Revelation 2 - Through the Bible — Zac Poonen

The 144,000 and the Great Multitude in Revelation 7

Let's turn to God's Word for our closing study book of Revelation chapter 7 we were looking at the 144 ,000 selected from Israel. Who are going to be those are I believe a picture of those who are sincerely seeking for the Messiah?

And be there in the last days and verse 9 to 17 speaks about the church great multitude from every tribe tongue nation. Verse 9 Who cry our salvation. Verse 10 is due to our God they acknowledge that our salvation is due to our God and to the Lamb on the throne they fall down and worship and they are clothed in white robes.

And verse 14. John you know one of the elders asked John do you know who these people are verse 13? And John said I don't know Lord. You know and listen to the answer. The church of people from every tribe and tongue and people are those who have come out of the Great Tribulation and Have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb the same thing which I have been saying They were in the Great Tribulation and they came out of it.

Just like in chapter 18 when the Lord says come out of Babylon. What does it mean they were in Babylon and they came out of it? Here when it says they came out of the Great Tribulation it means exactly the same.

They were in the Great Tribulation. And they came out of it. And they were cleansed in the blood of the Lamb. Every verse you look in Scripture teaches that the church goes through the Great Tribulation.

It's not a single verse anywhere in Scripture that I've seen that teaches that the church will escape the Great Tribulation. Chapter 8 verse 1 it says there is silence in heaven for half an hour. Now this is a very amazing thing because generally every picture of heaven is full of such loud praise.

It's like thunder and mighty rivers that half an hour of silence is amazing. What is the meaning of this half an hour of silence? It means God is now going to do something Which he does not like to do.

Pour out his wrath. Upon those who rebel he does not like to do it. It is a strange work we read in Isaiah. The acceptable year of the Lord is 365 days as I 61 the day of vengeance is only one day. The proportion of God's grace to vengeance is 365 to 1.

This is his strange work. He's reluctant to do it. That's the meaning of this silence in heaven. And the seven angels stand to sound their seven trumpets. We could look at is it a sevenfold trumpet the last trumpet at Which the dead will rise and in Christ and we will be transformed.

The Trumpets, the Rapture, and the Wrath of God

This is the time of the rapture at the last trumpet. 1 Corinthians 15 also says it says the last trumpet that the church will be raptured not before that and That also comes here just Before the wrath of God is poured out because the church will not face wrath be taken up welcome the Lord and come down to the earth and it speaks here about this trumpet and various things that happen when the trumpet is.

First of all again the incense of the prayers many prayers verse 4 ascends to God and the trumpets the first one sounded and there's hail and fire. The second one sounded verse 8 a Mountain thrown into the sea.

The third ones and a star falls from heaven and The fourth one sounded in a third of the Sun and the moon and the stars were smitten various natural calamities that happen on earth and in the skies and then the fifth angel sounded in chapter 9 verse 1 and Then you see a picture in verse 1 to 11 of a whole lot of demons that are released from the bottomless pit.

There are some demons that have been locked up in the bottomless pit right now who were. Did something worse than those demons that are in the second heavens? They are also released and they come and torture people.

It says here they torment people verse 5 for 5 months and Men will seek for death, and they won't find it verse 6. You know Jesus once spoke in Revelation sorry Matthew chapter 18 towards the end of that chapter about a man being handed over to the torturers.

Torturers are demons. When does God so shall my heavenly father do to you? Hand you over to the torturers. Matthew 18 35. You know who? The man who does not forgive other people. You read that passage in Matthew 18 if you don't forgive others God hands you over to the torturers.

So you see that over there and then? Verses 12 to 17 you read about the sixth trumpet. There are four demons bound in the river Euphrates and They are going to be released and they're going to kill people and Two Hundred million people in verse 16 are going to there's going to be a mighty war Around the river Euphrates and just for your information Euphrates is in the Middle East it flows through the country of Iraq.

That's written 2 ,000 years ago that there's going to be a lot of conflict around Iraq in the last days a lot of war millions of people armies. Of countries that have millions of soldiers 200 million soldier armies.

