What is the Rapture?

What is the Rapture?

The etymology of the word takes us to Medieval Latin called “raptura”and “rapto” which means “seizing and carrying off.” In the Latin Bible, we find them used as follows:

In Acts 19:29 which tells of the people seizing [rapto] Gaius and Aristarchus;
In 2 Cor. 12:2, 3 when Paul tells of a man who was caught up [raptum] the third heaven and to paradise; and
In Rev. 12:5 which tells of a male child who was snatched up [raptus] to God and to his throne.

And in Against Heresies, Book 5, Chapter 5, Verse 1, Irenaeus of Lyons (AD 140-202) taught that Enoch and Elijah, in anticipation of what will happen to the just and the spiritual, were translated and caught up to Paradise and there they will remain until the end of all things. But in Chapter 9, Verse 1, Irenaeus taught that the Great Tribulation shall be the last “contest” that the righteous will have to overcome to be crowned with incorruption,

There shall be tribulation such as has not been since the beginning, neither shall be. For this is the last contest of the righteous, in which, when they overcome they are crowned with incorruption.

In other words, the translation and carrying off of Elijah and Enoch anticipate what would become of the Church at the end of the Great Tribulation, when they are translated and carried off to eternal life.

The first sentence of that quote from Irenaeus should be very familiar because it’s from Mat. 24:21, 29-31,

For then there will be great tribulation [thlipsis, Greek], such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. …Immediately after the tribulation [thlipsis] of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. (Mat 24:21, 29-31 ESV)

In the Lord’s own words, the elect will be gathered and carried off by angels immediately following the end of the Great Tribulation which will be marked by great signs in the heavens including his appearance from the clouds.

The Apostle Paul had to write a follow up epistle to the church of the Thessalonians in order remind them that the coming of the Lord and our being gathered together to him will be preceded by rebellion and revelation of the Man of Lawlessness.

Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? (2 Thes. 2:1-5 ESV)

Both the coming of the Lord Jesus and the gathering of the elect by rapture are inseparable and Post-Tribulational (after the Great Tribulation). This is true even in his first epistle to them,

For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. (1 Thes. 4:16-17 ESV)

But one might ask, what is the point of being carried off into the clouds just to go back down again?

What is the point of such a meet-up?

Aside from 1 Thes. 4:17, the Greek word used, apantesis, is also used in the Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins. However, only the wise virgins had enough oil to keep their lamps going as they went about to meet (apantesis) the arriving bridegroom. They were well prepared for his delay and they had enough oil to keep their lamps going as they waited till they were able to escort him into the wedding banquet (Mat. 25:10).

And so, the meet-up when the people of God are carried off into the clouds is meant for them to welcome their coming Bridegroom-King and to escort him into his wedding banquet to be united with him forever. But it is also the timing of the resurrection of the departed saints and the translation to immortality of those who remain alive waiting for his return.

This is the very same mystery that the Apostle unveiled in his epistle to the church of God in Corinth,

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” (1 Cor. 15:51-54 ESV)

Ten Things John Said About Zoe-Life

The Gospel of John mentioned “zōē-life” in about fifteen (15) verses. We call it “zōē-life” to distinguish it, due to it’s spirituality and eternality, from psuchē-life which is temporal and earthly.

The following “ten things” John wrote about zōē-life is summary of his teachings:

1. The evangelistic purpose of John’s Gospel is stated this way: He wrote it,

“so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31).

2. It presents two types of resurrections: one for those who have done good, the Resurrection of Zōē-life; and, another for those who have done evil, the Resurrection of Damnation (John 5:29).

3. It speaks of Jesus having zōē-life in himself granted by the Father (John 5:26).

4. It presents Jesus as THE zōē-life, the only way to the Father (John 14:6).

5. It presents zōē-life in Jesus as the Light of Men that shines which darkness hasn’t overcome (John 1:4-5).

6. It presents Jesus as the Light of the World that men should follow and never again walk in darkness (John 8:12).

7. It also presents Jesus, as the Bread from Heaven, the giver of ever satisfying, abundant zōē-life (John 6:33, 35, 48, 51; 10:10).

8. It metaphorically speaks of believing the words Jesus as partaking his own flesh and blood, so that they will live forever (John 6:51, 53, 63).

9. It assures anyone who dies believing in Jesus, the Resurrection and Zōē-life, shall live again (John 11:25) and those who lives and believes in shall never die (John 11:26).

