Shabbat shalom kol beit Yisra'el and Mishpachah and welcome back to Part LVI (56) of our study of the Book of Revelation. Last week we finally completed the Seven Shofar or Trumpet Judgments and the quite long third Interlude by taking a look at the Final Harvest of Souls. The most important message I hope everyone took away with them was that these Judgments are principally for Yahweh's people - for their blessing - whilst not, of course, circumventing the terrible judgments meeted out on the wicked in saying so.

Perhaps this would then be a good opportunity to reconsider whether these three cycles of sevenfold judgment are actually three different sets of events or whether they are one cycle of seven events seen from three different angles or perspectives. This was the difficult question we raised right at the beginning of this course when we first introduced the Seven Seals. Are we dealing with 7 or 21 events in a consecutive schedule? I remain of the firm belief that we are dealing with 21 events and though such a scheme might appear to 'prolong the agony' contrary to our fondest desire to minimise pain, I prefer to view the extra time involved as grace extended to give the opportunity for repentance right to the last minute. For one thing we did discover was that salvation remains on offer right until the very end...at least to those who haven't already been killed for whom, obviously, by then, it's too late.

Another question that people commonly ask is this: is the order of events even important? Is what will happen more important than when it will happen? There are those unwilling to grapple with the complexities of such prophetic literature who think along those lines. In my experience of prophetic events being lived out in real time, the when is just as important as the what. If I learned a giant asteroid impact was on its way to earth, knowing when becomes pretty important especially if we've been told there is a safest place to be. If I have to get to the other side of the world in a hurry, the estimated date of impact then becomes rather cricial.

Nevertheless it would absolutely be true to say that being faithful servants of Yahweh is more important than being accurate forecasters of what is to come. For if we have not been faithful talmidim (disciples) up to the moment calamity strikes, we are less likely to make a genuine conversion if we have left repentance to the last minute in order to continue sinning for as long as possible. And whilst salvation, as I've said, is available right to the last, if we have deliberately procrastinated out of a desire to live wickedly just a bit longer, then we won't usually be repenting for the right reasons when we can no longer procrastinate, and as a result we may quite possibly not be saved. For there is a very real qualitative difference between wanting salvation 'to save our own skins' and wanting salvation out of a genuine conviction of sin and because we are genuinely grieved at having wronged Yahweh-Elohim (God).

This is a reason I tend to be sceptical of deathbed confessions. I have known of many wicked people begging to be saved as they were dying not because they reverenced and loved Yahweh but because they were terrified of the hell that they suddenly became aware of staring them right in the face. And even if they do make genuine last minute confessions, then their failure to have done many - if any - good works will not ensure them a great inheritance or reward. There is a difference between the genuine confession of the thief on the cross and those of satanists like Aleister Crowley and Anton LaVey who upon their very moment of being usherred into hell suddenly realised they had believed a whopping great lie all their lives and Yahweh was, afterall, Elohim (God), and not Satan. 'Knowing' that truth seconds before death did not save them. And I have to say I fear concerning any benefit to deathbed confessions as much as I do funeral orations where flowery, exaggerated eulogies are spoken to make the bereaved feel better. Far better, as a Baptist preacher relative of mine did at the funeral of my bother-in-law, to preach the Gospel of Salvation and to invite the many non-believing relatives and friends to salvation!

Another matter that gravely concerns me when it comes to applying the Book of Revelation to Christian/Messianic living concerns the fulfilment of predictions. As interesting as the various exegeses and interpretations of the Apocalypse are, even more interesting, in my opinion, are the reasons people adopt one model or the other. In the same way I 'get' why so many millions believe in the rapture doctrine (the desire not to have to go through the sufferings and privations of the Great Tribulation), so likewise I 'get' why some, who reject the rapture, prefer the 7-event cycle to the 21-event ones because it's shorter and less troublesome. Out gut instinct is to want to avoid suffering and to convince ourselves that we don't have to. Who wants to go through 21 tribulations when it can be cut down to 7? So often people accept a doctrine not because it's the truth (and an inconvenient one at that) but because it suits their desires, which is both a kind of idolatry as well as cowardice. Remember the Book of Revelation tells us that the cowardly will find themselves in the burning lake of fire (Rev.21:8). More alarming than these 'reasons' for believing or not believing in various end-time schemes, is the attitude of those who believe thy are not the end-time generation who then reason that the Book of Revelation only concerns the last generation and not them! From that can often follow the attitude: 'Well, all that's for them so preparing for it is a waste of my time.'

