my Word and have not denied my name.


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See, I am determining that some of the synagogue of Satan, those who claim to be Jews and are not, but are lying—yes, I will cause them to come and do obeisance at your feet, and they will know that I have loved you. <n>I take it that this will happen here on earth—a pleasant prospect! Since they have been slandering us (at the very least, 2:9) this will be a welcome vindication. I imagine that at this point in history the “synagogue of Satan” includes people who claim to be Christians, but aren’t really. They may even be in positions of leadership (cf. Jer. 20:1-4).</n> 


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Because you have kept my command to endure, I also will keep you from the hour of the testing that is about to come upon the whole inhabited earth, <n>There has always been tribulation and testing here and there on the earth, but to include “the whole inhabited earth” the reference must be to the Great Tribulation. How can you be “kept from the hour” if you are in the middle of it? To be protected in the middle of a situation is not the same as being kept from it. This text would appear to point toward a pre-tribulation (or pre-wrath) rapture of the Church.</n> to test those who dwell on the earth.


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The one who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God, and he will never again go out. And I will write on him the name of my God, the name of my God’s city—the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from my God—and my new name. <n>That’s three names.</n> 


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<i> To Laodicea</i> “And to the messenger of the church in Laodicea write: These things says the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the Originator of God’s creation:


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So then, since you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I am about to vomit you out of my mouth. <n>If the Lord vomits you out, where do you go?</n> 


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Because you say, “I am rich, even become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and do not realize that you are the most wretched—yes, the most pitiable and poor and blind and naked—


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I counsel you to buy gold from me, refined by fire, so that you may become rich; and white garments, so that you may be clothed, and your nakedness not be shamefully exposed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, so that you may see.


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As many as I love I rebuke and discipline; <n>Sounds like ‘tough’ love. The Greek word is φιλεω , not αγαπαω .</n> so be zealous and repent!


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‘Now then, I stand at the door and knock. <n>Although this text is widely used in evangelism, it is actually directed to Christians. The Lord is offering fellowship and communion to those who claim to belong to Him. Recall that the Father seeks those who will worship Him in spirit and truth (John 4:23). Many have the impression that God is hard to find or reach, but He disagrees: “You will seek me and find me, when you search for me with all your heart” (Jer. 29:13). The trouble is that few of us are willing to meet the condition. See also 2 Chronicles 15:2 and 16:9; also Acts 17:27.</n> If anyone should hear my voice <n>Evidently He both knocks and calls. In many cultures one calls out rather than knocks [there may not be any door, or the dogs may not let you get near it], and in the Apurinã culture (an indigenous people in the Amazon jungle, among whom I lived for several years) you call the person’s name.</n> and open the door I really will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.


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To the one who overcomes I will grant to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame <n>“Consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, . . .” (Heb. 12:3; see also verses 4-11). He overcame, we must overcome—God isn’t offering a free ride.</n> and sat down with my Father on His throne. <n>Comparing this statement with Eph. 1:19-21 and 2:6, what is the picture? Since the Son is now literally “seated” at the Father’s right hand, this promise should be taken literally. But how about right now? I take it that we are supposed to be conducting ourselves on the basis of our position in Christ, on the basis of His victory and authority—maybe this has something to do with ‘overcoming’.</n> 


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<i> “The things that must happen after these”</i> After these things I looked and <i>wow</i> —a door standing open in the sky, and the first voice that I heard, like a trumpet speaking with me, <n>This is a reference to 1:10, so it is the glorified Christ who is speaking—He is continuing His communicating (see 1:1).</n> saying, “Come up here and I will show you the things that must take place after these.” <n>“After these” opens and closes the verse. ‘These’ is a pronoun, so what is its antecedent? Presumably the churches described in chapters 2 and 3 (“the things that are” referred to in 1:19). Does “after” the churches imply that they are off the scene?</n> 


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<i> The Throne Room</i> And immediately I was in spirit, <n>Compare 1:10. The Voice commanded him to “come up here”—it was something John had to do; I take it that his spirit was transported to heaven. (Consider Jesus—Mt. 17:25, Jn. 1:48; Paul—1 Cor. 5:3-4, Col. 2:5; Elisha—2 Kings 5:26, 6:12.)</n> and there, a throne set in heaven (and One sitting on the throne)


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similar in appearance to a stone, <n>The throne, not the One. 15% of the Greek manuscripts do have the One looking like a stone, but I judge that the 85% are correct.</n> jasper and carnelian, and <i>there was</i> a rainbow around the throne, similar in appearance to an emerald.


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And around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones I saw the twenty-four elders sitting, <n>Why do we have “the” twenty-four elders the first time they are mentioned? I take it that John found them to be especially impressive or interesting (perhaps he identified with them).</n> clothed in white robes and golden crowns on their heads. <n>Might this picture have any connection with the promise in 3:21?</n> 


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And out of the throne came lightnings and voices and thunders; and seven lamps of fire were burning before His throne, which are seven spirits <n>There is no definite article with “seven spirits”. I doubt that they represent the Holy Spirit.</n> of God;


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and before the throne it was like a sea of glass, similar to crystal.<i> The four living beings</i> And in the midst of the throne and around the throne were four living beings full of eyes, front and back.


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 The first living being was similar to a lion, the second living being was similar to a calf, the third living being had a face like a man, and the fourth living being was similar to a flying eagle.


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 And the four living beings, each one of them, having six wings apiece, were full of eyes around and within. <n>The picture seems to be that the throne was not solid—the living beings moved in, through and around it; and they themselves were translucent—at least John could see that they had eyes inside as well as outside.</n> And they take no rest, day or night, saying: “Holy, holy, holy; Holy, holy, holy; Holy, holy, holy; <n>The manuscript evidence is badly divided here, but I take it that two of the tree main lines of independent transmission, including the best one, have “holy” nine times, instead of three. Surely it is more likely that ‘nine’ would be changed to ‘three’ than vice versa. In fact, try reading “holy” nine times in a row out loud—it starts to get uncomfortable! Since in the context the living ones are repeating themselves endlessly, the ‘nine’ is both appropriate and effective. Three ‘holies’ for each member of the Trinity.</n> The Lord God Almighty; He who was and who is and who is coming.”


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<i> The twenty-four elders</i> And whenever the living beings ascribe glory and honor and thanksgiving to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever,


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the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and they cast their crowns before the throne saying:


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“You are worthy, our Lord and God, the Holy One, <n>“O Lord” as in KJV is found in a very few late manuscripts. Almost all Greek manuscripts have the words “Lord”, “God” and “our”, and some 2/3 of them (including the best group) have “the Holy One”.</n> to receive the glory and the honor and the power, because You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created!”


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<i> The Lamb takes the scroll</i> And I saw upon the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll, written inside and outside, sealed with seven seals. <n>Again, how did John know that the scroll was written on both sides if it was closed? And where were the seals, all on the outside? It appears that the scroll also was not solid, or else John had laser vision.</n> 


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And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to break its seals?”


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And I began to really weep, because no one was found worthy to open and read the scroll, or to look at it.


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So one of the elders says to me, “Stop weeping! Look! The Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and its seven seals.”


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And I saw in the midst of the throne and of the four living beings, and in the midst of the elders, a <i>Lamb</i> standing <n>The Lamb is a Lion; the Lion is a Lamb. I would say that the Lamb characterizes Christ in His first advent to this earth, while the Lion characterizes His second advent.</n> —as if slaughtered, having seven horns and seven eyes, which <n>In about ¾ of the Greek manuscripts, including the best group, the gender of this relative pronoun agrees with “horns” (neuter) and not “eyes” (masculine). Perhaps the spirits were represented by both the horns and the eyes, possibly referring to power and knowledge.</n> are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.


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<i> A new song</i> And when He took the scroll the four living beings and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having harps and golden bowls full of incenses, which are the prayers of the saints. <n>They all fell down, but I gather that it was the elders who had harps and bowls and sang the new song (the four are saying “Holy, holy” all the time).</n> 


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And they sing a new song saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals; because You were slaughtered, and have redeemed <i>us</i> <n>Every Greek manuscript except one, of inferior quality, reads “us”. Many modern versions follow that lone manuscript and omit the pronoun, but that leaves the transitive verb “redeem” without a direct object, so they usually supply “men” or some such thing. But the true reading is obviously “us”, so the 24 elders are among the redeemed, and they are already in heaven wearing crowns.</n> to God by your blood out of every tribe and language and people and ethnic nation;


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and You have made them <n>A very few late manuscripts read “us”, as in KJV, but almost all the manuscripts read “them”. The 24 elders exclude themselves when it comes to reigning on the earth—evidently they will not be involved in the administration of the millennial kingdom.</n> kings and priests to our God, and they will reign on the earth.”


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<i> All the angels</i> And I looked, and I heard as it were the voice of <i>many</i> angels, around the throne and the living beings and the elders. And their number was ten thousand times ten thousand and a thousand thousands, <n>10,000 x 10,000 = 100,000,000, so the good angels are over 100 million. If we understand correctly from Rev. 12:4 that a third of the original angels followed Lucifer in his rebellion, that means that there are some 50 million demons out there. Good grief!</n> 


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saying with a <i>great</i> voice: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered to receive the power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing!”