10. It has issued a verdict that the people who loved darkness rather than light does wicked things and will not come to the light (John 3:19; 5:40).

Suggested reading: Ten Things John Said About Eternal Life.

Ten Things John Said About Eternal Life

The Gospel of John mentioned “eternal life” for about seventeen (17) times and with about fifteen (15) verses he mentioned zōē-life, that is, “zōē” in Greek translated as “life” in English.

Here are the summary of eternal life teachings in the Gospel of John:

1. God sent the Son so that whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life (John 3:15, 16; 6:40, 47).

2. Eternal life is to know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent (John 17:3).

3. Whoever hears the word of the Son and believes the Father who sent him has eternal life; he does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life (John 5:24).

4. The Son has the authority over all, to give eternal life to all the Father has given him (John 17:2).

5. The Son has the words of eternal life, the commandments of the Father, and the Scriptures testify about him (John 5:39; 6:68; 12:50).

6. Work for the food that endures to eternal life that the Son gives, his own flesh and blood (John 4:36; 6:27, 54).

7. Drink the water that the Son gives, it will become a spring of water welling up to eternal life (John 4:14).

8. Those who have eternal life will never perish, they can neither be snatched out from the Son’s hand nor the Father’s hand (John 10:28).

9. Those who have eternal life will see life, they will be raised up by the Son at the Last Day (John 3:36; 6:54).

10. Whoever hates their life [psuchē, Gk.] or those who have done good in this world will keep it for eternal life (John 5:29; 12:25).

Assured of eternal life are only those who hear and believe the words of Christ Jesus, the Son that God has sent into the world whom he has given all authority to save it. They have passed from judgment, they will never perish, and they will be resurrected at the last day.

Further readings: Ten Things John Said About Zoe-Life | What does it mean to be Born Again?

What does it mean to be Born Again?

What does it mean to be born again? And, what does it entail?

John 3 answers these questions for Nicodemus, to be “born again” means:

First, that he is born of water and the Spirit (John 3:5);

Second, that his spirit is born of the Spirit (John 3:6); and,

Third, that he believes in the Son of Man who was lifted up (John 3:14-15).

That’s what it means to be born again which entails the following:

First, he sees the Kingdom of God (John 3:3);

Second, he enters the Kingdom God (John 3:5);

Third, he has eternal life (John 3:15-16); and,

Fourth, he lives by the truth and comes to the light (John 3:21).

That’s what it means, at least to Nicodemus whom the Lord expected to understand because he was not just a Pharisee, he was also a member of the Jewish Ruling Council, a teacher in Israel (John 3:1, 10).

These qualifications of his are supposed to have equipped him to understand what Jesus was saying but he didn’t.

There are not so many Old Testament prophecies with references to both water and spirit that Nicodemus could have thought of, those are:

Isaiah 43:26-44:5;

Ezekiel 36:25-27.

“I will pour water; I will pour out my Spirit”

In Isaiah 43:26-28, God called upon Israel to remember why, because of his fathers’ sins and rebellion, God disgraced his temple and consigned him to destruction. But in Isaiah 44:1-4 God promised something new. He said,

“For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants. They will spring up like grass in a meadow, like poplar trees by flowing streams.” (Isaiah 44:3-4)

He promised a time of refreshing in Israel (signified by water), whose people are filled with the Holy Spirit.

“I will sprinkle clean water; I will put my Spirit”

In Ezekiel 36:16-38, God commanded the prophet to speak to the people of Israel who continues to profane the name of the Lord where they were dispersed. To tell them that for the sake of Lord’s own holy name, he will regather them back into their own land.

“‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws” (Ezekiel 36:24-27).

That they will be cleansed (signified by water) and have new spirit. God also promised to put his own Spirit upon them so as to move them to follow his decrees. And the land that was desolate will once again be prosperous.

Whoever believes the Son has eternal life

Although in Isaiah 44 the water is used to signify a refreshed promised Land, the water in Ezekiel 36 signifies purification of the people.

Both prophecies, on the other hand, guarantee the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, obedience to God, and prosperity in the land of promise.

Does this correlation tell us the Kingdom of God would be the promised land?

