Revelation 17:6-13 NASB
And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus. When I saw her, I wondered greatly. And the angel said to me, “Why do you wonder? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns.
“ The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction. And those who dwell on the earth, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come. Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits, and they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while. The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction. The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour. These have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast.
The woman is drunk from the blood of the people of God. John wonders about this image, this seductive woman who staggers from imbibing on those weak in the world, yet strong in The Lord. The blood in her cup was filled by her own hand.
The angel proceeds to explain the mystery to John, and therefore to us. Here is part of the blessing contained in this book. We who have Christ will not wonder at the beast, or receive his mark. We will not be deceived by the deceiver. This will not be possible without possessing the Holy Spirit. He allows us to see and follow the voice of our Savior. He leads us to still waters. Remember the crystal sea before the heavenly throne, smooth and without wave. The embers of the fire of God glow from within the sea.
From the sea arises the beast, which may lead some to believe we might be in the abyss. From the darkness of the world, Satan and his followers continue to assault the earth to thwart God's plan, which is part of God's plan. No longer in heaven, the cast out Satan rules this hell made so by his presence. In the end God will have harvested a people who have chosen the light over darkness. They will be refined from wild grapes of the earth into the sons of a new wine, a new and wonderful creation.
The seven heads and ten horns invite much speculation. Without out a doubt it includes the idea of the sum of worldly wisdom and power, which will not be able to stand before The Lord.
2 Thessalonians 2:7-11
For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false,
Revelation 20:15
And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
Daniel 12:8-10
I heard, but I did not understand. Then I said, “O my lord, what shall be the outcome of these things?” He said, “Go your way, Daniel, for the words are shut up and sealed until the time of the end. Many shall purify themselves and make themselves white and be refined, but the wicked shall act wickedly. And none of the wicked shall understand, but those who are wise shall understand.
No comments:
Post a Comment