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<i> Every creature</i> And every creature which is in the heaven and upon the earth and under the earth, and those upon the sea, and everything in them—I heard them all <n>“Every creature” presumably must include more than men and angels; I take it that all mammals, at least (they have soul), including those in the sea (dolphins, whales), and quite possibly birds (eagles) will participate.</n> saying: “To Him who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb: the blessing and the honor and the glory and the power for ever and ever! Amen!!”


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and the four living beings saying the “Amen”. And the elders fell and did obeisance. <n>The living beings and the elders were prostrating themselves and getting up repeatedly.</n> 


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<i> The Lamb opens the seals The first seal</i> And I saw that the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living beings saying, like a voice of thunder, “Come!” <n>The evidence is badly divided here, but I take it that two of the three main independent lines of transmission, including the best one, read as I have translated. The “Come!” was directed to the horse, not to John (since he was right there, there would be no need to address him with a thunderous roar). The same comment applies in verses 5 and 7.</n> 


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And I looked and, wow, a white horse! <n>You had better believe that that was some horse!</n> And he who sat on it had a bow. And a crown was given to him; and he went out conquering, that is, in order to conquer.


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<i> The second seal</i> And when He opened the second seal I heard the second living being saying, “Come!” <n>Over 80% of the Greek manuscripts do not have “and see”, as in KJV. Each of the living beings called out a horse, saying to it, “Come!”</n> 


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And another horse went out, fiery red, and it was granted to him who sat on it to take the peace from the earth, so that they would slaughter each other; also, a huge sword was given to him.


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<i> The third seal</i> And when He opened the third seal I heard the third living being saying, “Come!” And I looked and, wow, a black horse! And he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand.


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And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living beings saying, “A ‘quart’ of wheat for a denarius <n>A denarius was the daily wage for manual labor. To work a full day for a quart of wheat means bare survival.</n> and three ‘quarts’ of barley for a denarius; but do not harm the olive oil and the wine.” <n>Perhaps the oil and wine are spared for their medicinal value.</n> 


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<i> The fourth seal</i> And when He opened the fourth seal I heard a voice from the fourth living being saying, “Come!”


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And I looked and wow, a sickly pale horse! And as for the one sitting upon it, his name is Death, and Hades follows with him. <n>The Text doesn’t say that Hades was on a horse. John is stating a fact of human existence: Hades follows death—so it has been for 6,000 years.</n> And authority was given to him <n>Less than 30% of the Greek manuscripts read ‘them’ for ‘him’, but they are followed by most (if not all) versions in English. However, it is Death that does the killing; Hades just collects the dead. The 70% are doubtless correct (involving two of the three main ndependentlines of transmission, including the best one).</n> over a fourth of the earth, to kill by sword and by famine and by death, even by the wild animals of the earth. <n>“The four horsemen of the Apocalypse” have received quite a bit of press, off and on, but they are just the opening gambit. The really heavystuff comes later.</n> 


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<i> The fifth seal</i> And when He opened the fifth seal I saw underneath the altar the souls of the people who had been slaughtered on account of the Word of God and on account of the testimony of the Lamb which they held. <n>These “souls” have evidently not yet been reunited with their bodies, which means that they have not participated in any resurrection, including the Rapture (see 3:10, 4:1 and 5:9). See notes at 7:13-14.</n> 


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And they cried out with a loud voice saying, “How long, O Sovereign, Holy and True, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?”


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So a white robe was given to each of them, and they were told that they should rest a while longer, until both their fellow slaves and their brothers, <n>“Slaves” and “brothers” evidently refer to two distinct categories of people, but I don’t know the explanation (unless ‘slaves’ refers to Israel, see 7:3 below and Gal. 4:25, in which case ‘brothers’ would refer to the Church).</n> who were about to be killed just like they were, should complete <i>the number</i> .


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<i> The sixth seal</i> And I saw, just when He opened the sixth seal—there was a severe earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood.


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And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, like a fig tree drops its late figs when shaken by a strong wind.


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And the sky was split, like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place. <n>Now it starts to get heavy! I’ve never been in a serious earthquake, but a former colleague was, and the trauma was so severe that years later he still had trouble talking about it.</n> 


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And the kings of the earth and the magnates and the generals and the rich and the mighty, and every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains. <n>The wrath of God is a great leveler; the social classes all of a sudden don’t make much difference—they’re all trying to hide.</n> 


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And they said to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!


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Because the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” <n>Note that it is the Lamb’s wrath—those who reject His sacrifice can look for wrath. Notice that there is no hint of repentance from the people.</n> 


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<i> Parenthesis The sealed of Israel</i> And after this <n>He saw the content of chapter seven after he saw the content of chapter six, but the events described are not necessarily in chronological order. It should not be assumed that nothing else happened between the seals, or even at the same time. However, the seals are broken in sequence.</n> I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, <n>The Text says “the four corners” and “the four winds”. Presumably from John’s perspective the earth would look like a sphere (or a circle)—so perhaps the angels were strategically placed so as to control the whole planet. There are four basic wind patterns that influence most of the world—the north and south ‘trade winds’ and the north and south ‘prevailing westerlies’.</n> holding the four winds of the earth, so that no wind should blow upon the earth, not on the sea, not on any tree.


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And I saw another angel ascending from the sun’s rising, having the seal of the Living God. And he cried out with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it had been granted to harm the earth and the sea,


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saying: “Do not harm the earth nor the sea nor the trees, until we have sealed the slaves of our God on their foreheads.”


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And I heard the number of those who were sealed, one hundred and forty four thousand, sealed out of every tribe of the sons of Israel:


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From the tribe of Judah twelve thousand were sealed, from the tribe of Reuben twelve thousand, from the tribe of Gad twelve thousand,


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from the tribe of Asher twelve thousand, from the tribe of Naphtali twelve thousand, from the tribe of Manasseh twelve thousand,


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from the tribe of Simeon twelve thousand, from the tribe of Levi twelve thousand, from the tribe of Issachar twelve thousand,


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from the tribe of Zebulon twelve thousand, from the tribe of Joseph <n>“Joseph” stands for Ephraim. Since Levi is counted here (usually he isn’t) and Joseph has two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim, someone has to be dropped—Dan. From both Jacob (Gen. 49:16-17) and Moses (Deut. 33:22) he got the least impressive ‘blessing’.</n> twelve thousand, from the tribe of Benjamin twelve thousand were sealed. <n>Linguistically speaking, in terms of the norms of language, a phrase like “the tribe of Asher” can only have one meaning, precisely the meaning that it has everywhere else in the Bible. Ezekiel chapter 37 makes very clear that ‘the ten lost tribes’ are not lost at all—God knows exactly who and where they are, and at the right moment they will be restored.</n> 


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<i> A multitude from the Great Tribulation</i> After these things I looked, and wow, a great multitude that no one could number, from all ethnic nations and tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the Throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes and palm branches in their hands.


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And they shouted with a loud voice saying, “Saved by our God who sits on the throne, and by the Lamb!”


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And all the angels stood around the Throne, and the elders and the four living beings, and they fell down before the Throne, on their faces, and worshipped God,


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saying: “Amen! The blessing and the glory and the wisdom and the thanksgiving and the honor and the power and the strength to our God for ever and ever! Amen.”


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And one of the elders reacted, saying to me, “Who are these that are clothed in the white robes, <n>I take it that we should refer back to the fifth seal, 6:11—in that event those martyrs were also killed during the Great Tribulation, just earlier on. Perhaps at this point (7:13) the pre-determined number of martyrs is now complete (in 6:11 it wasn’t).</n> and where did they come from?”


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So I said to him, “My lord, you know.” <n>John understands that the elder is offering information and tells him to go ahead.</n> So he said to me: “These are those who come out of the Great Tribulation—they washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. <n>Assuming a pre-Abomination-of-Desolation rapture of the Church (because of the surprise factor), I take it that multiplied millions of church members will be left behind—they knew the Gospel but were never really regenerated. When they see that they have been left behind they will fall on their faces before God saying: “Oh Lord, have mercy; if I never believed before I do now!” There will be many millions of conversions in the first hours after the Rapture. People were saved in the OT without the indwelling Holy Spirit, and they will be too. But they will have to face the Beast and most of them will be martyred. Notice that they say, “Saved by our God . . . , and by the Lamb.”Apparently there is a sovereign act of God (the Father) involved here, with the blood of the Lamb as the basis.</n> 


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Therefore they are before the throne of God, and they serve Him day and night in His sanctuary. <n>How does one ‘serve’ in this sanctuary? I suppose by worship and praise.</n> And He who sits on the throne will shelter them.


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They shall not hunger anymore, nor thirst anymore; the sun will absolutely not strike them, nor any heat;


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because the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to springs of waters <n>That’s what the Text says, ‘waters’, plural. Might there be different kinds of water, or just different sources?</n> of life. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”


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<i> The seventh seal</i> And when He opened the seventh seal there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. <n>A ‘deafening’ silence! I wonder why.</n> 


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And I saw the seven angels who stood before God, and seven trumpets were given to them. <n>One gains the clear impression that the seven trumpets form the content of the seventh seal.</n> 


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And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer. He was given lots of incense so that he could offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar that is before the throne.