It's not saying that all 200 million will be there. But armies back countries that have got 200 million soldiers going to come together and fight in the Middle East it's happening in our time and Then it goes on to say about how Verse 20 that the rest of mankind did not repent.

The reason why they are punished is because they do not repent. It's only repentance that God looks for. And then we come to chapter 10 verse 1 where an angel comes down and gives He speaks something.

He cried out with a loud voice verse 3 as when a lion roars, and there was seven peels of thunder that's another seven and John was about to write What the seven peels of thunder spoke and the Lord said no don't write it, so we don't know What the seven peels of thunder said.

I get a message from that. I hope you get a message, too. There are some things the Lord tells us. Which he tells us don't tell anybody else that's only for you. You know just like a husband and wife they say things to each other which they don't want other people to hear right.

The Lord tells me certain things he says that's not for anybody else. That's only for you, and if you walk with the Lord He'll tell you certain things is it don't write that don't publicize that and if the Lord tells you not to publicize it Don't publicize it.

Keep it to yourself. That's what we learned from that passage and what the Lord tells you to write you write because later on He says in verse 8 now take the book which is in your hand and Eat it verse 9.

It'll make your stomach bitter, but your mouth will be sweet as honey. Teaching us that God's Word does a double work it encourages us and takes us through bitter experiences of trial and tribulation both are there in God's Word.

Particularly in the New Covenant you remember when Ezekiel ate a roll it was only sweet. Ezekiel chapter 3. He was an old covenant person, but in the New Covenant when John ate it it was sweet and bitter.

Because God allows us to have joy in him but he also takes us through bitter times of tribulation on this earth and Once he had eaten it and he went through this experience himself. Then the Lord said to him now you can prophesy.

This you can tell others so what we learn in chapter 10 is certain things you can't tell other certain things you can. Okay, but these are the days when the mystery of God verse 7 is finished the last trumpet the seventh day.

Sounded the mystery is finished. The mystery of God is the church and Christ as bride and bridegroom. That's at the end of the tribulation the church is raptured at the last trumpet and we see further in chapter 11 Verse It says go and measure the temple of God.

The Two Witnesses and the Prophetic Timeline

God is measuring this church, and he speaks about Permitting the nations to trample the city of Jerusalem for 42 months or 1 ,003 verse that verse 3 1260 days. Now this is The period the last seven years of tribulation you remember when we studied Daniel the Daniel 9 verse 24 and 25 said there were 483 years out of 490 that were finished from the time that the command went to Rebuild Jerusalem till the crucifixion of Christ for 483 years but one year is counted only for 360 days in Daniel and in Revelation, so Perhaps I didn't mention it there.

It was 483 Prophetic years of 360 days in other words if you work it out 365 day year 366 in a leap year it works out to 476 solar years and from the period of the rebuilding of Jerusalem to the crucifixion of Christ was exactly 476 solar years or 483 prophetic years of 360 days and now we've got a last period of seven years of Tribulation and the second half of that is a period of the Great Tribulation and that is the 1260 days or three and a half years or 42 months the same period that Jesus had a ministry.

Jesus ministry was three and a half years and the Antichrist is going to duplicate that he's going to have a Lordship on the earth for three and a half years and in that time it says in verse 4 there are going to be two witnesses.

This reminds us of Zechariah chapter 4 verse 11 to 14 where you saw the two olive trees supplying Oil to the lampstand. Here are two olive trees two lampstands verse 4 and there are two prophets Who have a prophetic ministry in the last days and Who speak fire proceeds out of their mouth?

To devour their enemies and they have power to shut up the sky verse 6 like Elijah and to stop the rain and they are power to turn the waters into blood verse 6 like Moses to people like Moses Elijah and After that period after they finish their prophecy verse 7 when they finish their prophecy They will be killed.

That's a wonderful verse. When? They have finished their testimony the beast kills them that means you also If you walk in God's will nobody can kill you till you have finished your earthly testimony.

