Christ reveals the meaning of these prophecies: “and He came and took the book out of the right hand of Him that sat upon the throne” (Rev. They remain separate from the lukewarm seventh era. Medieval handwritten manuscripts were considered extremely precise, the most authoritative documents from which to copy other texts.[27]. All of Revelation 6:14-17 shows that this sign is the heavens rolling together like a scroll. When they do, so will the Tribulation, again, long in the future! As a result, terrible punishment must occur before God’s kingdom is established worldwide. (Jeremiah 50:4-8, 13-15; 51:6-9 and Isaiah 47:1, 5, 7-9, 11; 48:1, 12, 17-20 describe it.) A Christian Bible is a set of books that a Christian denomination regards as divinely inspired and thus constituting scripture. He actually cried because he did not see any way to open the book (vs. 5). Download with Google Download with Facebook. He leads the Children of Israel from slavery in ancient Egypt to the renewal of their covenant with God at biblical Mount Sinai and their wanderings in the desert until a new generation was ready to enter the land of Canaan. Remember, Daniel’s book is a counterpart detailing much that will happen prior to Revelation, and his book was “sealed till the time of the end” (12:9). The Two Witnesses will deliver a final warning to the government leaders of the world—for which they will be martyred. When coupled with Mark 13 and Luke 21, it is quite obvious that Christ is referring to both. In II Corinthians 11:13-15, Paul recorded how false ministers (or false christs) do their work—deluding, deceiving and causing vast numbers of people to accept counterfeit christs (vs. 4). This is comparable to the authority claimed for the original Arabic Koran according to Islamic teaching. For example, see Leroy Zuck, Roy B. Zuck. Most people believe the Tribulation, Heavenly Signs and the Great Day of God’s Wrath are identical—are one and the same. They are almost painful to read—yet major magazines report that great numbers do believe these dangerous, counterfeit scenarios. Revelation 16:17-18 states, “And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done. And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets .”. One of the clearest proofs is found by comparing Revelation 18:24 to Matthew 23:37. There are 81 books in the Ethiopian Orthodox Bible. On the face of it this may surprise us. The most important part is verse 7, which explains that the seventh angel (that sounds in the end of chapter 11) brings an end to the mystery of God’s Plan as declared by all of His prophets. And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions. Some denominations have additional canonical holy scriptures beyond the Bible, including the standard works of the Latter Day Saints movement and Divine Principle in the Unification Church. While the Torah may have been considered canon by Israel as early as the 5th century BCE and the Former and Latter Prophets were canonized by the 2nd century BCE, the Ketuvim was not a fixed canon until the 2nd century of the Common Era.[38]. While this has been happening for 2,000 years, all but the few—to whom Christ is revealing His precious truth—are completely oblivious! This last fulfillment—the second death—occurs at the very end of God’s Plan, the time after He will have given every person who has ever lived a full opportunity to qualify to enter His kingdom. The first four seals are represented by four riders, on four different-colored horses. Christ’s very last words in Revelation are: “He which testifies these things says, Surely I will come quickly. In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the threshold, which fill their masters’ houses with violence and deceit. This means knowing that the book of Revelation does not speak to unknown events in the distant past or things just ahead. Its divergence from the accepted text (afterward called the Masoretic) was too evident; and it therefore could not serve as a basis for theological discussion or for homiletic interpretation. The latter Revelation earthquake will be so terrible that “every mountain” and “every island” will be shaken out of position (Rev. With few exceptions, you will notice a pattern throughout the major and minor prophets. 16:12). 1. The Septuagint organizes the minor prophets as twelve parts of one Book of Twelve.[60]. Work on this English translation began in 1604 and was completed in 1611. They signal that Jesus Christ is King of kings—and He is now in CHARGE! First, the 144,000 are sealed (7:4-8) with the Father’s Name (14:1)—and represent 12,000 from each of the 12 tribes of Israel. For the song by Biffy Clyro, see, For Christian scriptures used in addition to or instead of the Bible, see, collection of religious texts in Judaism and Christianity, Role of the Old Testament in Christian theology. Damasus commissioned Saint Jerome to produce a reliable and consistent text by translating the original Greek and Hebrew texts into Latin. These are obviously converted people. 