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And the smoke of the incense with the prayers of the saints went up before God out of the angel’s hand.


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Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and threw it at the earth. And there were voices and thunders and lightnings and an earthquake.


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<i> The first trumpet</i> So the first one trumpeted, and there appeared hail and fire mixed with blood, and it [the mixture] was thrown at the earth, and a third of the earth was burned up; that is, a third of the trees was burned up and all green grass was burned up.


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<i> The second trumpet</i> So the second angel trumpeted, and something like a great burning mountain was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood.


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And a third of the creatures with souls <n>That’s what the Text says. Just as food for thought, I would suggest that God is Spirit and has soul; a human is soul and has spirit; an angel is spirit with no soul; an animal is soul with no spirit; insects and lower forms have neither. I imagine that the reference here is to mammals in the sea (like dolphins).</n> in the sea died. And a third of the ships were destroyed.


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<i> The third trumpet</i> So the third angel trumpeted, and a great star fell out of the sky, burning like a torch, and it fell upon a third of the rivers, and on the springs of waters. <n>If the springs are hit, does that include the aquifers that supply their water? If so, a third of the sweet water on the earth is ruined.</n> 


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The name of the star is called Wormwood; so a third of the waters were turned into wormwood, and many people died from the waters because they were made bitter.


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<i> The fourth trumpet</i> So the fourth angel trumpeted, and a third of the sun was struck, and a third of the moon, and a third of the stars so that a third of them was darkened; so a third of the day did not shine, and the night likewise.


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And I saw and heard an eagle <n>Over ⅔ of the Greek manuscripts, including the best group, read “eagle” rather than “angel”. Since the fourth living being is similar to a flying eagle, the idea here is not new.</n> flying in midheaven saying with a loud voice, three times; “Woe, woe, woe to the inhabitants of the earth because of the remaining trumpet blasts of the three angels who are about to trumpet!”


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<i> The fifth trumpet</i> So the fifth angel trumpeted, and I saw a ‘star’ <n>Presumably an angel, and of considerable rank.</n> that had fallen out of the sky to the earth. And to him was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss. <n>The Greek word appears to be composed of two morphemes, “no-depth”. Since it is a shaft or pit we presumably should understand no known or measured depth, hence “bottomless”. Literally, “the shaft of the no-bottom”; the familiar “bottomless pit” is not a bad rendering. Since the word “abyss” occurs elsewhere without the “shaft/pit” (see verse 11, also Lk. 8:31) I prefer to take it as a proper name.</n> 


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So he opened the shaft of the Abyss and smoke went up out of the shaft, like the smoke of a burning furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke from the shaft.


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And ‘locusts’ exited from the smoke into the earth. And to them was given a capability just like the scorpions of the earth have capability.


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And they were told not to harm the grass of the earth, nor any green <i>plant</i> , nor any tree, but only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.


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And it was designated to them [locusts], not to kill them [men] but, to torment them five months. And their torment is like the torment of a scorpion whenever it strikes a person.


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And in those days the people will seek death but <i>not</i> find it; they will <i>want</i> to die but death will run away from them. <n>It will not be a good time to be on the earth!</n> 


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Now the appearance of the ‘locusts’ <n>Evidently these are not the literal insect, but the insect came in clouds (millions of them) and was a terrible plague. Since they are lead by a high-ranking demon (as I suppose), they are probably demons. I associate Luke 8:31 with this passage—although the Lord evidently did not send those demons to the Abyss, that they kept begging Him not to shows that it was a very real possibility in their ‘minds’; they knew something that we don’t. I take it that the Lord didn’t send them to the Abyss at that point because He hadn’t won the victory yet—Satan was still the god of this world and the demons were doing their thing under Satan’s authority. But now we are to act on the basis of that victory, on the basis of our position and authority in Christ (Eph. 2:6). So how did all those demons get into the Abyss to be available for the fifth trumpet? They got there because we sent them there! I would say that sending demons to the Abyss is one of the “greater”things that the Lord Jesus said we would do (John 14:12).</n> was like horses prepared for battle, and something like a golden crown was on their heads, and their faces were like human faces.


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They had breastplates like breastplates of iron and the noise of their wings was like the noise of many chariots with horses rushing into battle.


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<i> And</i> , they have tails like scorpions and stingers precisely in those tails! They have the capability to hurt the populace five months,


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having as king over them the angel of the Abyss—his name in Hebrew is Abbadon, while in Greek he has the name Apollyon. <n>And in English, Destroyer. “Angel” covers both good and bad—this one sounds like a boss demon.</n> 


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<i> The sixth trumpet</i> So the sixth angel trumpeted, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar <n>I find it to be curious that this voice comes from the altar [and why did the altars have horns?], which is usually associated with obtaining God’s mercy. But in this case the altar participates in the judgment.</n> that is before God


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saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.”


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So the four angels were released—they had been prepared for the hour and the day and month and year—so that they might kill a third of mankind.


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And the number of the mounted troops was a hundred million <n>Some ¾ of the Greek manuscripts, including the best group, do not have “two”. John was given the number.</n> (I heard their number).


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And in the vision I saw the horses like this: those who rode them had breastplates of fiery red, hyacinth blue and sulfur yellow; the heads of the horses were like lions’ heads; out of their mouths came fire, smoke and brimstone.


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By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed—by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone that came out of their mouths. <n>Dear me! And I thought the ‘locusts’ were bad! Notice that it is the ‘horses’ that do the killing, not the riders. I understand that China has over one hundred million armed militia, right now, but presumably not these ‘horses’. Just as in the case of the ‘locusts’, I take it that we’re looking at supernatural activity here. The population of the world is reduced by one third.</n> 


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For the capability of the horses is in their mouths—and in their tails, because their tails are like snakes, having heads, and with them they do harm.


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Yet the rest of the people, those who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as to stop worshipping the demons, even the idols <n>Notice that the idols are linked to demons. Even though an image of wood presumably has no power in itself, a demon associated with it can do all sorts of damage.</n> of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk;


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and they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their fornication or their thefts. <n>They were totally self-centered, and therefore totally evil, malignant, under demonic control; carbon copies of the devil. They are prepared to kill, steal and use witchcraft to gain their ends, with a total disregard for others. They want sexual gratification without responsibility. No matter what God does they will not repent; they are beyond fixing. I’m glad I won’t be there. Oops, wait a minute! Don’t an awful lot of people in the world today (especially in Europe and North America) already answer to this description? They’ve been brought up on evolutionistic, relativistic humanism; they’ve been taught that they are gods, to ‘do your own thing’. Hey, if we’re not already there I reckon we’re well on the way!</n> 


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<i> Parenthesis John eats a little book</i> (I saw a mighty angel descending out of heaven, <n>John is evidently back on earth at this point.</n> clothed with a cloud, and a rainbow on his head; his face was like the sun and his feet like pillars of fire; <n>Does the description remind you of anyone?</n> 


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and he had a little book open in his hand. He placed his right foot on the sea and his left on the land,


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and he cried out with a loud voice, just like a lion roars. And when he cried out the seven thunders uttered their voices.


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Now when the seven thunders spoke I was about to write, but I heard a voice out of heaven saying, “Seal up the things that the seven thunders said,” and “You write after these things.” <n>The evidence is divided here, but I take it that two of the three main independent lines of transmission, including the best group, have “You write after these things” rather than “do not write them”. This text has been generally misunderstood since the beginning. Having been told to seal what the thunders uttered, why would John be told he would write it later? So many copyists altered the text, reinforcing the prohibition. However, I take it that the voice was giving two unrelated instructions: not to record the thunders; and to put his notebook aside until later—he is going to be busy interacting with the angel and eating a book, and the voice doesn’t want him to be distracted by trying to write at the same time.</n> 


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and swore by Him who lives forever and ever, who created the heaven and the things in it, and the earth and the things in it, and the sea and the things in it, that there would be no further delay,


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but in the days <n>“The days”—the events associated with a given trumpet (and probably seal and bowl) cover a period of time; they are not instantaneous.</n> of the blast of the seventh angel, whenever he should trumpet, the mystery of God that He declared to His slaves the prophets would be finished.


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Now the voice that I heard out of heaven was speaking to me again and saying, “Go, take the little book that is open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.”


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So I went to the angel and said to him, “Give me the little book,” And he says to me, “Take and eat it up; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.”


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So I took the little book out of the angel’s hand and ate it up, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth. But when I had eaten it my stomach was made bitter.


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And he said to me, “You must prophesy again over many peoples, even over ethnic nations and languages and kings.” <n>The action in verses 9-11 is presumably symbolic, but of what? Like why was the little book open, and why the stomach ache, etc.? I imagine that the book contained the prophecy mentioned by the angel, and being open would indicate that the prophecy was to be understandable. The book inside John suggests inspiration to me, and the terms of the prophecy would be mainly bitter.</n> 


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<i> The two witnesses</i> I was given a reed like a measuring rod. And the angel stood <n>I get the impression that the angel shifted position, probably with both feet on land—his legs had been spread or straddled, now he stands normally.</n> saying, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar, and those who worship there.