If so, these are the things that must happen first before they enter a new age of prosperity: the children of Israel must first be purified, they must receive a new spirit, they must receive the Spirit of God — all of which can only be made possible when the Son of Man is lifted up on the cross and the children of Israel believe in him (John 3:14-15).

But we have a problem with this interpretation.

In John 3:15, Jesus went on to say that everyone who believes him may have eternal life because he was sent by God in order that the world might be saved through him (John 3:17) and whoever does what is true comes to him, (John 3:21 c.f. John 1:8-9) .

Afterwards, the next scene, in John 3:22-36, we have someone who is calling everyone in Israel to repent, baptizing them with water is exalting Jesus as the,

“one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit (John 3:34).

And then went on to say,

The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life (John 3:35-36a).

John’s Gospel would hence forth be talking more about “eternal life” and “life” (zoe, Gk.) and never about the promised land. John’s Gospel would have about 14 references for each after chapter 3.

Fourteen (14) references to eternal life after chapter 3:

John 4:14; 36; 5:24, 39; 6:27, 40, 47, 54, 68; 10:28; 12:25, 50; 17:2, 3.

Fourteen (14) references to zoe-life after chapter 3:

John 5:26, 29, 40; 6:33, 35, 48, 51, 53, 63; 8:12; 10:10; 11:25; 14:6; 20:31.

It would seem that in John’s Gospel, the eternal life is the Kingdom of God. And if the overwhelming data above would have its way then these are the things that must happen first before they enter that Kingdom, that is, to have eternal life: the children of Israel must first be purified, they must receive a new spirit, they must receive the Spirit of God — all of which can only be made possible when the Son of Man is lifted up on the cross and the children of Israel believe in him (John 3:14-15). This is what it means to be born again, to be born of water and the Spirit.

The only drawback in this interpretation is John did not say it explicitly.

What “perfect” is coming in 1 Cor. 13:10?

What “perfect” is coming in 1 Cor. 13:10? Is it Christ? The rapture, when all believers are changed to immortality? Or is it the Eternal State of the righteous?

It does seem like it has an eschatological connotation having mentioned “perfection” and we do have a tendency to interpret passages in scriptures that has the word “perfect” within the “perfectionist framework.”

In this kind of framework, the modern-day reader presupposes perfection as something that you can always strive for but never achieve in this age. “No body’s perfect,” they say. And so we consign perfection to eschatology, to the end of time.

But is that what “perfect” in 1 Cor. 13:10 really means?

A long and lasting love.

After exhorting believers at Corinth for them to desire higher gifts from among that which the Holy Spirit empowers the whole body of believers with (1 Cor. 12:1-31a), Apostle Paul endeavored to show them yet something much better (1 Cor. 12:31b), the way of love (1 Cor. 13:1-13).

He told them that the gift of tongues, the gift of prophecy, the gift of knowledge (1 Cor. 12:8; 13:2, 8; 14:6), faith, and even self-sacrifice without love gains nothing (1 Cor. 13:1-3) .

He then described what love is and what love is not (1 Cor. 13:3-7) and how love will outlast all these other spiritual gifts (“Love never ends,” 1 Cor. 13:8). That prophecies, tongues, and knowledge will all pass away or be stilled (1 Cor. 13:8).

He then says that what they know is incomplete (“For we know in part”) and what they prophesy is incomplete (“we prophesy in part,” 1 Cor. 13:9). But they will be completed one day.

but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. (1 Cor. 13:10)

That is, when the fullness of knowledge comes or when the prophecy is made complete (by its fulfillment), that’s when the imperfect knowledge or that’s when the partial prophecy will pass away.

And so, the completeness of knowledge or the fullness (fulfillment) of prophecy is the “perfect” in question here. When completeness of knowledge comes (“when the perfect comes”), incompleteness is done away with (“the partial will pass away”).

He further employed two analogies to prove this: First, through human maturity (1 Cor. 13:11); and second, seeing someone face to face (1 Cor. 13:12).

Human Maturity.

When he was a child his ways of speaking, thinking, and reasoning were childish. But when he reached maturity (“I became a man”), he gave up those childish ways (1 Cor. 13:11). In other words, when maturity comes, childishness disappears.

Seeing someone face to face.

There maybe a darkly glass obstructing your view now that’s why you only know in part who is behind it. But when that darkly glass is removed that’s when you’ll see each other face to face. Then you shall fully know who’s behind the glass and conversely, you will be fully known by the one behind it (“Then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known”).