Two things I want to say about that. Firstly, do we really know whether we're of the penultimate or the last generation? Most of us tend to make assumptions based on often dodgy assessments of what's going on around us and our current health status or age. What if I, for instance, who am totally convinced I am of the penultimate (last-but-one) generation, am granted a sufficiently larger number years of life than my present health condition would seem likely to justify, and I do witness the Great Tribulation? For one thing, the current trend and speed of world events makes it an ever increasing possibility that the events of the Book of Revelation could start happening overnight. It's at least statistically possible. What if the élites aren't defeated at this time as I've veen saying and they get their One Word Dictatorship in a matter of weeks or months? It's theoretically possible! What determines whether it's as I have been saying or not is what Yahweh has decided to permit or refuse, and that's something only nevi'im (prophets) can know.

My answer to these sorts of questions is this simple observation: future events cast their shadows ahead of them and have been doing so, as far as the contents of this book are concerned, ever since John put pen to parchment 2,000 years ago. Do you remember what that apostle once wrote in his first letter?

"Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come" (1 John 2:18, NIV).

It makes no difference to the way we're supposed to live whether the Antichrist is coming in a few months' time or in 2,000 years. It made no difference to John's contemporaries two millennia ago and it makes no difference to us now. Why? Because the spirit of all these dark forces is already here and is already persecuting and killing believers. For such undergoing these trials and hardships, and even martydom, this is their last hour! The false prophet of the Book of Revelatiion is coming, and may even be alive now as I speak, but Yah'shua (Jesus) reminded His listeners 2,000 years ago, as He reminds us still, that many false prophets have already come and are already deceiving souls (Mt.24:11; Ac.13:6; Rev.2:20).

In other words, what will one day be experienced by the whole Messianic Community (Church) on a global scale, excluding no country (we're told that we will be "hated by all nations", aren't we? Mt.24:9), is already happening in local and regional settings on a continual basis, itself good reason to dismiss the false, escapist 'rapture' doctrine which claims as its justification the need to preserve the Bride of Christ from being 'bloodied'...when it already is... maybe not in your town, province or country but definitely in plenty of peoples' towns, privinces and countries right now. Any believer can, at thios very moment, go through 'much tribulation' long before all go through the 'Great Tribulation' in the future, something that's worth remembering. It could happen to you or me tomorrow. It may already be happening to you today. So "patient endurance" is required of every generation, not just the last one. And the number of believers not being persecuted diminishes annually. It's plain to see it will go global! Wickedness and lawlessness just continue to multiply. Common sense, then, tells us to get real. For millions today, it's already a 'Book of Revelation situation', another reason why studying the Book of Revelation is so necessary and important.

And beyond all of this lies the return of our Master Yah'shua the Messiah (Lord Jesus Christ) for which every believer is required to be ready in every generation as though it might happen tomorrow. He may not appear in the clouds in your lifetime or mine but we will be presented before Him, every one of us, when we die. And we all do. Everyone must experience an accounting within (more or less) a century of being born. Are you ready for that?. The main motive for preparing to be faithful under pressure is to be able to face Him without shame. And perhaps that is why the following reminder is inserted between the 6th and 7th bowls or vials of wrath that we're soon to study (incidentally, confirming that some Christians will still be on the earth at that time):

"Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed" (Rev.16:15, NIV; cp. Mt.22:11; Lk.12:35; Rev.19:7-8).w

So without further ado, let's open our Bibles and dip into today's short text, the whole of chapter 15:

"1 Then I saw another ['miraculous' - OJB] sign (Heb. 'ot; 'significant event' - NLT; 'portent' - NEB, NRSV) in heaven, great ('vast' - JBP) and marvelous ('wonderfull' - JB, AENT; 'astonishing' - NEB, Barclay; 'amazing' - NRSV, ESV; 'awe-inspiring' - JBP, RNAB; 'full of meaning' - Barclay) (Rev.12:1,3): seven malakim (angels, 'messengers' - ISRV, AENT) (Rev.16:1; 17:1; 21:9) having the seven last plagues (Rev.9:20), for in them the wrath ('fury' - RNAB; 'burning fury' - OJB) of Elohim (God) (Lev.26:21) is complete ('finished' - NASB, ESV; 'exhausted' - JB; 'consummated' - NEB; 'brought to an end' - JBP; 'climax and consummation' - Barclay). 2 And I saw something like ('as it were' - NASB) a sea of glass ('crystal' - NLT; 'glassy sea' - JBP) (Rev.4:6) mingled ('mixed' - NASB, Moff., NRSV, AENT; 'suffused' - JB; 'shot' - NEB; 'shot through' - JBP) with fire, and those who are innocent from (Aram. zeka, HRV [1]) (have the victory over - NKJV; 'had come off victorious' - NASB; 'have conquered' - NRSV [1]) (Rev.12:11) the Beast ['of prey' - AENT] ('animal' - JBP; 'overcomers of the beast' - OJB) (Rev.13:1), from (over) his image ('statue' - NLT, JBP) (Rev.13:14) and from (over) his mark and over the number ('cipher' - Moff.) of ('representing' - NLT) his name (666) (Rev.13:17), standing on the sea of glass, having ('holding' - NASB) harps (Rev.5:8; 14:2) of Elohim (God). 3 They sing the song ('hymn' - JB) of Moses, the ['bond-', NASB] servant ('slave' - NRSV) of Elohim (God) (Ex.15:1), and the song of the Lamb (Ex.12:3; Is.53:7; Rev.5:9), saying ('as they chanted' - NEB):

"'Great and marvelous ('wonderful' - JNT; 'amazing' - NRSV) are Your works ('the things You have done' - JNT; 'deeds' - NEB, Moff., AENT) (Ps.111:2),
Yahweh-Elohim (LORD God) Almighty ('of heaven's armies' - JNT; 'sovereign over all' - NEB) ('El Shaddai' - ISRV) (Amos 3:13; 4:13; Rev.1:8)!
Just ('Righteous' - NASB, ISRV) and true are Your ways ('paths' - OJB) (Ps.145:17),
O King ('Sovereign' - ISRV) of the qodeshim (saints, set-apart ones; 'ages' - NEB, RNAB-fn; 'nations' - JNT, JB, Moff., NRSV, JBP, RNAB, OJB; 'worlds' - AENT) (Ex.15:1; Josh.1:1; Ps.11:2; 145:17!
4 Who shall not fear ('revere' - JB, NEB; 'reverence' - Moffat) You, O ['Master' - AENT] Yahweh (LORD) (Jer.10:7), and glorify ('praise' - JB; 'do homage to' - NEB; 'worship before thee' - Moff.; 'reverence thee' - JBP; 'esteem' - ISRV) Your name? (Ps.86:9)
For You alone are qadosh (holy, set-apart) ['and just' - AENT).
For all nations ('pagans' - JB) shall come and worship before ('adore' - JB) You,
For Your judgments ('righteous deeds' - NLT; 'acts of justice' - JB; 'just dealings' - NEB; 'righteous acts' - ESV; 'righteousnesses' - AENT) have been manifested ('revealed' - NLT, NRSV, ESV, AENT; 'shown' - JB; 'disclosed' - Moff.; 'were made known' - OJB) (Jer.10:7; Ps.86:9; Is.66:23; Rev.19:8).'

