Day 88: More Worship, More Warnings, No Repentance

Again, John sees visions of the saints (the 144,000) worshipping around the throne of the Lamb.  I love the detail about the name of the Lamb and his father written on their foreheads.  They sing a "new song" in front to the throne and (here's something I'm going to remember, too) no one can learn the song except the 144,00).  It's not that I'm eager to exclude people who can't learn the song, it's just that lately I've become so aware of the power of music, and how God uses music to imprint the truth of his love on our hearts.

Three angels bring warnings to the earth about the coming judgment.  They warn people to worship God, to turn from following "The Beast", to watch out for Babylon.

(and do you notice this line?  "Favored are the dead who died int he Lord from now on."  "Yes, says the Spirit, so they can rest from their labors, because their deeds follow them." -- this is where we get our hymn, "For all the saints, who from their labors rest.")

Then there is the judgment, the two harvests.  The Human one has a sharp sickle in his hand, for the harvest is ready.  there is another angel as well, also reaping a harvest, but this is a harvest of judgment. The image is clusters of grapes, "cutting the vineyard of the earth" -- again, here's a song with which you may be familiar, "Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord/he is trampling out the vineyards where the grapes of wrath are stored".  This hymn was written during the civil war, a bloody conflict that must have seemed like the end of the world to those who were fighting.  Both sides felt that God was on their side, and that truth was on their side.  But this hymn was written by an abolitionist, and she used words from the Revelation to express God's judgment on the country for the sin of slavery.

After this there are seven bowls with plagues that will come over the earth.  To me, what I notice most in these chapters is not just the plagues, but the fact that it seems that no matter what plagues are unleashed on the earth, people do not repent.  (This reminds me of the story of the Pharaoh and the people of Israel in Egypt.  God sends many plagues, and yet Pharoah does not repent.  It also reminds me that the book of Revelation was written during a time of great persecution, and was written for a people who were being persecuted.)

We are nearing the end of the book of Revelation.  How much destruction is left?  What more can be said?

Day 87: It gets Worse

...and weirder, too.

This section of scripture is filled with strange, and fearsome images.  We're no longer talking about famines and wars and plagues, but both worship and wars in heaven.  There are beasts and dragons.  So it's obvious that all of this is symbolic, not literal.  What are these visions about?

In chapter eleven a temple is being measured, and there are prophets.  Many people think that this refers to the literal rebuilding of the temple.  Others believe that the measuring and rebuilding of the temple refers to the growth of the church, until the end of the age.  Prophets will come who will testify to the truth of Christ's victory over sin and death, and ultimately, no one will be able to stop the prophets' witness, even though terrible things happen.

The scene shifts to heaven, where the heavenly throng worships and sings "the kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ..."  (see how this keeps happening?  reminding beleaguered people of the ultimate victory).

Even though we think of the beast and the dragon as future enemies, it's very possible that the early Christians read them as powerful people who were actively persecuting them then.  Emperors of the Roman Empire and other leaders opposed to the church were waging war against Christians, and the dragon and the beast might be those leaders.

Some people consider that the woman being pursued is the ideal church (remember that sometimes the church is compared to a bride.)

It's worth mentioning that number "666", since so many people refer to it.  Some people try to read it as a code, and think that it might refer to a specific evil person.  Others point out that in Hebrew, numbers have meaning (for example 7 is the number of perfection,  3 represents completeness, and 4 is the number of the earth).  So 6 is one short of a perfect 7, and 666 might just mean "perfect evil.'