In Secret

Matthew 6:17-18 ESV
17 But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Fasting is a pulling away from the world, an attempt to disengage our senses from creation in order to be more sensitive to the Creator.  We have the ability to perceive Him because we are created in His image.  His presence in our heart allows us to transform rather than conform to the world.  As we are drawn by His light, His image becomes clearer, to us and to others around us.  The opposite is true as well.

God judges on what is inside.  A good deed done is not good in the eyes of God unless it is done from a heart that reflects the life of God.  It is not the deed itself which is the glory of God.  It's bigger and more wonderful than that.  It is the expression of love made possible by love.
The secret place is the love of God found in the heart of the believer.  It is real and it is personal.  This is the temple of the New Jerusalem. The sons and daughters of God are new creatures that will be revealed when Christ returns, for the heart will be clearly seen. He is the First and King in the kingdom of God.  He is the Word of God and through this Word, a new creation is underway.

Revelation 21:9-27 The New Jerusalem

9 And one of1 the seven angels, the ones who have the seven bowls which are filled2 with the last seven plagues, came and spoke with me saying, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the lamb.” 10 And he carried me away in the spirit3 onto a huge4 and high mountain5. And he showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God6. 11 She7 held8 the glory of God. Her brilliance9 was similar to a precious stone like a jasper stone, clear as crystal10 . 12 She had a huge11 and high wall, having twelve gates and at the gates were twelve angels12. And there were names written on13 them which are [the names] 14of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. 13 There were three gates on the east, three gates on the north, three gates on the south, and three gates on the west. 14 And the wall of the city had15 twelve foundations16 and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the lamb17.

     15 And the one speaking with me had a golden measuring rod so that he may measure the city, her gates, and her wall. 16 Now the city is laid out in a square and her length is as long as18 the width. And he measured the city with the rod and it was over twelve thousand stadia19; her length, and the width, and the height the same20. 17 And he measured the wall and it was one hundred forty-four cubits21 (a measurement used by humans, which is also used by angels)22. 18 And the construction material of her wall was jasper and the city was pure23 gold similar to clear24 glass. 19 The foundations of the city’s wall were adorned25 with every precious stone. The first foundation jasper, the second one sapphire, the third one agate, the fourth one emerald, 20 the fifth one sardonyx, the sixth one carnelian, the seventh one chrysolite, the eighth one beryl, the ninth one topaz, the tenth one chrysoprase, the eleventh one jacinth, and the twelfth one amethyst26. 21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls. Each one of the gates was from one pearl27 . And the main street of the city was pure gold like transparent glass.

     22 And I didn’t see a temple in her, for the Lord God, the Almighty and the lamb are her temple28. 23 And the city has no need of the sun, nor the moon, that they may shine on her, for the glory of God gave light to her, and the lamb is her lamp29. 24 And the nations will walk in30 her light31, and the kings of the earth will carry their glory into her. 25 And her gates will never be shut in the daytime, for there will be no night there32. 26 And they will carry the glory and the honor of the nations into her33. 27 And every unclean34 thing and the ones who do detestable things and lie may never go into her. Only35 the ones written in the lamb’s book of life will go in.36

1 ἐκ (of) 

Greek: “from”.

2 τῶν γεμόντων (filled with) 

Greek: “full of”.

3 The passage parallels 17:1-3. There, an angel introduces the great prostitute riding a beast. The city there was Babylon/Rome. The vision here stands in contrast to Babylon as it describes the New Jerusalem. Therefore, the words of this passage are set forth to remind readers and hearers of Babylon in Chapter 17. Instead of a prostitute (Babylon) we see Jesus’ wife (New Jerusalem). Beale* (Pgs. 1063-1064).

4 μέγα (huge)

Greek: “great”. 5 Parallels with Exodus 19 and Ezekiel 40:1-2.

6 John was told that he would be shone the bride of the lamb, but he is shone the New Jerusalem! The language is figurative as it depicts the bride of Christ as a beautiful city.

     The bride of the lamb is also the wife of the lamb. The church has been joined to Christ. The New Jerusalem, purified and transformed reflecting the new creation that began and built with each believer.

