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Revelation 9:21
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21 Neither [kai] [ou] repented they [metanoeo] of [ek] their [autos] murders, [phonos] nor [oute] of [ek] their [autos] sorceries, [pharmakeia] nor [oute] of [ek] their [autos] fornication, [porneia] nor [oute] of [ek] their [autos] thefts. [klemma] KJV-Interlinear
21 and they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their immorality nor of their thefts. NASB
When people state that the bible must be interpreted as literal, this sometimes gives them an out self-righteously such that they can say in their own heart, ‘This does not apply to me.’ And of course that is the weakest but most common excuse for people in not applying doctrine to themselves.
These terms however apply not only to the specific sins mentioned, but also to a broad range of sinful behavior, which when applied, covers all of humanity.
In the future, when the Tribulation occurs, wickedness will run unbridled and unrestrained throughout society.
Wickedness will be so intense and so thoroughly saturated throughout society, that when even half of the worlds population has died in a very short space of time, people will still hold on, to their evil beliefs and habits.
Murder is a violent crime. It terminates the life of the victim, regardless of the murder process. Even the hordes of demon murders that will occur, as we studied in the last plague, will not convince people of the uselessness of its activity. Murder accomplishes nothing.
Not only will people disregard murder as an evil practice, but it is clear by these words that murder will increase.
‘Did not repent,’ means that the activity will continue and increase with impunity. Likewise, sorceries, immoral behavior and dishonesty will continue without even a hiccup in change.
Sorceries, ‘pharmakeia,’ refers to many things, including demon influence, idolatry, mysticism, spiritism, satanism, and all other forms of false religion which will become pandemic by this time in history. But it also is the root word for pharmaceuticals which includes drugs, narcotics, alcoholism and various types of devices used when people try to escape reality through their use.
Drug and alcohol abuse are on the rise even in our current day, but they will be far worse in that future time. Likewise mysticism and the various forms it represents, is on the rise today, but not so publicized, and it too will be abused and over pursued in that future day.
Immoral behavior, ‘porneia,’ which leads to pornography, includes all manner of intimate abuse between married couples, between unmarried couples, in the rise of alternative life styles, in the abuse of and cheating through social misbehavior.
Thefts, ‘klemma,’ is a broad reference to dishonesty. And that includes everything from the white lies of a little child to the overt corruption of politicians. And we certainly have a blatant and overwhelming portion of political and social corruption in our current day, such that it seems that far too many folks deem it as normal (just don’t get caught). And if you do get caught, then lie your way out of it in any way you can.
In general, most folks when they do something wrong and get caught, they feel sorry and try to change. Then there are some folks that simply feel sorry about getting caught, and not feeling anything about their error.
But, when this future day arrives, society will be so fouled up that even the deaths of billions of people lying dead all around, will not have the slightest impact on their thinking.
And even though you may not think that these things apply to you, you had better re-examine your life a bit closer. If you are not pursuing your spiritual life through a daily Bible study, then you are just as guilty of depending on the world for your survival, as those folks in the future.
There is only one resource for ones life, and that is Bible doctrine. There are only two sources of external support for ones life – Bible doctrine and worldly thought. You are studying one or the other by default. You are influenced by one or the other by default.
Bible study requires an active and proactive commitment. Subscribing to the world occurs passively and with very little effort.
We have already studied the characteristics of the end times, namely our current dispensation and specifically the end of our current dispensation. We studied this in 1, 2 Thess, and 1 Tim. Wherein, society will fail and fall dramatically into the Great Apostasy, predicted by Christ, and reiterated by Paul.
And this dramatic change in society gives us an example of just how a society can continue in their rejection of truth as their worldly plans fail time and time again, which is extremely evident today. Things are only going to get worse as time goes on, and as the generations pass by.
And as with these folks from the future, as they reject and ignore the signs of their time, so too with them, things are about to get really bad. As though they are not bad all ready.
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Showing posts with label Revelation 9. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Revelation 9. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Monday, July 5, 2010
Revelation 9:20
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Revelation 9:20
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20 And [kai] the rest [loipoy] of the men [anthropos] which [hos] were [apokteino] not [ou] killed [apokteino] by [en] these [tautais] plagues [plege] yet [oute] repented [metanoeo] not [oute] of [ek] the works [ergon] of their [autos] hands, [cheir] that [hina me] they should [proskuneo] not [hina me] worship [proskuneo] devils, [daimonion] and [kai] idols [eidolon] of gold, [chruseos] and [kai] silver, [argureos] and [kai] brass, [chalkeos] and [kai] stone, [lithinos] and [kai] of wood: [xulinos] which [hos] neither [oute] can [dunamai] see, [blepo] nor [oute] hear, [akouo] nor [oute] walk: [peripateo] KJV-Interlinear
20 And the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk; NASB
In the Bible, there are two references to the end of human history, with respect to human rule on this earth. John himself referred to his own day as the end times, and that is a reference to our dispensation which has lasted for over 1900 years now. We are in the end times era of human history.
But there is another reference, which is to the last days, which is a much shorter timeframe, namely the seven year Tribulation. So do not confuse end times, with end days or last days.
We still have a great deal of Revelation to cover. There are still events that will have occurred during those seven years prior to this particular event, which would draw any normal person to repentance.
By this time the world will have seen the worst possible devastation and suffering and hardship in the history of the world, and still leaving people surviving. In the Flood, only eight people survived.
But here, the world will be filled with billions of people who will be defiant as in no other time in history.
Over half of the worlds population will have died, and lay dying and rotting, scattered literally everywhere, and people will not notice or pay attention, nor recognize the signs of their own last days of history.
The plagues will be natural, man-made and supernatural, and they will still not see the truth.
They will have had 144,000 Jewish evangelists, Rev. 7:1-8, the two witnesses, Rev. 11:1-14, an angel in the sky, Rev. 14:6-7, and other believers, Matt 24:14, who will be giving powerful gospel teaching as in no other time in history. And yet people will still refuse to repent and turn to Christ.
They will still cling to the anti-christ, the works of their own hands, and the material things of this world.
With things falling apart, literally all around them, people will still hold on to their religions, praying to false gods, holding on to money or property or things that have grown near and dear to them, more so than the reality of the Lake of Fire into which they will soon be going (obviously losing everything). Things of this world do not follow anyone into eternity.
And false gods, false hopes, false securities, false ideas, false philosophies, and so forth, will never provide an escape from lies, or even from truth. Unfortunately those folks will be trying to escape truth. A thoroughly confused and mixed up society.
The works of their hands, gold silver, brass, stone, wood, and devils, all refer to things of this world, whether originating out of mans own ingenuity, whether manufactured out of resources from this world, or out of evil philosophy and influence.
And even though so much devastation will have occurred in the world, the governments and peoples of the world will still be gathering together to make things of war, build up military powers and then they will engage in a massive battle yet to come.
The picture is that of mans reasoning and logic as being beyond ludicrous, as the things that they place their trust in, can neither reason, nor think, nor accomplish anything.
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Revelation 9:20
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20 And [kai] the rest [loipoy] of the men [anthropos] which [hos] were [apokteino] not [ou] killed [apokteino] by [en] these [tautais] plagues [plege] yet [oute] repented [metanoeo] not [oute] of [ek] the works [ergon] of their [autos] hands, [cheir] that [hina me] they should [proskuneo] not [hina me] worship [proskuneo] devils, [daimonion] and [kai] idols [eidolon] of gold, [chruseos] and [kai] silver, [argureos] and [kai] brass, [chalkeos] and [kai] stone, [lithinos] and [kai] of wood: [xulinos] which [hos] neither [oute] can [dunamai] see, [blepo] nor [oute] hear, [akouo] nor [oute] walk: [peripateo] KJV-Interlinear
20 And the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk; NASB
In the Bible, there are two references to the end of human history, with respect to human rule on this earth. John himself referred to his own day as the end times, and that is a reference to our dispensation which has lasted for over 1900 years now. We are in the end times era of human history.
But there is another reference, which is to the last days, which is a much shorter timeframe, namely the seven year Tribulation. So do not confuse end times, with end days or last days.
We still have a great deal of Revelation to cover. There are still events that will have occurred during those seven years prior to this particular event, which would draw any normal person to repentance.
By this time the world will have seen the worst possible devastation and suffering and hardship in the history of the world, and still leaving people surviving. In the Flood, only eight people survived.
But here, the world will be filled with billions of people who will be defiant as in no other time in history.
Over half of the worlds population will have died, and lay dying and rotting, scattered literally everywhere, and people will not notice or pay attention, nor recognize the signs of their own last days of history.
The plagues will be natural, man-made and supernatural, and they will still not see the truth.
They will have had 144,000 Jewish evangelists, Rev. 7:1-8, the two witnesses, Rev. 11:1-14, an angel in the sky, Rev. 14:6-7, and other believers, Matt 24:14, who will be giving powerful gospel teaching as in no other time in history. And yet people will still refuse to repent and turn to Christ.
They will still cling to the anti-christ, the works of their own hands, and the material things of this world.
With things falling apart, literally all around them, people will still hold on to their religions, praying to false gods, holding on to money or property or things that have grown near and dear to them, more so than the reality of the Lake of Fire into which they will soon be going (obviously losing everything). Things of this world do not follow anyone into eternity.
And false gods, false hopes, false securities, false ideas, false philosophies, and so forth, will never provide an escape from lies, or even from truth. Unfortunately those folks will be trying to escape truth. A thoroughly confused and mixed up society.
The works of their hands, gold silver, brass, stone, wood, and devils, all refer to things of this world, whether originating out of mans own ingenuity, whether manufactured out of resources from this world, or out of evil philosophy and influence.
And even though so much devastation will have occurred in the world, the governments and peoples of the world will still be gathering together to make things of war, build up military powers and then they will engage in a massive battle yet to come.
The picture is that of mans reasoning and logic as being beyond ludicrous, as the things that they place their trust in, can neither reason, nor think, nor accomplish anything.
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Friday, July 2, 2010
Revelation 9:19
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Revelation 9:19
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19 For [gar] their [autos] power [exousia] is [eisi] [esti] in [en] their [autos] mouth, [stoma] and [kai] in [en] their [autos] tails: [oura] for [gar] their [autos] tails [oura] were like [homoios] unto serpents, [ophis] and had [echo] heads, [kephale] and [kai] with [en] them [autos] they do hurt. [adikeo] KJV-Interlinear
19 For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents and have heads; and with them they do harm. NASB
The horse is symbolic for the mode, thundering power, and fury of an attacking army. They charge, cannot be stopped or repelled, and they run right through their enemy with violent force. Terms of John’s day were used in order to accurately describe and convey the idea of the image that John had seen.
The heads of a lion, for fierceness, cunning, natural tendencies or instincts to hunt prey and so forth. The mouth has teeth for vicious tearing and gripping. And now the tails.
The tails are described as serpents. Serpents in Johns day, ‘ophis,’ was for poisonous snakes whose venom was deadly. And of which if bitten by the snake, the venom was fatal. There would be no cure or anti-venom for this particular bite.
Hurt or harm, ‘adikeo,’ means to be unjust, to do wrong, to hurt, injure, to inflict suffering. And this comes to mean that those who are attacking will do so without concern for whom or why they are attacking. There is no justice, no due process, no fairness in their motives. They will just kill and kill some more.
And as for the victims, they will see these attacking forces as unfair, as victims, being treated unfairly, ‘why me’ sort of attitude, ‘not fair,’ and so forth. They will not see themselves as wrong doers. The will not see themselves as guilty of anything. In short, they reject Gods indictment against them, with overwhelming evidence. They deny their guilt and proclaim their innocence.
In short, a society that has fallen so far into their degenerate pit, that they are incapable of seeing their sins, crimes and faults.