That’s just how great love is. It will outlast all spiritual gifts (1 Cor. 13:13) but the “perfect” in question here in 1 Cor. 13:10 is the fullness of knowledge.

What is the Gospel?

The Bible presents the Gospel as ‘wholistic,’ that is, it takes into consideration the complete man. It does not only offer salvation for his soul but also promises the redemption of his body (Rom. 8:23b). It does not only guarantee his citizenship in heaven (Phil. 3:20) but also the redemption of all creation (Rom. 8:23a; Jn. 3:16).

It is called the Gospel of the Kingdom, Mat. 24:14.

It is called the Gospel of Grace, Acts 20:24.

It is called the Gospel of the Glory of Christ, 2 Cor. 4:4.

But the fullness of the Gospel is not preached without precise Biblical teaching about the coming future Kingdom, without salvation that is by grace through faith through the death, resurrection, and the glory of it’s returning King.

The Church should get rid of the prosperity and social false gospels if she wants the fullness of the Gospel preached. In Mat. 28:18-19, before the King was taken up, he sent his apostles into the world to teach and observe everything he has commanded them.

The Gospel in its fullness, therefore, is the unwavering promise of God to redeem his creation from decay and corruption brought by sin through the atoning sacrificial death, resurrection, and glorification of his only begotten Son who will reign as firstborn putting all his enemies under his feet.

Book of Acts and the Importance of the Kingdom

The “Kingdom” for Paul and the apostles is an important part of their teaching ministry. In Acts they inquired it and preached it to both Jews and Gentiles alike:

Jesus taught them about it after his resurrection, Acts 1:3.

They asked Jesus about it before he was taken up, Acts 1:6.

They kept preaching about even after he left, Acts 8:12.

They strengthened each other in the hopes of entering it, Acts 14:22.

They evangelized the Jews with it, Acts 19:8.

When they said good bye they hope to see one another in it, Acts 20:25.

Upon reaching Rome Paul preached it there, Acts 28:23.

And he preached with boldness until his death, Acts 28:31.

My questions are: What do you know about the coming Kingdom? And, if it was that important as a future hope to the apostles, why is it now relegated to something that is invisible and already attained in this life and age?

Luke’s Recapitulations on the Coming Kingdom

The Amillennial’s recapitulation view on the Book of Revelation is misplaced and it’s better served in the understanding of Luke 17:20-37.

In this passage, we’ll find the Lord’s answer to the Pharisees’ question on when the kingdom of God would come. It is recapitulated in the following sections of of the same book,

Luke 19:11-27;
Luke 20:9-18; 
Luke 21:5-38.

Since Luke 17:20-21 has no parallel in other Gospel accounts, it is best interpreted by it’s own “recapitulation” or by what Amillennialists call “progressive parallelism.”

Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” (Luke 17:20-21)

Does this passage mean to say the Kingdom of God is already in their midst supporting the Amillennial Eschatological view that we are now in the inaugurated Kingdom? The article: Is the Kingdom of God already in our midst? Answers no. What it means rather is that,

“they should not expect to see a gradually appearing Kingdom of God just from anywhere on this planet, they would not be needing anyone to tell them that it has already come from somewhere. It will come as a surprise but for everyone to see because the event will be visible from heaven, just as lightning is seen from one side to the another. This is what he means when he said, ‘For behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.'”

In this article we’ll let Luke’s recapitulation explain it further.

The Kingdom will be in their midst when they see the Son of Man in heaven

Luke 17:20
    Luke 17:21a 
         Luke 17:21b
Luke 17:22
    Luke 17:23
         Luke 17:24

Luke 17:20 is parallel with Luke 17:22: they will not see the Kingdom in ways that can be observed; they will not see the day of the Son of Man when they desire to see it.

Luke 17:21a is parallel with Luke 17:23: they were warned not to follow anyone who claims to have seen the Kingdom or the day of the Son of Man somewhere.

Luke 17:21b is parallel with Luke 17:24. Each using “for” to give the reason why they should not believe anyone saying they have seen the Kingdom or the day of the Son of Man somewhere,

“For behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”

“For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day.”

What’s the significance of these parallelisms? Simple. The coming of the Kingdom is immediately linked with the day of the Son of Man and his appearing from heaven. The Kingdom will not just be seen emerging from somewhere, it will instantly be for all to see, “in their midst.” The Kingdom will not need another ‘forerunner’ or someone to announce it’s arrival, on the day of the Son of Man, his coming down from heaven will be its own announcement.

