Title: Resurrection and Judgment (Revelation 20:1-15)
"Blessed and holy are those who have part in this first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and will reign with Christ for a thousand years." And death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each one was judged according to his works.”
This text is about the Millennium Age and the Last Judgment. In particular, we are talking about the resurrection and judgment. If people say that there is no resurrection and judgment, those who eat well like pigs by any means will be wise and blessed; those who live with integrity and integrity, honesty and uprightness will be fools, and they will live by faith looking to heaven. People will be the poorest.
But the Resurrection and Judgment are sure to come. Because it is the promised word of God, and because Jesus Himself died on the cross and rose from the dead on the third day, confirming it as the fruit of resurrection. Therefore, no further evidence is needed. This is because God is omnipotent, who created all things in the universe with a single word, is the one who always keeps the promises he made, and is sincere and trustworthy.
Therefore, those who truly believe in and know God rightly do not need more evidence than this. All evidence that satisfies the human senses is incomplete, because the human senses are imperfect. There are many misconceptions and misconceptions about what we have seen with our own eyes.
But God's Word is correct. Therefore, what is written in the Bible is more true than what we see with our own eyes.
Verses 1-3 are about imprisoning Satan in the abyss.
Here, it is said, 'They captured Satan, bound him for a thousand years, threw him into the abyss, locked him, and sealed him up so that he would no longer deceive the nations until the thousand years were completed. It shows what will happen in the meantime.
In verses 4-6 we are talking about what will happen on the earth after Christ returns. Here, “those who sit on the throne” refer to the saints who will reign as kings, referring to the saints who have ascended to heaven and those who have kept the fidelity of their faith to the end of the earth.
In verse 10, it says, “You have made them a kingdom and priests before our God, and they will reign on the earth.”
In verse 19:14, it says, “The armies of the heavens, clothed in white and clean linen, and riding on white horses, followed him.” These words can also be said to be those with Christ who came as King.
Up to now, we have talked about those who lived on earth and kept their faith, but then we are talking about those who were martyred. They were beheaded in order to live according to the word, and they were martyred after not worshiping the antichrist and idols. If you look at the original word for resurrection here, it is ‘Ekjesan’, which means that you have been resurrected in the body. That is why it is called the first resurrection. In that regard, you will be more moved by the great comfort and glory of the Lord.
However, as verse 5 says, “the rest of the dead”, that is, those who died without believing in Jesus, will not see this glory and will fall into destruction.
Verse 6 says, “Blessed and holy are those who have part in this first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and will reign with Christ for a thousand years.” Only then will the Lord's promise that those who endure to the end be blessed will come true.
The authority to rule will be restored again. In Genesis 1, it is a precious blessing given by God after creating all things in the universe and human beings in the image of God. That’s what it means to ‘rule and conquer’. It is such a wonderful blessing that he saw this and said, “God saw that it was very good.”
Because human beings sin, they lose this authority and blessings, so they become slaves to sin and slavery to material things. We can guess to some extent how miserable and unhappy it is to be called a 'slave' even by watching the movie Root.
It is a joy to be freed from slavery, but to have the authority to rule over everything is a real joy and a great blessing.
Now, after the Second Coming of Jesus, the saints who kept their faith until the end will enjoy this blessing together with Christ. Those who will participate in this blessed glory are those who obeyed the Word despite any persecution or difficulties, did not submit to the Antichrist, did not bow down to idols, and kept the fidelity of faith to the end.
There are three opinions of commentators on verses 4-6.
That is, different views of the millennial kingdom.1). Post-millennialism.
This is the theory that the golden age of the gospel will come for a thousand years just before the Second Coming of the Lord.
In Luke 18:8, “I tell you, he will avenge him quickly, but will he find faith on the earth when the Son of Man comes?” and 2 Thessalonians 2:2-13. It turns out that the millennium theory is wrong.
2). It is non-millennialism.
This refers to the Intermediate State, which refers to the age in which souls go to heaven until the Second Coming of Christ. A problem arises here, and the interpretation of verse 5 becomes a problem. The first resurrection is interpreted here as the spiritual life that believers receive through faith. However, the original meaning of resurrection means to be resurrected in the body. Because without being resurrected in the body, we cannot dwell on the earth. So there are some problems with interpretation.
3). I'm a millennial.
This refers to the age of the millennium that will be accomplished by the second coming of Jesus. Those who believed in the Lord, died and were resurrected, and those who were changed by meeting the Lord who came after keeping the fidelity of faith until the Lord's return, will enter the Millennium Kingdom.
There are three interpretations, but postmillennialism is mainly false as claimed by dispensationalists. However, for the other two interpretations, whichever interpretation you take is not against the Bible, you should have an attitude of tolerance for each other.
Verses 7-10 speak of a brief event after the thousand years are finished.
At that time, when Satan was released from prison, he deceived the people for the last time, and he deceived Gog and Magog to fight the saints, and the number was as great as the sand of the sea. Even now, there are many people who are deceived and possessed by the devil, but at that time, those who are deceived and will be destroyed forever will be as numerous as the sand.
Just as our Jesus said, “Will you see faith in the last days?” will appear as it is. At the end of the day, I hope that you will all be victorious by keeping your faith in the midst of tribulation like sifting wheat with a key.
If you look at the text, ‘Gogwa Magog’ appears, and you can see that it is the name of one country, not two countries, as there is a definite article ‘ton’ in front of this noun. This country was at that time a nation that was very opposed to God's people. So this country is being shown as the representative of the antichrist kingdom that will appear last in human history.
When Gog and Magog were besieging and attacking the camp of the saints and the city he loved, God would pour down fire from heaven and consume them, but he would throw Satan, the Antichrist, and the false prophets into the lake of brimstone, torment forever. .
Verses 11-15 speak of the judgment of the final words.
Here, first, the image of the judge is shown, and it is said that he was seated on a great white throne. ‘White’ symbolizes holiness. Judgment is always based on holiness.
And the object of judgment is heaven, earth, and all living beings. And the method of judgment is to judge according to one's own deeds.
Verse 12 says, “The dead, great and small, will stand before the throne.”
All souls will stand before the judgment seat to be judged. They will be judged first, and then will be resurrected. The souls recorded in the book of life will receive the resurrection of life, and the souls of unbelief will receive the resurrection of judgment. No matter where people die, they do not perish; they are all resurrected in the body by the power of God.
In verse 13, it says ‘death and Hades,’ where death is the law of insomnia that puts people to death, and Hades is like the prison that imprisons the dead. But on the Day of Judgment, these too will submit to the power of God's resurrection and deliver the dead.
Dear saints,
Prepare well for the day of the Lord's Second Coming with faith, but like the five wise virgins, always watch and pray and be armed with the Word so that the lamp of oil does not go out. Therefore, I pray in the name of the Lord that you will be able to overcome all the trials and tribulations of Satan and be lifted up without a single grain falling.