7 Both “city” and “Jerusalem” are feminine words in Greek. So, the pronouns are also feminine. I decided to translate the pronouns in the feminine which is not unusual in English.

8 ἔχουσαν (she held)

Greek: “holding” or “having”. 9 or “radiance” or “ brightness”. In other words, the city was shining.

10 The first part of the verse echoes Ezekiel 43:2. It is the glory of God that is making the City to shine. In 4:3-4, it is God whose appearance is like a Jasper stone. It is difficult to see how jasper can be transparent while being an opaque stone. It may be meant that the stone was shining. Osborne*** (Pg. 749). Mounce** says that the stone may actually be a diamond and that it is transparent. (Pg. 378).

     The brilliance can signify the light of God that fills that city. It is clear as crystal for there is no impurity or imperfection in this place.

11 μέγα (huge) 

Greek: “great”.

12 Twelve gates are an allusion to Ezekiel 48:30-37. There, the gates are on the temple. Where as in Ezekiel the gates opened for tribes of Israel, here they are open to all. The angels may represent the watchmen in Isaiah 62:6, but not as guards since there is no more evil. They may be linked to the angels of the seven churches in Chapters 2-3. Osborne*** (Pg. 750).

13 ἐπιγεγραμμένα (written on)

Greek: “having been written on”.

14 “Names” may not be original to the text, thus it is shown is brackets.

15 ἔχων (had)

Greek: “having”.

16 The foundations would have been large stones that would have been chosen for their beauty and strength. Osborne*** (Pg. 751).

17 It is interesting that the twelve apostles stand as the foundation of the City’s walls and not the tribes of Israel. Walls were necessary in the ancient world because they provided protection for the city and the city’s people. Maybe the meaning here is that the New Covenant which is based on Jesus’ teaching as well as the Apostles’ teaching provides the foundation for the protection for believers. With that said, there is no longer any need of protection as all of the evil is not destroyed. In Ephesians 2:20, the foundation of the church (God’s household) is the apostles and the prophets.

Osborne*** says it signifies that both the church and Israel are the entry point into the city. (Pgs. 751-752).

     There seems to be a mixture of symbols that refer to the wall between the twelve tribes and the twelve apostles. The gates have the tribe names, but each gate was a single pearl echoing the kingdom of heaven as a pearl of great price, a New Testament symbol. The twelve foundations of that wall have the name of an apostle, just each gate has a name of one of the tribes.

     Each stone on the breastplate of the high priest represented a tribe of Israel and served as a "signet", associated with each name, of that tribe. These stones appear in this wall. These jewels adorned the foundations of the wall.

     We see the number 144 here, The last time we saw this number was in reference to the 144,000 sealed from the tribes of Israel earlier in this book.

Beale* points out that the names of the sons of Israel and the names of the apostles add up to 24 which has already been used with the 24 elders who are around God’s throne who are introduced in Chapter 4. (Pg. 1069). He goes on to say that the apostles are the foundation as in Christ, all of Israel’s promises have been fulfilled. The apostles are the foundation of the new Israel which is the Church. (Pg. 1070).

18 ὅσον (as long as) 

Greek: “as great as”.

     We see here the final measurement for the actual city done with a rod of gold. The rod of iron is no longer needed. This rod is used to measure the city of perfection.

19 As found in 14:20, a stadia was around 600 feet. That would make the city 1364 miles long, 1364 miles wide, and 1364 miles high. The number is figurative as we have a “super complete” or a “super perfection” measurement of the city: 12x10x10x10 to the third power (3)!

20 The City is laid out in a cube. Osborne*** points out that he Holy of Holies was also laid out in a cube. (Pg. 753).

21 Whether the wall is 144 cubits (216 feet) thick or 144 cubits (216 feet) high makes no difference as the wall is eclipsed by the size of the city. The 144 is also figurative for “complete” or “perfect” (12x12).

22 The actual Greek is crude: μέτρον ἀνθρώπου, ὅ ἐστιν ἀγγέλου (a measure of man, which is of an angel). It basically means that the measurement was based on a standard measuring unit used by humans. In this case, the angels use the same measuring unit as well. It can also be seen as a reminder that what John sees here is figurative in nature.

