ALL HAIL THE LAMB! All hail the Lamb! Sam Gordon Revelation made simple There’s one storyline in this ultimate action thriller - Jesus! Christian Year Publications ISBN-: 978 8774 50 7 Copyright © 04 by Sam Gordon All Scripture quotations, unless indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), copyright © 00 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrievable system, or transmitted in any form or by any other means – electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise – without prior permission of the copyright owner. Typeset by John Ritchie Ltd., Kilmarnock Printed by Bell & Bain Ltd., Glasgow DEDICATION to Lois God’s perfect gift for me, who has faithfully stood beside me and unfailingly encouraged me in my ministry FIRST WORD With the heart of a pastor and the skill of a seasoned expositor, Sam Gordon makes the book of Revelation not only understandable, but life changing. Sam isn’t simply interested in correct exposition, but personal transformation in the life of every reader. This commentary is for all who want to grasp the truths of Revelation—all who truly long to see the coming glory of Jesus Christ. Dr Stephen Davey Senior Pastor, Colonial Baptist Church, Cary NC All hail the Lamb! SECOND THOUGHTS Revelation is not like any other book in the Bible. When it comes to prophecy, Revelation has no equal. It is a page-turner! It shows us God’s programme for the ages as it projects us into the future and, along the way, gives us some breathtaking insights into the eternal purpose of God. It is a fast moving, upbeat account of God’s agenda for today’s world. When we read the signs of the times, it is clear that we are swiftly approaching the end of this age. The sand is running short in God’s hourglass. Revelation focuses our eyes on eternity. It reminds us of the utter folly of doing a tango in the dark with the devil as it thinks the unthinkable about life without a personal relationship with God. It draws back the curtain and gives us a fascinating glimpse into heaven itself; in actual fact, John had a wonderful taster and he was forever spoiled for life on Planet Earth! I am reminded of the story of some parents who took their little boy to the pet shop for his birthday. They allowed him to pick any dog he wanted. The shop owner showed the boy every type of dog imaginable, but the boy picked the one who wagged its tail nonstop. ‘Why did you pick that dog?’ everyone asked. ‘Because I want the one with the happy ending,’ the boy replied. Yes, when we read Revelation through at a single sitting, there is so much to excite us, so much for us to anticipate, so much to look forward to, it is the kind of book which leaves you sitting on the edge of your seat! You may not understand all that you read in the Apocalypse, do not worry! Read on…it will do your heart good, it will encourage you in the Lord, it will stimulate your faith, it will motivate you to engage in ministry – and, the good news, you are guaranteed a blessing if you read the book through from cover to cover (Revelation 1:3). Sam Gordon Executive Director, Messianic Testimony www.messianictestimony.com 8 Contents 1. Jesus outshines them all ................................................................ 11 2. Things Jesus saw when he turned up at church ............................ 55 3. The bad, the good, and the ugly .................................................... 81 4. A higher throne............................................................................... 103 5. Ode to Jesus!................................................................................. 122 6. An equine quartet........................................................................... 138 7. Numbered and numberless ........................................................... 161 8. The lull before the storm ................................................................ 178 9. A tale of two armies........................................................................ 192 10. The world at his feet ...................................................................... 210 11. Christmas day in Jerusalem .......................................................... 219 12. An invisible war: Michael versus the dragon.................................. 243 13. An unholy trinity from hell .............................................................. 264 14. The Lamb who shepherds his people ............................................ 282 15. Then sings my soul, how great thou art! ........................................ 297 16. Post-Armageddon: tremors and trembling..................................... 307 17. The world’s greatest flirt - Satan’s megachurch............................. 325 18. A double whammy for Babylon ...................................................... 346 19. Hallelujah! the King returns! .......................................................... 364 20. Sinners in the dock ........................................................................ 389 21. A new world order .......................................................................... 403 22. God’s last word to man .................................................................. 422 9 0 CHAPTER 1 Jesus outshines them all A dream or a nightmare? ‘It’s a dream!’ ‘An absolute nightmare!’ ‘You can’t be serious. Not the book of Revelation!’ Those are just three comments I heard recently from people who have been dipping their big toe into Revelation. It all depends on where you are coming from. And on where you are going to. It is hardly a book of fantasies and certainly not the kind of thing you want to read late at night before hopping into bed! What we have here is a book that scratches where modern man is itching. It answers the questions men are asking, Why are we here? What on earth is happening in today’s world? Where is this out-of-control world heading? All these, and many more! Things are not as they seem and things are not the way they should be! The bottom line, God rules and reigns on high. That truth remains untarnished in a world badly bruised by one crippling crisis after another. It holds as true today in the third millennium as it did in the closing years of the first century. That is why Revelation is right up-to-date, never more relevant than now. How are we to make sense of it? When you skim through its twenty-two chapters you quickly discover it is all about multi- headed beasts and cosmic upheaval, spectral battles and sky- splitting displays of supernatural power. A touch surreal. A tad spooky. At times, the scene is awesome and glorious; other times, it is baffling and frightening. Almost paradoxical! Winston Churchill once described the former Soviet Union as 11 All hail the Lamb! ‘a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.’ The plain fact is, many well-meaning, evangelical Christians view the book in much the same way. Richard Bewes makes a valid comment when he writes: ‘Ordinary Christians have left it unread; turned off by the bizarre flights of fancy, by the mathematical labyrinths in which some of its readers appear to have become enmeshed.’ That is a pity for they are the ones who are really missing out in so many ways. There is no doubt in my mind that the picturesque images, mysterious symbols, and apocalyptic language combine to make Revelation one of the most challenging books to interpret in the entire Bible. Charles Swindoll reminds us: ‘These visions of the future do not come from the pen of a crazed quack or wild- eyed fanatic.’ In one sense that is probably an understatement, nevertheless it is true. There are four main interpretative approaches to unlocking the mysteries of the book. Idealists The idealist approach tends to view the images in a strictly non- literal manner. They see them as a collection of spiritualised symbols that represent timeless truths. From their perspective, Revelation is a profound illustration of the ultimate victory of good over evil, of triumph in face of adversity. Apart from anything else, the downside is that this view relegates the book to a place where it is neither a historical record nor a predictive prophecy. Preterists The preterist approach is inclined to limit the meaning of the book to its original readers. They say the images represent only first century subjects such as Caesar, Rome, and the persecution. They believe that all the events detailed by the Apostle John have already taken place and the prophecy is given to encourage the harassed church of that time. Such a view conveniently ignores the book’s own claims to be a Jesus outshines them all prophecy (cf. 1:3; 22:7). The proponents of this view have buried their head in the sand when it comes to the ripening of God’s eternal purpose. One commentator said that the preterist builds a firm pedestal, but has no sculpture to place upon it when he is finished. Historicists The historicist approach sees the book as a timeline from the first century up to this present time. History written in advance! For them, the heptad of evangelical churches in chapters 2 and 3 depict seven distinct periods of church history. They resort to allegorising the text in order to find in it the various events they believe it depicts – that tends to be those events of history familiar to them, usually the history of western Europe; that subjective approach tends to open a Pandora’s box of all things wild, weird,