Revelation 20 is best understood in what way?

[Checkpoint]

Many questions are asked about this chapter of Revelation, and answers given can differ widely.

Here are just a few questions, for example.

1. How does the chapter fit in with the theme of the whole book?

2. The "thousand years", if literal, are for what purpose? If metaphorical or symbolic, this conveys what?

3. "the first resurrection" describes what, and takes place when?

4. "the lake of fire" is what, and how is it related to "the second death"?

5. What is the nature of the reign "with Christ" that is mentioned?

[brianbbs67]

1. I think it fits with the theme of the book of end time prophecy.

2. I believe literal, relating the thought of a thousand years is like a day to the Lord...

3. It seems to me it describes the 144000 Elect of the tribes of Isreal. At the time of Christ's return.

4. We have a earthly death and secondly a spirit one. Fire purifies and refines and if too hot or long, consumes. IE, impurities removed.

5. Sounds like a pretty good period of time here on Earth. Maybe to sort out the fate of those here before the Second death.

[Divine Insight]

Many questions are asked about this chapter of Revelation, and answers given can differ widely.

The two verses in Revelation 20 that have always struck me as being in contradiction with the main theme of Christianity, and that is being "Saved by Grace" through Jesus.

The verses are:

Revelation 20:
[12] And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
[13] And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

Why are these people being judged based on their own works?

It's my understanding that in Christianity no man can obtain salvation through his own works. Only through grace offered by Jesus can a man obtain salvation.

So why are these people being judged according to their own works?

If they had previously believed in Jesus and accepted him as their Lord and Savior, then it's my understanding that they are supposed to be forgiven their sins and given the "Free Gift" of eternal life. There would be no need to judge people who have already been forgiven.

But in here Revelation we have men being judged based on their own works.

So then we have questions:

1. Will everyone be judged whether they had accepted Jesus as their savior or not?

2. Or will these only be people who have not believed in Jesus or accepted him as their savior? Although, according to John 3:18 those people are condemned already, remember?

3. Even if it's only the people who didn't believe in Jesus, then the question becomes: Will any of these people be exonerated based on their own works? If so, then Jesus is not the only way to the Father and John 3:18 was wrong as well.

4. If not, then why bother "judging" them at all if they are all going to be condemned anyway? Why not just toss them straight in the hell hole?

I can't say that these kinds of inconsistencies with the main theme of Christianity surprise me, but I thought I'd mention them since this topic came up.

[Divine Insight]

5. Sounds like a pretty good period of time here on Earth. Maybe to sort out the fate of those here before the Second death.

That's the problem though. What would there be to "sort out"?

They either accepted Jesus as their Savior, or they didn't.

According to Christianity that's the crux of it right there.

So what's left to "sort out"?

To have men being judged based on their own works conflicts with Ephesians 2

Ephesians 2
[8] For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
[9] Not of works, lest any man should boast.

[tam]

Peace to you Checkpoint!

Many questions are asked about this chapter of Revelation, and answers given can differ widely.

Here are just a few questions, for example.

1. How does the chapter fit in with the theme of the whole book?

The book is about things that had happened (by the time John received the revelation), that were happening (at the time John received the revelation) and that were still TO happen (after the time John received the revelation).

Revelation 20 is part of what had YET to happen. Still hasn't happened, for that matter.

2. The "thousand years", if literal, are for what purpose? If metaphorical or symbolic, this conveys what?

I am not sure if the 'thousand years' are an exact thousand years of if that just represents a time period. The purpose of that time is for the wedding feast (after the marriage of the Lamb to His Bride - after Christ has gathered His Bride up to Himself). And for the separation of the sheep and the goats. The sheep and the goats are the people of the nations (non-Christian) who are alive when Christ returns, and are gathered before Him.

The sheep are invited into the Kingdom (and so are also invited to the wedding feast) based upon how they treated even a least one of Christ's brothers, unknowingly doing those things for Christ. The goats are cast out based upon the same criteria.

To the sheep, He says:

For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you took Me in, I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me, I was in prison and you visited Me.’

Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You something to drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? When did we see You sick or in prison and visit You?’

And the King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’


To the goats He says:

Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave Me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, I was naked and you did not clothe Me, I was sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’

And they too will reply, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’

Then the King will answer, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for Me.’

And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.�

At the end of the thousand years, Satan is released from his imprisonment, and misleads 'gog and magog' (those people who were cast out as goats, as well as the spirits that follow the Adversary) into coming against the people OF the Kingdom. They ride out across the breadth of the earth to destroy the people God loves. But fire comes down from heaven and devours (destroys) them instead.

THEN comes the second resurrection and the judgment (for those taking part in the second resurrection).

3. "the first resurrection" describes what, and takes place when?

The first resurrection is for those who belong to Christ - Christians (anointed ones). When Christ returns, He gathers them to Himself. Both those who are alive at His return - these are the ones who believe in Him who will never die; and those who have died - these are the ones who believe in Him who will live, even though they died:

“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies. And everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die."
John 11: 25, 26

They are caught up and changed (given the white robe; the new body) in a twinkling.

Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must be clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality... 1 Corinthians 15:52-53

For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will be the first to rise. After that, we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord. 1 Thessalonians 4: 16, 17

Then they come down out of heaven WITH Christ and reign as kings and priests upon the earth (for the thousand years). (Rev 21:2; Rev 5: 9, 10)

So the first resurrection is for Christians (which includes but is not limited to the 144 000).

It occurs when Christ returns; in a twinkling.

These ones reign with Christ as kings and priests with Him for a thousand years. They are reigning with Him upon the earth, and acting as kings and priests should act with regard to the many people invited in who did not know Christ or God before that time.

The second resurrection does not occur until the end of the thousand years, after the great war of God. The second resurrection is the resurrection of the dead - from the time of Adam and Eve and onward.