23 καθαρὸν (pure) 

or “clean”. In this case, the gold had no impurities.

24 καθαρῷ (clear) 

or “clean”. This is the same Greek word that was used in describing the “pure gold”.

25 κεκοσμημένοι (were adorned) 

Greek: “having been adorned”.

26 There is debate over what the jewels stand for. Are they signs of the Zodiac or the jewels on the priest garment (So Beale* Pgs. 1080-1081). Perhaps the best way to see this is as Isaiah 54:11-13 portrays the restored Jerusalem; as a city built in splendor.

27 In other words, the pearls were so large that one gate could be made or carved from one pearl.

28 Osborne*** states that the city is the Holy of Holies itself. (Pg. 760). Also, see John 2:19.

     This is supported by the idea of no temple being present. The Holy of Holies is where God dwells.

29 An allusion to Isaiah 60:19.

30 διὰ (in)

Greek: “through”.

     Those that walk in the light are of the the light. The light of the world is fully revealed.

31 The TR adds τῶν σωζομένων (the ones who are saved) after “the nations”.

32 In ancient times, city gates were shut at night.

33 These two verses are allusions to Isaiah 60:3, 5, 11. The Kings of the earth will not bring riches into the city, they will bring themselves into the city to praise and worship God. Beale* (Pg. 1095). There is basically a dual picture here as the bride is the city as well as the people (being represented here as the nations). It is meant to be taken figuratively.

It is also possible that the New Jerusalem is alive and well today and that the bride has made herself ready for the bride-groom through out the church age. Since the New Jerusalem is Jesus’ bride, it is the light of the witness of the of believers (the church) who light the way for all of those who don’t believe, for it is the light of the city in which the nations walk by. In Chapter one, we see the image of lambstands and we see in 2:1-7 that Ephesus’ lampstand (witness) would be removed from its place if they didn’t fix their compromising attitude.

     The new creation is underway. God will dwell in the New Jerusalem. Today, He dwells in the heart of each believer prior to the revealing that is to come. It is the light of the Holy Spirit that binds us into the body of Christ. It is this light which shines in our hearts and lights the way. Jesus walked among the lampstands and supplied the light they gave forth. No other light is necessary, nor will be.

     We are new creatures in Christ, born from above, made spiritually alive. We await in Spirit for the One Who was raised in a perfected body. We will see Him and we will be like Him. Heaven and earth are combined. This is the promise of life and where we place our faith. It is His Spirit that confirms this and He will do it.

34 κοινὸν (unclean) 

or “common”. The represents a shift in John’s vocabulary. Up unto now, John has used ἀκάθαρτος to portray unclean things.

35 εἰ μὴ (only) 

Greek: “except”.

36 The final verse of this passage is a reminder to those who this book was written to as well as us that unbelievers can not enter the Holy City of God, nor can they be the Lamb’s bride.

Abbreviations

NT = New Testament 

OT = Old Testament 

ESV = English Standard Version 

NASB = New American Standard Bible

NIV = New International Version

KJV = King James Version 

TR = Textus Receptus (A late Byzantine Greek text of the NT. A 

predecessor of the TR was used in the translation of the KJV) 

LXX = Septuagint (Greek translation of the OT)

Bibliography

The Greek New Testament with Greek-English Dictionary B. Aland (Editor), K. Aland (Editor), J. Karavidopoulos (Editor), B. M. Metzger (Editor), C. M. Martini (Editor)

(BDAG) A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd Edition Walter Bauer (Author), Frederick William Danker (Editor)

A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament Bruce M. Metzger

(Kittel) Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (VOLUMES 1-10) Gerhard Kittel (Editor), Geoffrey W. Bromiley (Translator)

*The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text (New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, Mich.).) G. K. Beale

**The Book of Revelation (The New International Commentary on the New Testament) Robert H. Mounce

***Revelation (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament) Grant R. Osborne

+Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics Daniel B. Wallace

++An Idiom Book of New Testament Greek C. F. D. Moule

+++Biblical Greek (Scripta Pontificii Instituti Biblici) Maximilian Zerwick

A Grammatical Analysis of the Greek New Testament Max Zerwick (Author), Mary Grosvenor (Author)

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Posted By Russell Beatty to Nuggets in the Biblical Greek at 8/29/2011 06:10:00 AM

Breathing

Prayer is breathing the breath of God.

