John s Revelation of Jesus Christ Lesson 10. The Outline of the Story at the end of the Seventh Bowl found in Revelation Chapters 17-18

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1 John s Revelation of Jesus Christ Lesson 10 The Outline of the Story at the end of the Seventh Bowl found in Revelation Chapters Angel with bowl says See the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters Woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns Woman is clothed in purple and scarlet, adorned with gold, precious stones, pearls, and gold cup full of abominations in hand Upon her forehead a name BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH Woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and the witnesses of Jesus Beast was and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss Seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits, they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while Beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth, and is one of the seven Ten horns which you saw are ten kings, not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour One purpose to give their power and authority to the beast Will wage war against the Lamb but Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings Those with the Lord are the called and chosen and faithful Waters which you saw where the harlot sits, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues Ten horns which you saw, and the beast, hate the harlot and will kill her God put it in their hearts to execute His purpose to kill the woman Woman is the great city, which reigns over the kings of the earth Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! Nations have drunk the wine of the passion of her immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed acts of immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by the wealth of her sensuality Voice from heaven, saying, "Come out of her, my people, that you may not participate in her sins and that you may not receive of her plagues; for her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities Pay her back even as she has paid, double, according to her deeds In one day her plagues will come, pestilence and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for the Lord God who judges her is strong. Kings of the earth, weep and lament over her death Merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her, because no one buys their cargoes Shipmaster and every passenger and sailor, and as many as make their living by the sea, stood at a distance, and were crying out as they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, 'What city is like the great city?' Threw dust on their heads, crying out, weeping and mourning, saying, Woe, woe, the great city, in which all who had ships at sea became rich by her wealth, for in one hour she has been laid waste! Joy in heaven for saints, apostles and prophets, because God has pronounced judgment against her." Strong angel took a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, "Thus will Babylon, the great city, be thrown down with violence, and will not be found any longer The blood of prophets and of saints and of all who have been slain on the earth was because of the woman" 19:1 After these things I heard, as it were, a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, "Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God; 2 BECAUSE HIS JUDGMENTS ARE TRUE AND RIGHTEOUS; for He has judged the great harlot who was corrupting the earth with her immorality, and HE HAS AVENGED THE BLOOD OF HIS BOND- SERVANTS ON HER." 59

2 The last two chapters reveal several things about the adulterous woman. Besides inciting the world to partake in her immoralities, she is presented by the angel as the great city of Babylon, who sits on many waters; therefore, she is not really a city but a system of authority. She finds her destruction during the tribulation but before the gathering for Armageddon when the seven headed, ten-horned beast kills her. The last chapter also explains the identity of the beast the woman rides. His heads are the great kingdoms of the world, five of which will have faded into history. These five great kingdoms are Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, and Greece. In John s day, Rome was the great world power. Another great power comes after Rome s demise; however, to this date, no country controls the known world like these six kingdoms. We are still waiting on this powerful kingdom to take over the world. The ten horns represent the ten kingdoms still to come in John s day. Two hundred years after John s death, Rome divides into two legs. The western leg falls in 476 AD. The land encompassing the western leg became five independent countries: France/Gaul, Italy, Spain, Britain, and North Africa. The eastern leg falls in 1453 AD and the land mass becomes five independent countries: Egypt, Turkey, Syria, Greece, and Macedonia. These ten countries unite in the future to be the final manmade kingdom to control the world. When the final kingdom kills the woman, the people who rely on her for their livelihood mourn. The government cares nothing for the desires of these people. The kingdom uses the woman for its purposes and then eliminates her from the earth. Through the will of God, the woman comes to her end at the hands of the scarlet beast. As the people mourn the death of the woman, heaven erupts with exuberant joy. Throughout her existence, especially in the last seven years, she has sought Jews and Christians, saints and prophets, putting them to death. On one day, in one hour, the Lord avenges the blood of these saints and prophets through the destruction of the adulterous woman. 3 And a second time they said, "Hallelujah! HER SMOKE RISES UP FOREVER AND EVER." 4 And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne saying, "Amen. Hallelujah!" In a second round of rejoicing, the great multitude speaks of the smoke that rises from the woman s destruction. Again, the elders and the creatures do what they do best as they fall on their faces and give homage to God the Father. 5 And a voice came from the throne, saying, "Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, you who fear Him, the small and the great." 6 And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude and as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying, "Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns. 7 "Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has The Marriage of the Lamb His Bride is Ready! come and His bride has made herself ready." 8 And it was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. In a third round of praise to God the Father, the great multitude focuses on the marriage of the Lamb and His bride. The Lord marries His bride, pure and holy, ready in her fine linen. 60