They couldn't and they can't do that to you either. They couldn't be killed before that either. And then it says their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which is Jerusalem probably which is mystically called Sodom and Egypt where the Lord was crucified and Then listen to this it says here in verse 9 the people from all the tribes and tongues and nations will look at their dead bodies lying in the street in Jerusalem for three and a half days.

Tell me How can people from all over the world millions and millions of people? See these dead bodies lying in the street of Jerusalem and they travel there. No. It's by satellite television. Here is the one verse which prophesies satellite television that every corner of the world will be able to see what's happening in the streets of Jerusalem and Everybody will be happy when these prophets who preach like that are killed true to every prophet in history.

They are also killed but a miracle is going to take place after three and a half days they're going to be raised up from the dead and they come on their feet and great fear comes upon everybody and they are taken up to heaven and There was a great earthquake and one-tenth of the city fell.

Jesus said in the last days there'll be wars famines earthquakes a preparation for much more serious calamitous things to happen in the days to come and Then the seventh angel sounded verse 15 and The voice says the kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ.

And he will reign forever and ever verse 15 and they fall down and they worship God. Now this is a glimpse of the whole future. Now you come to a few details. I told you the book of Revelation is not in sequence as gives you a Bird's-eye view of the whole future and then gets down to the little details we saw one bird's-eye view in chapter 6 and here's another right up to chapter 11 19 and then a little details of what's happened before a Great sign chapter 12 and this is a picture of Israel a woman Clothed with the Sun Moon the crown of 12 stars.

You remember the dream of Joseph? Where he saw the Sun Moon and 11 stars bow down to him. That's here compare scripture with scripture and you know what this refers to this refers to the tribes of Israel woman is Israel and this woman was bringing forth a child and that child was Jesus and At the same time there was a dragon verse 3, that's the devil who Long ago took one third of the angels verse 4 with him.

They are the demons today Rebelled that's the verse that tells us that Satan joined up with one third of the angels in heaven and fell away and This dragon is waiting to swallow up the child. That's what Herod tried to do to kill the baby Jesus.

But he did not succeed and she gave birth to a son. Who is this son? It's the one who is one day going to rule all nations with a rod of iron. Jesus Lived on earth and it says the child was finally caught up to God and his throne.

He ascended up to heaven and the woman the Jew the Jewish people had to flee 40 years after the crucifixion of Jesus. They have to flee into all parts of the world and In the time of tribulation also, they'll be persecuted for 1260 days the dragon hates Jews.

And then further we read in verse 7 onwards about the casting down of Satan from the second heaven Many years ago. He was cast down from the third heaven to the second heaven. Now there is a war in the second heaven and the devil is going to be cast down from heaven to the earth.

It says in verse 9. He was thrown down to the earth this deceiver this accuser and This accuser of the brethren who has accused God's people before his throne versal 10. Day and night is cast down and how do people overcome Satan?

Overcoming Satan by the Blood of the Lamb

This is the way they're going to overcome Satan when he comes down to earth and this is the way we overcome him today. Not by argument not by discussion one word The blood of Jesus Christ verse 11 has cleansed me from all my sin.

What are you accusing me about Satan? What are you accusing me about? The blood of Jesus has cleansed me from every sin whenever the devil accuses you. Oh, you remember what you did 10 years ago. You remember what you did last week.

You remember what you did 15 years ago. You remember that terrible sin you did three and a half years ago. How are you going to overcome those accusations don't say but I've become better now He'll overcome you.

Say the blood of Jesus has cleansed me from all sin the word of your testimony. Verse 11 you got to give your testimony to the devil. How many of you have given your testimony to the devil? I.

Hope you have I.

Tell him many things every day. I tell him. I remind him you've been defeated on the cross, right? 2 ,000 years ago. You were defeated. You got no power over me blood of Jesus has cleansed me. I'm not afraid of you.

You Can't do anything to me without God's permission. Be bold tell the devil the word of your testimony and you can overcome him and don't love your life. Even to death and don't join him and accuse other believers, please.

That's the worst part. Okay, and where's 13 to 16? It says that the dragon began to persecute the woman who gave birth to the child and that's why. Throughout history you find Haman tried to destroy the Jews.