John describes a violent and powerful and supernatural event, the likes of which the world has never seen. Even if movie makers tried to duplicate this, that sci-fi film would not convey the total horror of the real thing.
Also, since only one-third of humanity is going to be murdered in such a violent manner, the implication here is that this event will be a hurried one, short lived, and the demons will be rushed to a frenzy to complete their killing spree.
On the one hand, Satan would wish that all of humanity would die, but God limits the destruction to only one-third. If they had their way, the demons would have killed everyone. Thus the frenzied rush to kill all, but the limits placed by God prevents that from occurring.
This frenzy also contributes the chaotic scene of terror that will exist in the world. Prisoners are not taken!
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Revelation 9:19
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19 For [gar] their [autos] power [exousia] is [eisi] [esti] in [en] their [autos] mouth, [stoma] and [kai] in [en] their [autos] tails: [oura] for [gar] their [autos] tails [oura] were like [homoios] unto serpents, [ophis] and had [echo] heads, [kephale] and [kai] with [en] them [autos] they do hurt. [adikeo] KJV-Interlinear
19 For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents and have heads; and with them they do harm. NASB
The horse is symbolic for the mode, thundering power, and fury of an attacking army. They charge, cannot be stopped or repelled, and they run right through their enemy with violent force. Terms of John’s day were used in order to accurately describe and convey the idea of the image that John had seen.
The heads of a lion, for fierceness, cunning, natural tendencies or instincts to hunt prey and so forth. The mouth has teeth for vicious tearing and gripping. And now the tails.
The tails are described as serpents. Serpents in Johns day, ‘ophis,’ was for poisonous snakes whose venom was deadly. And of which if bitten by the snake, the venom was fatal. There would be no cure or anti-venom for this particular bite.
Hurt or harm, ‘adikeo,’ means to be unjust, to do wrong, to hurt, injure, to inflict suffering. And this comes to mean that those who are attacking will do so without concern for whom or why they are attacking. There is no justice, no due process, no fairness in their motives. They will just kill and kill some more.
And as for the victims, they will see these attacking forces as unfair, as victims, being treated unfairly, ‘why me’ sort of attitude, ‘not fair,’ and so forth. They will not see themselves as wrong doers. The will not see themselves as guilty of anything. In short, they reject Gods indictment against them, with overwhelming evidence. They deny their guilt and proclaim their innocence.
In short, a society that has fallen so far into their degenerate pit, that they are incapable of seeing their sins, crimes and faults.
John describes a violent and powerful and supernatural event, the likes of which the world has never seen. Even if movie makers tried to duplicate this, that sci-fi film would not convey the total horror of the real thing.
Also, since only one-third of humanity is going to be murdered in such a violent manner, the implication here is that this event will be a hurried one, short lived, and the demons will be rushed to a frenzy to complete their killing spree.
On the one hand, Satan would wish that all of humanity would die, but God limits the destruction to only one-third. If they had their way, the demons would have killed everyone. Thus the frenzied rush to kill all, but the limits placed by God prevents that from occurring.
This frenzy also contributes the chaotic scene of terror that will exist in the world. Prisoners are not taken!
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Thursday, July 1, 2010
Revelation 9:18
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Revelation 9:18
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18 By [hupo] these [touton] three [treis] was [apokteino] the third part [tritos] of men [anthropos] killed, [apokteino] by [ek] the fire, [pur] and [kai] by [ek] the smoke, [kapnos] and [kai] by [ek] the brimstone, [theion] which [ho] issued [ekporeuomai] out of [ek] their [autos] mouths. [stoma] KJV-Interlinear
18 A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues, by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone, which proceeded out of their mouths. NASB
‘These three,’ refers to the descriptive picture of judgment which God allows to fall upon the unbelieving world.
Fire, smoke and brimstone is a collective phrase which describes judgment, and to this point in the Tribulation, this is the greatest judgment thus far as one-third of the human race will be ravaged and murdered.
Note too, that these demons do not destroy property or things. They only sweep across the planet with lightning speed, in massive numbers, and they kill people (unbelievers – wicked folks), with great pleasure.
Now if this were to occur in our current day, then we would have to assume that believers would be gone, that one-fourth of humanity has already died due to human failure and that would leave perhaps a few billion people left alive. That means the number of the dead would number beyond a billion.
If this is to occur in the future when the population is perhaps thirty or forty or fifty billion people, or whatever, then the carnage and death toll will be unbelievable.
Remember the tsunami that occurred several years ago, or the massive earthquake that occurred in Haiti, where the death toll was around 200,000? In the tsunami, most of the dead were never found. People just came up missing permanently. In the earthquake many were simply scooped up with construction equipment and hauled off to huge pits for burial.
But in this devastation yet to come, the cleanup will be near impossible as the disaster will be worldwide, there will be no unaffected country to come help, and most everyone will be among the dead. Not a pleasant picture.
And to make matters worse, nearly every economy will be rendered virtually inoperable – no farming, no transportation, no manufacturing and so forth. And these things (famine, hunger, inflation, crime, etc.) we have not even yet studied.
The two recent disasters were witnessed across the world via television and various media outlets. So how did it affect you? How did it change you? How was your life affected by them in the immediate aftermath, and in the distant aftermath? How many of you have forgotten them until reminded just now? How many of you have changed your attitude and daily approach to life?
I would venture to guess that not many have made any significant changes in their lives. And so it will be, even after the world is turned upside down in this future judgment. Hummm! What principle does that really imply?
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Revelation 9:18
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18 By [hupo] these [touton] three [treis] was [apokteino] the third part [tritos] of men [anthropos] killed, [apokteino] by [ek] the fire, [pur] and [kai] by [ek] the smoke, [kapnos] and [kai] by [ek] the brimstone, [theion] which [ho] issued [ekporeuomai] out of [ek] their [autos] mouths. [stoma] KJV-Interlinear
18 A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues, by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone, which proceeded out of their mouths. NASB
‘These three,’ refers to the descriptive picture of judgment which God allows to fall upon the unbelieving world.
Fire, smoke and brimstone is a collective phrase which describes judgment, and to this point in the Tribulation, this is the greatest judgment thus far as one-third of the human race will be ravaged and murdered.
Note too, that these demons do not destroy property or things. They only sweep across the planet with lightning speed, in massive numbers, and they kill people (unbelievers – wicked folks), with great pleasure.
Now if this were to occur in our current day, then we would have to assume that believers would be gone, that one-fourth of humanity has already died due to human failure and that would leave perhaps a few billion people left alive. That means the number of the dead would number beyond a billion.
If this is to occur in the future when the population is perhaps thirty or forty or fifty billion people, or whatever, then the carnage and death toll will be unbelievable.
Remember the tsunami that occurred several years ago, or the massive earthquake that occurred in Haiti, where the death toll was around 200,000? In the tsunami, most of the dead were never found. People just came up missing permanently. In the earthquake many were simply scooped up with construction equipment and hauled off to huge pits for burial.
But in this devastation yet to come, the cleanup will be near impossible as the disaster will be worldwide, there will be no unaffected country to come help, and most everyone will be among the dead. Not a pleasant picture.
And to make matters worse, nearly every economy will be rendered virtually inoperable – no farming, no transportation, no manufacturing and so forth. And these things (famine, hunger, inflation, crime, etc.) we have not even yet studied.
The two recent disasters were witnessed across the world via television and various media outlets. So how did it affect you? How did it change you? How was your life affected by them in the immediate aftermath, and in the distant aftermath? How many of you have forgotten them until reminded just now? How many of you have changed your attitude and daily approach to life?
I would venture to guess that not many have made any significant changes in their lives. And so it will be, even after the world is turned upside down in this future judgment. Hummm! What principle does that really imply?
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Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Revelation 9:17
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Revelation 9:17
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17 And [kai] thus [houto] I saw [eido] the horses [hippos] in [en] the vision, [horasis] and [kai] them that sat [kathemai] on [epi] them, [autos] having [echo] breastplates [thorax] of fire, [purinos] and [kai] of jacinth, [huakinthinos] and [kai] brimstone: [theiodes] and [kai] the heads [kephale] of the horses [hippos] were as [hos] the heads [kephale] of lions; [leon] and [kai] out of [ek] their [autos] mouths [stoma] issued [ekporeuomai] fire [pur] and [kai] smoke [kapnos] and [kai] brimstone. [theion] KJV-Interlinear
17 And this is how I saw in the vision the horses and those who sat on them: the riders had breastplates the color of fire and of hyacinth and of brimstone; and the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths proceed fire and smoke and brimstone. NASB
John is using descriptive terminology. He uses the word ‘like’ or ‘were as’ to indicate that this is not an exact description, but descriptive terminology to make it very clear that these demons were beyond terrible in their appearance, in their attitude, and in their actions against humanity.
Further the terminology is that used against the wicked – fire, smoke, brimstone, Rev. 14:10; 19:20; 20:10; 21:8, Gen 19:24; Job 18:15; Ps 11:6; Ezek 38:23; Isa 30:33; Luke 17:29.
Horses have been used in warfare and symbolically represent warfare, or a charging force, Ex 14:9, Deut 11:4; 20:1; Josh 11:4; 1 Sam 13:5; 2 Sam 1:6; 8:4; Ps 33:17; Prov 21:31; Isa 5:28; Jer 6:23; Ezek 23:23-24; 38:4,15; Dan 11:40; Hos 1:7; Joel 2:4; Nah 3:2-3.
The breastplates we studied earlier in the locust vision, represents the unconquerable attitude of impunity and arrogance of an undefeatable force.
The total picture represents the action of God bringing almost literally a hell on earth, which would certainly seem to some to represent a prelude to the actual hell that is to come. The actual is of course far, far worse.
This picture simply states that the world is going to be in a very bad way, and note something that should be obvious, since so many people are going to die, that means that even the great militaries and the great technology that is certain to be around in the future, will be totally impotent against this demon attack. Certainly civilians have no chance whatsoever.
The heads of lions, whereas earlier the symbolism was of lions teeth, but now it is the head of the lion which is being used symbolically, and that simply means the hunting, stalking and killing nature of the lion. A hungry lion does not stop until he gets his prey. Any prey that comes into the lion’s sight, has lost the fight before the chase has even begun. And when the lion catches her prey, then the violence of the kill is gruesome and worse.
And again, there are no innocents. All are evil and wicked people. Whether they participated in gruesome acts themselves of were simply indifferent toward truth, makes no difference.
All rejection of truth, all disregard for authority, all disregard for honesty, all disregard for that which is right, no matter how minor, always leads to greater evil eventually.
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Revelation 9:17
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17 And [kai] thus [houto] I saw [eido] the horses [hippos] in [en] the vision, [horasis] and [kai] them that sat [kathemai] on [epi] them, [autos] having [echo] breastplates [thorax] of fire, [purinos] and [kai] of jacinth, [huakinthinos] and [kai] brimstone: [theiodes] and [kai] the heads [kephale] of the horses [hippos] were as [hos] the heads [kephale] of lions; [leon] and [kai] out of [ek] their [autos] mouths [stoma] issued [ekporeuomai] fire [pur] and [kai] smoke [kapnos] and [kai] brimstone. [theion] KJV-Interlinear
17 And this is how I saw in the vision the horses and those who sat on them: the riders had breastplates the color of fire and of hyacinth and of brimstone; and the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths proceed fire and smoke and brimstone. NASB
John is using descriptive terminology. He uses the word ‘like’ or ‘were as’ to indicate that this is not an exact description, but descriptive terminology to make it very clear that these demons were beyond terrible in their appearance, in their attitude, and in their actions against humanity.
Further the terminology is that used against the wicked – fire, smoke, brimstone, Rev. 14:10; 19:20; 20:10; 21:8, Gen 19:24; Job 18:15; Ps 11:6; Ezek 38:23; Isa 30:33; Luke 17:29.