The Kingdom will be in their midst after the King is rejected by his own people

Jesus has yet answered the Pharisees’ question when the Kingdom of God would come. What he told them so far is how the Kingdom would come. That it would come not in ways that can be observed by anyone anywhere. That it would come when they all see the Son of Man coming from heaven. But, before any of that would happen,

“first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.” (Luke 17:25)

Luke 17:25 is parallel with Luke 18:31-34 where he described how he will suffer and be rejected when he goes to Jerusalem, to be delivered to the Gentiles, to be “mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon.” (Luke 18:32). There he will suffer, be killed, but on the third day, be raised back to life (Luke 18:31-33). In spite his lucidity, the disciples failed to understand. Perhaps because they were too fixated in their desire to see the Kingdom established immediately in their midst. And that they expected it happening as soon as Jesus reached Jerusalem. Nevertheless, Luke 18:34 says, “it was hidden from them.”

For this reason Jesus gave them the Parable of Ten Minas because, “they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately.” (Luke 19:11). And later when his authority was questioned in Jerusalem, he gave another parable that describes himself being rejected and killed, the Parable of the Wicked Tenants (Luke 20:9-18).

The Kingdom will be in their midst as soon as the King returns

The Parable of Ten Minas (Luke 19:12-27) is closely resembled by the Parable of the Talents (Mat. 25:14-30). Both parables speak of a ruler leaving and entrusting his affairs to servants who are faithful and rewarded and a servant who is unfaithful and had nothing in the end. But, the Parable of Ten Minas had an additional antagonist: the people who hated their soon-to-be ruler. They were even expressive of their rejection of him (Luke 19:14). When he came back to receive his dominion, they were slaughtered (Luke 19:27).

The rejection of his own people and their eventual slaughter (Luke 19:14, 27) in this parable is parallel to Luke 17:25-37 where the Lord compared the Day of the Son of Man (or the day he is revealed, Luke 17:30) to the days of Noah (Luke 17:26-27) when the flood came it destroyed the people, and to Sodom (Luke 17:28) when fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed its people. The Parable of Wicked Tenants also paints a gruesome ending.

In other words, when the Son of Man is revealed (Luke 17:30) that place will be a gathering of vultures (Luke 17:37).

The Kingdom will be in their midst when the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled

As they came near Jerusalem, he wept for the City because he knew of its impending destruction (Luke 19:41-44). In Luke 21:5-9 and in Luke 21:20-24 he predicted the destruction of the Temple and of Jerusalem, respectively. He also predicted how long the City will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles,

“until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.”

And only then when their time is up, will they will see the Son of Man in a cloud with power and great glory, Luke 21:27.

But what is most interesting in the context of this particular passage is what’s stated in Luke 21:28. Jesus said,

“when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

He compared “these things” to the budding of a fig leaf. That as soon as a leaf on its tree comes out, they know that the summer is near.

He said that when “these things” begin to take place, they,

“know that the kingdom of God is near.”

And so this is passage Luke 21:27 is without any shadow of doubt goes in parallel with Luke 17:21b and Luke 17:24. As shown below in red,

Luke 17:20
    Luke 17:21a 
         Luke 17:21b
Luke 17:22
    Luke 17:23
         Luke 17:24 
         Luke 21:27

The appearance of the Son of Man in a cloud with power and great glory will precede the establishment of his Kingdom on earth. They are inseparably linked. Neither will be seen emerging from somewhere but will suddenly be for all to see, “in their midst.” Neither of them will need further ‘forerunner’ or someone to announce their arrival or appearance. On the day of the Son of Man, his coming down from heaven will be its own announcement.

Are we supposed to read Revelation with a Recapitulation Lens?

Recapitulation lens is what the Amillennialists or Anti-premillennialists use when they are reading the book of Revelation. According to Sam Storms in The Amillennial View of the Kingdom of God [accessed May 15, 2017],

“the structure of Revelation does not relate consecutive events but frequently covers the same ground from different perspectives.”