An Ongoing Refreshment

A person can only truly say "I love you"when they have received the love of God in the person of Jesus Christ.  It is an ongoing refreshment of the living water that is found in the vine, the Son of God.
We who do not deserve the lavish love that God gives us so freely are called to love each other in the same way.  Our understanding of this love will be mirrored in the way we love.
His love endures forever.

Revelation 20:11-15 The Great White Throne Of Judgment

Introduction

Everyone will face the last judgement. This passage is both the 2nd resurrection and the 2nd death. It is interesting that the actual words “2nd resurrection” never occur in Revelation, but is inferred here. The order and how the people get to the final judgement depends greatly on the view held.

1.Premillennialism sees all believers resurrected in the “1st resurrection” and “the rest” resurrected (2nd resurrection) for the final judgment. The believers are judged first, followed by the unbelievers.

2.Amillennialism sees the “1st resurrection” as an “intermediate state” for believers throughout the church age and the “2nd resurrection” as the bringing to life all people, both believing and unbelieving, for the final judgement.

3.Postmillennialism sees “1st resurrection” only for the martyrs spoken of throughout the Apocalypse and the “2nd resurrection” as the rest of believers as well as the unbelieving.

Beale* (Pg. 1034) asks the question: “How can deceased believers be included in the realm ruled over by malevolent powers?” His answer is “...until the final resurrection, though their spirits are with the Lord, their physical bodies still lie under the power of death and Satan and the old world.” He points to 1 Corinthians 15:50-57:

Κορινθίους α 15·50 Τοῦτο δέ φημι, ἀδελφοί, ὅτι σὰρξ καὶ αἷμα βασιλείαν θεοῦ κληρονομῆσαι οὐ δύναται οὐδὲ ἡ φθορὰ τὴν ἀφθαρσίαν κληρονομεῖ. 51 ἰδοὺ μυστήριον ὑμῖν λέγω· πάντες οὐ κοιμηθησόμεθα, πάντες δὲ ἀλλαγησόμεθα, 52 ἐν ἀτόμῳ, ἐν ῥιπῇ ὀφθαλμοῦ, ἐν τῇ ἐσχάτῃ σάλπιγγι· σαλπίσει γὰρ καὶ οἱ νεκροὶ ἐγερθήσονται ἄφθαρτοι καὶ ἡμεῖς ἀλλαγησόμεθα. 53 Δεῖ γὰρ τὸ φθαρτὸν τοῦτο ἐνδύσασθαι ἀφθαρσίαν καὶ τὸ θνητὸν τοῦτο ἐνδύσασθαι ἀθανασίαν. 54 ὅταν δὲ τὸ φθαρτὸν τοῦτο ἐνδύσηται ἀφθαρσίαν καὶ τὸ θνητὸν τοῦτο ἐνδύσηται ἀθανασίαν, τότε γενήσεται ὁ λόγος ὁ γεγραμμένος·

κατεπόθη ὁ θάνατος εἰς νῖκος. Κορινθίους α 15·55 ποῦ σου, θάνατε, τὸ νῖκος;

ποῦ σου, θάνατε, τὸ κέντρον; 56 τὸ δὲ κέντρον τοῦ θανάτου ἡ ἁμαρτία, ἡ δὲ δύναμις τῆς ἁμαρτίας ὁ νόμος· 57 τῷ δὲ θεῷ χάρις τῷ διδόντι ἡμῖν τὸ νῖκος διὰ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.

     50 But I say this to you, brothers, that flesh and blood are not able to inherit the kingdom of God, neither is the perishable able to inherit the nonperishable. 51Behold, I speak a mystery to you: All will not die, but all will be changed, 52 in a moment, in a blinking of an eye, in the last trumpet. For he will sound a trumpet and the dead will be raised nonperishable and we will be changed. 53 For this perishable must put on nonperishable and this mortal put on immortal. 54 But whenever this perishable may put on nonperishable and this mortal may put on nonperishable, then it will become the written word:

     ‘Death was swallowed up by victory. 