"5 After these things ('Later in my vision' - JBP; 'After this' - NIV) I looked, and behold, the temple ('sanctuary' - JNT, ESV, Barclay) (Rev.11:19) of the tabernacle of the testimony ('the Tent of Witness' - JNT, NRSV, Barclay, ESV, ISRV) in heaven was opened ('thrown wide open' - NLT, Moff.; 'wide open' - JBP) (Ex.38:21; Num.1:50; Mt.3:16). 6 And out of the temple (Rev.14:15) came the seven malakim (angels, 'Messengers' - ISRV; AENT) having the seven plagues, clothed ('robed' - NRSV, Barclay) in pure ('spotless' - NLT, JBP; 'clean' - NEB, RNAB, Barclay, AENT, OJB) bright ('white' - JB, RNAB; 'shining' - NEB, JBP, Barclay, ESV; 'dazzling' - Moff.; 'splendid' - AENT) linen (Ezek.9:2; Dan.10:5), and having their chests ('breasts' - NASB, NEB, Moff., JBP) girded with golden bands ('belts' - NLT; 'girdles' - JB, Barclay, AENT; 'sashes' - NRSV, ESV; 'bands' - ISRV) (Rev.1:13). 7 Then one of the four living zoa (creatures, 'beings' - JNT) (Rev.4:6) gave to the seven malakim (angels, 'Messengers' - ISRV, AENT) seven golden bowls (vials) full of the wrath of ['the living' - OJB] Elohim (God) who lives forever and ever ('for timeless ages' - JBP; 'le-olam-va-ed/forever/for eternity' - RSTNE; 'for the eons of the eons' - CLNT) (Rev.1:18). 8 The temple ('sanctuary' - NEB) was filled with smoke (Is.6:4) from the glory ('Sh'khinah' - JNT) of Elohim (God) and from His power ('might' - Moff.), and no one was able to enter the temple ('Dwelling Place' - ISRV) (Ex.40:34-35; 1 Ki.8:10-11; 2 Chr.5:13-14) till the seven plagues of the seven malakim (angels, 'Messengers' - ISRV, AENT) were completed ('accomplished' - HRV, AENT, RNAB; 'ended' - NRSV; 'past and over' - JPB; 'finished' - ESV)" (Rev.15:1-8, NKJV).

We shall examine the many interesting details of this passage presently but let's start, as we usually do, by getting an overview of what's happening...looking beneath and beyond the prophetic imagery and translating that into terms with which we are perhaps more familiar. And I thought we might perhaps begin by my asking you a serious question which N.T.Wright likes to ask when studying today's segment, which hopefully you will have some insightful answers to.

What do you think it is that attracts people to the Christian message? What is it that draws them to worship Elohim (God) whom we as believers call 'Abba' or 'Father'? If you went round your local congregations and asked the members that question, I would imagine you'd get a wide variety of answers because we are all 'met' by Him in different, if oftentimes similar, ways. Some will say that they are drawn in by the great kindness and gentleness of a pastor or some other person in the local congregation, who looked after them at a moment of crisis. Some will have gone to an assembly where they were able to express all kinds of questions and doubts and where they were received with courtesy and respect, and supplied with such answers as were available....but it will have been the courtesy and respect that did the drawing, not the theological responses. Others again may have found themselves at a major turning point in their lives and, not knowing where else to go for guidance, may have chanced upon the congregation and found more than they expected. I myself have found that what principally attracts people to us here is the way they were treated more than any theological questions they may have got answered. You may be theologically correct but if you are personally repelling, you've lost them and an opportunity to show them what Father is like, which is what they need most of all.

By way of illustration I was sent this testimony some years ago which I think makes my point:

"I did want[ed]...to say how I appreciate the gentleness and respect with which you treat everyone. I see Yah'shua in this and that is how we are supposed to be - a reflection of Him. Even when someone is rude you treat them kindly and I see little of that in some other [discussion web]sites I have visited. There are some things I read here that I am a little unsure of, but because of the way you conduct yourselves, I feel that I can ask questions when I am ready and not feel that I will be attacked. So thank you and I look forward to continuing to learn!"

Let's return to today's text. The short but powerful Duet, if I can call it that, which is "the Song of Moses...and... of the Lamb", in verses 3 and 4, gives a very different sort of reason why not only individuals but also nations will come and worship the true and iving Elohim (God): "Your judgments have been revealed" (v.4b, KNT). So what are the 'judgments' of Yahweh and how have they been 'revealed'? are perhaps the two important questions we need to be asking ourselves here. How has this brought the nations to worship?

As I tried to point our last week, when the Bible speaks about Yahweh 'judging', or putting His 'judgments' into effect, it is just as much a cause for celebration and for anxiety. If you've ever been involved in a court case you'll understand exactly what I am about to say. We have already referenced Psalms 96 and 98, where the whole of creation - animal, vegetable and human - sings for joy because Yahweh is coming "to judge the earth". Why? What is it that is such good news?