Horses have been used in warfare and symbolically represent warfare, or a charging force, Ex 14:9, Deut 11:4; 20:1; Josh 11:4; 1 Sam 13:5; 2 Sam 1:6; 8:4; Ps 33:17; Prov 21:31; Isa 5:28; Jer 6:23; Ezek 23:23-24; 38:4,15; Dan 11:40; Hos 1:7; Joel 2:4; Nah 3:2-3.
The breastplates we studied earlier in the locust vision, represents the unconquerable attitude of impunity and arrogance of an undefeatable force.
The total picture represents the action of God bringing almost literally a hell on earth, which would certainly seem to some to represent a prelude to the actual hell that is to come. The actual is of course far, far worse.
This picture simply states that the world is going to be in a very bad way, and note something that should be obvious, since so many people are going to die, that means that even the great militaries and the great technology that is certain to be around in the future, will be totally impotent against this demon attack. Certainly civilians have no chance whatsoever.
The heads of lions, whereas earlier the symbolism was of lions teeth, but now it is the head of the lion which is being used symbolically, and that simply means the hunting, stalking and killing nature of the lion. A hungry lion does not stop until he gets his prey. Any prey that comes into the lion’s sight, has lost the fight before the chase has even begun. And when the lion catches her prey, then the violence of the kill is gruesome and worse.
And again, there are no innocents. All are evil and wicked people. Whether they participated in gruesome acts themselves of were simply indifferent toward truth, makes no difference.
All rejection of truth, all disregard for authority, all disregard for honesty, all disregard for that which is right, no matter how minor, always leads to greater evil eventually.
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Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Revelation 9:16
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Revelation 9:16
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16 And [kai] the number [arithmos] of the army [strateuma] of the horsemen [hippikon] were two hundred [duo] thousand [murias] thousand: [murias] and [kai] I heard [akouo] the number [arithmos] of them. [autos] KJV-Interlinear
16 And the number of the armies of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them. NASB
There are times in scripture when a large number is used to generalize simply that, a large number. And there are times when the number is exact and intended to be clear as being precise. This is one of those times.
John gave the number of the army of demons, and then he reinforced the number when he said, ‘I heard the number.’
How did he hear the number?
In the military counts are always done for one reason of another. In morning assembly, squads report to platoons, platoons report to companies, companies report to battalions, battalions report to divisions, divisions report to corps, and corps make up the army reporting to the general staff.
They report, ‘All present or accounted for. X number present. X number reported sick. X number on leave. X number here or there.’ The total number or men and women who belong to the entire group are always accounted for.
John heard the number, ‘arithmos,’ which means reckoned count, calculation, record of.
And it was two-hundred million, under the command of the four demons we studied earlier. We presume by inference that they are divided up equally in fifty-million members for each army. That may or may not be the case, but there is no indication otherwise that there is some imbalance in the groups.
In human militaries there might be engineering battalions, or artillery battalions and so forth that might cause one corps to have more units than another. However, this is not an army of human beings, nor is this an army with specialties. This is a demon army of which each member is a fighter, requiring no support for logistics, or cover fire or anything else.
Back in World War Two, the United States had an army of eleven million men and women at the end of the war. That has been the largest standing army in history. And even though today, both China and India can boast of the ability to call up far greater armies, neither country has the economic capacity to support huge armies.
This army of demons does not require support. They do not require food or ammunition or transportation or wages. They are a self supporting, self sustaining force, that no human, no human organization can oppose.
This demon army is going to travel around the world, presumably in the four directions of the compass, unopposed, and they are going to kill (with great violence) at will, anyone and everyone that they find. And with great violence simply means that they are going to enjoy their killing and the process of the killing.
Back in the days of Isaiah, Jerusalem was surrounded by a large force of the Sennacherib army from Babylon. Everyone in the city was in terror because of the reputation of the enemy force that was surrounding the city. One of the games that they played with their captives, was to see how far they could skin a prisoner, before they actually died. So being taken captive was not a good thing. Other atrocities occurred as well.
This is the type of great violence and probably worse, that will occur when the killing begins. Likewise, the size of this force implies a much larger human population in the world which would be sufficient to fill the killing frenzy that this force is going to be capable of. Remember that this demon force cannot be opposed. And each individual demon is capable of killing hundreds if not more.
There will be no defense, no escape, for anyone, except for one, and that is Gods control over how many will die – one-third of humanity, no more and no less. There will be no innocent victims, no mistakes.
The next two verses will describe in terrible and dramatic detail, the slaughter that is going to take place.
And although this event is future and from our perspective, if you are a believer in Christ already, you are not going to see any of it. But for those who have rejected Christ, and presumably may never read this study or any scripture from any source for that matter, then this event may very well be a part of their life, assuming that the Rapture and tribulation will occur within our generation.
Personally I believe that it is still set for a distant generation, but that is just a personal opinion, of course.
What we today should make note of, for our own lives, is that God is extremely loving and generous, and patient.
You have a phenomenal opportunity for your life right now, and that means you have to grow up spiritually in order to obtain it. But, if you choose not to or do not quite see the importance of the application of these principles to your own life, then there will come a time in your life, when God will pull the plug, and your opportunity will cease.
You will not go to heaven with great trepidation, of course, but when you get there and all of the realities of truth come rushing at you and then you really see the truth, then your attitude will turn to great embarrassment --- for being such a dummy. And of course you will be a great loser in what could have been a far better eternal destiny.
But, you have to figure that out for yourself. Hopefully sooner, than later.
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Revelation 9:16
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16 And [kai] the number [arithmos] of the army [strateuma] of the horsemen [hippikon] were two hundred [duo] thousand [murias] thousand: [murias] and [kai] I heard [akouo] the number [arithmos] of them. [autos] KJV-Interlinear
16 And the number of the armies of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them. NASB
There are times in scripture when a large number is used to generalize simply that, a large number. And there are times when the number is exact and intended to be clear as being precise. This is one of those times.
John gave the number of the army of demons, and then he reinforced the number when he said, ‘I heard the number.’
How did he hear the number?
In the military counts are always done for one reason of another. In morning assembly, squads report to platoons, platoons report to companies, companies report to battalions, battalions report to divisions, divisions report to corps, and corps make up the army reporting to the general staff.
They report, ‘All present or accounted for. X number present. X number reported sick. X number on leave. X number here or there.’ The total number or men and women who belong to the entire group are always accounted for.
John heard the number, ‘arithmos,’ which means reckoned count, calculation, record of.
And it was two-hundred million, under the command of the four demons we studied earlier. We presume by inference that they are divided up equally in fifty-million members for each army. That may or may not be the case, but there is no indication otherwise that there is some imbalance in the groups.
In human militaries there might be engineering battalions, or artillery battalions and so forth that might cause one corps to have more units than another. However, this is not an army of human beings, nor is this an army with specialties. This is a demon army of which each member is a fighter, requiring no support for logistics, or cover fire or anything else.
Back in World War Two, the United States had an army of eleven million men and women at the end of the war. That has been the largest standing army in history. And even though today, both China and India can boast of the ability to call up far greater armies, neither country has the economic capacity to support huge armies.
This army of demons does not require support. They do not require food or ammunition or transportation or wages. They are a self supporting, self sustaining force, that no human, no human organization can oppose.
This demon army is going to travel around the world, presumably in the four directions of the compass, unopposed, and they are going to kill (with great violence) at will, anyone and everyone that they find. And with great violence simply means that they are going to enjoy their killing and the process of the killing.
Back in the days of Isaiah, Jerusalem was surrounded by a large force of the Sennacherib army from Babylon. Everyone in the city was in terror because of the reputation of the enemy force that was surrounding the city. One of the games that they played with their captives, was to see how far they could skin a prisoner, before they actually died. So being taken captive was not a good thing. Other atrocities occurred as well.
This is the type of great violence and probably worse, that will occur when the killing begins. Likewise, the size of this force implies a much larger human population in the world which would be sufficient to fill the killing frenzy that this force is going to be capable of. Remember that this demon force cannot be opposed. And each individual demon is capable of killing hundreds if not more.
There will be no defense, no escape, for anyone, except for one, and that is Gods control over how many will die – one-third of humanity, no more and no less. There will be no innocent victims, no mistakes.
The next two verses will describe in terrible and dramatic detail, the slaughter that is going to take place.
And although this event is future and from our perspective, if you are a believer in Christ already, you are not going to see any of it. But for those who have rejected Christ, and presumably may never read this study or any scripture from any source for that matter, then this event may very well be a part of their life, assuming that the Rapture and tribulation will occur within our generation.
Personally I believe that it is still set for a distant generation, but that is just a personal opinion, of course.
What we today should make note of, for our own lives, is that God is extremely loving and generous, and patient.
You have a phenomenal opportunity for your life right now, and that means you have to grow up spiritually in order to obtain it. But, if you choose not to or do not quite see the importance of the application of these principles to your own life, then there will come a time in your life, when God will pull the plug, and your opportunity will cease.
You will not go to heaven with great trepidation, of course, but when you get there and all of the realities of truth come rushing at you and then you really see the truth, then your attitude will turn to great embarrassment --- for being such a dummy. And of course you will be a great loser in what could have been a far better eternal destiny.
But, you have to figure that out for yourself. Hopefully sooner, than later.
Feel Free to make a comment about this study: Comment Page
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Daily Bible Study Quick Links
Go to this quick links page, and save it in your bookmarks for quick access to the daily studies.
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Monday, June 28, 2010
Revelation 9:15
This study is from an on going online Daily Bible Study at:
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Revelation 9:15
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15 And [kai] the four [tessares] angels [aggelos] were loosed, [luo] which [ho] were prepared [hetoimazo] for [eis] an hour, [hora] and [kai] a day, [hemera] and [kai] a month, [men] and [kai] a year, [eniautos] for to [hina] slay [apokteino] the third part [tritos] of men. [anthropos] KJV-Interlinear
15 And the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, were released, so that they might kill a third of mankind. NASB
How many times has the Bible warned of impending doom if people do not comply with that which God teaches?
What exactly does God teach anyway?
How many times are people told to love the Lord, with all of one’s heart, mind and soul? How many really understand this mandate? Very, very few unfortunately.
How many times are people told that there is reward for obedience, and cursing for disobedience? And how many times do people listen, and how many times do people disregard the scriptures?
How many times do people believe that they can do whatever they wish, believe whatever they wish, be an authority unto themselves, disregard Gods teaching and rules and mandates for society, and create their own destiny better than that which God offers?
How many times do people believe that they can just be nice or try to be good, and that is sufficient for God and heaven and reward?
And yet that is the very reason that God has established a timetable, and specific timetable for history. And that is why humanity is going to go down the toilet of history.
Adam and eve were created at the exact moment and time intended in history. The flood came at a specific time in history. Jesus came into the world at the fullness of time, at the exact time intended by God. You were born into history at the exact moment that God intended for you to enter history. You were not an accident from Gods perspective.
And so, judgment comes as scheduled as well. Your departure has already been predetermined.
You have but to display your intent to comply with Gods will, or not. And that compliance includes obedience to authority as God designed over you, to obedience to the scriptures, to many other patterns of obedience and so forth.
Most people, unfortunately are disrespectful, disloyal to God, and have an indifferent attitude, or a compromising one at best. And one day, that will come back to haunt every living soul.
At some specific time in the future, the world will be full, loaded to the gills, with people who hate truth, who hate God, and who hate Christ. Woe, is not a sufficient word to describe the consequences of their decisions.
There is an evil waiting to enter into society. Four angels, demons and their armies that are itching at the bit, to cross over the river as it were, to destroy humanity.