55  Death, where is your victory?

     Death, where is your sting?’ 

56 But the sting of death is sin, but the power of sin is the law. 57 And favor to God who gives to us the victory through our Lord Jesus, the Anointed one.

     11 And I saw a great white throne1 and the one sitting on it, whose face2, the earth and heaven fled away from and no place was found for them3 . 12 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing4 before the throne. And books were opened5. And another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books; according to their deeds6. 13 And the sea7 gave the dead who were in it and death and the realm of the dead8 gave the dead who were in them. And they were judged, everyone according to their deeds. 14 And death and the realm of the dead were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death; the lake of fire. 15 And if anyone was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

1 θρόνον μέγαν λευκὸν (a great white throne)

“Great” here probably means ‘huge” or “large”. “White” represents “holiness” and “purity” which are common themes throughout the Apocalypse.

     This could also be indicative of the preeminence of Who sits on the throne, as fitting for the King of Kings.

2 οὗ ἀπὸ τοῦ προσώπου (whose face...away from)

The phrase is actually a relative pronoun οὗ “whose” plus a prepositional phrase ἀπὸ τοῦ προσώπου “away from the face” or “away from the presence”. I broke up the prepositional phrase to make the passage flow a little smoother.

3 This statement is looking forward to 21:1. The first heaven (sky) and earth must go away in order for the the new heaven and earth to come down. Osborne*** thinks that this means that total destruction has come to the first heaven and earth. (Pg. 721).

4 ἑστῶτας (standing)

Greek: “having stood”.

5 An allusion to Daniel 7:10.

6 Osborne*** sees verse 12 as the judgement for the righteous and the latter verses as judgement for unbelievers. (Pgs. 721-722).

     Only the dead are judged according to their deeds. Those in the book of life are judged for life.

7 The sea has been seen as an evil place throughout the Apocalypse.

8 ὁ θάνατος καὶ ὁ ᾅδης (death and the realm of the dead)

Greek: “Death and Hades”. Death and Hades have already been spoken of in 1:18 where Jesus holds the keys to Death and Hades, and in 6:8 where Death and Hades ride the pale green horse.

The throwing of Death and Hades into the lake of fire brings to mind Paul’s passage in 1 Corinthians 15:26:

Κορινθίους α 15·26 ἔσχατος ἐχθρὸς καταργεῖται ὁ θάνατος· 

26 The last enemy to be put to an end is death.

In 1 Corinthians 15:26, the infinitive verb καταργεῖται, which I have translated “to be put to an end”, can also mean that what death produces will no longer have an effect. That idea is also here in the Apocalypse. Death and Hades no longer have an effect on believers as the two are completely separated. Interestingly enough, the unbelievers are now placed in the very place where death and hades now reside.

Abbreviations

NT = New Testament 

OT = Old Testament 

ESV = English Standard Version 

NASB = New American Standard Bible

NIV = New International Version

KJV = King James Version 

TR = Textus Receptus (A late Byzantine Greek text of the NT. A 

predecessor of the TR was used in the translation of the KJV) 

LXX = Septuagint (Greek translation of the OT)

Bibliography

The Greek New Testament with Greek-English Dictionary B. Aland (Editor), K. Aland (Editor), J. Karavidopoulos (Editor), B. M. Metzger (Editor), C. M. Martini (Editor)

(BDAG) A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd Edition Walter Bauer (Author), Frederick William Danker (Editor)

A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament Bruce M. Metzger

(Kittel) Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (VOLUMES 1-10) Gerhard Kittel (Editor), Geoffrey W. Bromiley (Translator)

*The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text (New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, Mich.).) G. K. Beale

**The Book of Revelation (The New International Commentary on the New Testament) Robert H. Mounce

***Revelation (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament) Grant R. Osborne

+Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics Daniel B. Wallace

++An Idiom Book of New Testament Greek C. F. D. Moule

+++Biblical Greek (Scripta Pontificii Instituti Biblici) Maximilian Zerwick

A Grammatical Analysis of the Greek New Testament Max Zerwick (Author), Mary Grosvenor (Author)

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Posted By Russell Beatty to Nuggets in the Biblical Greek at 8/24/2011 06:17:00 AM

Image

We were made in His image, but must be remade, born again into a new creation, into the image of Christ Who is the very image of God.