He gave the seven sections as: (1) Chapter 1-3; (2) chapter 4-7; (3) chapter 8-11; (4) chapter 12-14; (5) chapter 15-16; (6) chapter 17-19; (7) chapter 20-22 and went on to say that,

“Revelation 20:1 is not to be thought of as following in chronological order chapter 19 (which describes the Second Coming of Christ). Rather, it takes us back once again to the beginning of the NT era and recapitulates the entire present age.”

The problem with this Recapitulation eisegesis is that it blurs your understanding of the entire book and you severely miss its authorial intent. You will not find John saying that he was writing a “progressive parallelism.”

In fact, John was told to write the things he has seen, the things that were, and the things that will take place later (Rev. 1:19) which, for all intents and purposes, a chronological purpose for his book.

And there is this heavy use of “then I saw” or “then I heard” clauses which goes in accordance with the instruction in Rev. 1:19:

Then I turned to,  Rev. 1:12.
Then I saw, Rev. 5:1.
Then I looked, Rev. 5:11.
Then I saw, Rev. 7:2.
Then I saw, Rev. 8:2.
Then I looked, and I heard, Rev. 8:13.
Then I saw, Rev. 10:1.
Then I saw, Rev. 13:11.
Then I looked, and behold, Rev. 14:1.
Then I saw, Rev. 14:6.
Then I looked, and behold, Rev. 14:14.
Then I saw, Rev. 15:1.
Then I heard, Rev. 16:1.
Then I heard, Rev. 19:6.
Then I fell down, Rev. 19:10.
Then I saw, Rev. 19:11, 17.
Then I saw, Rev. 20:1, 4, 11.
And I saw, Rev. 20:12.
Then I saw, Rev. 21:1.

So what gives? Where did they get this recapitulation view? Sam Storms went on to say,

Revelation 20:1 is not to be thought of as following in chronological order chapter 19 (which describes the Second Coming of Christ). Rather, it takes us back once again to the beginning of the NT era and recapitulates the entire present age.

Who gave them such an instruction?

The “then I saw” clauses found in Rev. 19:11, 17 and then in Rev. 20:1, 4, 11 actually give us indications that the author saw visions in progressive succession.

First, in Rev. 19:11-16, John saw Jesus coming in clouds with great power and glory (c.f. Mat. 13:26; 24:30; Lk. 21:27).

Second, in Rev. 19:17-21, he saw the carnage that followed his coming: death and destruction of the Beast and his armies led by the kings of the earth (c.f. 2 Thes. 2:8-12).

Third, in Rev. 20:1-7, he saw the Millennial Kingdom which is placed between two resurrections, or between the binding and loosing of Satan. It is wrapped up with the final defeat of Satan along with the armies he deceived from four corners of the earth (Rev. 20:8-10).

Fourth, in Rev. 20:11-15, he saw a great white throne where those who did not belong to the first resurrection were judged (Rev. 20:13), when the earth and sky are no more (Rev. 20:11).

And fifth, in Rev. 20:1-4, he saw a new heaven and new earth, the holy city Jerusalem coming down from heaven, and God finally dwelling with his people.

Saying Rev. 19:17-21 is recapitulated in Rev. 20:8-10 is like saying the feeding of the five thousands (Mat 14:13-21) is recapitulated in the feeding of the four thousands (Mat. 15:32-39).

Rev. 19:17-21 is about the coming of the Son of Man from heaven, destruction of the Beast, and the binding of his source of power, Satan (Rev. 13:4). Whereas Rev. 20:8-10 is about God himself defeating Satan with finality after he was loosed at the end of the thousand years.

I do hope they have a Return Warranty for their lens, it’s broken.

Remember Rev. 21:5 which says, “these words are trustworthy and true.” If it’s trustworthy and true, why rearrange the author’s ordo-eschaton? Do they not fear the Warning Label in Rev. 22:18 that says, “if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book”?

Are the souls of the saints living and reigning with Christ in heaven?

According to Anthony Hoekema in A Brief Sketch of Amillennial Eschatology,

“Amillennialists also teach that during this same thousand-year period the souls of believers who have died are now living and reigning with Christ in heaven while they await the resurrection of the body.”

But according to Rev. 20:4 they already came to life and then reigned with Christ for a thousand years.

Beforehand, Rev. 5:10 says, “they shall reign on the earth,” not in heaven as Hoekema says.

Furthermore, Rev. 20:6 calls it, “the first resurrection” they are not awaiting resurrection as Hoekema says.

Makes you really wonder what Scripture he was reading.