This is the Book of Revelation as a working scenario. The purpose is to place its verses in chronological order, continually moving verses to remove contradictions as more is learned.
SATAN IS BOUND FOR A THOUSAND YEARS
THRONES SET UP AND SAINTS RULE WITH CHRIST
A NEW HEAVEN AND NEW EARTH
Verse 4 echoes Isaiah 35:10:
MAKING ALL THINGS NEW
Peter associates the Church looking for these things with Christ coming as a
thief in the night, meaning "as the dawn comes upon thieves," exposing them
for what they are:
The promise of a new heaven and new earth does not mean this one will not be
here. The word "new" means to "regenerate," not cast away and bring in
something entirely different. The promise of a new heaven and a new earth by
God is a regenerating of the earth and heavens because of the change at the
glorious coming of Christ and His glorifying those who are His. At this
time, creation will be freed from corruption:
This points to the end of the tribulation because the hope of the Christian
and his being released from corruption is the SAME hope of creation. They
must occur at the same time because there is only one hope in the one coming
of Christ. If the sons of God are released before the end of the
tribulation, then all of creation would be released as well and go through
whatever is left of the tribulation being regenerated while God does a turn-
around and devastates this now freed creation with His plagues and wrath.
The same word "new" is used of the Christian by Paul:
2 Cor 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old
things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
Just like our old man "passes away," so does Peter say the earth and heavens
"pass away" in the 2 Peter 3. Just as we will be free from corruption and
made totally new, so shall creation. This all happens at the end of the
tribulation, not at the end of the millennium.
The promise of a new heavens and a new earth Peter talks about are DURING
THE MILLENNIUM as shown by Isaiah:
Isaiah 66:22 For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make,
shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name
remain.
Rev 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the
tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall
be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
The two sections of verses in Isaiah perfectly complement Revelation 21:3-5,
and these are millennium scenes when it begins, not post-millennial scenes.
I don't think the Church will be crying all through the millennium. God
promised to wipe them away at the beginning of it when He makes all things
"new":
If you look up the definitions for "new" in the above verses and the word "restore"
in the verse from Acts, you see that Jesus will come to "restore" everything and that the word "restore" is the same word as is used for "new."
MARTYRS WAITED FOR BY THOSE UNDER THE ALTAR
Verses 7:9-10: The Feast of Tabernacles
I prefer to believe the latter because the palms could symbolizes final victory and the celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles (John 12:12-16).
Gundry = The entire body of the blessed in heaven or in the New Jerusalem on earth (as in Rev. 21:1-4) after the final judgement.
These verses appear to take place during the Feast of Tabernacles after the 70th week of Daniel:
Elsewhere in the same chapter, he writes,
NEW JERUSALEM
THE NATIONS WALK IN THE LIGHT OF NEW JERUSALEM
RETURN TO EDEN
THE FINAL DEFEAT OF SATAN
THE LAST AND GENERAL RESURRECTION
Gundry = Morning Star = Some have contrasted Christ's coming as "the bright, the morning star" (cf. 2 Pt. 1:19), regarded as pretribulational, and His coming as "the sun of righteousness" (Mal. HF4:2) at the beginning of the millenium. But the morning star appears immediately before the dawn in the dark of night. If gross darkness will characterize the trib, the appearance of the morning star should occur during the dark, closing hour of the trib. So far as the previous trib is in view, then, the return of Jesus at the close of the trib will be the "morning star" which will signal the end of the night. So far as the millenium is in view, that return, like the rays of the dawning sun, will introduce the glorious Messianic reign.
The Apocalypse is addressed to churches for their heartening by means of information concerning the final events which will spell out the believer's victory and vindication. Yet nowhere does John describe, straightforwardly or figureatively, a pretrib return of Christ, resurrection, or rapture of the church. On the other hand, the descriptions of the reaping done by Christ immediately prior to and in connection with Armageddon, of the postrib advent, and of the first resurrection between the trib and the millenium perfectly fit and strongly support postribulationalism. As required by the address, scope, and purpose of the book, they provide a complete picture of the blessed hope of the Church - advent, resurrection and gathering in rapture.
