Effective Prayer In Revelation

How consistent and effectual are your prayers? Do your prayers even matter? After all, God will do as He pleases anyway. In Revelation 8, we encounter a scene that should hit us like a splash of cold water in the face and sober us up to the reality that our prayers are powerful, crucial to the execution of God’s plan, impacting the world in which we live.

Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar before the throne. The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God from the angel’s hand. Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake. Revelation 8:3 – 5

This event follows the silence in heaven, but precedes the sounding of the first four of the seven trumpets, apparently signifying that what follows, the judgments upon “those who dwell upon the earth,” represent the Lord’s answer to “the prayers of all the saints!”

I think this raises some serious considerations for us, as we pray for the hallowing of our Father’s name, the coming of His Kingdom and the accomplishment of His will, in and through us.

• First, let us take note that, although the trumpet judgments are administered by angels, it is the Lamb Himself Who opens the seals and gives them the authority to carry out His decrees. The fire from the altar, hurled upon the earth is the result of the prayers of all the saints going up before God. This judgment comes from God in answer to the prayers of His people, to avenge their suffering.
• This “payback” upon the earth dwellers is carried out by an angel, but doesn’t Bible tell us that we are not to take vengeance? Romans 12:19 Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord.
• That seems clear enough, but what about praying for vengeance or that God will demonstrate His glory in pouring out wrath upon rebellious mankind? Although we are not permitted to take vengeance ourselves, we find in the Word a number of positive examples, encouraging us to pray not only for the repentance and salvation of those who persecute us, but that justice will also be done, God’s name vindicated and that His enemies will be put under His feet.
• They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” Revelation 6:10
• Pour out your wrath on the nations that do not acknowledge you, on the kingdoms that do not call on your name; for they have devoured Jacob and destroyed his homeland. Do not hold against us the sins of the fathers; may your mercy come quickly to meet us, for we are in desperate need. Help us, O God our Savior, for the glory of your name; deliver us and forgive our sins for your name’s sake. Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?” Before our eyes, make known among the nations that you avenge the outpoured blood of your servants. Psalms 79:6 – 10
• The altar is before the throne and the incense cloud of the saints’ prayers rises into his presence – it’s a sweet aroma – they are acceptable prayers, pleasing to God (Psalm 141:2). Yes, sometimes we are to pray for God’s glory to be displayed in His wrath, avenging the suffering of His people and this is pleasing to Him.
• For those of us, following Christ through the thick of the battle, this should encourage us to know that our prayers are not overlooked, set aside or forgotten — God will speedily demonstrate that we are His people and vindicate Himself completely as the One Who is loving, merciful, longsuffering, compassionate, as well as just, severe and righteous. Our suffering, as well as our persistent prayers play a part in hallowing God’s name before the entire world!
• All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you. 2 Thessalonians 1:5 – 10

In conclusion, how often do you remember to “hallow His name” and pray for the coming of the Kingdom? Do you regularly ask that His will be done, on earth as it is in heaven? Be careful how you pray.

One of the greatest pleasures in my recent study of the Revelation has been to discover some of the lesser known, yet Biblically rich ideas out there. These are the conclusions of commentators I had not seen in popular treatments of eschatology. One of these is Richard Bauckham’s identification of the 144, 000 as an army, which Greg Beale sees waging “ironic holy war.” Does that sound a little dramatic; perhaps a little weird? If so, perhaps it seems strange only because of our predisposition to popular treatments of the end times, rather than thorough study of the Scriptures. Beale explains the concept of ironic holy war:

In the context of Revelation, this military force in 7:4 – 8 conquers its enemy ironically in the same way in which the Lamb has ironically conquered at the cross: by maintaining their faith through suffering, the soldiers overcome the devil. Consequently, they are those who “follow the Lamb wherever He goes (14:4).” In particular, 7:4 – 8 portrays an army ready to fight, and 7:14 interprets the manner of their fighting; they conquer in no other way than that of the Lamb, by persevering in the midst of suffering. The Book of Revelation pp 422 – 426

So, what are reasons some conclude the 144, 000 are an army?