4. "the lake of fire" is what, and how is it related to "the second death"?

The lake of fire IS the second death. Anyone cast into the lake of fire is destroyed. At the second resurrection (the resurrection of the dead), some are resurrected to life and some are resurrected to judgment and the second (eternal) death.


Peace again to you,
your servant and a slave of Christ,
tammy

[Monta]

[Replying to post 4 by Divine Insight]


"So what's left to "sort out"?

To have men being judged based on their own works conflicts with Ephesians 2

Ephesians 2
[8] For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
[9] Not of works, lest any man should boast."

By grace, a gift. Mouthing off by mouth 'I believe' means nothing.
Genuine faith in Christ means to believe that he is Divine truth. As such, good works will naturally follow and this is confirmation of our faith.

[brianbbs67]

5. Sounds like a pretty good period of time here on Earth. Maybe to sort out the fate of those here before the Second death.

That's the problem though. What would there be to "sort out"?

They either accepted Jesus as their Savior, or they didn't.

According to Christianity that's the crux of it right there.

So what's left to "sort out"?

To have men being judged based on their own works conflicts with Ephesians 2

Ephesians 2
[8] For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
[9] Not of works, lest any man should boast.

I believe this is another lifeline extended to man. Sorting wheat from chaff. God seems to always extended another chance verses annihilation. So, time is given for people to return to good. Before the destruction.

[peacedove]

Many questions are asked about this chapter of Revelation, and answers given can differ widely.

Here are just a few questions, for example.

1. How does the chapter fit in with the theme of the whole book?

The theme of the book is the vindication of the blood of the martyrs. Martyr vindication is found here:

Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshipped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.

The martyrs receive an initial vindication with their 'first resurrection.' They receive a final vindication at the end of the 1000 years after the short period when Satan is loosed, when Satan is defeated and destroyed.

2. The "thousand years", if literal, are for what purpose? If metaphorical or symbolic, this conveys what?

It is symbolic of a period of time, a long period of time, about 40 years, one generation.

3. "the first resurrection" describes what, and takes place when?

The first resurrection is the ruling and reigning of the saints with Christ. It takes place during the 1000 years. This ruling and reigning contemporary with Paul's letters, e.g.

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness towards us in Christ Jesus. (Eph 2:1-7)

4. "the lake of fire" is what, and how is it related to "the second death"?

The lake of fire is the final defeat of Satan, he is thrown into it!

5. What is the nature of the reign "with Christ" that is mentioned?

The nature of the reign "with Christ" is what the Ephesian believers were experiencing and participating in, as described in Eph 2:1-7.


The best way to understand the 1000 years is to match up the elements in NATURE and in TIME by using the other parts of the scriptures which are less symbolic and less difficult to interpret.

This approach yields the following, for example:

1. The binding of Satan. This is something that Jesus said he was doing in his personal ministry in binding the strong man as set out in Mat 12:22-45. This passage really lays the context: Satan bound in the personal ministry of generation for the benefit of that First Century Jewish generation, and yet that generation is destroyed along with Satan's house at the end of that generation.

The binding of Satan or the Strong Man can also be seen in the restraint of Satan's Man of Sin. Paul said that restraint was current in 51 A.D. in 2 Thes 2. He said that the restraint would be taken away, the Man of Sin would do his work in the Jerusalem temple, resulting in his utter destruction. This fits the pattern of Mat 12 and Rev 20 exactly. It is happening with the same characters, at the same time with the same result, in the same place.

The nature of the binding of the strong man is that the gospel spreads throughout the world, as the text says in Rev 20. This is a time of peace, not war. The war happens at the end of the 1000 years. As the text says, after the 1000 he must be released for a little while.

2.

[Divine Insight]

By grace, a gift. Mouthing off by mouth 'I believe' means nothing.
Genuine faith in Christ means to believe that he is Divine truth. As such, good works will naturally follow and this is confirmation of our faith.

But then you still have men earning their own salvation by doing good works simply because they believe in Christ. I don't see how that would resolve the problem.

[tam]

Peace to you DI,

[Replying to post 3 by Divine Insight]

So then we have questions:

These questions are with regard to those people who are standing before the throne of God, being judged on the basis of their deeds as written in their own individual scrolls. Correct?

Therefore, these are the people who take part in the second resurrection. Christians (anointed ones) take part in the first resurrection (a "thousand years" before the second resurrection).

1. Will everyone be judged whether they had accepted Jesus as their savior or not?

No. Those who are in Christ, those who are Christian, were resurrected a thousand years earlier at the first resurrection and reign with Christ as kings and priests.

These at the second resurrection are judged according to their deeds (same criteria as the sheep and the goats parable). Same as the goats were cast out and the sheep invited in; some of these ones at the second resurrection and judgment are resurrected to life (their names are written in the Lamb's book of life) and some are resurrected to judgment and the second death.

2. Or will these only be people who have not believed in Jesus or accepted him as their savior? Although, according to John 3:18 those people are condemned already, remember?

a - These are all non-Christians, yes.

b - Everyone is condemned to die, remember? The wages of sin is death. But those in Christ have crossed over from death to life; there is no judgment for them and no fear of the second death.

3. Even if it's only the people who didn't believe in Jesus, then the question becomes: Will any of these people be exonerated based on their own works? If so, then Jesus is not the only way to the Father and John 3:18 was wrong as well.

Yes some of these (the second resurrection people) are granted life based upon their works; which works prove that the law (of love) is written upon their hearts.


This does not contradict Christ as being the only Way to the Father. Just because one is granted life doesn't mean that one is able to bypass the Son in order to come to the Father. Their names are written in the LAMB'S book of life, right?




Peace to you,
your servant and a slave of Christ,
tammy