Rev 20:1 And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
Rev 20:2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
Rev 20:3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.Rev 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Rev 20:5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.Rev 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
Rev 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Rev 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
Rev 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
Rev 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
Rev 21:6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
Rev 21:7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
Rev 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.10 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in
the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements
shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein
shall be burned up.
2 Peter 3:11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of
persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,
12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the
heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with
fervent heat?Romans 8:16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are
the children of God:
17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ;
if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to
be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
19 For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the
manifestation of the sons of God.
20 For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by
reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
21 Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of
corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
22 For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain
together until now.
23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the
Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption,
to wit, the redemption of our body.
24 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a
man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.Isaiah 65:17 For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the
former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
18 But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold,
I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.
19 And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and the voice of
weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying.
20 There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that
hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but
the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.
21 And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant
vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.
22 They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and
another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine
elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
23 They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are
the seed of the blessed of the LORD, and their offspring with them.
24 And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and
while they are yet speaking, I will hear.
25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw
like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent's meat. They shall not hurt
nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD.
23 And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from
one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the
LORD.
24 And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have
transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their
fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.
4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no
more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more
pain: for the former things are passed away.
5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And
he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.Acts 3:19 Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped
out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord,
20 and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you--even
Jesus.
21 He must remain in heaven until THE TIME COMES FOR GOD TO RESTORE
everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.
22 For Moses said, 'The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like
me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you.
23 Anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from among
his people.'Rev 7:9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;
Rev 7:10 And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.
Rev 7:11 And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God,
Rev 7:12 Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.
Rev 7:13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?
Rev 7:14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Rev 7:15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.
Rev 7:16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.
Rev 7:17 For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes."We know that the dedication of Solomon's Temple and the descent of the Shechinah took place at this feast (1 Kings 8; 2 Chron 7). Nor can we greatly err in finding an allusion to it in this description of heavenly things: 'After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; and cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God, which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb' (Rev 7:9,10)" (Edersheim, Chapter 14).
As usual, we are met at the outset by a controversy between the Pharisees and the Sadducees. The law had it (Lev 23:40): 'Ye shall take you on the first day the fruit (so correctly in the margin) of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook,' which the Sadducees understood (as do the modern Karaite Jews) to refer to the materials whence the booths were to be constructed, while the Pharisees applied it to what the worshippers were to carry in their hands. The latter interpretation is, in all likelihood, the correct one; it seems borne out by the account of the festival at the time of Nehemiah (Neh 8:15,18), when the booths were constructed of branches of other trees than those mentioned in Leviticus 23; and it was universally adopted in practice at the time of Christ.
Rev 21:9 And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.
Rev 21:10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
Rev 21:11 Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
Rev 21:12 And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
Rev 21:13 On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.
Rev 21:14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Rev 21:15 And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.
Rev 21:16 And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.
Rev 21:17 And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.
Rev 21:18 And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.
Rev 21:19 And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;
Rev 21:20 The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.
Rev 21:21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.Rev 21:22 And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.
Rev 21:23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
Rev 21:24 And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.
Rev 21:25 And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.
Rev 21:26 And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.
Rev 21:27 And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.Rev 22:1 And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
Rev 22:2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
Rev 22:3 And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:
Rev 22:4 And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.
Rev 22:5 And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.Rev 20:7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
Rev 20:8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
Rev 20:9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
Rev 20:10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.Rev 20:11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
ALL PROPHECY FULFILLED - "COME"
Rev 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
Rev 20:13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
Rev 20:14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
Rev 20:15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
Rev 22:6 And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to show unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.
Rev 22:7 Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.
Rev 22:8 And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which showed me these things.
Rev 22:9 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.
Rev 22:10 And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.
Rev 22:11 He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.
Rev 22:12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
Rev 22:13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
Rev 22:14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Rev 22:15 For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
Rev 22:16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.Rev 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.
Rev 22:18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