1. The portrayal of God’s people as an army fits nicely with the theme of Revelation, in which the overcomers are those who win military victory in the war between the Lamb and satan.
2. The reason for a census in the Old Testament was to determine fighting strength (Numbers 1:3, 18, 20; 26: 2, 4; 1 Chronicles 27:23; 2 Samuel 24:1 – 9)
3. The males of military age were counted
4. The phrase “from the tribe of” echoes Numbers 1:21 & 23
5. The 144, 000 are male virgins (Revelation 14:1 – 4)
6. The use of thousands may also have a military connotation (David Chilton, “Israel as it was meant to be, in all its perfection, symmetry, and completeness; the holy Army of God, mustered for battle according to her thousands. 1 Chronicles 4 –7; Numbers 10:2 – 4, 35 – 36; 31:1 – 5 Days of Vengeance pp 203 – 212)
7. The washing of their robes is reminiscent of the ritual of purification after warfare (Numbers 31:21 –24)

Convinced? I’m not completely, but it seems to be grounded more solidly than some of the other ideas out there and it actually enhances or gives a richer understanding to the view I hold; “John is using symbolic language to communicate the complete number of God’s people… In the end, God resolves everything completely and brings the complete number of His people (the New Jerusalem, the Bride) to complete glory.”

Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land and the sea: “Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.” Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel. Revelation 7:2 – 4 (NIV)

When we consider the 144, 000 servants of God, there are two primary identifications.

They are literally Jewish Christians

The primary reasons for taking this passage at face value fall under the the lexical argument:

1. The passage states that the 144, 000 come out of Israel… they are a remnant chosen out of the totality of Israel.
2. The normal usage of the term “Israel” in the New Testament always refers to the physical or literal descendents of Jacob. References to a “spiritual Israel” are few and disputed.
3. Reference to twelve tribes naturally refer to historic Israel and this group would literally fulfill Paul’s words concerning “all Israel” in Romans 11. It seems a bit “over the top” to divide the number into tribes and name them, if the idea is simply to communicate the notion of “completeness” through this symbolic group (see below).

John is using symbolic language to communicate the complete number of God’s people

1. Paul himself made a distinction between the true, spiritual Jew and the physical descendants of Abraham (Romans 2:28-29; 9:8) and John also makes this distinction in the letters to the seven churches (Revelation 2:9; 3:9).
2. Promises to the victors in the seven churches of Asia are fulfillments of OT promises given to Israel and the Jews in Philadelphia are cast in the same light as the pagan nations that Israel would subdue (3:9 cross Isaiah 60:14, 45:14, 49:23).
3. In Revelation 21:9-12, the believers are called the “bride, the wife of the Lamb and identified with the New Jerusalem — on its twelve gates are inscribed the “names of the twelve tribes of Israel.”
4. The followers of Christ are identified as “Abraham’s seed” (Galatians 3:29), as “the true circumcision” (Philippians 3:3) and as the “Israel of God” (Gal 6:16, but this is disputed)… James addresses his epistle to the “12 tribes scattered” and Peter addresses his letters to the diaspora.
5. Peter also describes the church (Jew and Gentile) as a “holy priesthood,” “chosen people,” “a royal priesthood” and a “holy nation”.

Under these two headings, commentators diverge into some very different identifications of who, what, where and when the 144, 000 are sealed. I will survey my stack of commentaries, identify some of these opinions and, then, conclude with the bottom line; God’s faithfulness to His people

Literal Jewish Christians

• The prevailing dispensationalist understanding of this group is that the Church was raptured in Chapter 4 of Revelation, that this passage is to be taken literally, that these are ethnic Jewish Christians, taken from tribal Israel, who are evangelizing during the seven year tribulation. Though there may be slight differences, this would be the understanding of John Walvoord, Robert L. Thomas, Hal Lindsey, J. Vernon McGee, Arno Gaebelein, Charles Ryrie, Donald Barnhouse and J.A. Seiss.
• Walter Scott takes the 144, 000 as literal Jewish believers, sealed to participate in the millennial reign of Christ.
• Matthew Henry, though a historicist, sees the 144, 000 as literal Jews, believing in Christ, preserved through the destruction of Jerusalem in the first century.
• Preterists generally think these are Jewish Christians, sealed for deliverance from the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem in 70 A.D. I think they would say the number indicates completeness (symbolic), but nevertheless a “remnant of Israel through the tribulation.” Perhaps this is one of the few places the preterist agrees with the dispensationalist, the difference being that one sees the tribulation at the beginning, the other at the end. A variant of this idea would be David Chilton, who sees them as an army of believers in the first century (more on that in a later post).