Edge Of Love

One who follows Christ is in a sense the edge of the sword of truth.  The word of truth resides in each heart where the Holy Spirit dwells, for this is the Spirit of God which guides us into all truth.
As we manifest the word, we are used by God to His glory, and the kingdom grows.  Love calls in love to love, and love answers.  We lead with this edge.

I Now Live

Galatians 2:20 NASB
20 I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
Paul speaks of a changed and new life.  The resurrection of Jesus allows us to follow after Him into life.  This is what it means that we must bear our own cross.  We have to give to Him what He gave to us.  He did not object to giving it all that we might have everything.  He could see the glory set before Him: ours and His for the glory of God.
Our person is not lost in this transaction.  On the contrary, we find we are merely the seed of who we will become.

Discipleship

Growth in discipleship has to do with moving from faith in the abstract to bearing the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

Revelation 20:7-10 The Defeat Of Satan

Introduction

The passage begs the question: “Why is Satan released to deceive the nations again?” Mounce** (Pg. 361) says that “neither the designs of Satan nor the waywordness of the human will be altered by the passing of time”.

The Amillennial is much easier as that view states that the war in this passage is the very same war spoken about in 19:11-21 which is also described in 16:17-21. Satan has been “limited” so that there will be a church, but he is not unleashed in order to try to destroy it.

     7 And when1 the thousand years should be complete, Satan will be released2 from his prison. 8 He will come out to deceive3 the nations, the ones in the four corners of the earth4, God and Magog5, to gather them together for war6. Their number7 is like the sand of the sea8. 9 And they went up on the breath of the earth9and surrounded the camp of the saints10, namely, the beloved city11. And fire came down from heaven and consumed12 them13 . 10 And the devil who deceived14them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulphur where both the wild beast and the false prophet were thrown. They will be tormented day and night15 forever16.

1 ὅταν (when)

or “whenever”. This word is a continued source of debate among scholars. Amillennialist say the word needs “whenever” so that the figurative force of the passage can be seen. Premillennialist say it means “when” to show that there must be a fixed completion time after 1000 years. I should also note that the following verb τελεσθῇ (should be complete) is in the subjunctive which adds a degree of probability. The whole passage can also be translated “when/whenever the thousand years might be complete” or “when/whenever the thousand years may be complete”. Osborne*** (Pg. ) agrees with “when” and Beale* (Pgs. 1021-1022) agrees with “whenever”.

2 λυθήσεται (will be released) 

Greek: “will be loosed”.

     Perhaps this could infer the Tribulation, which is thought by many to begin in the middle of the seven years of the last week.

3 πλανῆσαι (to deceive) 

Greek: “to lead astray”. Satan deceives the nations of the earth in order to make war.

     The deception intensifies and is more and more apparent.

4 An idiom that means “from everywhere throughout the earth”. We also see this phrase in 7:1.

5 τὸν Γὼγ καὶ Μαγώγ (Gog and Magog)

Transliterated Hebrew. An allusion to Ezekiel 38-39. Gog means “the king of the northern lands” and Magog means “the land of Gog”. Here, it is symbolic for all of the people on the earth who are unbelievers.

     Walid Shoebat’s book “God’s War On Terror” presents an compelling case for these references not only to symbolize unbelievers, but indicate ,in particular, the Islamic enemies surrounding Israel, even naming the nations. These are nations that openly seek the annihilation of Israel and consider the idea of Christ as the Son of God, crucified, and raised as part of the Godhead as blasphemous. They consider the Bible as corrupt and that Jesus serves Muhammed.

John sees this as a fulfillment of Ezekiel 38-39 where Israel is now believers (the Israel of God) in Galatians.