A very long time ago, a single man crossed over, from evil to truth. That man was Abram, whose name was changed to Abraham.
At some future date, an army of demons will cross over, and the Euphrates is the relative barrier used symbolically for that crossing over. They will come to kill, to slaughter, to maim, to annihilate, to kill with great violence and terror. They will have no conscience, no remorse, no concern for any living thing. They will not hear the cries for mercy. They will not hear the pleadings for compassion. They will take delight, laughable delight in what they are about to do to humanity.
And one-third, of the population of humanity in the entire world, is going to be murdered violently.
That will be a lot of death, a lot of stench, a total disruption of every human system in society, as mans efforts to make his own rules, to preserve and perpetuate himself with great disregard for truth and his own actions, will finally come to an end.
Pushed further and further into the pit of despair, and pressed harder and harder between the rock and the hard place, humanity will still not see the light.
Anyone has the opportunity to free themselves from judgment by means of faith in Christ. Everyone has the opportunity to advance to completion within themselves, through spiritual growth.
How many times have people been told this? And what do most folks do? They simply do not take the spiritual life, or Gods design for the spiritual life, seriously.
The question is, ‘Are you, one of them?’
Feel Free to make a comment about this study: Comment Page
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Daily Bible Study Quick Links
Go to this quick links page, and save it in your bookmarks for quick access to the daily studies.
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DailyBibleStudy.Org | Daily Bible Study Index Page | Daily Bible Study Online E-Book Library
Revelation 9:15
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Please at your convenience, visit the Daily Bible Study Amazon Store at http://www.dailybiblestudy.org/amazon-store.html
15 And [kai] the four [tessares] angels [aggelos] were loosed, [luo] which [ho] were prepared [hetoimazo] for [eis] an hour, [hora] and [kai] a day, [hemera] and [kai] a month, [men] and [kai] a year, [eniautos] for to [hina] slay [apokteino] the third part [tritos] of men. [anthropos] KJV-Interlinear
15 And the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, were released, so that they might kill a third of mankind. NASB
How many times has the Bible warned of impending doom if people do not comply with that which God teaches?
What exactly does God teach anyway?
How many times are people told to love the Lord, with all of one’s heart, mind and soul? How many really understand this mandate? Very, very few unfortunately.
How many times are people told that there is reward for obedience, and cursing for disobedience? And how many times do people listen, and how many times do people disregard the scriptures?
How many times do people believe that they can do whatever they wish, believe whatever they wish, be an authority unto themselves, disregard Gods teaching and rules and mandates for society, and create their own destiny better than that which God offers?
How many times do people believe that they can just be nice or try to be good, and that is sufficient for God and heaven and reward?
And yet that is the very reason that God has established a timetable, and specific timetable for history. And that is why humanity is going to go down the toilet of history.
Adam and eve were created at the exact moment and time intended in history. The flood came at a specific time in history. Jesus came into the world at the fullness of time, at the exact time intended by God. You were born into history at the exact moment that God intended for you to enter history. You were not an accident from Gods perspective.
And so, judgment comes as scheduled as well. Your departure has already been predetermined.
You have but to display your intent to comply with Gods will, or not. And that compliance includes obedience to authority as God designed over you, to obedience to the scriptures, to many other patterns of obedience and so forth.
Most people, unfortunately are disrespectful, disloyal to God, and have an indifferent attitude, or a compromising one at best. And one day, that will come back to haunt every living soul.
At some specific time in the future, the world will be full, loaded to the gills, with people who hate truth, who hate God, and who hate Christ. Woe, is not a sufficient word to describe the consequences of their decisions.
There is an evil waiting to enter into society. Four angels, demons and their armies that are itching at the bit, to cross over the river as it were, to destroy humanity.
A very long time ago, a single man crossed over, from evil to truth. That man was Abram, whose name was changed to Abraham.
At some future date, an army of demons will cross over, and the Euphrates is the relative barrier used symbolically for that crossing over. They will come to kill, to slaughter, to maim, to annihilate, to kill with great violence and terror. They will have no conscience, no remorse, no concern for any living thing. They will not hear the cries for mercy. They will not hear the pleadings for compassion. They will take delight, laughable delight in what they are about to do to humanity.
And one-third, of the population of humanity in the entire world, is going to be murdered violently.
That will be a lot of death, a lot of stench, a total disruption of every human system in society, as mans efforts to make his own rules, to preserve and perpetuate himself with great disregard for truth and his own actions, will finally come to an end.
Pushed further and further into the pit of despair, and pressed harder and harder between the rock and the hard place, humanity will still not see the light.
Anyone has the opportunity to free themselves from judgment by means of faith in Christ. Everyone has the opportunity to advance to completion within themselves, through spiritual growth.
How many times have people been told this? And what do most folks do? They simply do not take the spiritual life, or Gods design for the spiritual life, seriously.
The question is, ‘Are you, one of them?’
Feel Free to make a comment about this study: Comment Page
If you are a Facebook member, then please join the Bible Study Group that best suits you:
Facebook Groups
Daily Bible Study Quick Links
Go to this quick links page, and save it in your bookmarks for quick access to the daily studies.
Two subscription options to receive these daily studies everyday via e-mail, are available here.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Revelation 9:14
This study is from an on going online Daily Bible Study at:
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Revelation 9:14
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14 Saying [lego] to the sixth [hektos] angel [aggelos] which [hos] had [echo] the trumpet, [salpigx] Loose [luo] the four [tessares] angels [aggelos] which [ho] are bound [deo] in [epi] the great [megas] river [potamos] Euphrates. [Euphrates] KJV-Interlinear
14 one saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, "Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates." NASB
The voice comes from the four horns of the golden alter of incense. The golden alter represents the policy of God that allows no one but those who have believed in Christ, to approach God.
Those who have rejected Christ, may not approach God in any manner whatsoever. Their works are not as good as the work of Christ on the Cross. Mans works cannot save.
Jesus Christ executes the plan of the Father, therefore, it is He who has the right to speak in behalf of that plan.
The voice gave an order to the angel which held the sixth trumpet. That order was to release four demons who had been incarcerated (bound) in the Euphrates River.
These four angels are not specifically identified, but they are four specific leaders of massive demon armies. And as we will see in just a couple of more verses, they lead four army groups numbering fifty million demons in each army.
Humanity has had several warnings, from human failure, to natural catastrophes, and with this next judgment, humanity will see the second supernatural judgment. The first supernatural judgment we saw just this past week, with the five month torments from massive numbers of demons.
The first demon judgment had no specific numbers, but it had one leader. This judgment comes with four generals leading an army of demons numbering at two-hundred million demons. This is not a human army, for no human has been bound anywhere along the Euphrates for all of human history.
The last days have been imminent since the time that John wrote these words. And no human army could have possibly numbered in that size way back then.
The Euphrates River has been a boundary and a symbolic division between civilization and non-civilization since back in Johns day and prior. It was the western boundary of the promised nation of Israel, and is the source from which many of Israel's enemies came.
In Johns day, it was the eastern boundary of Rome. Beyond that boundary were uncivilized barbarians and enemies of Israel and Rome.
Therefore literally and symbolically, these four demon leaders and their armies, have been held at bay and prevented from crossing the symbolic boundary into the venue of humanity, and prevented from bringing harm to humanity.
That is until this specific date in time. We will see that in the next verse. There is a schedule for judgments and they are next on that schedule of Gods timetable.
In the first series of disasters, believers were the target of human atrocities. Then God brought judgment against unbelievers as a warning first. That will be rejected.
In the first series of disasters, one-fourth of the population of the world will die. That makes for a huge indictment against unbelieving humanity. They do not change.
Now the next judgment will take a tremendous toll against those unbelievers and the entire population of the world.
In this universe there are two great opposing forces, those of Satan, and God. To doubt that, is a tremendous mistake on anyone's part.
Humanity is caught in between them. God wants us all to be saved, to see truth and live in heaven forever.
Satan wants to defeat God and destroy all of humanity, for no other reason than he hates God.
Satan possesses a siren call of sorts, which sings from the world, to all of humanity, calling man to its enticements, to its lusts, to its ego and power and control concepts. All of which are destined to disaster for any who listen and pursue them.
Many calls are subtle suggesting that you need not comply with any of Gods mandates or principles, that you need not recognize any authority but your own, that you need not conform to any principle of truth, that you can pursue virtually anything with the assumption of innocence doing no harm to anyone. Those suggestions are all lies.
However, the more that people resist compliance with truth, the deeper they dig themselves into a pit of despair and disaster. Even the resistance to studying Gods word daily, leads to a lack of spiritual resources and makes one susceptible to Satan’s cosmos ideology.
And as we have already studied in Thessalonians, that negative attitude toward God and doctrine, will eventually lead to the great apostasy at the end of our own Church Age, and that will become the catalyst for bringing on the Rapture and the Tribulation.
The Tribulation (that future seven year period) is what we are currently studying.
For it is that future period, that the great wine press of judgment will squeeze and separate out the very last believer in humanity, leaving only unbelievers and evil remaining for their final judgments.
What is coming is very real. The history that will lead up to it (our failure in this dispensation) is very real.
You have but to decide whether you are going to be a passive part of that failure, or whether you are going to get your act together and abide by those things that God wants of you.
At some point you might want to review (again, or for the first time), the spiritual checklist (in the special studies library) which we put together some time ago.
Feel Free to make a comment about this study: Comment Page
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Revelation 9:14
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Please at your convenience, visit the Daily Bible Study Amazon Store at http://www.dailybiblestudy.org/amazon-store.html
14 Saying [lego] to the sixth [hektos] angel [aggelos] which [hos] had [echo] the trumpet, [salpigx] Loose [luo] the four [tessares] angels [aggelos] which [ho] are bound [deo] in [epi] the great [megas] river [potamos] Euphrates. [Euphrates] KJV-Interlinear
14 one saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, "Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates." NASB
The voice comes from the four horns of the golden alter of incense. The golden alter represents the policy of God that allows no one but those who have believed in Christ, to approach God.
Those who have rejected Christ, may not approach God in any manner whatsoever. Their works are not as good as the work of Christ on the Cross. Mans works cannot save.
Jesus Christ executes the plan of the Father, therefore, it is He who has the right to speak in behalf of that plan.
The voice gave an order to the angel which held the sixth trumpet. That order was to release four demons who had been incarcerated (bound) in the Euphrates River.
These four angels are not specifically identified, but they are four specific leaders of massive demon armies. And as we will see in just a couple of more verses, they lead four army groups numbering fifty million demons in each army.
Humanity has had several warnings, from human failure, to natural catastrophes, and with this next judgment, humanity will see the second supernatural judgment. The first supernatural judgment we saw just this past week, with the five month torments from massive numbers of demons.
The first demon judgment had no specific numbers, but it had one leader. This judgment comes with four generals leading an army of demons numbering at two-hundred million demons. This is not a human army, for no human has been bound anywhere along the Euphrates for all of human history.
The last days have been imminent since the time that John wrote these words. And no human army could have possibly numbered in that size way back then.
The Euphrates River has been a boundary and a symbolic division between civilization and non-civilization since back in Johns day and prior. It was the western boundary of the promised nation of Israel, and is the source from which many of Israel's enemies came.
In Johns day, it was the eastern boundary of Rome. Beyond that boundary were uncivilized barbarians and enemies of Israel and Rome.
Therefore literally and symbolically, these four demon leaders and their armies, have been held at bay and prevented from crossing the symbolic boundary into the venue of humanity, and prevented from bringing harm to humanity.
That is until this specific date in time. We will see that in the next verse. There is a schedule for judgments and they are next on that schedule of Gods timetable.
In the first series of disasters, believers were the target of human atrocities. Then God brought judgment against unbelievers as a warning first. That will be rejected.