The Complete Number of God’s People

• Albert Barnes, the historicist, sees this number as symbolic of “the Israel of God,” preserved through the time of the Roman empire.
• Preterists and idealists often see the 144, 000 (12, 000 X 12) as symbolic of completeness.
• Futurists such as George Eldon Ladd, Robert Mounce and Alan F. Johnson would view this as a symbolic number representing the complete number of Christians, both Jewish and Gentile, sealed to endure the great tribulation.
• James Ramsey, a postmillennialist, sees the 144, 000 as Mounce and Ladd, yet preserved throughout history.

As of this week, I throw my hat in with Ladd, Mounce and Johnson, citing many of the reasons under the heading above, “John is using symbolic language to communicate the complete number of God’s people,” yet I would put a lot of weight on the notion of completeness of God’s people, communicated through the number 12. For example, 12 tribes, 12 apostles, “a woman… with twelve stars on her head, [New Jerusalem, the bride]…high wall with twelve gates… twelve angels at the gates… On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel… The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb… The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl… On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month.” In the end, God resolves everything completely and brings the complete number of His people (the New Jerusalem, the Bride) to complete glory.

The bottom line for the 144, 000, whoever they are, is that God will preserve His people through whatever trials they face, whenever they face them. That would be encouraging to the believers in the seven churches, throughout time or through a future tribulation, the great one.

But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict. You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. All men will hate you because of me. But not a hair of your head will perish. By standing firm you will gain life. Luke 21:14 – 19 (NIV)

“How do those who think the first rider in chapter 6 of Revelation arrive at the conclusion he’s the antichrist, in light of the fact that the rider is simply identified as “its rider” and he’s on a white horse, like Jesus in Chapter 19?” (paraphrased)

This an excellent question and I think John Walvoord gives us the short answer:

It is inevitable that any exposition of Revelation must have presuppositions based upon a study of the entire Word of God and involving the question as to whether prophecy should be interpreted with the same degree of literalness as other portions of Scripture… The ultimate decision depends upon what evidence is considered decisive. The Revelation of Jesus Christ, 123 & 135

But, given Walvoord’s observation, some commentators do not fall out in predictable categories on this passage. Historicists generally identify the rider on the white horse with the ascendancy of Rome to the pinnacle of its power, with the exceptions of a few who take a preterist view (that it applies to the Roman conquest of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.). Idealists generally see this conqueror as the Lord and His gospel going forth throughout the known world and Steve Gregg quotes Biederwolf to the effect that, “Almost all scholars down to A.D 150 took the image as a symbol of the preached gospel and its success.” George Eldon Ladd, a historic premillennialist and futurist, (somewhat surprisingly) adopts this view as well.

So, how do futurists such as Walvoord, Ice, Ryrie and LaHaye arrive at the rider being antichrist? They would place this rider in the great tribulation, following the rapture of the church in Revelation 4 and link him to conquest through “counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders” by the man of lawlessness 2 Thessalonians 2:5 -12. Walvoord weighs out the various options and concludes that:

A more plausible explanation is that the rider of the white horse is none other than the ‘prince that shall come’ of Daniel 9:26, who is to head up the revived Roman Empire and ultimately become the world ruler… He is Satan’s masterpiece and the counterfeit of all that Christ is or claims to be. He is therefore cast in the role of a conqueror… The Revelation of Jesus Christ, 126

On the other hand, Mounce, Johnson and Salisbury are futurists/premillennialists who would see the rider as the personification of “forces opposed to Christians” or government/rule by pagans in the last days (between Christ’s resurrection and the Day of the Lord). Surprisingly, it is the amillennialist Greg Beale who tends to agree with the premillennialists and sees the rider as the personification of judgment upon the world and persecution of the people of God. He provides a few pages of exegesis and ends with this summation:

Therefore, the first rider represents a satanic force attempting to defeat and oppress believers spiritually through deception, persecution, or both (so 11:7; 13:7). The image of the rider may include reference to (1) the antichrist, (2) governments that persectute Christians, or (3) the devil’s servants in general… The portrayal is intended by John as a parody of Christ’s righteousness and victory in 19:11-16: Satan’s attempts to be victorious are but feeble imitations of Christ, worthy only for ridicule (as in, e.g. 11:7; 13:1-13). Such attempts are doomed to failure from the beginning because they are ultimately decreed by God to contribute to the establishment of his kingdom and glory (cf. 17:17). The Book of Revelation 377

One final observation from a futurist point of view: “Is it not possible that the identification of the rider as a malevolent force or person be a picture of recurring judgments against disobedient Israel in 70 A.D., the church in a state of apostasy and a Christ rejecting world throughout history, leading up to a great cataclysmic event like “the tribulation, the great one and the Day of the Lord?”