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But leave out the outer court of the temple and do not measure it, because it has been given to the nations; and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months. <n>Comparing forty-two months with 1,260 days we get 30-day months. A year computed on the basis of these ‘prophetic’ months, as they are sometimes called, is five days shorter than a calendar year. Forty-two calendar months would give 1,277/8 days.</n> 


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And I <n>Presumably the angel is still speaking—might He be God the Son? Could a mere angel say “my two witnesses”?</n> will give <i>authority</i> to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.” <n>Note that their ‘ministry’ covers 3½ years; the Text doesn’t actually say that it will be simultaneous with the trampling of the holy city, but I imagine that it will come close.</n> 


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And if anyone wants to harm them fire comes out of their mouths and consumes their enemies. So if anyone wants to harm them he must be killed in this way.


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They have authority to shut up the sky so that no rain falls during the days of their prophecy; and they have authority over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they wish.


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When they finish their witness, the Beast of prey that comes up out of the Abyss <n>This would seem to confirm that the “locusts” and their king, in chapter nine, are on Satan’s side. That is also where Satan will be confined during the Millennium (20:3). If this beast is not Abbadon he is presumably another high ranking demon, or so I thought until I got to 13:1 and 17:8, which see.</n> will make war with them, overcome them and kill them


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—and <i>leave</i> their corpses in the street of the great city! (which is called Sodom and Egypt, spiritually speaking), even where their <n>Over 99% of the Greek manuscripts have “their” Lord, not “our” as in KJV and NKJV. If these two “olive trees” are the ones in Zech. 4:3 and 14, then the “LORD of the whole earth” there is Jehovah the Son.</n> Lord was crucified. <n>We might expect “Sodom and Egypt” to apply to Rome, rather than Jerusalem, but the Lord was crucified in Jerusalem.</n> 


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And those from the peoples, tribes, languages and ethnic nations look at their corpses three-and-a-half days, and will not allow their corpses to be buried.


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And those who dwell on the earth rejoice over them, and they will enjoy themselves and send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth.


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And after three-and-a-half days the breath from God entered them and they stood on their feet, and a great fear fell on those who were watching them.


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And I heard a loud voice from the heaven saying to them, “Come up here!” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them.


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And in that day there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city fell, and seven thousand individuals were killed in the earthquake. And the rest became fearful and gave glory to the God of heaven. <n>At least they are no longer pretending that God doesn’t exist.</n> )


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<i> The seventh trumpet</i> So the seventh angel trumpeted, and there were loud voices in heaven saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever.”


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And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones in God’s presence, fell on their faces and worshipped God


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saying: “We thank You, O Lord God Almighty, He who is and who was and who is coming, because You have taken up your great power and begun to reign.


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The nations were angry and your wrath came, even the time for the dead to be judged and to give the reward to Your slaves the prophets, and to the saints <n>“Slaves” and “saints”—again we seem to have two distinct categories.</n> and those who fear your name, small and great, and to destroy those who have corrupted the earth.” <n>One gets the impression that the elders had been waiting for this day. I think I know how they feel—the destruction of ‘those who corrupt the earth’ can’t come too soon to suit me.</n> 


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And the temple of God in heaven was opened, and the ark of the covenant <n>Presumably this is the original ark of which the one made under Moses’ supervision was a copy (Heb. 8:5, Ex. 25:9, 40, Heb. 9:23).</n> of the Lord was seen in His temple. And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings and huge hail. <n>If this were all there was to the seventh trumpet it would be anti climactic, ‘small potatoes’. I take it that the seven ‘bowls’ (see chapter 16) give the full content of the third woe.</n> 


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<i> Parenthesis—partly historical The woman, the Child, the dragon</i> A great sign appeared in the sky: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. <n>Just as Michael is the boss-angel in charge of Israel, as a nation (Dan. 10:21, 12:1), presumably each tribe has its own boss-angel (lower in rank than Michael). Assuming that the woman represents Israel, I imagine that these ‘stars’ are the tribal angels (because of the number twelve).</n> 


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And another sign appeared in the sky: <i>wow</i> , a dragon, huge, fiery red, having seven heads and ten horns, with seven diadems on his heads.


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And his tail grabbed a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. <n>It is generally understood that this refers to those angels who joined Lucifer in his rebellion. If the ⅔ are over 100 million (5:11) then this ⅓ must be over 50 million.</n> And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth in order to devour her Child as soon as she gave birth.


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 And she bore a Son, a male, <n>That’s what the Text says. Since “Son” is obviously masculine, adding “a male” emphasizes the gender. What the first man lost the second Man (1 Cor. 15:47) recovered; the first man allowed his wife to lead, the second Man will rule with a rod of iron.</n> who would shepherd all the nations with a rod of iron. <n>Here the Child is clearly identified as the Messiah—since He was born some 2,000 years ago we are obviously looking at an historical parenthesis. The rebellion of Lucifer and his angels goes back at least 6,000 years.</n> And her Child was snatched up to God, even to His throne.


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And the woman fled into the wilderness to where she has a place prepared by God, so that they may nourish her there one thousand two hundred and sixty days. <n>Verses 1-5 are historical, but verse 6 brings us back to the Great Tribulation. The narrative is interrupted to give us some background.</n> 


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<i> Satan excluded from heaven</i> War was declared in heaven; Michael and his angels were to wage war with the dragon; so the dragon and his angels made war, <n>The dragon knew that Michael had received the order, so he decided to get in the first blow.</n> 


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So the great dragon was expelled, that ancient serpent, who is called Slanderer and Satan, who deceives the whole inhabited world; he was thrown into the earth, <n>“Into the earth”, including its atmosphere. The idea seems to be that at this point Satan is confined to this planet. From the content of the following verses I take it that Satan’s expulsion occurs in the middle of the seven-year period. So he is still in heaven accusing us.</n> and his angels were expelled with him.


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And I heard a loud voice in the heaven saying: “<i> Now</i> the salvation and the power have come, <n>Wait a minute! If it is only “Now”, where have the Kingdom and Authority been in the meantime? As long as a government is being challenged, its rule is not complete or tranquil. I find it instructive that Satan still has sufficient power to wage war, in Heaven!</n> even the Kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ, because the accuser of our brothers <n>“Our brothers”—I wonder who is speaking, since the ‘brothers’ are saved by the blood of the lamb.</n> has been thrown down, who accused them before our God day and night.


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And they conquered <n>That’s what the Text says. Comparing 6:11 and 7:13, perhaps it is necessary for a certain number of God’s servants to be willing to die for the Cause to bring about the accuser’s expulsion.</n> him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not cherish their lives, <i>even</i> up to death.


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Therefore rejoice, O heavens, yes, you who are dwelling in them! <n>It is the inhabitants that do the rejoicing, not the place.</n> Woe to the earth and the sea! Because the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, knowing that he has little time.”


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<i> Satan persecutes the woman</i> So when the dragon perceived that he had been thrown into the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the Male.


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And to the woman were given two wings of the great eagle, so that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, so that she might be nourished there for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent.


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So the serpent expelled water from his mouth after the woman, like a river, so as to cause her to be overwhelmed by the flood.


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But the ground helped the woman; indeed, the ground opened its mouth and drank up the river that the dragon expelled from his mouth.


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So the dragon was furious about the woman and off he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, those who keep the commands of God and hold the testimony of Jesus. <n>Only two very late Greek manuscripts add “Christ”, as in KJV and NKJV. Over 99% do not. The dragon will persecute Jews in general and Christians in particular.</n> 


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<i> Various Vignettes A beast from the sea</i> Now I <n>Less than 10% of the Greek manuscripts have “he” (presumably referring to the dragon). The difference is between ECTAΘHN (I stood)and ECTAΘH (he stood)—it would be easy to drop off the final N, especially since it is similar to H (more so in handwriting).</n> was standing on the seashore, and I saw a Beast of prey coming up out of the sea, <n>I am not sure that this beast is the same as the one in 11:7—they are said to come from different places (but see 17:8).</n> having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten diadems and on his heads blasphemous names. <n>There is a family resemblance—seven heads, ten horns; might the Beast be the son of the Dragon?</n> 


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The beast that I saw was similar to a leopard, his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority.


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And one of his heads was as if it had been mortally wounded, but his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth marveled after the Beast.


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And they did obeisance to the dragon who had given the authority to the Beast, and they did obeisance to the Beast saying, “Who is like the Beast, and who is able to make war with him?”


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And he was given a mouth speaking great things, that is, blasphemy; and he was given authority <n>I take it that here and in verse 7 it is God who does the giving—this is part of the Plan.</n> to make war forty-two months.


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So he opened that mouth of his in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, those who dwell in Heaven. <n>Compare 1 Corinthians 3:16. We are the ‘temple’ of God; those who dwell in Heaven are His tabernacle.</n> 


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And it was given to him to make war with the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given him over every tribe and language and ethnic nation.