Imagine you're living in a little, somewhat remote, village in Judea 2,000 years ago. In those days, and indeed until relatively modern times, they had what are called 'circuit judges' in much the same way Methodists used to (and probably still) have 'circuit preachers'. Your village is deep in the countryside and far away from the city where the judges are based, and even traders don't come out there often, far less government officials. A circuit judge would come to the neighbouring small town once every few months if the villagers were lucky. But that didn't mean that nothing needed doing. Let's say a builder has been cheated by a customer, who refuses to admit his fault. A widow has had her small purse stolen, and since she had nobody to plead for her, nothing was done. A family has been evicted from their home by a landlord who thought he could get more rent from someone else. And a fraudster ever with his eye on the main chance, has accused a work colleague of cheating him, and though nothing had been done about it, the other colleagues seem inclined to believe the false charge. You get the idea. The thing is, nobody can do anything about these cases until the judge comes.

When the judge comes, expectations are massive. Months of pent-up frustrations will boil over. The judge will have to keep order, to calm down accusation and defence alike. He will have to hear each case properly and fairly, taking especial care for those with nobody to speak up for them. He will steadfastly refuse all bribes and ignore all threats. And then he will decide. Judgment will be done. Chaos will be averted and order will be restored. The cheats will be put in their place, the thief punished and made to restore the purse. The grasping landlord will have to give way, and the false accuser will suffer the punishment he hoped to inflict on the innocent party, as required by the Torah. And the village as a whole will heave a sigh of relief. Justice will have been done. The world will be returned into balance. And a grateful community will thank the judge from the bottom of its heart.

This we can all readily identify with because it's right. Now all we have to do is magnify the villags concerns up to the global level. The wicked empire, and its local henchmen (Rome - in the case of John; the satanic globalist élites - in ours) have become more and more powerful, taking money, lives and pleasure as and when they please. It's no use appealing to the authorities, because it's the authorities who are doing the wrong. So the cry goes up to Yahweh, as it did when the Egyptians were making the lives of the Israelites more and more miserable. And our Father's action on behalf of Israel was therefore a great liberating act of judgment, a time for healing and sighing huge sighs of relief. Things were put right at last...and shall be again on the Last Day.

Now you'd have thought that Israel would have thanked Elohim (God) for His great rescue operation 3½ thousand years ago - for His great act of 'judgment' which set the people free from Egyptian slavery. But the story of the first Exodus, which is once again - here in today's text - dominating John's horizon - goes further than that as he speaks of the Second, Last or Greater Exodus. This time it isn't only Israel that will see what Yahweh has done and give Him thanks. The nations will look on and say to themselves: 'There really is an Elohim (God) in Israel; there really is an Elohim (God) who puts things right, who judges the earth, as Psalm 58 testifies:

"Surely the righteous still are rewarded;
surely there is an Elohim (God) who judges the earth"
(Ps.58:11, NIV).

So for John, as for all the early believers, there was one great act of judgment above all others which was already compelling people from many nations to worship Israel's Elohim (God). Elohim (God) had raised Yah'shua (Jesus) from the dead, after His condemnation as a false Messiah. You see, Yahweh reversed the verdict of the human court! He did the unthinkable, and He demonstrated Yah'shua (Jesus) to be Messiah after all! What's more, the resurrection proved that the cross itself had been the great, spectacular act of judgment, in which sin and death were themselves being condemned and executed.

And now, having done all that in Yah'shua (Jesus) the Messiah, Isarel's Elohim (God) was demonstrating that the followers of Yah'shua (Jesus) were His true people, not least through their faithful testimony to Yah'shua (Jesus), even on peril of their own death. This is the further 'judgment' which flows from the 'judgment' revealed in the Lamb.

Therefore it is the martyrs - those falsely charged innocent ones who have won the victory over the Beast and over his idolatrous image, and over the number (666) of his name - who have passed through death in the same way the Israelites passed through the Red Sea (Yam Suf, the Sea of Reeds), and are now standing, like Moses and Miriam in Exodus 15, singing a new song of praise for the fresh act of judgment which Yahweh has performed. The plagues in Egypt have reached a crescendo, and Pharaoh and his people have consented to let the Israelites go. They have gone through the Red Sea, sung the song of deliverance, and arrived at Mount Sinai. There, with the smoke and fire of divine revelation, Yahweh gives Moses the instruction not only about the Torah (Law) itself but also about the Tabernacle, the place of 'witness' of meeting, where Elohim (God) Himself would come to meet with His people. It was the forerunner of the Temple in Jerusalem.

Earlier we heard the Song of Moses and of the Lamb the lyrics of which are:

"Great and amazing are Your works
O Yahweh-Elohim, the Almighty one.
O King of the nations,
Who will not hear You, Yahweh,
and glorify Your Name?
For You alone are holy.
For all nations shall come
and worship before You,
because Your judgments have been revealed"
(Rev.15:3b-4, KNT).