3 The linen is actually the righteous acts of the saints. Adorned in their righteousness, she marries the Lord. 9 And he said to me, "Write, 'Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.' "And he said to me, "These are true words of God." 10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said to me, "Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and your brethren who hold the testimony of Jesus; worship God. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy." With the marriage complete in heaven, the angel speaks of the marriage supper. It follows the ceremony and only invited quests may attend this marriage supper. Blessed are those who are invited to this supper. No evil person may attend. No satanic being may attend. No beast or dragon may attend. Only the righteous and holy may attend this supper. What is on the menu for the supper? Who will eat the meal at the supper? Later the text will surprise all of us. For the second time John falls at the feet of the angel. Quickly the angel responds to this sinful action, because it is a sin to worship angels. As the angel states, he is just a fellow servant of God. 11 And I saw heaven opened; and behold, a white horse, and He who sat upon it is called Faithful and True; and in righteousness He judges and wages war. 12 And His eyes are a flame of fire, and upon His head are many diadems; and He has a name written upon Him which no one knows except Himself. 13 And He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood; and His name is called The Word of God. Coming out of heaven are the white horse and the True and Faithful God. We know this event as the Second Coming of the Lord. Notice His appearance. His eyes are aflame, His crown consists of diadems, His robe is dipped in blood, and His name is the Word of God. The Lord is the Word of God. When the Lord Jesus speaks, He speaks the Word of God. 14 And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. 15 And from His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may smite the nations; and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. 16 And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, "KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS." The army of the Lord follow on its white horses. Just as the bride is dressed in fine linen, so too is the army of the Lord. Can both be dressed in the same clothing? Absolutely! The army of the Lord is the bride. At the Lord s second return, His bride, in all her righteousness, accompanies the Lord on her white horses. Armed only with the sword in His mouth, the Lord destroys everyone who is ready to fight Him on that fateful day. We know the battle by the name of Armageddon and it will take place just outside the city of Jerusalem in the valley and will run up to the foothills of Megiddo. This valley is the wine press of the wrath of the God. It is there, under the pressure of the Lord, that the blood of the ungodly flows from their bodies, rising to the height of the horses bridle. 61

4 17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried out with a loud voice, saying to all the birds which fly in midheaven, "Come, assemble for the great supper of God; 18 in order that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of commanders and the flesh of mighty men and the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them and the flesh of all men, both free men and slaves, and small and great." As the Lord returns to end the time of tribulation and destroy His enemies, the call goes out to invite the guests to the great supper of God, previously called the marriage supper of the Lamb. The menu consists of the flesh of those who gather in the valley to fight against the Lord when He comes. The birds are the guests. It will take 45 days for these birds to dine on the meal and to complete the task of cleaning up the mess. 19 And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies, assembled to make war against Him who sat upon the horse, and against His army. 20 And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone. 21 And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat upon the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh. The armies of the beast and his kings assemble to make war. It is interesting that a war, as we think of wars, does not take place. The Lord speaks the Word of God with the sword of His mouth and the beast s armies die in the valley of decision. It is there that the birds gather at that great supper to dine on the flesh of the armies. Yet the beasts and the false prophet find themselves seized by the Lord and thrown alive into the lake of fire. These two evil beings will be in the lake of fire for 1,000 years alone before anyone else joins them. 20:1 And I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. 2 And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 3 and threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he should not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time. We would think that the Lord would throw Satan into the lake of fire just as He did the beast and the false prophet, but this is not the case. The Lord is not through with Satan. An angel chains Satan and carries him deep into the abyss and secures him there. Satan finds himself in chains at the bottom of the ocean, covered in water, with no possible way to escape. For 1,000 years, Satan waits alone in the abyss. At the proper moment, the angel releases Satan, but only for a short time. 62

5 4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. Thrones are set up for all the saints martyred for their faith during the tribulation time. The martyred saints find their awards in their glorified bodies and the thrones from which they reign with Christ. Beheaded by the adulterous woman during the tribulation, they find reward in the 1,000-year kingdom of the Lord because of their faith. 5a The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. The ungodly cannot participate in this glorious 1,000-year reign of the Lord. One day they will stand before the Lord again, and that day will be their last day ever to see the King of kings and Lord of lords. 5b This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years. In the Scriptures, we find two great resurrections. The first resurrection involves only those clothed in righteousness. Once a man dies, he faces either eternal life or the second death. The second death relegates a person to the lake of fire. Eternal life keeps the person in the presence of the Lord. For all participating in the first resurrection, their holiness spares them from the lake of fire. During the 1,000-year kingdom on earth, these servants reign with the Lord. The Revelation reveals little about life during the 1,000-year kingdom. Other prophetic books of the Scriptures fill in the gaps. It will be a time of holiness unto the Lord. Everyone will parade past the great throne of the Lord in Jerusalem once a year to pay homage to the King. Zech. 14:16-18 Then it will come about that any who are left of all the nations that went against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Booths. 7 And when the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison, 8 and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore. 9 And they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them. 10 And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. When Satan erupts from his watery prison at the close of the Lord s 1,000-year kingdom, his purpose is clear. He plans to go about the world to 63