Hitler tried to destroy the Jews never succeeded devil's hatred and today the Jews are living in their land and it says the earth helped the woman and protected her from the attacks of Satan and Then when he could not succeed with Israel verse 17, the dragon went to make war with others.

That is with the church. Who came out of her you see the first people in the church were all Jews. That is called her offspring the rest of her offspring who keep the commandments of God and hold the testimony of Jesus.

That's the church. And then it speaks about this beast the devil Coming out of the sea having ten horns chapter 13 and verse 1. This is a picture similar to what we saw in Daniel 7. The Antichrist coming up out of the earth and the dragon and the Antichrist being supported by the dragon and people worship the Antichrist.

He imitates the resurrection verse 3 that means from some dangerous wound He got healed and the whole world wonders how in the world did he recover from that injury? He didn't die and get resurrected that can never happen but he imitates it and he speaks arrogant words verse 5 and He opens his mouth and blasphemes against God verse 6 and he was permitted verse 7 to make war with the Saints and To overcome their bodies.

You know, the only thing that the devil and his agents can do to us is to overcome our bodies kill them. He was permitted and So many Saints are killed in those days that itself proves that in the days of the Antichrist there are Saints.

There are believers on earth so clear so clear that during the time of tribulation the church is here standing up for the Lord. If anyone has a year to hear let him hear. And who are the people who are standing up to the Lord?

Standing up to the Antichrist who do not worship him verse 8 all earth dwellers. Earth dwellers are those whose mind are set on the things of earth. They their names are not written in the book of life.

They are the ones who worship the Antichrist. Who are the ones who don't worship the Antichrist those whose names are written in the book of life? Who is that the believers who are here in the middle of the tribulation?

The Beast, the False Prophet, and the Mark of the Beast

And then he goes on to say about another beast this is a false prophet that comes up from the earth. Who also joins up this is the satanic Trinity Satan the Antichrist who is a political head and the false prophet who is a religious leader?

It's religion politics and the devil all combined to persecute the church. The satanic Trinity he's got horns like a lamb he pretends to be Christ like could be some religious so-called Christian leader.

Who? Persecutes the true believers of Jesus Christ. There are many Christian leaders so-called Christian leaders who have persecuted godly followers of Jesus Throughout past centuries and even today and I won't be surprised if some Religious Christian leader teams up with the Antichrist to persecute God's people.

Because he's got horns like a lamb. Like Jesus, but he speaks like a dragon, so it's really the devil inside. It's a wolf in sheep's clothing. And he's a leader and he exercises the authority of the Antichrist verse 12 and he performs great signs.

He's a great magician and hypnotist and he does false miracles and things like that and it says he makes an image of the beast and Makes that even to speak and deceive people. This is some computerized Robot that looks just like a human being is made to speak.

I've seen that in some museums. It looks just like a man speaking. They even move their mouth and Deceives a whole lot of people and it says he makes all the people in the world to receive a mark. It's called the mark of the beast and And now notice this now we don't need to understand the book of Revelation we need to obey it.

The mark can be had either on your forehead verse 16 Chapter 13 verse 16 or on your right hand. You know inside your hand means nobody can see it. Forehead means everybody can see it. The devil gives you an option Be an open follower of me.

Have the mark on your forehead. Whatever it is lines or stars or whatever it is. Or have it in your hand. You can be a secret follower of me or an open follower of me. There are people who are open followers of the devil today.

Worship Satan. They say Satan is our God. And there are others even in Christian churches who secretly Follow the devil. They have secret sins in their lives. They live in sexual sin and secret. They give bribes with their hands in secret.

They come and break bread as holy people in the church with the same hand. Nobody knows He's a secret followers of Jesus of the devil God and the devil gives you that option. You want to follow me openly.

You say no. I don't like to follow for me. I like to have a little reputation in the church, okay? The devil says keep your reputation before church. You can follow me secretly. This is fine. I'll give you a lot of things if you follow me secretly and we there are people who follow secretly and get a lot of things in the world and Nobody in the church knows that these people are doing wrong things in their private life because it's hidden in their hand.