In the first series of disasters, one-fourth of the population of the world will die. That makes for a huge indictment against unbelieving humanity. They do not change.
Now the next judgment will take a tremendous toll against those unbelievers and the entire population of the world.
In this universe there are two great opposing forces, those of Satan, and God. To doubt that, is a tremendous mistake on anyone's part.
Humanity is caught in between them. God wants us all to be saved, to see truth and live in heaven forever.
Satan wants to defeat God and destroy all of humanity, for no other reason than he hates God.
Satan possesses a siren call of sorts, which sings from the world, to all of humanity, calling man to its enticements, to its lusts, to its ego and power and control concepts. All of which are destined to disaster for any who listen and pursue them.
Many calls are subtle suggesting that you need not comply with any of Gods mandates or principles, that you need not recognize any authority but your own, that you need not conform to any principle of truth, that you can pursue virtually anything with the assumption of innocence doing no harm to anyone. Those suggestions are all lies.
However, the more that people resist compliance with truth, the deeper they dig themselves into a pit of despair and disaster. Even the resistance to studying Gods word daily, leads to a lack of spiritual resources and makes one susceptible to Satan’s cosmos ideology.
And as we have already studied in Thessalonians, that negative attitude toward God and doctrine, will eventually lead to the great apostasy at the end of our own Church Age, and that will become the catalyst for bringing on the Rapture and the Tribulation.
The Tribulation (that future seven year period) is what we are currently studying.
For it is that future period, that the great wine press of judgment will squeeze and separate out the very last believer in humanity, leaving only unbelievers and evil remaining for their final judgments.
What is coming is very real. The history that will lead up to it (our failure in this dispensation) is very real.
You have but to decide whether you are going to be a passive part of that failure, or whether you are going to get your act together and abide by those things that God wants of you.
At some point you might want to review (again, or for the first time), the spiritual checklist (in the special studies library) which we put together some time ago.
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Thursday, June 24, 2010
Revelation 9:13
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Revelation 9:13
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13 And [kai] the sixth [hektos] angel [aggelos] sounded, [salpizo] and [kai] I heard [akouo] a [mia] voice [phone] from [ek] the four [tessares] horns [keras] of the golden [chruseos] altar [thusiasterion] which [ho] is before [enopion] God, [theos] KJV-Interlinear
13 And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, NASB
Earlier we studied the incense which was added to the golden alter (of incense), representing the prayers of believers offered to God. And from those prayers God presented grace, although judgments, to the world for the repentance of humanity back to truth and away from evil.
Through this point, some turned to God, but most continued in their rejection.
And now we have a change in approach in Gods policy toward evil humanity. The prayers for mercy, and ending the evil toward believers and such, is going to come to an end.
The time for mercy has now passed. Many warnings have been issued and all have been rejected.
The voice came from the four horns on the alter, not from the alter itself.
Remember that the coals come from the brazen alter, the first alter, which represents the work of Christ in accomplishing our salvation, by his sacrifice on the Cross.
The coals are taken from the brazen alter, to the golden alter of incense, and placed in that second alter, which in turn has incense placed into the burning coals, representing the prayers offered to God, through the work of Christ. The smoke rises up to God (symbolically), representing that this is an acceptable approach to God (the Father), because it is accomplished through Christ’s work, and not from mans works.
The four horns represent the totality of Gods plan and policy. One can lay hold of any of the horns from any direction, so long as it is through Christ, but one cannot approach God from any other method, especially not from ones own plan.
And now the totality of Gods plan speaks.
Christ has done His work. People have accepted that work through their belief. Prayers have been offered in accordance with Gods policy. All of that has been answered by means of grace, patience and mercy throughout many millennia of history.
And now, that door is closed.
Those who were going to believe in Christ, have done so. Those who have rejected Christ will continue to reject. Life is now going to get really ugly … really ugly.
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Revelation 9:13
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13 And [kai] the sixth [hektos] angel [aggelos] sounded, [salpizo] and [kai] I heard [akouo] a [mia] voice [phone] from [ek] the four [tessares] horns [keras] of the golden [chruseos] altar [thusiasterion] which [ho] is before [enopion] God, [theos] KJV-Interlinear
13 And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, NASB
Earlier we studied the incense which was added to the golden alter (of incense), representing the prayers of believers offered to God. And from those prayers God presented grace, although judgments, to the world for the repentance of humanity back to truth and away from evil.
Through this point, some turned to God, but most continued in their rejection.
And now we have a change in approach in Gods policy toward evil humanity. The prayers for mercy, and ending the evil toward believers and such, is going to come to an end.
The time for mercy has now passed. Many warnings have been issued and all have been rejected.
The voice came from the four horns on the alter, not from the alter itself.
Remember that the coals come from the brazen alter, the first alter, which represents the work of Christ in accomplishing our salvation, by his sacrifice on the Cross.
The coals are taken from the brazen alter, to the golden alter of incense, and placed in that second alter, which in turn has incense placed into the burning coals, representing the prayers offered to God, through the work of Christ. The smoke rises up to God (symbolically), representing that this is an acceptable approach to God (the Father), because it is accomplished through Christ’s work, and not from mans works.
The four horns represent the totality of Gods plan and policy. One can lay hold of any of the horns from any direction, so long as it is through Christ, but one cannot approach God from any other method, especially not from ones own plan.
And now the totality of Gods plan speaks.
Christ has done His work. People have accepted that work through their belief. Prayers have been offered in accordance with Gods policy. All of that has been answered by means of grace, patience and mercy throughout many millennia of history.
And now, that door is closed.
Those who were going to believe in Christ, have done so. Those who have rejected Christ will continue to reject. Life is now going to get really ugly … really ugly.
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Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Revelation 9:12
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Revelation 9:12
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12 One [mia] woe [ouai] is past; [aperchomai] and, behold, [idou] there come [erchomai] two [duo] woes [ouai] more [eti] hereafter [meta]. [tauta] KJV-Interlinear
12 The first woe is past; behold, two woes are still coming after these things. NASB
With one woe over, John states flatly that two more are coming. He does not suggest that they might come, or could possibly be avoided, but that they were already on their way.
John wrote these words over 1900 years ago. People throughout the ages have read these words and people throughout the ages have known what was to take place at some point in the future.
Unfortunately the people that these judgments will apply to, do not seem to be familiar with these prophecies, nor anything else regarding the truths that the Bible discloses. Perhaps that is why the world by then, will be in such a desperate way. Ya think?
People standing at a bus station reading the bus schedule make better use of the information that they are reading, than the folks who will be living through these judgments during the Tribulation.
Prophecies are specific, definite, and firm. People that they apply to, know exactly what and when, because they will experience them first hand. They also have an out. But will they take it?
The fifth trumpet discloses the first woe. Woe. ‘ouai,’ means grief. This is now in the feminine and as such means that a period of pause will occur so that one can at least exhale with some sigh of relief once the suffering ends.
The demons are rounded up and sent back into the Abyss. They do not remain out on the loose. Jesus Christ controls history.
The sixth trumpet will reveal the second woe. It will be worse than the first. The second woe extends to Rev. 11:14, and the third woe will run from Rev. 11:15-19, and then the seven bowl judgments will be revealed and unleashed.
With each incremental judgment things will get worse and worse and worse for humanity. And while many will eventually be humbled enough (caving in under the extreme pressure) to believe in Christ, and thus be saved, many more will still refuse to believe.
Such is the power of arrogance. Once you surrender yourself to arrogance, it is more and more difficult to escape from. Stubbornness and ego just refuse to let go. Embarrassment becomes a greater enemy and threat insuring disaster and failure, thus preventing faith and success and happiness.
People always have a period within which to make their commitment to Christ. That commitment takes but a second to think six simple words, ‘Father, I believe in Jesus Christ.’ And that is all it takes to be saved and reserve for yourself, a place in heaven. And, I might add, avoiding a place in the eternal fires of the Lake of Fire.
It has been that way since the time of Adam. It remains even now, the only way to be saved, and it will remain that way until the end of human history.
All you have to do to be saved, is to believe in Christ. All that the people who will live in the Tribulation, need to do to be saved, is to believe in Christ. It is literally the simplest thing to do.
And yet so many will refuse to even think those simple words. That is the quintessence of stubbornness and stupidity. And so, more grief will be on its way.
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Revelation 9:12
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12 One [mia] woe [ouai] is past; [aperchomai] and, behold, [idou] there come [erchomai] two [duo] woes [ouai] more [eti] hereafter [meta]. [tauta] KJV-Interlinear
12 The first woe is past; behold, two woes are still coming after these things. NASB
With one woe over, John states flatly that two more are coming. He does not suggest that they might come, or could possibly be avoided, but that they were already on their way.
John wrote these words over 1900 years ago. People throughout the ages have read these words and people throughout the ages have known what was to take place at some point in the future.
Unfortunately the people that these judgments will apply to, do not seem to be familiar with these prophecies, nor anything else regarding the truths that the Bible discloses. Perhaps that is why the world by then, will be in such a desperate way. Ya think?
People standing at a bus station reading the bus schedule make better use of the information that they are reading, than the folks who will be living through these judgments during the Tribulation.
Prophecies are specific, definite, and firm. People that they apply to, know exactly what and when, because they will experience them first hand. They also have an out. But will they take it?
The fifth trumpet discloses the first woe. Woe. ‘ouai,’ means grief. This is now in the feminine and as such means that a period of pause will occur so that one can at least exhale with some sigh of relief once the suffering ends.
The demons are rounded up and sent back into the Abyss. They do not remain out on the loose. Jesus Christ controls history.
The sixth trumpet will reveal the second woe. It will be worse than the first. The second woe extends to Rev. 11:14, and the third woe will run from Rev. 11:15-19, and then the seven bowl judgments will be revealed and unleashed.
With each incremental judgment things will get worse and worse and worse for humanity. And while many will eventually be humbled enough (caving in under the extreme pressure) to believe in Christ, and thus be saved, many more will still refuse to believe.
Such is the power of arrogance. Once you surrender yourself to arrogance, it is more and more difficult to escape from. Stubbornness and ego just refuse to let go. Embarrassment becomes a greater enemy and threat insuring disaster and failure, thus preventing faith and success and happiness.
People always have a period within which to make their commitment to Christ. That commitment takes but a second to think six simple words, ‘Father, I believe in Jesus Christ.’ And that is all it takes to be saved and reserve for yourself, a place in heaven. And, I might add, avoiding a place in the eternal fires of the Lake of Fire.
It has been that way since the time of Adam. It remains even now, the only way to be saved, and it will remain that way until the end of human history.
All you have to do to be saved, is to believe in Christ. All that the people who will live in the Tribulation, need to do to be saved, is to believe in Christ. It is literally the simplest thing to do.
And yet so many will refuse to even think those simple words. That is the quintessence of stubbornness and stupidity. And so, more grief will be on its way.
Feel Free to make a comment about this study: Comment Page
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Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Revelation 9:11
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Revelation 9:11
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11 And [kai] they had [echo] a king [basileus] over [epi] them, [hautou] which is the angel [aggelos] of the bottomless pit, [abussos] whose [autos] name [onoma] in the Hebrew tongue [Hebraisti] is Abaddon, [Abaddon] but [kai] in [en] the Greek tongue [Hellenikos] hath [echo] his name [onoma] Apollyon. [Apolluon] KJV-Interlinear
11 They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name Apollyon. NASB
The demons are not a mob of mindless and reckless creatures. They are a well disciplined and well organized army, if you will.
‘Abaddon,’ means destroying angel, perishing, destruction, to wander away, to have no place to flee.
‘Apollyon,’ means to destroy, to destroy fully, to die, to eliminate permanently, separate, cessation, punishment.