6 deceive the nations once again. Satan deceives humans on the earth in every corner of the world. It is almost incomprehensible how Satan is able to deceive the very people who have known nothing but peace for the last 1,000 years and have worshiped at the feet of Jesus as He sits on His great white throne at least once every year. The ability for humans to fall into the Satan s trap just does not make sense at all, yet many will be deceived. The number of dissenters from the Lord s care is like the number of grains of sand on the seashore. Satan will even go back into the region once controlled by king Gog in the kingdom of Magog to gather dissenters. The Revelation does not cite the Battle of Gog specifically. The Battle of Gog erupts in Israel at the end of the first 1,260 days of the tribulation. Gog sees the peace in Israel, specifically Jerusalem, and rushes in to take spoils. The first beast spoken of in the Revelation rushes in to protect Israel and destroys Gog and his armies. Ezekiel records the prophecy for us. Highlights of Ezekiel 38:1-39:12 Son of man, set your face toward Gog of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him In the latter years you will come into the land that is restored from the sword, from many nations to the mountains of Israel its people they are living securely, all of them. You will go up like a storm and many peoples with you." On that day, thoughts will come into your mind, and you will devise an evil plan You will say, 'I will go up against the land of unwalled villages. I will go against those who are at rest, that live securely, all of them living without walls, and having no bars or gates, to capture spoil and to seize plunder, who live at the center of the world On that day when My people Israel are living securely, will you not know it? You will come from your place out of the remote parts of the north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great assembly and a mighty army; and you will come up against My people Israel It will come about in the last days that I shall bring you against My land, in order that the nations may know Me when I shall be sanctified through you before their eyes, O Gog And it will come about on that day, when Gog comes against the land of Israel, My fury will mount up in My anger The fish of the sea, the birds of the heavens, the beasts of the field, all the creeping things that creep on the earth, and all the men who are on the face of the earth will shake at My presence; the mountains also will be thrown down Pestilence and with blood I shall enter into judgment with him, and I shall rain on him, and on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, a torrential rain, with hailstones, fire, and brimstone I shall strike your bow from your left hand, and dash down your arrows from your right hand You shall fall on the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops, and the peoples who are with you; I shall give you as food to every kind of predatory bird and beast of the field Then those who inhabit the cities of Israel will go out and make fires with the weapons and burn them, both shields and bucklers, bows and arrows, war clubs and spears and for seven years they will make fires of them They will not take wood from the field or gather firewood from the forests, for they will make fires with the weapons; and they will take the spoil of those who despoiled them and seize the plunder of those who plundered them It will come about on that day that I shall give Gog a burial ground there in Israel, the valley of those who pass by east of the sea, and it will block off the passers-by They will bury Gog with all his multitude, and they will call it the valley of Hamon-gog For seven months the house of Israel will be burying them in order to cleanse the land 64

7 It is difficult to believe, but the very nation destroyed by Satan and the beast enters into a relationship with Satan and stands to die in the same place where their ancestors had died over 1,000 years before. On the plain surrounding Jerusalem they stand. Fire from heaven devours them before they can throw a single blow to the army of the Lord. Everyone on earth who follows Satan after the 1,000-year kingdom finds dreadful annihilation by fire. As with the other sinners, they find the lake of fire their eternal home too. Satan does not escape. Snatched up by the Lord, he joins his fellow evil servants in the lake of fire, never to deceive again. 11 And I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. 12 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. 13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. 14 And death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. With the destruction of Satan, the second resurrection immediately occurs. The dead from all generations stand before the Lord on His Great White Throne. The books of deeds stand as their only defense before the Lord. As each one stands in front of the Great White Throne, the books record every detail of the deeds of their lives. However, the pages of the book of life are empty because the one deed necessary for eternal life has never transpired in these resurrected lives. Their names are missing from the book of life. Every single person resurrected before the Great White Throne enters the lake of fire. Not one saved. Not one spared. Not one worthy of being in the eternal presence of the Lord. 65