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All who dwell on the earth will do obeisance to him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slaughtered from the foundation of the world. <n>1 Peter 1:20 makes clear that it was actually before the foundation of the world. God knew what was going to happen before He created the human race, the terrible price He would have to pay, but He went ahead anyway.</n> 


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If anyone has captivity, he goes away. <n>Two of the three main independent lines of transmission (including the best one) so read. The third line reads, “If anyone goes away into captivity...”—the second half of the conditional clause (the apodosis) is missing. The rendering of KJV and NKJV reflects a very few late manuscripts. But what does the Text mean? Anyone who has been appointed to captivity will certainly be taken away.</n> If anyone kills with the sword, with the sword he must be killed. Here is the endurance and the faith of the saints. <n>I confess that this sentence puzzles me.</n> 


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<i> A beast from the land</i> Now I saw another beast of prey coming up out of the land, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.


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And he exercises all the authority of the first Beast in his presence; and he started to cause the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first Beast, whose mortal wound was healed.


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And he performs great signs, including that fire should come down from heaven upon the earth before the people.


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And he deceives my own <i>people</i> , <n>“My own <i>people</i>”—two of the three main independent lines of transmission (including the best one) so read. Since John is speaking (writing), his physical people would be the Jews, while his spiritual people would be the Christians. The use of “own” points toward the physical, which accords with the information given elsewhere (Dan. 9:27) that Israel makes a deal with the Beast.</n> those dwelling on the earth, by the signs that it was given to him to perform before the Beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the Beast who had the sword wound and lived.


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And it was granted to him to give breath to the image of the Beast, so that the image of the Beast should actually speak, and should cause as many as would not worship the image of the Beast to be killed. <n>Worship an image or be killed—how humiliating! It sounds like a re-run of Daniel 3.</n> 


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And he causes everyone—both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave—to receive marks on their right hand or on their foreheads,


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so that no one would be able to buy or sell who does not have the mark, the name of the Beast or the number of his name.


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Here is wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the Beast, for it is the number of man—his number is 666.


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<i> The Lamb and the 144,000</i> And wow, I saw a Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, <n>Is this group different than the one in chapter 7?</n> having His name and <n>Only 2% of the Greek manuscripts do not have “His name and” (as in KJV and NKJV), so they had two names written, the Father’s and the Son’s—much better than having the name of the Beast!</n> His Father’s name written on their foreheads.


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And I heard a sound from the sky, like the sound of many waters, and like the sound of loud thunder; and the sound that I heard was like harpists playing on their harps. <n>Evidently John is finding it difficult to describe exactly what he heard, doubtless different from the normal sounds of this earth.</n> 


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And they sing a new song before the Throne, and before the four living beings and the elders; and no one was able to learn the song except the 144 thousand, who had been redeemed from the earth.


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These are the ones not defiled with women, for they are virgins; <n>All the pronouns are masculine, so these are male virgins.</n> these are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He may go. These were redeemed by Jesus <n>Two of the three main lines of independent transmission (including the best one) read “by Jesus”.</n> from among men, firstfruits for God and for the Lamb;


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no lie was found in their mouth, for they are blameless. <n>These are remarkable men! KJV and NKJV add “before the throne of God”, following the TR which is here based on only two very late manuscripts.</n> 


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<i> Three angels</i> And I saw another angel flying in mid-heaven, having an everlasting gospel to be proclaimed to those who reside on the earth—to every ethnic nation and tribe and language and people—


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saying with a loud voice, “Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judging has come, and do obeisance to Him who made heaven and earth, the ocean and springs of water.” <n>As fresh, pure water becomes more and more scarce, the springs of water will become increasingly important.</n> 


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And another, a second, angel followed, saying, “It fell, it fell, Babylon the great!—she made all the nations drink of the wine of the rage of her fornication.”


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And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the Beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, <n>To actually serve as a warning, this would have to be contemporary with 13:16.</n> 


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really, <i>he</i> will drink of the wine of the fury of God, mixed at full strength in the cup of His wrath. In fact, he will be tormented with fire and sulfur before the holy angels and before the Lamb.”


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So the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest day or night, those who worship the Beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name. <n>Believe me, you do not want to submit to the Beast in any way! Don’t let anyone put anything on your right hand or on your forehead. Better to be executed. I do not doubt that the Beast is already alive on the earth, with age and preparation sufficient to take center stage at any moment.</n> 


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Here is the endurance of the saints, here those who keep the commands of God and the faith of Jesus. <n>I would say that the two “here”s are cataphoric, referring forward to the content of verse 13.</n> 


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I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on’ (“Yes” says the Spirit) ‘so that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow along with them’.”


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<i> The earth is harvested</i> And wow, I saw a white cloud, and someone like a son of man sitting on the cloud, having on his head a golden crown and in his hand a sharp sickle.


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And another angel came out of the temple crying out with a loud voice to the one sitting on the cloud, “Thrust in your sickle and reap, for the time to reap has come because the harvest of the earth is dry.”


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And another angel came out from the altar (having authority over the fire) and he called out with a loud cry to the one having the sharp sickle saying, “Thrust in your sharp sickle and gather the grape clusters of the vine of the earth, because her grapes are ripe.”


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So the angel swung his sickle at the earth and gathered the vine of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of God’s fury.


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And the winepress was trampled outside the city, and blood came out of the winepress up to the horses’ bridles, for a thousand six hundred stadia. <n>That’s roughly 180 miles! If some four billion people will be killed during the seven-year period [mostly the second half of it] (as I calculate, a low estimate) and we allow an average of one gallon of blood per person, that’s four billion gallons of blood—which would make quite a river! If the “great winepress of God’s fury” described here represents sort of a summary of the blood shed during the Great Tribulation period, then the picture is not far fetched. Of course a winepress has a single outlet and the liquid is conveyed to the receptacle by a conduit of appropriate size. In this case the conduit is 180 miles long and the flow is about four feet (1.33 yards) deep—four billion gallons equals about 20 million cubic yards; 180 miles equals about 320 thousand linear yards; so we have about 62.5 cubic yards of blood per linear yard of conduit—so the conduit is about 45 yards wide. My purpose in conducting this exercise is simply to show that the description of the “great winepress of God’s fury” is not at all ridiculous—it is a graphic but factual picture of the coming bloodbath.</n> 


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<i> Here come the bowls!</i> And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous: seven angels having the seven last plagues—in them the fury of God is completed. <n>I take it that this is a generic cover statement, referring to the detailed description that follows. I further take it that these ‘bowl’ plagues relate to the seventh trumpet (11:15) and make up the third ‘woe’ (11:14).</n> 


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<i> The song of the victors</i> And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire, and those who prevailed over the Beast and over his image and over the number of his name, standing on the glassy sea, having harps of God. <n>These people were martyred by order of the Beast, so how did they ‘prevail’ over him? By refusing to bow to him they escaped from hell (14:11); they died physically but won spiritually (but see 12:11).</n> 


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They sing the song of Moses, the slave of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying: “Great and marvelous are Your works, O Lord God, the Almighty! Just and true are Your ways, O King of the nations! <n>KJV and NKJV read “saints” instead of “nations”, following the TR which is here based on only two very late manuscripts.</n> 


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Who could not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? Because You alone are holy, because all the nations will come and do obeisance before You, because Your righteous judgments have been manifested.”


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<i> The angels are commissioned</i> After these things I looked, and the sanctuary of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened.


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And out from the sanctuary came the seven angels, the ones having the seven plagues; they were clothed in pure bright linen and were girded around the chests with golden belts. <n>Just like the glorified Christ (1:13). Perhaps a belt around the chest was like ‘war paint’, part of getting ready to fight.</n> 


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Then one of the four living beings gave the seven angels seven golden bowls filled with the fury of God, the One who lives forever and ever.


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The sanctuary was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power, and no one was able to go into the sanctuary until the seven angels’ plagues were completed.


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And I heard a loud voice from the sanctuary saying to the seven angels, “Go, pour out the bowls of God’s fury on the earth.”


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<i> The first bowl</i> So off went the first one and poured out his bowl on the earth, and a foul and malignant ulcer <n>Even now a chip the size of a grain of rice is being planted under the skin of volunteers. The battery contains a substance that, if it leaks out of the chip, will produce “a foul and malignant ulcer.” Notice that ‘ulcer’ is singular, one per person, precisely those who have the‘mark’. A word to the wise . . . .</n> appeared in the people who had the mark of the beast and those who worshipped his image.


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<i> The second bowl</i> Then the second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned into blood, like a dead person’s; so every living soul in the sea died.


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<i> The third bowl</i> Then the third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and the springs of water, and they turned into blood.


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And I heard the angel of the waters saying, “How just You are! The One who is and who was, the holy One, because You have judged these things.


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Because they shed the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink. <n>That’s right. Where are people going to find water to drink, let alone for washing, etc.?</n> They deserve it!”


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And I heard one from the altar saying, “Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty! Your judgings are true and just!”


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<i> The fourth bowl</i> Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was granted to him to burn the people with fire.


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So the people were burned with severe burns, and they blasphemed the name of God, who has authority over these plagues. And they did not repent to give Him glory.


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<i> The fifth bowl</i> Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the Beast, and his kingdom was plunged into darkness; so they gnawed their tongues because of the pain. <n>Apparently this is a different kind of darkness, evidently quite painful.</n> 


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And they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains, and because of their ulcers; yet they did not repent of their deeds.