6 συναγαγεῖν αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸν πόλεμον (to gather them together for war)

Osborne*** (Pg. 713) states where 20:3-4 seems problematic for the Amillennial view, he is balanced in saying that 20:8b is problematic for the Premillennial view as it is the very same line as 16:14. He holds to the view that it was the “Army” that was destroyed in 19:17-20 and the people here are unbelievers who didn’t fight in that battle.

7 ὧν ὁ ἀριθμὸς αὐτῶν (Their number) 

Greek: “whose the number of them”.

8 Idiomatic in nature. The people of the nations were so many that they could not be counted.

     Satan stood on the sand by the sea and looked out with defiance and malice. He will not stand before the Lord, Whose feet will rest on the Mount of Olives and gives voice to the Mountain of God.

9 Osborne*** says that “the breadth of the earth” adds to the imagery of the “four corners” and means that the people came from everywhere. (Pgs. 713-714). Mounce** thinks it to be a metaphor that describes that there is a large space around the camp of the saints so that Satan’s army can surround it. (Pg. 363).

10 In the OT, “the camp” was that of Israel in their wanderings after the exodus. They would camp around the tent of meeting where God’s presence was. Beale* points out a possible parallel from the Dead Sea Scrolls! TheWar Scroll “projects Israel’s wilderness encampment into the time preceding the end of history, referring to the ‘camps of the saints’ where the ‘bliss of God’ swells at the end time, when the enemy attempts to destroy the camp of true Israel, the Qumran community in the wilderness. But ‘God overthrows all the sons of darkness...and destroyed them’ (1QM 3:5-9)”. (Pg. 1026).

11 Figuratively meaning Jerusalem. From the context of the preceding passages, we know that it is the Lamb and the saints (believers) who are being sieged. In the OT, Israel and Jerusalem are not always meant literally. Sometimes Israel and Jerusalem represent God’s people in the OT. Such is the same here. Jerusalem is representing God’s people: Christian believers. Those believers consists of Gentiles as well as Jews who have become Christian believers. Paul spoke of his native people in Romans 11 as not being rejected as they too had the ability to believe in Jesus.

12 κατέφαγεν (consumed) 

Greek: “devoured” or “ate up”.

13 Note that like 19:11-21, there is no battle or at least not by the enemies of the camp of God. Just as the passage in 19:11-21 stated that the army’s destruction was so complete that the birds feed on the flesh of the soldiers, here, the fire consuming the army of nations here is total in its destruction.

14 See note of verse 8.

15 ἡμέρας καὶ νυκτὸς (day and night) 

An idiom that means “continually”.

16 εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων (forever) 

Greek: “into the ages of ages”.

Abbreviations

NT = New Testament 

OT = Old Testament 

ESV = English Standard Version 

NASB = New American Standard Bible

NIV = New International Version

KJV = King James Version 

TR = Textus Receptus (A late Byzantine Greek text of the NT. A 

predecessor of the TR was used in the translation of the KJV) 

LXX = Septuagint (Greek translation of the OT)

Bibliography

The Greek New Testament with Greek-English Dictionary B. Aland (Editor), K. Aland (Editor), J. Karavidopoulos (Editor), B. M. Metzger (Editor), C. M. Martini (Editor)

(BDAG) A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd Edition Walter Bauer (Author), Frederick William Danker (Editor)

A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament Bruce M. Metzger

(Kittel) Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (VOLUMES 1-10) Gerhard Kittel (Editor), Geoffrey W. Bromiley (Translator)

*The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text (New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, Mich.).) G. K. Beale

**The Book of Revelation (The New International Commentary on the New Testament) Robert H. Mounce

***Revelation (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament) Grant R. Osborne

+Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics Daniel B. Wallace

++An Idiom Book of New Testament Greek C. F. D. Moule

+++Biblical Greek (Scripta Pontificii Instituti Biblici) Maximilian Zerwick

A Grammatical Analysis of the Greek New Testament Max Zerwick (Author), Mary Grosvenor (Author)

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Posted By Russell Beatty to Nuggets in the Biblical Greek at 8/22/2011 06:20:00 AM