As the Ten Commandments are a summary of all the other mitzvot (commandments) of Yahweh, so is this Duet a summary of the many songs about Yah'shua (Jesus) throughout the Bible and that great Song of Moses recorded in Deuteronomy 32 specifically which reads:

"Listen, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants.

"I will proclaim the Name of Yahweh. Oh, praise the greatness of our Elohim (God)! He is the Rock, His works are perfect, and all His ways are just. A faithful Elohim (God) who does no wrong, upright and just is He.

"They have acted corruptly toward Him; to their shame they are no longer His children, but a warped and crooked generation. Is this the way you repay Yahweh, O foolish and unwise people? Is He not your Father, your Creator, who made you and formed you?

"Remember the days of old; consider the generations long past. Ask your father and he will tell you, your elders, and they will explain to you. When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He divided all mankind, He set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel. For Yahweh's portion is His people, Jacob his allotted inheritance.

"In a desert land He found him, in a barren and howling waste. He shielded him and cared for him; He guarded him as the apple of His eye, like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them on its pinions. Yahweh alone led him; no foreign elohim (god) was with him.

"He made him ride on the heights of the land and fed him with the fruit of the fields. He nourished him with honey from the rock, and with oil from the flinty crag, with curds and milk from herd and flock and with fattened lambs and goats, with choice rams of Bashan and the finest kernels of wheat. You drank the foaming blood of the grape.

"Jeshurun grew fat and kicked; filled with food, he became heavy and sleek. He abandoned the Elohim (God) who made him and rejected the Rock his Saviour. They made Him jealous with their foreign elohim (gods) and angered Him with their detestable idols. They sacrificed to demons, which are not Elohim (God) -- elohim (gods) they had not known, elohim (gods) that recently appeared, elohim (gods) your fathers did not fear. You deserted the Rock, who fathered you; you forgot the Elohim (God) who gave you birth.

Yahweh saw this and rejected them because He was angered by His sons and daughters. 'I will hide my face from them,' He said, 'and see what their end will be; for they are a perverse generation, children who are unfaithful. They made Me jealous by what is no elohim (god) and angered Me with their worthless idols. I will make them envious by those who are not a people; I will make them angry by a nation that has no understanding. For a fire has been kindled by My wrath, one that burns to the realm of death below. It will devour the earth and its harvests and set afire the foundations of the mountains.

"I will heap calamities upon them and spend My arrows against them. I will send wasting famine against them, consuming pestilence and deadly plague; I will send against them the fangs of wild beasts, the venom of vipers that glide in the dust. In the street the sword will make them childless; in their homes terror will reign. Young men and young women will perish, infants and gray-haired men. I said I would scatter them and blot out their memory from mankind, but I dreaded the taunt of the enemy, lest the adversary misunderstand and say, 'Our hand has triumphed; Yahweh has not done all this.'

"They are a nation without sense, there is no discernment in them. If only they were wise and would understand this and discern what their end will be! How could one man chase a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless Yahweh had given them up? For their rock is not like our Rock, as even our enemies concede. Their vine comes from the vine of Sodom and from the fields of Gomorrah. Their grapes are filled with poison, and their clusters with bitterness. Their wine is the venom of serpents, the deadly poison of cobras.

"Have I not kept this in reserve and sealed it in My vaults? It is Mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them.

Yahweh will judge His people and have compassion on His servants when He sees their strength is gone and no one is left, slave or free. He will say: 'Now where are their elohim (gods), the rock they took refuge in, the elohim (gods) who ate the fat of their sacrifices and drank the wine of their drink offerings? Let them rise up to help you! Let them give you shelter!

"See now that I myself am He! There is no elohim (god) besides me. I put to death and I bring to life, I have wounded and I will heal, and no one can deliver out of My hand. I lift My hand to heaven and declare: As surely as I live forever, when I sharpen my flashing sword and My hand grasps it in judgment, I will take vengeance on My adversaries and repay those who hate Me. I will make my arrows drunk with blood, while My sword devours flesh: the blood of the slain and the captives, the heads of the enemy leaders."

"Rejoice, O nations, with His people, for He will avenge the blood of His servants; He will take vengeance on His enemies and make atonement for His land and people" (Deut.32:1-43, NIV).