This demon is the general of the Abyss. One of whom even the demons under his command would fear, otherwise being bad themselves, they would not be obedient to him.
This is not Satan. Satan is the prince of the air, Eph. 2:2, with his domain in the heavenlies, Eph. 6:12. Satan does not rule in the Abyss and has not seen his followers who have been in the Abyss, since they were committed there at some point in the pre-historic past.
And by the way, if you have been familiar with prehistoric era’s, dinosaurs, and so forth, then given the popular theory that the dinosaurs were destroyed by a meteorite or asteroid or some such thing, you might consider that these demons had something to do with that destruction, thus being locked up in the Abyss. Otherwise, why were they in there and not other demons under Satan’s rule? Why did God allow the dinosaurs to be destroyed, and not continue on into our era. Or was that final destruction the final act in the Satanic plan to defeat God, and then was stunned when God introduced Adam etc. into history?
The only two things that we do have for sure is the description of these beings and their leader, and the knowledge that we have of our own world history. Does one plus one, add up in this case?
Satan and these demons are very real creatures. Our planets history is a very real history. The two of them cannot be separated from each other, one not having anything to do with the other, because Satan’s fall is directly related to his judgment, to his eventual punishment, and our existence. All of creation groans under the burden of evil. Evil is Satan, et al. Anyway, no extra charge for that tidbit. Just food for wondering.
His name is given in both the Hebrew and the Greek. Demons have no favorites among humanity, neither Jew nor Gentile mean anything to them. We are as bugs under their feet, a nuisance to be rid of.
Even from within the darkness and intense pressures of the Abyss, this demon maintained order. And even with all of that hate and evil, intense evil, he is still under the thumb of Jesus Christ.
Just the ‘word’ of Christ, possesses power over the worse of the demon generals.
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Revelation 9:11
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11 And [kai] they had [echo] a king [basileus] over [epi] them, [hautou] which is the angel [aggelos] of the bottomless pit, [abussos] whose [autos] name [onoma] in the Hebrew tongue [Hebraisti] is Abaddon, [Abaddon] but [kai] in [en] the Greek tongue [Hellenikos] hath [echo] his name [onoma] Apollyon. [Apolluon] KJV-Interlinear
11 They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name Apollyon. NASB
The demons are not a mob of mindless and reckless creatures. They are a well disciplined and well organized army, if you will.
‘Abaddon,’ means destroying angel, perishing, destruction, to wander away, to have no place to flee.
‘Apollyon,’ means to destroy, to destroy fully, to die, to eliminate permanently, separate, cessation, punishment.
This demon is the general of the Abyss. One of whom even the demons under his command would fear, otherwise being bad themselves, they would not be obedient to him.
This is not Satan. Satan is the prince of the air, Eph. 2:2, with his domain in the heavenlies, Eph. 6:12. Satan does not rule in the Abyss and has not seen his followers who have been in the Abyss, since they were committed there at some point in the pre-historic past.
And by the way, if you have been familiar with prehistoric era’s, dinosaurs, and so forth, then given the popular theory that the dinosaurs were destroyed by a meteorite or asteroid or some such thing, you might consider that these demons had something to do with that destruction, thus being locked up in the Abyss. Otherwise, why were they in there and not other demons under Satan’s rule? Why did God allow the dinosaurs to be destroyed, and not continue on into our era. Or was that final destruction the final act in the Satanic plan to defeat God, and then was stunned when God introduced Adam etc. into history?
The only two things that we do have for sure is the description of these beings and their leader, and the knowledge that we have of our own world history. Does one plus one, add up in this case?
Satan and these demons are very real creatures. Our planets history is a very real history. The two of them cannot be separated from each other, one not having anything to do with the other, because Satan’s fall is directly related to his judgment, to his eventual punishment, and our existence. All of creation groans under the burden of evil. Evil is Satan, et al. Anyway, no extra charge for that tidbit. Just food for wondering.
His name is given in both the Hebrew and the Greek. Demons have no favorites among humanity, neither Jew nor Gentile mean anything to them. We are as bugs under their feet, a nuisance to be rid of.
Even from within the darkness and intense pressures of the Abyss, this demon maintained order. And even with all of that hate and evil, intense evil, he is still under the thumb of Jesus Christ.
Just the ‘word’ of Christ, possesses power over the worse of the demon generals.
Feel Free to make a comment about this study: Comment Page
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Monday, June 21, 2010
Revelation 9:10
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Revelation 9:10
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10 And [kai] they had [echo] tails [oura] like [homoios] unto scorpions, [skorpios] and [kai] there were [en] stings [kentron] in [en] their [autos] tails: [oura] and [kai] their [autos] power [exousia] was to hurt [adikeo] men [anthropos] five [pente] months. [men] KJV-Interlinear
10 And they have tails like scorpions, and stings; and in their tails is their power to hurt men for five months. NASB
Remember that John uses phrases such as ‘like’ and ‘appear’ and ‘as it were’ to describe the demons. Nowhere do we have an exact description of them. John in his description is attempting to use things that are common to his knowledge, to approximate a picture for us, of how these demons look and operate. And needless to say, their appearance and nature, is way beyond bizarre.
The last attribute is a tail. One that apparently curls up like that of a scorpion, and having a stinger of some type.
We assume from the context that they will use their stinging abilities, as well as their biting abilities from their teeth, to torment people.
Their purpose? To hurt men. And more specifically as we have already studied, to hurt unbelievers, not believers in Christ.
How they will be able to differentiate between a believer and an unbeliever, we are not told, but needless to say, God is the referee, and there will be no foul or transgression of the rules that God has laid down for these demons.
The purpose? To shake unbelievers to their senses, and get them to see truth, putting aside the lies that they have made out of their lives, and believe in Christ and therefore be saved from eternal condemnation.
To hurt, ‘adikeo,’ means to be unjust, to do wrong, to injure, to take, to make suffer, to be treacherous. And therefore, we know that the demons will use all of the resources at their disposal to torment unbelievers, to take away their dignity, to drive them to the point of emotional frenzy.
Remember, that people will be driven to the point of wanting suicide, rather than continuing with the torments, and likewise rather than believing in Christ.
For the hard core unbelievers, their common sense and rationalization will be anything but practical. Their reasoning will be absurd.
This event will not be something that they will hear about, or read about, occurring somewhere else. It will not be some unusual anomaly that is here one day and then gone. This event is going to exist across the entire planet, and will affect nearly every person on the planet, and it will last for a full five months.
No one (unbelievers) is exempt, not rulers, not celebrities, not peasants, no one.
The mere unusual nature of this event, should be enough to convince everyone that they are on the wrong track as far as God is concerned. But as we will see, most will not only hold on, to their negative attitude toward Christ, they will become even more defiant.
And the lesson for us is simple. Even in the most extreme cases, people will stubbornly reject truth, when it should be the most easy to turn toward truth. So how, much easier is it to reject truth now, when the pressure is not near as extreme?
Regardless of what kinds of pressures you have or might have in life, if you simply ignore your God assigned obligation to study doctrine (that is, learn from a legitimate instructor of truth), and far too many people have a very passive and subtle attitude toward their spiritual life, then you will never achieve the maximum potential that God has prepared for you.
Nearly everything in this world, gives us examples of the various characteristics of the spiritual life. You can be in absolute poverty, or you can be a trillionaire. Which would you prefer if you had the choice?
And God has given you a choice of just those two extremes for your next life. Remember your next life will last forever, not for just a few decades. So being in the upper category would be extremely advantageous, don’t you think?
Make a quick review of Psalm 1. Happiness’s (plural) go to whom? The one who wants it. The one who really, really, really, wants it. Not to the passive, not to the indifferent, not to the one who thinks that they have already arrived.
But to the one who ‘studies [doctrine from instruction] to show themselves mature [complete].
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Revelation 9:10
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10 And [kai] they had [echo] tails [oura] like [homoios] unto scorpions, [skorpios] and [kai] there were [en] stings [kentron] in [en] their [autos] tails: [oura] and [kai] their [autos] power [exousia] was to hurt [adikeo] men [anthropos] five [pente] months. [men] KJV-Interlinear
10 And they have tails like scorpions, and stings; and in their tails is their power to hurt men for five months. NASB
Remember that John uses phrases such as ‘like’ and ‘appear’ and ‘as it were’ to describe the demons. Nowhere do we have an exact description of them. John in his description is attempting to use things that are common to his knowledge, to approximate a picture for us, of how these demons look and operate. And needless to say, their appearance and nature, is way beyond bizarre.
The last attribute is a tail. One that apparently curls up like that of a scorpion, and having a stinger of some type.
We assume from the context that they will use their stinging abilities, as well as their biting abilities from their teeth, to torment people.
Their purpose? To hurt men. And more specifically as we have already studied, to hurt unbelievers, not believers in Christ.
How they will be able to differentiate between a believer and an unbeliever, we are not told, but needless to say, God is the referee, and there will be no foul or transgression of the rules that God has laid down for these demons.
The purpose? To shake unbelievers to their senses, and get them to see truth, putting aside the lies that they have made out of their lives, and believe in Christ and therefore be saved from eternal condemnation.
To hurt, ‘adikeo,’ means to be unjust, to do wrong, to injure, to take, to make suffer, to be treacherous. And therefore, we know that the demons will use all of the resources at their disposal to torment unbelievers, to take away their dignity, to drive them to the point of emotional frenzy.
Remember, that people will be driven to the point of wanting suicide, rather than continuing with the torments, and likewise rather than believing in Christ.
For the hard core unbelievers, their common sense and rationalization will be anything but practical. Their reasoning will be absurd.
This event will not be something that they will hear about, or read about, occurring somewhere else. It will not be some unusual anomaly that is here one day and then gone. This event is going to exist across the entire planet, and will affect nearly every person on the planet, and it will last for a full five months.
No one (unbelievers) is exempt, not rulers, not celebrities, not peasants, no one.
The mere unusual nature of this event, should be enough to convince everyone that they are on the wrong track as far as God is concerned. But as we will see, most will not only hold on, to their negative attitude toward Christ, they will become even more defiant.
And the lesson for us is simple. Even in the most extreme cases, people will stubbornly reject truth, when it should be the most easy to turn toward truth. So how, much easier is it to reject truth now, when the pressure is not near as extreme?
Regardless of what kinds of pressures you have or might have in life, if you simply ignore your God assigned obligation to study doctrine (that is, learn from a legitimate instructor of truth), and far too many people have a very passive and subtle attitude toward their spiritual life, then you will never achieve the maximum potential that God has prepared for you.
Nearly everything in this world, gives us examples of the various characteristics of the spiritual life. You can be in absolute poverty, or you can be a trillionaire. Which would you prefer if you had the choice?
And God has given you a choice of just those two extremes for your next life. Remember your next life will last forever, not for just a few decades. So being in the upper category would be extremely advantageous, don’t you think?
Make a quick review of Psalm 1. Happiness’s (plural) go to whom? The one who wants it. The one who really, really, really, wants it. Not to the passive, not to the indifferent, not to the one who thinks that they have already arrived.
But to the one who ‘studies [doctrine from instruction] to show themselves mature [complete].
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Friday, June 18, 2010
Revelation 9:9
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Revelation 9:9
DailyBibleStudy.Org
9 And [kai] they had [echo] breastplates, [thorax] as it were [hos] breastplates [thorax] of iron; [sidereos] and [kai] the sound [phone] of their [autos] wings [pterux] was as [hos] the sound [phone] of chariots [harma] of many [polus] horses [hippos] running [trecho] to [eis] battle. [polemos] KJV-Interlinear
9 And they had breastplates like breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle. NASB
Before we get too much further, because we will be going to our Psalms study for the weekend and won’t be back to this study until Monday, I will ask perhaps a silly question. Do you see anything unusual about these events of the past couple of verses? Do these seem like normal everyday types of things that you might encounter in your life?