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<i> The sixth bowl</i> Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up, so that the way for the kings from the sun’s rising might be prepared.


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And I saw three unclean spirits, like frogs, <i>coming</i> out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the Beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.


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For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole inhabited earth, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.


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(“Watch out, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who watches and guards his clothes, <n>So what might the “clothes” be? Presumably these are spiritual clothes, perhaps having to do with our walk with God, maintaining our personal sanctity or holiness, “without which no one will see the Lord.” “Watch” and “guard” are up to us—watch out for and guard against the world’s values.</n> so that he not walk about naked and they see his shame.”)


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<i> The seventh bowl</i> Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a great voice came out of the sanctuary of heaven, from the Throne, saying, “It is done!”


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and there were lightnings and thunders and noises. And there was a tremendous earthquake, a terribly severe earthquake such as had not occurred since mankind existed on the earth.


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So the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. <n>Such a monstrous earthquake will doubtless produce monstrous tsunamis which could well inundate many coastal cities—between the earth and the water the destruction will be massive.</n> And Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of the fury of His wrath.


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And huge hailstones, weighing about a talent, <n>That would be around 90 pounds each (a Roman talent = 93.75 pounds). The surviving people are ‘punch-drunk’ by now, but the hailstones are so incredible that they provoke another round of blasphemy.</n> fall out of the sky on the people; and the people blasphemed God on account of the plague of the hail, because its plague was exceedingly severe.


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<i> About Babylon</i> One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me saying, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great whore who sits on the many waters,


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with whom the kings of the earth fornicated; and the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication.”


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<i> A woman and a beast</i> So he took me away in spirit to a wilderness. And I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns.


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And the woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the filthiness of her fornication.


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And on her forehead a name was written: “Mystery, Babylon the Great, the Mother of the prostitutes and the abominations of the earth.” <n>In Hebrew usage a ‘son’ of something was characterized by that something. So a ‘father’ of that something would be even more so. So when James calls God “the Father of lights” (1:17) that means that “God is light and in Him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5)—He is totally light. In John 8:44 the Lord Jesus says that Satan is the father of the lie, and that “there is no truth in him”—he is totally falsehood (I conclude that it is impossible for Satan to tell the undistorted truth). Here we have “the mother of prostitutes and abominations”—she is totally perverted, evil (it is impossible for her to do anything pure, clean or really good). So whom or what does the whore represent? If the kings are fornicating with her they are not trying to please God, so perhaps she is organized religion (including dead Christianity, of whatever kind). In that event organized religion is incapable of doing anything pure, clean or really good.</n> 


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And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, even with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And upon seeing her I was tremendously impressed.


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<i> The vision explained</i> So the angel said to me: “Why are you impressed? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast, having the seven heads and the ten horns, that carries her.


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The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the Abyss <n>Well, the origin matches 11:7 but the description matches 13:1, so maybe the three passages refer to a single personage. If “sea” refers to human origin and “Abyss” to demonic, could it be that Satan will imitate God in producing the Antichrist.</n> and to go into perdition. And those who dwell upon the earth will be amazed, whose names are not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, <n>Here is a strong statement of election or predestination—how else could God know what names to put in the Book? At the same time the seven letters (chaps. 2 & 3) are strong on human responsibility (including the possibility of a name being erased). Divine sovereignty and human responsibility walk side by side throughout the Bible.</n> when they see the beast that was, and is not and will be present.


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And there are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not come yet. And whenever he comes he must continue a short time.


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And the beast that was and is not; he is actually the eighth, yet he is of the seven, and he is going into perdition.


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And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the Beast for one hour.


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They will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called and chosen and faithful.”


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Then he says to me: “The waters that you saw, where the whore sits, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages.


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And the ten horns that you saw, also the beast, these will hate the whore and will lay her waste and strip her and eat her flesh and burn her with fire.


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Because <i>God</i> put it into their hearts to perform His purpose, even to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the Beast, until the words of God should be fulfilled. <n>Compare verse 13—God is in ultimate control; His Word and purpose will be fulfilled.</n> 


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Now the woman whom you saw is the great city <n>In chapter 21 the Bride of Christ is represented by a city, the New Jerusalem, but the Bride is presumably people from around the earth. Likewise the whore, represented by a city, may well involve people from around the earth. “Is the great city”—when John wrote, Rome was the ruling city.</n> that holds rulership over the kings of the earth.


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<i> Her fall proclaimed</i> After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his splendor.


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And he cried out with a strong voice saying: “It fell, it fell, Babylon the great! and has become a dwelling place of demons, even a prison of every unclean spirit, also a prison of every unclean and detestable bird.


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Because all the nations have drunk of the rage of the wine of her fornication and the kings of the earth have fornicated with her, and the merchants of the earth became rich through the strength of her luxury.”


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And I heard another Voice from heaven saying: “Come out of her, my people, <n>Could an angel say “my” people? This may be God Himself speaking.</n> so as not to participate in her sins and so as not to receive of her plagues.


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For her sins have reached to heaven and God has remembered about her her iniquities. <n>What God has remembered about her is her iniquities.</n> 


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Render to her just as she rendered to you; <n>Evidently it is “my people” that are supposed to be doing this. First we must disassociate ourselves from the whore, but then we are to participate in her punishment, “double”. Only it doesn’t say how the paying back works.</n> yes, pay her back double, according to her deeds; in the cup that she mixed, mix double for her.


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To the extent that she glorified herself and lived luxuriously, by so much give her torment and sorrow; because in her heart she says, ‘I sit a queen, and am not a widow; and I will certainly not see sorrow.’


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Therefore her plagues will come <i>in</i> <i>one</i> <i>day</i> —death and sorrow and famine—and she will be burned up with fire; because the Lord God who has judged her is <b>strong</b>.


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<i> Her fall lamented</i> “The kings of the earth who fornicated and lived luxuriously with her will weep and mourn over her, when they see the smoke of her burning,


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standing afar off for fear of her torment, <n>None of her lovers charge to the rescue; they stay well clear of the action! They enjoyed the whore, but . . . . (Actually, why do men go to prostitutes? They want sex without commitment.)</n> saying, ‘Alas, alas, O great city Babylon, O mighty city! Because your judgment came <i>in</i> <i>one</i> <i>hour</i> .’


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goods of gold and of silver, of precious stones and of pearl, of fine linen and of purple, of silk and of scarlet; every citron wood and object of ivory, every object of most precious wood and of bronze and of iron and of marble;


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cinnamon and incense and perfume and frankincense, wine and olive oil and fine flour and wheat, cattle and sheep and horses and carriages, <i>and</i> bodies and souls of men!


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(‘Yes, the fruit that your soul craved has gone from you, and all the sumptuous and splendid things have perished from you, and you will <i>never</i> find them again!’) <n>An unidentified speaker interjects a cheerful note. It may be that “the fruit that your soul craved” had to do with the “bodies and souls of men”.</n> 


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The merchants of these things, who became rich by her, will stand afar off for fear of her torment, <n>I guess we shouldn’t expect the merchants to be braver than the kings, now should we?</n> weeping and sorrowing


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and saying, ‘Alas, alas, O great city! that was clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet, and was adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls;


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because <i>in</i> <i>one</i> <i>hour</i> such great wealth was laid waste.’ “And every ship captain, and all who travel by ship—sailors and as many as work the sea—stood afar off


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 They threw dust on their heads and cried out, weeping and sorrowing and saying, ‘Alas, alas, O great city! by which all who had ships in the sea became rich, by her costly abundance; because <i>in</i> <i>one</i> <i>hour</i> she was laid waste.’


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<i> Her doom final</i> “Rejoice over her, O heaven, yes you saints and apostles and prophets, because God has pronounced your judgment against her!” <n>Perhaps this should be connected to verses 6-7, above.</n> 


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And a mighty angel took up a stone like a huge millstone and threw it into the ocean saying: “The great city Babylon will be thrown down violently, just like that, and will never be found again.


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‘The sound of harpists and musicians and flutists and trumpeters will never be heard in you again; no craftsman of whatever craft will ever be found in you again; the sound of a millstone will never be heard in you again;


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the light of a lamp will never shine in you again; the voice of bridegroom and bride will never be heard in you again; because your merchants were the magnates of the earth, because by your sorcery <n>The whore uses sorcery, and kills God’s prophets and saints. The Lord Jesus said that the “Jerusalem” of His day killed God’s prophets, so the whore has been around for quite a while.</n> all the nations were deceived.’


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And in her was found the blood of prophets and saints, even of all who had been butchered on the earth.”


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<i> Her fall celebrated</i> After these things I heard as it were the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven saying, “Hallelujah! The salvation and power and glory of our God!


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Because His judgments are true and just, because He has judged the great whore who corrupted the earth with her fornication, and has avenged the blood of His slaves by her hand.”


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And the twenty-four elders and the four living beings fell down and worshipped God, who sits on the throne, saying, “Amen, Hallelujah!”


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And a voice came from the Throne saying, “”Praise our God, all you His slaves and those who fear Him, small and great!”