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The Song of Moses and of the Lamb in today's segment of the Book of Revelation give us a new focus - the salvation of the whole world, the world that had once been Israel's enemy. Likewise, in a fresh visionary twist, John sees that the heavenly Throne Room, which is also the heart of the heavenly temple, has a 'tabernacle of witness' within it. This 'tabernacle' has been opened, not to let Moses or anyone else in, but to let out the malakim (angels) who were carrying the seven last plagues, not for Egypt but for Babylon which was Rome and which is now the whole world that has fallen for Babylon's seductions.

Before we end our study today I want to briefly talk about a mysterious reality in today's segment and flesh it out a bit for you. This is the second time in the Book of Revelation that we encounter something resembling a "sea of glass mingled with fire" for you will remember, I hope, that it is mentioned in the 6th verse of chapter 4. This is not an actual 'sea' or a giant 'sheet of glass' but is a dynamic, moving force which nevertheless gives an impression of stillness and solidity, with chapter 4 comparing it to a "crystal".

I don't know if any of you here are keen amateur geologists or like crystals as I do (not in any New Age sense, mind you), but crystals have unique properties. What's special about crystals is that they are solids whose constituents are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. They come in all kinds of shapes and have faces or surfaces peculiar to each element or compound. You eat crystals every day when you sprinkle salt on your food or add sugar to your hot drinks and food. We will encounter crystals again in the last two chapters of Revelation where I'll talk more about them.

John fumbles for words in both encounters of the crystalline 'sea of glass' as he has nothing to compare it with on this world except for its symbolic representation in the Temple. Whatever it was, John was overwhelmed by a sense of its billiance, vastness, clarity and purity. In such cases the nevi'im (prophets) must use metaphors with which to represent the fullness of Yahweh's holiness of character, remembering that this is a Throne Room scene. For him, as for us, this phenomenon is a bit of a mystery, since none of us can fathom the depths of the Creator. Now the word 'glass' here is to be used of a mirror as in the well-known King James Version translation of 1 Corithians 13:12 where our limited abilities to perceive our Heavenly Father's ultimate reality is described as looking "through a glass, darkly". As all modern translations correctly point out, the glass is, in modern parlance, a "mirror". Thus the one standing on this glass and looking down would see his or her own reflection; and since only the blood-cleansed, Torah-obedient and Messiah-trusting qodeshim (saints, set-apart ones) are permitted anywhere near the Throne Room, what they would see is that they are of the samed redeemed substance as Christ. An impure soul hypothetically standing in this place would be so repulsed and horrified by the corruption in his face that, even had he been mistakenly admitted, he would immediately flee the Throne Room knowing his complete unworthiness to be there. No unclean thing can stand in the presence of the Almighty and continue to live (Dt.23:14).

As I explained when we were studying chapter 4, this 'sea of glass' was represented symbolically in the Tabernacle, and later the Temple, by the water-filled Brazen or Bronze Bowl immediately outside the sanctuary itself. Under the Old Covenant, only cohenim or priests were allowed into the Sanctuary (consisting of the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies); but to be admitted they had to first wash their hands and feet in the Bronze Bowl, indicating that they were cleansed of their sins and therefore worthy to enter the Divine Presence.

Here we see the same picture. To be admitted into the presence of Elohim (God) requires a complete cleansing by the blood of the Lamb. This is explained more fully in the Book of Revelation than perhaps by Paul whose emphasis is on a life of faith or trusting in the Messiah. Here, to be in the Throne Room and highest glory, you must also be of the 144,000 and clearly such a one has demonstrated his or her faitfulness unto death, if necessary, by coming through the Great Tribulation by resisting the Beast by refusing to worship his image and receiving his mark. As we've seen, they sing the Song of Moses (meaning they are Torah-obedient commandment-keepers) and sing the Song of the Lamb (meaning they have been saved by the blood of Messiah and are trusting Him for eternal life). These qualties are reflected back by the glass or mirror to the one looking down on it, becoming, as it were, their 'badge of idententification. We are what we see reflected back at us by absolutelt holiness.

