Gideon |
Chapter 32 |
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10-21-12 LOCKED UP IN THE BOTTOMLESS PIT (Rev 20:1-3) And I [the Apostle John in a vision] saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit [Gk: depthless; “abyss”] and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him [with “a great chain” formed of God’s commandments] a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut [Gk: to close] him up [spiritually shut up his supernatural powers, and secondarily alluding to his mouth], and set a seal [effectively, a lock, hence, “the key”] upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more [Gk: by implication the pagan nations], till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that [the thousand years] he must be loosed a little season. 1. Commentary: “deceive the nations no more” = thereby ending the “strong delusion” (2 Thes 2:11) which is an all inclusive description of the great increase of lying deceptions our world is presently experiencing; strong delusion that God hath sent through His instrument Satan, the father of lies (John 8:44), to serve as a seal for the unbelievers’ damnation. 2. (2 Th 2:11,12) And for this cause [“because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved” v.10] God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness [Gk: moral wrongfulness].
ABUNDANT PEACE, LOVE, AND SAFETY DURING THE THOUSAND YEAR MILLENNIUM (Isa 11:6-9) The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling [“domestic animal” Amplified Bible] together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking [nursing] child shall play on the hole of the asp [Heb: adder (snake)], and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' [Heb: viper’s] den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. 1. (Hab 2:14) For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.
THRONES OF JUDGMENT (Rev 20:4) And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them [perhaps to us: “Know ye not that we shall judge angels?” 1 Cor 6:3]: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded [a favorite Muslim tactic] for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned [as “kings and priests” Rev 1:6; 5:10] with Christ a thousand years. 1. (Rev 13:16-18) And he [the beast with “two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon” Rev 13:11, the false prophet, now manifesting itself as the liberal news media] causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save [Gk: except] he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man [the number of the beast and the number of a man are is the same 666] [an unregenerate (unsaved) man without God]; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six. [6 = spirit, 6 = soul, 6 = body (666). Man without God]. a. (Eccl 3:18) I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them [make their true character apparent to all], and that they might see [come to the recognition of themselves] that they themselves are beasts. 2. Commentary: For a simple clear comparison and contrast, the very next verse in the Bible following the 666 beast/man (Rev 13:18) depicts re-generated (saved) men with God, a 777 company, God/men. a. (Rev 14:1) And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Zion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads [the 777 God/men: spirit = 6 man +1 God = 7, soul = 6 man +1 God = 7, body = 6 man +1 God = 7 (777). Man with God now, then God/man, or perhaps Godman. Seven is the biblical number that signifies completion]. THE FIRST RESURRECTION IS FOR THE BLESSED AND HOLY, ONLY (Rev 20:5,6) But the rest of the dead [the unregenerate, unsaved dead] lived not again [were not resurrected] until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection [clearly indicating that there is another second resurrection yet to come]: on such the second death [without exception, the unavoidable result of the second resurrection of the unregenerate unsaved at the “great white throne” judgment: Rev 20:11-15] hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign [as “kings and priests” Rev 1:6; 5:10] with him a thousand years [this is a prophecy and a promise]. 1. Commentary: “This is the first resurrection” = previous biblical types and shadows of this “first resurrection” were faintly alluded to in Judg 7:8 when the three hundred vigilant warriors that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth were “retained.” The first resurrection was quite plainly alluded to in the valley of dry bones (dead) which become upright men (living) as described in Ezek 37:1-14. The first resurrection also describes the army of the Lord in Joel 2:1-11, and the first resurrection may be clearly perceived in the verses commonly attributed to “the Rapture” in 1 Thes 4:13-18; plus, of course, Rev 20:1-6 is the literal rendition of the first resurrection. 2. Commentary: In an entirely spiritual revelational sense, the first resurrection is also prophesied in the ascension of the Tabernacle of Moses (symbolically, the Body of Christ) from a horizontal figuratively dead position into a vertical living position, which picture parallels our ascension from unsavedness (death) into great grace (life), from becoming born-again children of God who are maturing into “the Sons of God” (John 1:12; Rom 8:14,19; Phil 2:15; 1 John 3:1,2). In the latter sense, we who have been “chosen” (John 15:16) are being resurrected now.
Amen
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