24:21). He may want you to understand. Ezekiel 8:3 gives some insight into how John could be transported 1,900 years into the future. Make this important distinction now: (1) The seventh seal is all seven trumpets and (2) the seventh trumpet is all seven last plagues or vials. And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and He cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. The location is not important—but God’s purpose IS! The world now knows nothing of God’s Law because it has rejected the true God. The Oxford dictionary of the Christian church. Print. But understand: Contrary to the assumptions of millions of people who do not understand Revelation, the next time of trouble is not the time described in Revelation! Free Bible Study for Beginners PDF Printable. Understand that Christ is speaking in both Matthew 24 and Revelation 6. In vision, John was shown a preview of a future event (“hereafter,” 4:1). As a general rule, one can say that the Orthodox Churches generally follow the Septuagint in including more books in their Old Testaments than are in the Jewish canon.[25]. This does not say that they will be burning in hell for eternity. Look at our list of 50+ source types, choose what best describes your source, and fill out the citation form. The events He describes require no interpretation. The one sitting on this horse is actually a counterfeit of the true Christ described in Revelation 19:11-16. If you read the account in Mark, you will find that Christ explains the Parable of the Sower privately to His disciples. The opening of the fifth seal does not reveal a horse. New York: Hillary House, 1962. At this time, the world will truly be “paradise,” since Satan will have been bound and cast into the bottomless pit (vs. 1-3). In addition, some newer books were included in the Septuagint, among these are the Maccabees and the Wisdom of Sirach. A sinning, rebellious humanity will soon reach the end of its rope. Others might think they do—but they cannot! Some books that are set apart in the Masoretic Text are grouped together. And they sung a new song, saying, You are worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for You were slain, and have redeemed us [them] to God by the blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; And have made us [them] unto our God kings and priests: and we [they] shall reign on the earth” (vs. 8-10). But those who have God’s Spirit will understand (Acts 5:32; John 16:13). The arrival of the Heavenly Signs heralds a great overall change in the direction—and speed—of events. His time is almost up at that point in prophecy. Most Protestants term these books as apocrypha. These are ten kings that “…give their power and strength unto the beast” (Rev. Reread this warning until it sinks in! “And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men. The chart in the middle of this booklet helps make this plain. Because they are separate from it, they shall also be separated and spared from its plagues. Starting with verse 11, the next five verses describe a later resurrection, of which most have little or no knowledge. Proverbs 3:11-12 states, “…despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of His correction: For whom the Lord loves He corrects; even as a father the son in whom he delights.”. And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months. This deception will be so great, so widespread, that they will even deceive mankind into fighting Christ at His Coming (Rev. – and Its Incredible History!). Then what are the wise to understand? Somewhat different lists of accepted works continued to develop in antiquity. Most believe that the book of Revelation is sealed, closed from understanding. Download Free PDF. For many shall come in My Name, saying, I am Christ [that Christ is Christ]; and shall deceive many .” That’s right! Each Biblical writing was written by someone to specific hearers or readers in a specific historical-geographical situation for a specific purpose. 5:5; Dan. This verse proves that all seven seals are not the same as, or equal to, all seven trumpets. Starting in verse 7, Revelation 22 contains warnings for our time! Many passages make clear that there are multiple “days of the Lord,” as well as a period of time called the “days of the Son of Man” (Luke 17:22, 26). Men have devised many false gospels, but Christ preached a message about a soon-coming, world-ruling government to be established at His Return. 24:3; Luke 21:7). Verse 17 shows how the devil turns his attention to the “remnant” of God’s people who do not escape. It will prepare us to further see the parallel between it and Revelation 6. Download. But He does record them in ways that keep them hidden from the view of all others. Each message contains Christ’s brief description of the spiritual condition of these seven consecutive Church eras. It is comparable to nothing that has ever happened before, or will ever happen again. This is a classic example of allowing the Bible to interpret itself. We will see that the book of Revelation was also sealed with seven separate seals. It is impossible for the twenty-four elders to be resurrected saints. Most who study Revelation believe that the white horse of the first seal pictures the true Christ coming before war, famine, and disease, etc., strike the Earth at that time. Christ sent and signified the Revelation by His angel, who then gave it to John, “who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw” (vs. 2). [135], The manuscript was "sent to the rubricator, who added (in red or other colours) the titles, headlines, the initials of chapters and sections, the notes and so on; and then – if the book was to be illustrated – it was sent to the illuminator. 