Messiah has returned to earth. His feet have stood on the Mount of Olives,
Israel has been protected, and now their Savior fights for them (read the
record of Zechariah 14:1-9 that matches Revelation 19-20). In preparation for the establishment of His
earthly kingdom the following events will occur.
·
The supper of the great God, 19:17-21.
The invitation is extended (cf. Ezek. 39:17-24)
to the birds to come to eat the flesh of all men. This supper
is Armageddon, the war against the Lamb.
This is not a protracted war. The
Antichrist and False Prophet are judged on the scene and cast into the lake of
fire, the place of final judgment. The
rest of unbelievers are killed with the sword of judgment. This may seem gruesome, and it is, but
understand: this shows the true nature of anyone who rejects God’s Son as
Savior and Lord. People may think they
have no hatred of Him, but in fact they are rejecting their Creator, the One to
whom they are accountable. Also remember
that for the establishment of a kingdom of peace, righteousness and justice,
evil must be dealt with. That will
happen at the supper of the great God.
·
The binding of Satan, 20:1-3.
Not only does Jesus deal with those Satan uses;
He deals with Satan. He binds the strong man (Matt. 12:29) casting him
into the abyss, the place where
demons have been reserved for judgment (2 Peter 2:4; Luke 8:31). The repeated reference to a thousand years or millennium (six times in Rev. 20:1-7) is an indication of an
actual, literal period of time. It is
interesting that with Satan bound and thus none of his temptings to evil and
his evil system in check that there is still evil in Christ’s kingdom (He rules
with a rod of iron). It testifies to the
power of the evil in men’s hearts, being born with a sinful nature.
·
The first resurrection, 20:4-6.
The thrones
are probably those promised to the apostles (Matt. 19:28). The Church will reign with Him (2 Tim. 2:12;
Rev. 2:26-27; 3:21). The tribulation
saints will also reign with Him. All who
are raised in the first resurrection
reign with Him in His earthly reign from the throne of David in Zion. The first
resurrection is first in kind, the
raising of the just. It begins with Christ’s
resurrection (Mt. 28; 1 Cor. 15:20), the raising of the Old Testament saints
(Mt. 27:52), the resurrection at the rapture
(1 Thess. 4:16), followed by those raised here at the end of the
tribulation. The second resurrection, of the unjust, occurs after the Millennium
(Rev. 20:5,11-15). Messiah’s kingdom
begins with citizens who are righteous, the Jews and Gentiles alive at the end
of the tribulation time.
For everyone there is a resurrection. All will stand before their Creator. Preparation for that day, that moment, is
made while we live. Jesus said, “He who
hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall
not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life” (John 5:24).
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