seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Revelation 20:1 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. 2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. 3 He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.
4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.
Here's the link to the commentary I use.An angel coming down from heaven: This is a dramatic declaration that Satan is not God’s opposite or equal; and that God could easily stop Satan’s activity at any time. Yet God allows Satan to continue, because even in his evil, he indirectly serves the purposes of God.
Thousand years: Is it a literal 1,000 years? We should take a number literally unless there is clear reason or evidence to do otherwise. We should take this thousand years literally, because God has an important work to accomplish during the Millennium.
And I saw thrones, and they sat on them: Who sits on these thrones? Perhaps the twenty-four elders representing the church (Revelation 4:4) or the apostles (Matthew 19:28) or the company of saints as a whole (1 Corinthians 6:2-3).
I thought the humans who didn't take the mark... got the thrones. I guess I'll have to ask Jesus when I get there. When Moses' father-in-law first brought up the idea of "judges", they weren't assigned by God.... Moses chose "capable" men to act as judges. They would solve the easy cases and Moses was to be the "appeals court" so to speak. In this case, Jesus would be the one who handpicked the humans who would sit on the thrones on earth. Jesus would be the "appeals court".
Now... on to the "First Resurrection" stuff. Verse 5 says there is a "First Resurrection" and the preachers make it so hard to understand, you'd think it has something to do with that small scroll that John had to eat... the one with a secret written on it. Verse 5 is not that hard to figure out. Verse 5 explains it.
The humans who were stuck on earth, who refused to take the mark... and died.... Will come back to life. They fought hard to keep the mark off of their forehead or forearm. They died in the process. They were beheaded or cut down for refusing to be part of the party. They will come back to life first. Good for them!
Those who were willing to take the mark and live to see Jesus arrive with His 144,000 troops... They will all be locked in the Abyss with the demons and the dragon. They'll be let out at the end of the 1000-year period.... After all, there has to be an open trial. Jesus would be fair that way. They have to have a trial.... but God will be the judge. But... Here... Jesus has convicted all those who took the mark, and if they are still kicking... They get to join their demonic buddies in prison for 1,000 years.
Meanwhile, the ones who refused the mark... get to explore the new earth without fear.
God never wanted us to have a king on earth. He wanted to be the ultimate authority.
For the 1,000 years, Jesus will rule. I wonder, is the idea of marriage and procreation going to be important in that 1,000 years? Or... will it be more important to those on earth to worship Jesus? Will procreation be put on hold until all those who were in line to get the mark when Jesus arrived are weeded out?
Can you imagine? You finally made it to where the people are all lined up to take the mark of the beast and then trumpets start going off and Jesus appears on His white horse with His army of 144,000 handpicked troops. You don't have a mark... you can step out of line... and be part of the party that wakes up during the "First Resurrection". You would get to travel with the smart, unmarked, crowd... but during that period of 1,000 years, you will be judged... so, you have to "hide" your stupidity or be judged. You'll be stuck with the secret that you were going to get the mark for the whole 1,000 years. If you survive the 1,000-year period... at the end... wouldn't you be bursting to blurt it out? If you "would" have taken the mark.... if you "were" in line to get the mark when Jesus showed up.... You'd get 1,000 years to make up your mind which party you want to go to. That's a huge second chance.
When the dead, on earth, who didn't take the mark, wake up.... that's the First Resurrection.
The First Resurrection brings on the "good zombies". They were dead, and now they are resurrected. These revived corpses will be capable of worshipping God. That's what distinguishes them as "good zombies". Since they had to deal with the beast and the dragon and the whore... and they kept their faith... they get to be resurrected first.
First Resurrection... Simple.