And that is something that people in the Tribulation will have to consider. Is stuff like this, normal? Hummm!
Now, to you and me this question seems silly, or should seem silly. How often do you see demons storming out of the Abyss and harassing and turning the world upside down? I am guessing that you have never had such an encounter, unless of course you have missed taking your medicine.
So, wouldn’t you think that those future folks might figure out that this was not normal?
The description continues.
The demons had breastplates like iron. Now breastplates were designed to protect the front and back of the warrior, to protect their vital organs – heart, stomach, kidneys, etc.
However, we know that these demons have no such physical organs. The are not of flesh and blood. They cannot be killed or even injured. So the purpose of this armor is to further prove their invincibility.
People will be screaming and yelling and hitting with their arms and hands and sticks, throwing things and so forth. If they have a gun they will be shooting it every which way. Probably shooting other people, as the chaos frenzy continues.
But these demons have one purpose, and that is to attack people (unbelievers) relentlessly, bring them torment, pain, suffering, and totally ruining everyone's day. And not just for one day, but for several weeks.
And the sound of their wings was that of a large attacking army. If you have ever heard a freight train passing by at a high rate of speed, or if you have ever heard a tornado, or the wind howling in a hurricane, or something that has a loud and deafening sound that seems to never stop, then you can imagine this sound. A loud thundering rumbling sound that will certainly get your attention.
And accompanying the sound is usually a tremendous vibration, like you would have in an earthquake. The thunder rumbles and the room shakes because of the sound. How could anyone miss it?
So, while you are having the weekend off from this revelation study, consider these questions, and how they apply to ones everyday life, your life, now? What would you expect people to do when they encounter something unusual in their life? What would you expect people to do when they hear truth, and contrast it to what the world promotes? What would you do? What are you doing?
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Revelation 9:9
DailyBibleStudy.Org
9 And [kai] they had [echo] breastplates, [thorax] as it were [hos] breastplates [thorax] of iron; [sidereos] and [kai] the sound [phone] of their [autos] wings [pterux] was as [hos] the sound [phone] of chariots [harma] of many [polus] horses [hippos] running [trecho] to [eis] battle. [polemos] KJV-Interlinear
9 And they had breastplates like breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle. NASB
Before we get too much further, because we will be going to our Psalms study for the weekend and won’t be back to this study until Monday, I will ask perhaps a silly question. Do you see anything unusual about these events of the past couple of verses? Do these seem like normal everyday types of things that you might encounter in your life?
And that is something that people in the Tribulation will have to consider. Is stuff like this, normal? Hummm!
Now, to you and me this question seems silly, or should seem silly. How often do you see demons storming out of the Abyss and harassing and turning the world upside down? I am guessing that you have never had such an encounter, unless of course you have missed taking your medicine.
So, wouldn’t you think that those future folks might figure out that this was not normal?
The description continues.
The demons had breastplates like iron. Now breastplates were designed to protect the front and back of the warrior, to protect their vital organs – heart, stomach, kidneys, etc.
However, we know that these demons have no such physical organs. The are not of flesh and blood. They cannot be killed or even injured. So the purpose of this armor is to further prove their invincibility.
People will be screaming and yelling and hitting with their arms and hands and sticks, throwing things and so forth. If they have a gun they will be shooting it every which way. Probably shooting other people, as the chaos frenzy continues.
But these demons have one purpose, and that is to attack people (unbelievers) relentlessly, bring them torment, pain, suffering, and totally ruining everyone's day. And not just for one day, but for several weeks.
And the sound of their wings was that of a large attacking army. If you have ever heard a freight train passing by at a high rate of speed, or if you have ever heard a tornado, or the wind howling in a hurricane, or something that has a loud and deafening sound that seems to never stop, then you can imagine this sound. A loud thundering rumbling sound that will certainly get your attention.
And accompanying the sound is usually a tremendous vibration, like you would have in an earthquake. The thunder rumbles and the room shakes because of the sound. How could anyone miss it?
So, while you are having the weekend off from this revelation study, consider these questions, and how they apply to ones everyday life, your life, now? What would you expect people to do when they encounter something unusual in their life? What would you expect people to do when they hear truth, and contrast it to what the world promotes? What would you do? What are you doing?
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Thursday, June 17, 2010
Revelation 9:8
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Revelation 9:8
DailyBibleStudy.Org
8 And [kai] they had [echo] hair [thrix] as [hos] the hair [thrix] of women, [gune] and [kai] their [autos] teeth [odous] were [en] as [hos] the teeth of lions. [leon] KJV-Interlinear
8 And they had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions. NASB
Hair as the hair of women and teeth as the teeth of lions. John lists two more comparisons to demonstrate just how unusual these creatures are.
And in this situation, we have to look to stereotyping to understand what John was seeing.
The hair as of women, is typically long flowing well kept hair. And though these demons are riding into battle as warriors, they have a feminine side. This is a contrast between a masculine (warrior) side and a feminine (self ego, narcissistic, vain, self absorbed, egotistic) side that is being described.
In a normal world people follow normal characteristics. However, in an abnormal world, people follow abnormal characteristics, or character which is against the norm.
Normal follows truth. When truth is rejected, then the normal fades into the abnormal. Masculine traits take on feminine traits, and feminine traits take on masculine traits. These are typical characteristics of people who reject God, Christ, doctrine, and truth. Their character takes on the opposite of what is normal for them. As an example, men wear jewelry, or grow their hair long, etc. Women cut their hair short and take on masculine traits.
These demons possess the feminine traits of long flowing well kept hair, and yet they are charging into battle as though they are going to be victorious. They have been locked up for a very long time. They are out for only five months. They are constrained by Gods rules. And yet they show no remorse, no regret, no repentance of any kind. Overly eager to raid humanity and inflict as much pain and suffering as they possibly can. And yet they still take extra good care of their hair, with pride.
Teeth like that of lions, which simply means that they have powerful and ravenous biting capabilities. Their bites will not be love nibbles, but tearing and ripping as a lion would do to a new (still living) victim.
Again, no remorse, no concern for the victim, only hate and violence.
This is what unbelievers have waiting for them in that future period, which they cannot prevent.
But, we are not finished even yet, with the descriptions of what is still to come.
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Revelation 9:8
DailyBibleStudy.Org
8 And [kai] they had [echo] hair [thrix] as [hos] the hair [thrix] of women, [gune] and [kai] their [autos] teeth [odous] were [en] as [hos] the teeth of lions. [leon] KJV-Interlinear
8 And they had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions. NASB
Hair as the hair of women and teeth as the teeth of lions. John lists two more comparisons to demonstrate just how unusual these creatures are.
And in this situation, we have to look to stereotyping to understand what John was seeing.
The hair as of women, is typically long flowing well kept hair. And though these demons are riding into battle as warriors, they have a feminine side. This is a contrast between a masculine (warrior) side and a feminine (self ego, narcissistic, vain, self absorbed, egotistic) side that is being described.
In a normal world people follow normal characteristics. However, in an abnormal world, people follow abnormal characteristics, or character which is against the norm.
Normal follows truth. When truth is rejected, then the normal fades into the abnormal. Masculine traits take on feminine traits, and feminine traits take on masculine traits. These are typical characteristics of people who reject God, Christ, doctrine, and truth. Their character takes on the opposite of what is normal for them. As an example, men wear jewelry, or grow their hair long, etc. Women cut their hair short and take on masculine traits.
These demons possess the feminine traits of long flowing well kept hair, and yet they are charging into battle as though they are going to be victorious. They have been locked up for a very long time. They are out for only five months. They are constrained by Gods rules. And yet they show no remorse, no regret, no repentance of any kind. Overly eager to raid humanity and inflict as much pain and suffering as they possibly can. And yet they still take extra good care of their hair, with pride.
Teeth like that of lions, which simply means that they have powerful and ravenous biting capabilities. Their bites will not be love nibbles, but tearing and ripping as a lion would do to a new (still living) victim.
Again, no remorse, no concern for the victim, only hate and violence.
This is what unbelievers have waiting for them in that future period, which they cannot prevent.
But, we are not finished even yet, with the descriptions of what is still to come.
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Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Revelation 9:7
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Revelation 9:7
DailyBibleStudy.Org
7 And [kai] the shapes [homoioma] of the locusts [akris] were like [homoios] unto horses [hippos] prepared [hetoimazo] unto [eis] battle; [polemos] and [kai] on [epi] their [autos] heads [kephale] were as it were [hos] crowns [stephanos] like [homoios] gold, [chrusos] and [kai] their [autos] faces [prosopon] were as [hos] the faces [prosopon] of men. [anthropos] KJV-Interlinear
7 And the appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle; and on their heads, as it were, crowns like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men. NASB
In these next few verses, John uses terms ‘appeared to be’ and ‘like’ to approximate the appearance of the demons.
Creatures that have not been seen by man, and certainly not anything that you and I have seen in our day, will be filling the skies with their hordes, and tormenting billions of unbelieving peoples across the world.
And that is something to consider here. Remember that the Tribulation is future. If it does not happen for another century, then the population of the world could very well be around fifty billion people. Assume that you lose ten-percent for believers at the Rapture, and then one-fourth dying for mans failed utopia, that still leaves thirty to thirty-five billions of people remaining on the earth. Some will be believers, but most will by far be unbelievers. That means a lot of demons, tormenting a lot of people for five months. The demons will outnumber people by quite a lot.
Even if we use the population numbers of today, that still amounts up to a lot of demons.
How do we know this? Because they are described as locusts (hordes with massive numbers darkening the skies).
But worse than that they are described as horses prepared for battle. They are warlike, powerful, and defiant, like horses straining at the bit and pawing the ground in their eagerness to charge forward on their mission of death. Joel 2:4-5.
They have crowns like gold on their heads. The victory crown, ‘stephanos.’ Not real crowns, but the attitude of invincibility, unstoppable, all conquering, certain victory. People will have no defense, no weapon to use against them. The demons will be unstoppable.
They will have faces like men. They are not men, but they are not insects either. They are intelligent and rational, and being demons, full of absolute hate.
We have two more verses of descriptions before we can really understand the nature of the demons and the torment that they will really bring.
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Revelation 9:7
DailyBibleStudy.Org
7 And [kai] the shapes [homoioma] of the locusts [akris] were like [homoios] unto horses [hippos] prepared [hetoimazo] unto [eis] battle; [polemos] and [kai] on [epi] their [autos] heads [kephale] were as it were [hos] crowns [stephanos] like [homoios] gold, [chrusos] and [kai] their [autos] faces [prosopon] were as [hos] the faces [prosopon] of men. [anthropos] KJV-Interlinear
7 And the appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle; and on their heads, as it were, crowns like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men. NASB
In these next few verses, John uses terms ‘appeared to be’ and ‘like’ to approximate the appearance of the demons.
Creatures that have not been seen by man, and certainly not anything that you and I have seen in our day, will be filling the skies with their hordes, and tormenting billions of unbelieving peoples across the world.
And that is something to consider here. Remember that the Tribulation is future. If it does not happen for another century, then the population of the world could very well be around fifty billion people. Assume that you lose ten-percent for believers at the Rapture, and then one-fourth dying for mans failed utopia, that still leaves thirty to thirty-five billions of people remaining on the earth. Some will be believers, but most will by far be unbelievers. That means a lot of demons, tormenting a lot of people for five months. The demons will outnumber people by quite a lot.
Even if we use the population numbers of today, that still amounts up to a lot of demons.
How do we know this? Because they are described as locusts (hordes with massive numbers darkening the skies).
But worse than that they are described as horses prepared for battle. They are warlike, powerful, and defiant, like horses straining at the bit and pawing the ground in their eagerness to charge forward on their mission of death. Joel 2:4-5.