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<i> The wedding of the Lamb</i> And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty thunderings saying: “Hallelujah! Because the Lord our God reigns, the Almighty!


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Let us rejoice and exult and give Him the glory, because the wedding of the Lamb has come, and His wife has prepared herself.”


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And it was granted to her to be dressed in fine linen, bright and pure, for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.


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And he says to me, <n>Presumably the speaker is the angel of 17:1.</n> “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding banquet of the Lamb’.” And he says to me, “These are the true words of God.”


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And I fell at his feet to worship him, but he says to me, “Don’t! I am your fellow slave and among your brothers who hold the testimony of Jesus. <n>It surprises me that an angel could or would call himself “your brother”. I don’t know what to make of it, unless this was really a human being that looked like an angel. Since the Bible records angels appearing in human form, I suppose a glorified human could appear in angelic form. Why not?</n> Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” <n>I don’t understand this statement either, unless it is Jesus who is testifying to the prophets, giving them their messages.</n> 


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<i> The battle of Armageddon</i> I saw the heaven opened, and wow, a white horse! And the One who sits on it, called Faithful and True, both judges and makes war with righteousness.


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Now His eyes were a flame of fire and on His head were many diadems, having names written, <n>Well over half of the Greek manuscripts, two of the three main independent lines of transmission (including the best one) read “having names written”—presumably these names were on the diadems. I would imagine that each diadem had a name.</n> besides a written name that no one knows except Himself;


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and He was clothed with a robe that had been dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.


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And out of His mouth goes a sharp, two-edged sword, so that with it He may strike the nations. And He Himself will shepherd them with a rod of iron. And He Himself treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God, the Almighty. <n>The Lord Jesus Christ paid the price for our sins all by Himself (Heb. 1:3), and here He treads “the winepress of the fury of the wrath” all by Himself. Those who think of the Lord only in terms of ‘loving, meek, mild’ need to understand that there’s a whole lot more to the story. Those who reject His sacrifice can look for “the fury of the wrath” (it sure doesn’t sound very nice!).</n> 


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<i> A feast for vultures</i> And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried out with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in mid-heaven, <n>It is mainly birds of prey and scavengers that fly high in the sky; songbirds and game birds usually stay fairly close to the ground (except when migrating).</n> “Come, gather together to the great dinner of God,


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so that you may eat flesh of kings and flesh of commanders and flesh of the mighty and flesh of horses along with their riders, even the flesh of all, both free and slave, both small and great.”


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And I saw the Beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the One riding the horse and against His army.


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So the Beast was captured, and with him the False prophet, the one who performed signs in his presence (by which he had deceived those who had received the mark of the Beast and those who worshipped his image). The two were thrown alive into the Lake of Fire that burns with brimstone. <n>Apparently these are the first two residents in the Lake, and they will have it all to themselves for a full one thousand years.</n> 


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And the rest were killed by the sword that proceeds from the mouth of the One riding the horse. <n>If the Captain did all the killing, then His followers were just along for the ride.</n> And all the birds were filled with their flesh. <n>The birds will eat all they can, but there will presumably be plenty of flesh left over.</n> 


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<i> The Millennium Satan bound</i> And I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key of the Abyss and a huge chain on his hand.


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And he seized the dragon, the ancient serpent, who is a slanderer, even Satan, who deceives the whole inhabited earth, <n>Well over half of the Greek manuscripts, two of the three main independent lines of transmission (including the best one), contain this clause. Since both the TR and the so-called critical text omit it, most versions do not include it.</n> and bound him for a thousand years;


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he threw him into the Abyss and locked and sealed <i>it</i> over him so that he should not deceive the nations any more until the thousand years were finished. And after these <i>years</i> he must be loosed for a short time. <n>If language has any verifiable meaning at all, this passage is obviously talking about a literal period of one thousand years.</n> 


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<i> Saints reign</i> And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them; also, <i>I saw</i> the souls of those who had been beheaded on account of the testimony of Jesus and on account of the Word of God, even those who had not worshipped the Beast or his image and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.


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(Now the rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were finished.) <n>Verse six makes clear that this part of verse 5 is parenthetical. It is participants in the first resurrection who will reign the thousand years; so that first resurrection must happen at the beginning of the thousand years, not the end; so “the rest of the dead” are the lost who will participate in the resurrection unto condemnation (call it the second resurrection), after the Millennium. Superficial readings of this passage have given rise to all sorts of confusion.</n> This is the first resurrection.


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Blessed and holy is the one having a part in the first resurrection; upon such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and will reign with Him a thousand years.


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<i> The final rebellion</i> Now when the thousand years are finished Satan will be released from his prison,


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and he will go forth to deceive the nations that are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to the war, whose number is like the sand of the sea.


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They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down out of heaven from God and devoured them. <n>The picture here is different from the battle of Armageddon—compare 19:21.</n> 


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And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the Lake of Fire and brimstone, where the Beast and the False prophet also are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.


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<i> The Great White Throne</i> Then I saw a tremendous white throne and the One who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the sky fled away; <n>Doubtless the Face was full of wrath—at that point there will be absolutely no place to hide.</n> and no place was found for them.


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And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne; <n>Less than 10% of the Greek manuscripts read “God” instead of “throne”, as in AV and NKJV.</n> and books were opened. And another Book was opened, namely, of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things that were written in the books.


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The ocean gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them; and they were judged each one according to their works. <n>Twice it says that they will be judged on the basis of their works. So how can you really evaluate someone’s deeds? Only by taking account of their context. Those who never heard the Gospel will be judged within the context that they lived, and the Judge will prove that even within their own context they didn’t measure up.</n> 


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And Death and Hades were thrown into the Lake of Fire. This is the second death, the Lake of Fire. <n>The first death is the physical one; the second is the spiritual one—eternal separation from the Creator (the essence of death is separation).</n> 


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And if anyone was not found written in the Book of Life he was thrown into the Lake of Fire. <n>That’s right; since no one can be saved by their works the only way out is the Book of Life.</n> 


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<i> New heaven, new earth</i> Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, because the first heaven and the first earth had passed away; <n>“The first earth”, not the second, or whatever. This statement would seem to go against the “gap” theory in Gen. 1:1.</n> also, the ocean was no more. <n>Apparently there will be no water in the new earth; I take it that our glorified bodies will require neither food nor drink (so there will be no body waste to dispose of).</n> 


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And I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband.


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And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Take note, the tabernacle of God is with men and He will dwell with them, and they will be His people. Yes, God Himself will be with them.


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And He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there will be no more death nor sorrow nor crying nor pain <n>Without the separation of death, without pain and sorrow, there will be no occasion for tears.</n> —they will exist no more because the first things have gone.”


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Then He who sat on the throne <n>Since the last throne mentioned is the Great White Throne, and since all judgment has been committed to the Son (John 5:22), I conclude that the speaker is Jehovah the Son.</n> said, “Take note, I make everything <i>new</i> !” And He says to me, “Write, because these words are true and faithful!” <n>“These words are true and faithful”—the guarantee extends to the individual words. If a word is true, then it can’t be false; if a word is faithful, then it can’t be designed to deceive us. Conclusion: the words of this book are to be taken at face value, according to the norms of language.</n> 


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Then He said to me, “I have become the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. <n>“I have become”—this seems awkward, so a small minority of the Greek manuscripts changed it to the familiar “It is done”. But in order to be the Boss at both the beginning and the end, you have to be the greatest, and survive all challenges. All human history has been involved in Satan’s challenge of that supremacy. Because of that challenge, and because only at this point has that challenge been definitively put down, Jehovah the Son says, “I have become”.</n> To the one who thirsts I will give of the spring of the water of Life freely.


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But as for the cowardly <n>Does it surprise you that “cowardly” is in this list?</n> and unbelieving and sinners <n>Both the TR and the so-called critical text omit “and sinners”, so most versions do as well, but two of the three main independent lines of transmission (including the best one) have the phrase.</n> and abominable and murderers and fornicators and sorcerers and idolaters, and all who are false, <n>That’s what the Text says; instead of the noun ‘liar’ we find the adjective ‘false’ (all the preceding descriptions are nouns, with one participle = ‘abominable’).</n> their portion is in the Lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”


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<i> The New Jerusalem</i> Then <n>Actually the Text has “and”—John saw the visions in this order, but they will not necessarily happen in this order. I imagine that the New Jerusalem belongs to the Millennium (for reasons I will give below).</n> one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me saying, “Come, I will show you the woman, the Lamb’s bride.” <n>It seems to me to be unarguable that both Israel (the gates) and the Church (the foundations) participate in the New Jerusalem. (In fact, I imagine that the redeemed of all ages, up to the beginning of the Millennium, will be involved.) The rendering, “the woman [or, wife], the Lamb’s bride”, is based on over half of the Greek manuscripts, two of the three main independent lines of transmission (including the best one). In Jeremiah 3:20 and Hosea 2 Israel is presented as the wife of Jehovah—but in the O.T. wherever God interacts directly with the human race it is always Jehovah the Son. Passages like Mt. 25:10, John 3:29, 2 Cor. 11:2 and Eph. 5:25-27, 31-32 point to the Church as the bride of Christ (who is Jehovah the Son). So here the two come together—the wife, the bride—but maintain a distinct identity (gates are one thing and foundations are another)—indeed, nowhere does the Bible ever confuse Israel and the Church (not even in Gal. 6:16, as I can demonstrate to anyone who wishes to pursue the matter). But if the Church is still a “bride”, then the wedding hasn’t happened yet, which is my first reason for placing this scene at the beginning of the Millennium.</n> 


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So he transported me in spirit to a great and high mountain and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,


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having the splendor of God. Her radiance was similar to a most precious stone, like a crystalline jasper stone;


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she had a tremendous, high wall with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names inscribed, namely the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel;


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<i> looking</i> from the east, three gates, and from the north, three gates, and from the south, three gates, and from the west, three gates.