98:7-8). The three main textual traditions of the Greek New Testament are sometimes called the Alexandrian text-type (generally minimalist), the Byzantine text-type (generally maximalist), and the Western text-type (occasionally wild). The first beast is a description of the Beast power’s eighth head—a political kingdom led by a civil ruler. The Nevi'im tell the story of the rise of the Hebrew monarchy and its division into two kingdoms, ancient Israel and Judah, focusing on conflicts between the Israelites and other nations, and conflicts among Israelites, specifically, struggles between believers in "the LORD God"[31] (Yahweh) and believers in foreign gods,[32][33] and the criticism of unethical and unjust behaviour of Israelite elites and rulers;[34][35][36] in which prophets played a crucial and leading role. Verily, verily, I say unto you, the hour [a single point in time] is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live…Marvel not at this: for the hour [again, a single point in time] is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto [#1] the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto [#2] the resurrection of damnation [Greek: judgment]” (vs. 24-25, 28-29). Right before the Great Day of God’s Wrath, an angel temporarily holds back the four winds, which Revelation 8:7-12 explains are the first four trumpet plagues of the seventh seal. They were probably created before the physical creation, along with the cherubim (Michael, Gabriel and Lucifer—who became Satan), the seraphim, the four living creatures and the billions of other angels (vs. 11) that serve God. Anyone who carefully examines this verse will plainly see that the Revelation originated with God (the Father), who gave it to Christ. The earliest Latin translation was the Old Latin text, or Vetus Latina, which, from internal evidence, seems to have been made by several authors over a period of time. 10:9; Jer. Tragically, believing things will eventually “turn out all right,” many hide their eyes, choosing to pursue pleasure and the accumulation of material goods. In Matthew 25, which is actually a continuation of the Olivet Prophecy of chapter 24, Christ speaks of a similar event that parallels Revelation. Believers also generally consider the Bible to be a product of divine inspiration. If you seek God, you need not worry about these events, whether the final fulfillments or the forerunners. But for the short term, things will not turn out all right. New Jerusalem cannot be surrounded by “…dogs [false ministers], and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loves and makes a lie” (vs. 15). God answered, “Go your way…the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end ” (vs. 9 – the Moffatt translation is even stronger by rendering this “till the crisis at the close”). First read chapter five’s additional reference to them: “And when He had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odors, which are the prayers of the saints. Almost half the books of the Old Testament are included in either the so-called “major” or “former” prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel) or the “minor” or “latter” prophets (Daniel, Hosea, Joel and 10 others). And it shall come to pass in that day…” (1:7-10). No man is capable of opening a single prophecy in this book. Mears, Henrietta C. (2007) "A glossary of Bible words". But it is temporarily restrained. Invariably, war leads to famine—and resulting malnutrition leads to disease. The Restored Church of God is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. The battle takes place 60 miles away, outside Jerusalem. They will think the true Christ is actually another “Antichrist” figure and will “make war with the Lamb” (Rev. The timing of this earthquake is prior to the time of the seventh trumpet, the Return of Christ and the first (more correctly, “chief” or “foremost”) resurrection (Rev. Like Daniel, who recorded a prophecy he did not understand, John was also unable to comprehend this prophecy. The Canon of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church is wider than the canons used by most other Christian churches. Many angels surround God’s throne (vs. 1-2), describing His “righteous…judgments” on the great whore. Let’s now examine what they mean. [citation needed] They also sometimes adopt variants that appear in other texts, e.g., those discovered among the Dead Sea Scrolls. These messages announce the fall of Babylon through the seven last plagues and warn against receiving the mark. Nevi'im (Hebrew: נְבִיאִים‎, romanized: Nəḇî'îm, "Prophets") is the second main division of the Tanakh, between the Torah and Ketuvim. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved…For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be [for the specific nations involved]…For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect” (vs. 10-13, 21, 24). Here is what John wrote: “And the nations were angry, and Your wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that You should give reward unto Your servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear Your Name, small and great [the first resurrection]; and should destroy them which destroy the earth” (vs. 18). While newspapers, magazines and other news media report what happened, Prepare to be staggered—stunned beyond belief! Christ gives a direct answer to a direct question. 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