What is the relationship between the seals, trumpets, and bowls? Do they follow one another in sequence, do they overlap or do they follow any sequence at all? This is a question that many have wrestled with and the different answers to this question span all methods of interpretation.

There are three options… ( I should learn by now to say, “at least three options…”).

1. They are sequential, just as they appear in Revelation.
2. The seals, trumpets and bowls conclude at the same point in time, so that each group of seven takes us back to the beginning of the previous seven, describing the same events using different symbols or pictures.
3. The seven trumpets describe the judgments of the seventh seal, and the seven bowls describe the judgments of the seventh trumpet

I take the view that the events follow chronologically… with the sixth seal of chapter 6, taking us right up to the period of the outpouring of God’s wrath that is enacted in the trumpet and bowl judgments.

1. The sixth seal brings us into the period of God’s wrath on the “earthdwellers” who have not been sealed… those who worship the beast — pagans
2. But, the sixth seal does not cover the second coming of Christ (6:12-17).
3. The seventh seal opens the scroll completely and introduces the trumpet judgments, which are carried out until the seventh trumpet brings us the bowls. (11:15-18).
4. The seven trumpets take us into the tribulation… the great one.
5. The seventh bowl brings us to the consummation and return of Christ.

Once we have that question answered, another arises and that is, “Are the events described in the seals, trumpets and bowls literal or figurative?”

I like the way Alan Johnson frames the discussion in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary on Revelation:

The second problem concerns the literalness of the events described under each trumpet. The important but hard question is not literal versus nonliteral but what did John intend? Some things may need to be understood more literally and others quite symbolically. pg 95

What do you think? How do the seals, trumpets and bowls relate to one another and are the events described literal, figurative or a combination? At what point in history do the seals, trumpets and bowls take place. How did you arrive at your conclusions? Finally, how is God seen as ruling and reigning through the trumpets and bowls? What is your response, as a disciple of Jesus?

And around the throne, on each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind:  the first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like an eagle in flight.  And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” Revelation 4:6b–8 ESV

The question arose whether the four creatures might relate to Israel somehow or if that idea, which some remembered hearing before, really had any validity. Again, what do we know? We see simile again; the first creature was like a lion. But, what significance can we see in the four? Well, we saw their relation to a common thread running through chapter 4 and that is God receiving glory in all of creation. So, what about the appearance of the four creatures and their relation to Israel in the wilderness? Actually, Greg Beale finds a source in the Targums and provides an application here:

The tribes of Israel were divided into four groups in the wilderness, and each group was located at one of the four directions of the compass, with the sanctuary in the middle of the camp. According to Targ. Pal. Num. 2 each group had a standard with the colors of the stones representing their tribes on the priest’s breastplate and with an insignia on it: a lion, a stag (originally an ox), a man, and a serpent (which later tradition changed to an eagle). Later Jewish tradition affirmed that this configuration was intended to reflect the arrangement of the four guardian angels around the divine throne… it could suggest further that the living creatures in Rev. 4:8ff represent humanity, especially the worship of the ideal community of God. The Book of Revelation pg. 331

On the identification of the creatures with the four gospels, George Eldon Ladd gives us a brief synopsis for those who may want to track these down:

From early times, these four creatures have been thought to represent the four gospels. Irenaeus… thought that the lion represented John, the ox Luke, the man Matthew, and the Eagle Mark. Victorinus… followed by Jerome … changed the order. The lion was Matthew, the man Mark, the ox Luke, and the eagle John. Such interpretations are interesting… A Commentary of the Revelation of John pp. 77 & 78

John Walvoord gives us a very good discussion on the four creatures in The Revelation of Jesus Christ pp.108 – 112 and comes to virtually the same conclusion as Beale, Alan Johnson and Robert Mounce; the creatures are angelic or heavenly beings, reflecting God’s majesty, “fullness of life and power.”