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And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them twelve names, of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. <n>I wonder, who replaces the Iscariot.</n> 


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Now he who spoke with me had a measure, a golden reed, so that he might measure the city and her gates. <n>The evidence is badly divided here, but I take it that two of the three main independent lines of transmission (including the best one), do not add “and her wall”, which is read by most versions since both the TR and the so-called critical text so read. Two thousand years ago a city wall was a barrier to protect the city from attack, but the following context here makes clear that the wall was part of the structure. The city is a cube, like a modern high-rise, which is a recent concept in architecture. Many early copyists presumably assumed that the wall was distinct from the city and officiously altered the text. The angel measured precisely the city and her gates; see the next note.</n> 


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The city is laid out as a square; that is, her length is equal to her width. So he measured the city with the reed at twelve thousand and twelve stadia. <n>Over half of the Greek manuscripts, two of the three main independent lines of transmission (including the best one), read “and twelve” —a surprising bit of precise detail. But consider—12,000 stadia, twelve gates—if the gates are evenly spaced, as seems likely, we have a thousand stadia between gates; or is it 1,001 stadia? I will argue below that each gate was one stadium wide, which nicely explains the precise number, twelve thousand and twelve.</n> Her length and width and height are equal. <n>The city is a cube, the total measurement being about 1,350 miles! But does it mean the circumference or is it referring to the three dimensions? If it refers to the circumference we divide by four and each side is about 340 miles long, and of course the height is also 340 miles. If we divide by three each dimension is about 450 miles. In either event, we have one incredibly large city! But because of the twelve gates and 12,000 stadia I really believe that the angel measured the circumference.</n> 


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And he measured her wall, one hundred and forty-four cubits, <n>That’s about 70 yards; since we already know that the wall is hundreds of miles high, the reference here must be to the thickness of the wall. I take it that the wall was part of the structure, like in a modern high-rise, not like a fence (with no enemies there’s no need for a fence—in fact, verse 25 makes clear that even the gates will never be closed).</n> the measure of a man (which is of an angel). <n>This is curious; apparently angels use the same measurement as humans. But then, with reference to things on this earth, why wouldn’t they?</n> 


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The material of her wall was jasper, <n>See verse 11.</n> and the city was pure gold, like clear glass.


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And the foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones: the first foundation <i>had</i> jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald,


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the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. <n>Each foundation was adorned with a different kind of stone. But how were the twelve foundations arranged, piled up or side by side? Presumably the gates were evenly spaced, with 1,000 stadia between each pair, so perhaps each such space represented an Apostle and had a different precious stone.</n> 


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And the twelve gates are twelve pearls; each individual gate was <i>composed</i> of one pearl. <n>Are not doors and gates usually wider than the wall is thick? The wall here is some 70 yards thick. I propose that each pearl was 200 yards (one stadium) wide (some pearl!), but notice in verse 25 that the gates were never closed, which means that they always remained in one position, hence no wear and tear on the ‘hinges’. But imagine that we are on that tremendously high mountain with John, and that we are perpendicular to the middle of one wall and at a distance of 50 miles. We are looking at a monstrous wall 340 miles square; it merely fills the horizon. At the base of the wall, evenly spaced (some 110 miles between them), are three gates. Would a gate 200 yards wide be out of proportion? Given the size of the wall, such gates might even seem small!</n> And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. <n>The ‘gold’ here is evidently different from the gold we know; John doesn’t say that it looked like gold, he says it was gold.</n> 


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<i> Her glory</i> I saw no sanctuary in her, because the Lord God, the Almighty, and the Lamb are her sanctuary.


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And the city has no need of the sun or the moon, that they should shine on her, because the very glory of God illumines her, and the Lamb is her light.


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And the nations will walk in her light, and the kings of the earth <n>“Kings of the earth”—we are still on the earth, with kings and nations coming and going, which is my second reason for placing the New Jerusalem during the Millennium.</n> bring their glory and honor into her.


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But anything ‘common’ <n>That is, defiled or profane; perhaps anything not consecrated to God.</n> or anyone perpetrating an abomination or a lie will absolutely not enter her; <n>Connecting this statement with 22:15, we have all sorts of nasty people outside the city. After the Millennium and the Great White Throne they will be in the Lake of fire, so if they are still circulating on this earth, it must be during the Millennium, which is my third reason. Because of 22:15 I am inclined to suppose that the New Jerusalem will rest on the earth (not be a satellite, as some argue). But if so, where? The desert east of Jordan is hundreds of miles square with very few inhabitants, and relatively plane, yet quite close to the present Jerusalem. Perhaps there.</n> only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. <n>So why else did you think there was an angel stationed at each gate (21:12)?</n> 


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<i> Her river</i> And he showed me a pure river of water of life, <n>This river should not be confused with the one in Ezekiel 47. The present city of Jerusalem will still exist and function during the Millennium. The two rivers share certain characteristics, but are also quite different. Zechariah 14:8 may well have to do with Ezek. 47.</n> bright as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb,


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in the middle of her street. And on either side of the river was a tree of life producing twelve fruits, yielding each month’s fruit monthly; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.


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There will be no accursed thing there, but the throne of God and of the Lamb are in her, and His slaves will minister to Him.


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Night will not exist there and they will need neither lamp nor sunlight, because the Lord God illuminates them. And they will reign forever and ever.


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<i> Conclusion</i> Then he says to me, “These words are faithful and true. The Lord God of the spirits <n>Two of the three main independent lines of transmission (including the best one) have “of the spirits”. The familiar “the holy” of the KJV is based on the third main line.</n> of the prophets sent His angel to show to His slaves the things that must shortly take place. <n>This is a restatement of 1:1.</n> 


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Take note, I am coming swiftly! Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” <n>Here Jesus Christ speaks (and so in verses 12, 16 and 18); see 1:3.</n> 


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Now I, John, who heard and saw these things, when I had heard and seen I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed me these things,


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but he says to me, “Don’t! I am your fellow slave and of your brothers the prophets, those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.”


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He who acts unjustly let him act unjustly still, and let the filthy one be filthy still, and let the righteous one still practice righteousness, and let the holy one still be sanctified.”


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<i> Jesus’ final word</i> “Take note, I am coming swiftly, and my reward is with me to give to each one according to his work.


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(Blessed are those who do His commands, so that they may have the right to the tree of life, even to enter through the gates into the city.


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Outside are the ‘dogs’ <n>So who are the ‘dogs’? In Deut. 23:18 ‘dog’ apparently refers to a male prostitute, a catamite, and is declared to be an abomination. In O.T. times dogs were scavengers and therefore unclean, and were generally looked down upon. In Jesus’ day Jews referred to Gentiles as‘dogs’, but since many Gentiles are in the Church that is presumably not the intended meaning here. The ‘dogs’ in Mat. 7:6 react in an aggressively hostile manner against what is holy; I take it that they are people who are overtly serving evil (Phil. 3:2 may be referring to this sort of person). So who are the ‘dogs’ here? At the very least they are the unclean. Take it from there.</n> and the sorcerers and the fornicators and the murderers and the idolaters, <n>Relativism is an idol; Humanism is an idol; Materialism is an idol. One wonders how many Christians today have a worldview that is really Biblical. The world’s values are not compatible with Christ’s values. Don’t forget 1 John 2:15-16!</n> <i>and</i> everyone who loves and practices a lie.)


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“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify these things to you, in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright morning Star.


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Both the Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come!’ And let whoever hears say, ‘Come!’ And let whoever thirsts come; whoever wants to, let him take the water of life free of charge.


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<i> A serious warning</i> “I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If any one adds to them, may God add to <i>him</i> the seven plagues written in this book! <n>Since God the Son is speaking, I imagine that what He wants will be done.</n> 


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And if anyone takes away from the word<i> <b>s</b></i> <n>“Words”, plural, includes the individual words that make up the whole. Those textual critics who have wantonly removed words from the Text, on the basis of satanically inspired presuppositions, are out. Those who interpret the Text in such a way as to avoid its plain meaning, likewise. Jehovah the Son affirms that the words are “true and <b>faithful</b>”, and He expects us to interpret them that way.</n> of the book of this prophecy, may God remove his share from the tree of life and out of the Holy City, that stand written in this book!”


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<i> John signs off</i> He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming swiftly!” Oh yes!! Come, Lord Jesus!


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The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ <n>“The Lord Jesus Christ” is now the full name or title of Jehovah the Son.</n> be with all the saints. Amen.