They have crowns like gold on their heads. The victory crown, ‘stephanos.’ Not real crowns, but the attitude of invincibility, unstoppable, all conquering, certain victory. People will have no defense, no weapon to use against them. The demons will be unstoppable.
They will have faces like men. They are not men, but they are not insects either. They are intelligent and rational, and being demons, full of absolute hate.
We have two more verses of descriptions before we can really understand the nature of the demons and the torment that they will really bring.
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Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Revelation 9:6
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Revelation 9:6
DailyBibleStudy.Org
6 And [kai] in [en] those [ekeinos] days [hemera] shall men [anthropos] seek [zeteo] death, [thanatos] and [kai] shall [heurisko] not [ou] find [heurisko] it; [autos] and [kai] shall desire [epithumeo] to die, [apothnesko] and [kai] death [thanatos] shall flee [pheugo] from [apo] them. [autos] KJV-Interlinear
6 And in those days men will seek death and will not find it; and they will long to die and death flees from them. NASB
Seeking death, is because of the hopelessness of life and the pressures in life, and suicide seems to be the only viable option.
That is the logic of those who reject truth. When things have gone from bad to worse, they continue seeking even worse situations.
In this realm of our world we all live for a time and then we die. None of us were ever placed here on earth to be here forever. You can look around and never find anyone who has lived forever.
So, after life here, then what?
Well most cultures have a concept of an afterlife. The afterlife lasts forever. So, what a person needs to do is consider his options after this life. And in Christianity, there are only two options. In all, repeat all other religions there is only one option, which is the Lake of Fire, since all other religions are false.
So that brings us back to Christianity, the only true faith, a relationship with God through Christ.
And you might note something interesting here. Throughout this book, there is no mention of Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, or any other religion per se. They are all lumped into the false religion category of the anti-christ, because they are all false, just as the anti-christ is a false savior.
Look at life thus far in the Tribulation. The world is in a shambles. Since the Rapture, evil has been unleashed, unrestrained, and what do people do to restrain themselves? Nothing. They seize upon the opportunity to rob and steal and rape and pillage and murder and worse.
They reject the writing written on the wall, the signs of the times, and Christ. Christ is the focal point of everything that goes on. Christ is the common thread that runs through life, that determines where every person will end up when it is all said and done. That is true for those folks in the tribulation, and it is true for you, here and now, as it has been true for everyone since Adam.
The world in the Tribulation has been hit with failed attempts at creating a utopia. It has been hit with devastation from various sources – hail, earthquakes, volcanoes, and more. The dead are piling up, the oceans are awash with the putridness of death, the skies are filled with dust and ash, and the spiritual realm has been unleashed as never before in history.
All that people have to do, is realize that their way is not working, and that there is one hope still out there – namely Christ. But what do they do? They pursue even more destruction for themselves – death. They attempt suicide and cannot even succeed in that.
They could take about a half of a second, and think in their mind, ‘I believe in Christ.’ But they will not take the easy way out, thinking four little words. They continue resisting and resisting and resisting as their minds have been blocked by their own stubbornness of attitude.
The option for salvation is still there, because they are still alive, but they continue to resist truth.
Pharaoh was the example of this stubbornness, a very long time ago. There are people even in our current day that pursue this course in life. But in the Tribulation, this pattern of life will reach its peak in humanity.
And the worst is yet to come.
At first people are negative, then the world is devastated, and then they are tormented, and then the sequence reveals the description of the demons. Why do you suppose this description was not mentioned first, before verse six, rather than afterwards, in the upcoming verses?
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Revelation 9:6
DailyBibleStudy.Org
6 And [kai] in [en] those [ekeinos] days [hemera] shall men [anthropos] seek [zeteo] death, [thanatos] and [kai] shall [heurisko] not [ou] find [heurisko] it; [autos] and [kai] shall desire [epithumeo] to die, [apothnesko] and [kai] death [thanatos] shall flee [pheugo] from [apo] them. [autos] KJV-Interlinear
6 And in those days men will seek death and will not find it; and they will long to die and death flees from them. NASB
Seeking death, is because of the hopelessness of life and the pressures in life, and suicide seems to be the only viable option.
That is the logic of those who reject truth. When things have gone from bad to worse, they continue seeking even worse situations.
In this realm of our world we all live for a time and then we die. None of us were ever placed here on earth to be here forever. You can look around and never find anyone who has lived forever.
So, after life here, then what?
Well most cultures have a concept of an afterlife. The afterlife lasts forever. So, what a person needs to do is consider his options after this life. And in Christianity, there are only two options. In all, repeat all other religions there is only one option, which is the Lake of Fire, since all other religions are false.
So that brings us back to Christianity, the only true faith, a relationship with God through Christ.
And you might note something interesting here. Throughout this book, there is no mention of Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, or any other religion per se. They are all lumped into the false religion category of the anti-christ, because they are all false, just as the anti-christ is a false savior.
Look at life thus far in the Tribulation. The world is in a shambles. Since the Rapture, evil has been unleashed, unrestrained, and what do people do to restrain themselves? Nothing. They seize upon the opportunity to rob and steal and rape and pillage and murder and worse.
They reject the writing written on the wall, the signs of the times, and Christ. Christ is the focal point of everything that goes on. Christ is the common thread that runs through life, that determines where every person will end up when it is all said and done. That is true for those folks in the tribulation, and it is true for you, here and now, as it has been true for everyone since Adam.
The world in the Tribulation has been hit with failed attempts at creating a utopia. It has been hit with devastation from various sources – hail, earthquakes, volcanoes, and more. The dead are piling up, the oceans are awash with the putridness of death, the skies are filled with dust and ash, and the spiritual realm has been unleashed as never before in history.
All that people have to do, is realize that their way is not working, and that there is one hope still out there – namely Christ. But what do they do? They pursue even more destruction for themselves – death. They attempt suicide and cannot even succeed in that.
They could take about a half of a second, and think in their mind, ‘I believe in Christ.’ But they will not take the easy way out, thinking four little words. They continue resisting and resisting and resisting as their minds have been blocked by their own stubbornness of attitude.
The option for salvation is still there, because they are still alive, but they continue to resist truth.
Pharaoh was the example of this stubbornness, a very long time ago. There are people even in our current day that pursue this course in life. But in the Tribulation, this pattern of life will reach its peak in humanity.
And the worst is yet to come.
At first people are negative, then the world is devastated, and then they are tormented, and then the sequence reveals the description of the demons. Why do you suppose this description was not mentioned first, before verse six, rather than afterwards, in the upcoming verses?
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Monday, June 14, 2010
Revelation 9:5
This study is from an on going online Daily Bible Study at:
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Revelation 9:5
DailyBibleStudy.Org
5 And [kai] to them [autos] it was given [didomi] that [hina me] they should [apokteino] not [hina me] kill [apokteino] them, [autos] but [alla] that [hina] they should be tormented [basanizo] five [pente] months: [men] and [kai] their [autos] torment [basanismos] was as [hos] the torment [basanismos] of a scorpion, [skorpios] when [hotan] he striketh [paio] a man. [anthropos] KJV-Interlinear
5 And they were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment for five months; and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings a man. NASB
A scorpion sting is rarely fatal, but it can be depending on where you are stung. The toxins released form itchy bumps around the sting area, which is hard to resist scratching, numbness sets in and can last for 24 hours or longer, even up to several weeks of discomfort. The numbness can affect the feet and arms, like when your foot falls asleep, and you cannot get the feelings back. It is difficult to focus or think clearly. But the really painful part comes when the scorpion actually stings you. That shoots a pain though the body as it reacts against the sting.
And so it is with these demons. They are not permitted to kill their victims, only to torment them.
Torment, ‘basanizo,’ means to take to the bottom, to the foot, to inflict pain such that it drives a person to the very bottom (low point of their life) or brink of what they can tolerate. Over the brink is obviously death, but that is denied. The pain and torments of the demons are permitted to be inflicted over and over, again and again for up to five months. The effects subside quickly, so that more stings will be painful.
Remember too, that these demons are described as locusts, and locusts mass all over their victim. This is not just an occasional sting by a single scorpion, but a massive assault by untold numbers of demons crawling all over the person, doing what they do, and relentlessly.
People have no defense against them.
You cannot push them off, drive them off, drown them off, scream them off, wash them off, spray them off, or even kill them off. You cannot kill a demon-angel. They move faster than you and are tenacious and relentless in their attacks.
These demons will have no mercy, and no concern for your privacy or private body parts. Like bully’s gone wild with no restraint, they will have free reign over unbelieving humanity, tormenting people over and over, but only for five months. And then their freedom will cease.
Now, before you feel sorry for those folks, remember that it is because of their unbelief that atrocities and hate and sin and evil and crime and everything else bad, exists. None of them are innocent. They are all guilty of total corruption.
And, do not forget that those folks have an instant out. Faith in Christ. They have the 144,000 evangelists, and most likely more sources of hearing the gospel. But they will refuse to think one simple thought, ‘I believe in Christ.’ How much effort can there be in making that faith commitment? Four little words.
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Revelation 9:5
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5 And [kai] to them [autos] it was given [didomi] that [hina me] they should [apokteino] not [hina me] kill [apokteino] them, [autos] but [alla] that [hina] they should be tormented [basanizo] five [pente] months: [men] and [kai] their [autos] torment [basanismos] was as [hos] the torment [basanismos] of a scorpion, [skorpios] when [hotan] he striketh [paio] a man. [anthropos] KJV-Interlinear
5 And they were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment for five months; and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings a man. NASB
A scorpion sting is rarely fatal, but it can be depending on where you are stung. The toxins released form itchy bumps around the sting area, which is hard to resist scratching, numbness sets in and can last for 24 hours or longer, even up to several weeks of discomfort. The numbness can affect the feet and arms, like when your foot falls asleep, and you cannot get the feelings back. It is difficult to focus or think clearly. But the really painful part comes when the scorpion actually stings you. That shoots a pain though the body as it reacts against the sting.
And so it is with these demons. They are not permitted to kill their victims, only to torment them.
Torment, ‘basanizo,’ means to take to the bottom, to the foot, to inflict pain such that it drives a person to the very bottom (low point of their life) or brink of what they can tolerate. Over the brink is obviously death, but that is denied. The pain and torments of the demons are permitted to be inflicted over and over, again and again for up to five months. The effects subside quickly, so that more stings will be painful.
Remember too, that these demons are described as locusts, and locusts mass all over their victim. This is not just an occasional sting by a single scorpion, but a massive assault by untold numbers of demons crawling all over the person, doing what they do, and relentlessly.
People have no defense against them.
You cannot push them off, drive them off, drown them off, scream them off, wash them off, spray them off, or even kill them off. You cannot kill a demon-angel. They move faster than you and are tenacious and relentless in their attacks.
These demons will have no mercy, and no concern for your privacy or private body parts. Like bully’s gone wild with no restraint, they will have free reign over unbelieving humanity, tormenting people over and over, but only for five months. And then their freedom will cease.
Now, before you feel sorry for those folks, remember that it is because of their unbelief that atrocities and hate and sin and evil and crime and everything else bad, exists. None of them are innocent. They are all guilty of total corruption.
And, do not forget that those folks have an instant out. Faith in Christ. They have the 144,000 evangelists, and most likely more sources of hearing the gospel. But they will refuse to think one simple thought, ‘I believe in Christ.’ How much effort can there be in making that faith commitment? Four little words.
Feel Free to make a comment about this study: Comment Page
If you are a Facebook member, then please join the Bible Study Group that best suits you:
Facebook Groups
Daily Bible Study Quick Links
Go to this quick links page, and save it in your bookmarks for quick access to the daily studies.
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