I concluded that the four creatures represent the ideal of all of creation, praising God by doing what they were created to do. M.G. Reddish points to the creation motif in Chapter 4 and throughout the Revelation:

The praise of God as creator is not an incidental doctrine that John happens to include only in passing. God’s creative activity is at the heart of God’s sovereignty. God is sovereign over the world because this is God’s world.

The creatures picture the animal creation from the four corners of the world – the wild beasts in the lion, domesticated creatures in the ox, the birds of the air in the eagle and man as the crown of God’s creation. This view also takes into consideration this nearly forgotten fact: When Adam fell, he brought down the entire creation – the Lamb of God, the First born of all Creation, will redeem it all!

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. Romans 8:18–22 ESV

But, we also concluded as we did with the 24 elders: It would be a huge mistake to get hung up on their description and miss their primary function, their role in heaven: Worship!

Last week in our study of Revelation we discussed the thrust of chapter 4, which we concluded was the centrality of God in His universe and the promise that in heaven and soon (we hope) on earth, all creation will fulfill it’s purpose in glorifying God and bringing Him praise. John writes:

and before the throne there was as it were a sea of glass, like crystal. Revelation 4:6 ESV

Greg Beale ties together threads from Exodus, Ezekiel and Daniel with references through the Revelation, culminating in the New Heavens and New Earth in Chapter 21:

The “sea” is also associated with the idea of evil. Caird has argued that here it connotes cosmic evil, since it often has such a nuance in the OT and sometimes elsewhere in Revelation (see Rev. 13:1; 21:; and especially 15:2, as well as “abyss” in 11:7). This speculation receives support from the modeling of these chapters on Daniel 7, and the scenes of Daniel 7 and Ezekiel 1 have integral literary links, the former usually seen as dependent on the latter… In view of the Daniel and Exodus [24:9-1] imagery, there is then a hint that John sees the chaotic powers of the sea as calmed by divine sovereignty. Rev. 5:5ff reveals that Christ’s overcoming through his death and resurrection is what defeated the power of evil and so calmed Satan’s watery, tumultuous abode. 4:6 gives a picture of the stilling of the hellish waters from the heavenly perspective, though the devil displays his wrath even more furiously on earth because he has been decisively defeated in heaven… The lamb’s “overcoming” has also paved the way for the saint’s “overcoming” of the beast at the same sea, as pictured in 15:2-4. When John later says that “there is no longer any sea” (21:1), he means that all evil on the earth will be not only defeated but also eradicated when Christ’s kingdom is established consummately on earth. In fact, the “sea of glass like a crystal before the throne” in 4:6 may be an intentional contrast with “a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne” in 22:1. The sea as the source of satanic evil opposing God’s throne has been eliminated and replaced by the river of redemption, which has its source in the throne. The Book of Revelation, pp 327 & 328

Although there is no unanimous agreement on the crystal sea, most seem to agree that what we are seeing is a simile… the sea is like crystal or glass. It certainly conveys the glory and majesty of the presence of God and is related somehow to His sovereignty over creation (4:6 – 11). It also has something to say about His ability to see all and manage His creation.

Let me take a moment to say that this is just the sort of thing we set up this discussion for — a worthwhile topic came up, which was beyond the scope and time constraints of our Sunday study. It involves a number of opinions from various sources and Beale even refers to some of the conclusions as “speculation,” even though he cites some pretty compelling (if circumstantial) evidence. However, these kinds of topics can be rich, rewarding and build up the Body of Christ, if done with thoughtfulness, love and grounding in the Scriptures. So, feel free to comment here.

But it is not merely for supper that Christ enters the human soul. It is also to exercise sovereignty. If he comes in to bestow his salvation, he comes in also to receive our submission. His entry is an occupation. He comes in to take control. No room may be locked against him. He has conquered us. He is the master of the house. His flag flies from our roof. This is what it means to be committed to Christ, and to be wholehearted in our allegiance to him. It is to surrender without conditions to his lordship. It is to seek his will in his word and promptly to obey it. It is not just attending religious services twice a Sunday or even every day, let alone on the major festivals. It is not just leading a decent life or believing certain articles of the creed. No, it is first to repent, turning decisively from everything we know to be wrong, and then to open the door to Jesus Christ, asking him to come in. It is getting our gold, our clothes, and our eye salve from him. It is being personally and unconditionally committed to him. It is putting him first and seeking his pleasure in every department of life, public and private. Nothing less will do.

What Christ Thinks Of The Church, pp. 121 & 122