And anyone who claims to be in the Throne Room, or will be in the Throne Room, who does not meet these criteria, is clearly to be marked down as either deceived or a bare-faced liar. Only the New Covenant Melchizedek Priests are able to stand on that sea of glass in the presence of the Father and the Son in company with the Four Zoa or Living Creatures and the 24 Elders. If you're dreaming of a 'rapture' to excuse you from passing therough the Great Tribulation or if you reject commandment-keeping by falsely claiming the Torah (Law), rather than its penalities for commandment-disobedience, have been 'nailed to the cross', you are in serious trouble and must repent! The best-case scenario for you, then, if that you will miss the Millennium and remain as a disembodied spirit during those 1,000 years, being resurrected only afterwards in the Second Resurrection, to receive a lesser reward or; and in the worst case scenario, you might even be in danger of losing your salvation altogether, particularly if you're clinging onto the 'Once Saved, Always Saved! (OSAS) lie and denying that you need to pursue any sort of life of holiness having received your initial salvation.

As with the Tabernacle in Exodus, as with Isaiah's vision in the Temple in Isaiah 6, and as with Solomon's dedication of the Temple in 1 Kings 8, the presence of Elohim (God) is shrouded in smoke (v.8), making it impossible for ordinary comings and goings. The New Song is exuberent and heartfelt. Deliverance has occurred. But now we are homing in on the greatest showdown of them all, and the great climax of history. This is how the present world system ends, and those of the last generation will see all this happen! We left the Dragon and the two Beasts two chapters ago. By this time they have drawn many into their destructive ways and it is time, now, for the destroyers to be destroyed. This is the purpose of the seven last plagues and the cataclysmic judgments which follow them to which we shall be giving our attention next week.

May Yahweh bless and keep you over the coming week is my prayer in Yah'shua's (Jesus') name. Amen.

Endnotes

[1] The Aramaic word zeka can either be translated 'victorious' (as the Greek translator chose) or 'innocent'; the context here pretty much demands that the word 'innocent' be used

Acknowledgements

[1] Tom Wright, Revelation for Everyone - The New Testament for Everyone Commentary Series, Vol.19 (SPCK, London: 2011)
[2] E.W.Bullinger*, Commentary on Revelation (Kregel Classics, Grand Rapids, Michihan: 1984)
[3] David H. Stern, Jewish New Testament Commentary (JNT Publications, Clarksville, Maryland: 1992)
[4] ESV Study Bible (Crossway, Wheaton, Illinois: 2011)
[5] The NIV Study Bible (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan: 1995)
[6] Ed. J.R.Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (MacMillan, London: 1909)
[7] David Pawson, Unlocking the Bible: A Unique Overview of the Whole Bible (Collins, London: 2007)

*E.W.Bullinger was a brilliant Anglican clergyman and scholar whose works merit careful study by serious students of the Bible. He was, however, seriously in error in at least three main areas, namely, (1) he believed the 'Church' has been raptured before the Book of Revelation opens, (2) he believed that the 7 churches in Revelation 2-3 are 7, literal Jewish churches or assemblies yet to come, and (3) he believed in a pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture.

• 1. White horse - military aggression
• 2. Red horse - bloodshed
• 3. Black horse - famine
• 4. Pale Green/Blanched/Pallid/Sickly-looking horse - disease, epidemics

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• 5. Persecution & prayer
• 6. Tremour & terror

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  INTERLUDE I (Ch.7)
  (The 144,000 Redeemed)

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• 7. Silence in heaven, listening to prayers which are then answered in a final catastrophe: a severe earthquake I

• 1. Scorched earth
• 2. Polluted sea
• 3. Contaminated water
• 4. Reduced sunlight

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• 5. Insects and plague (for five months) (1st Woe)
• 6. Oriental invasion (200 million army) (2nd Woe)

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  INTERLUDE II (Ch.10-11)
  (The Malak with the Little Scroll)
  (The Two Witnesses)

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• 7. The Kingdom comes, the world is taken over by Yahweh & Yah'shua (Jesus) after a severe earthquake II (3rd Woe)

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  INTERLUDE III (Ch.13-14)
  (The First & Second Beasts)
  (The Lamb & the 144,000)
  (The Messages of the Three Malakim)

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• 1. Boils on the skin
• 2. Blood in the sea
• 3. Blood from the springs
• 4. Burning by the sun

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• 5. Darkness
• 6. Armageddon

  ---

• 7. Hailstorm (OB 368:11-12) and severe earthquake III, leading to international collapse