It's private. It's hidden. It's not on their forehead. But one day it'll all be revealed. And it says here the number of the Antichrist is 666. Now what does this mean? The word Jesus in Greek is Yesus.

We were to write it in English. It would be IES or us yes. And each Greek letter has got a numeric value in English. ABCD don't have numeric values. The Greek letters all of them have numeric values. If you total up yes.

Us IES or us in Greek the total value of that is 888. 8 is the number of a new creation. You know, the eighth day of the week is another Sunday. In Piano or a keyboard. The eighth note is the beginning of a new octave.

8 is the number of something new a new creation. Jesus is the beginner of the new creation and 888 means Trinity. Jesus is God. He's a man who began the new creation. 6 is the number of man. Man was created on the sixth day 666.

Trinity speaks of man trying to be like God. That's the Antichrist and whoever the Antichrist is. I don't know who it is. But one day when we know who it is. You take the number of his name and you take his name and work out the numeric value of it.

And you'll find it is 666. I have no doubt about it. Chapter 14 in contrast to all this Jesus has got his followers. But notice there is a difference. The followers of Jesus are not given the option To have the mark on their forehead or on their hand.

The Lord says only one place on the forehead. You must be an open follower of me. No question of being a secret follower of me. You can be a secret follower of the devil. But or an open follower of the devil, but when it comes to Jesus the mark is only on the foreheads.

The Followers of the Lamb and the Harvest of Judgment

Now again, the number hundred and forty four thousand is symbolic book of Revelation is signified and This is a contrast to the great multitude in chapter 7. This is showing that among the great multitude of people who are born again.

There are very few Who actually follow the Lamb? Verse 4 wherever he goes. Very few who have chosen the way of the cross among the great multitude whose sins are forgiven. I want to be in this number.

Those who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. Those whose verse 3 sing the new song the song of Solomon the song of songs The song of devotion to Christ they sing the new song they have learned it here on earth before they go to heaven.

Nobody else could learn this song it says. Nobody else could learn this song because it's too late to learn it after you go to heaven you've got to learn it on this earth the song of devotion to Jesus and No lie was found in their mouth verse 5.

That's why it's so important to get rid of all lying all acting all hypocrisy from our life. These are the followers of Jesus the bride of Jesus Christ. Then we come To verse 7 to 11 we read of three angels with Three woes and One is saying fallen fallen is Babylon verse 8 and The other one no the first one says fear God and give him glory and the next one says fallen fallen Babylon the great and Then the third one says if anyone worships the beast He will be judged and the smoke of their torment goes up.

Then it says at the end of that verse 14 onwards is the harvest of judgment this is not the Saints being raptured that's finished. This is the harvest of judgment on the earth. The person has come with a golden sickle golden crown in a sharp sickle.

He says put in your sickle and reap. Because the harvest of the earth is ripe which harvest is this. The harvest of souls who need to be saved was ripe 2 ,000 years ago. Jesus said to his disciples lift up your eyes and look the harvest is already ripe.

But the harvest of judgment. The world is not yet ripe for that. So this is not the harvest of souls are going to be saved. This is another harvest of reaping judgment is going to gather the people and Collect the grapes.

And what's he going to do it? He's going to throw it verse 19 into the great winepress of the wrath of God and The blood is going to come out of that winepress verse 20. This is the harvest of judgment Upon the world.

In chapter 15 you see another picture Verse 2 of the bride of Christ that's come out victorious. Standing on a glass sea of glass mixed with fire. It's a picture of a life of perfect rest. I've seen the sea full of turmoil.

The wicked are like the troubled sea it says in Isaiah. Which cannot rest always in turmoil? This is the opposite of that sea. This is a sea of glass. Those who have come to a life of rest in Jesus who sing the song of Moses.

What is the song of Moses. There are two songs of Moses. One is Exodus 15 verses 1 to 4. The other is Deuteronomy 32 verse 42. The theme in both those songs is the same. God has taken vengeance on our enemies.

God did it praise the Lord. We didn't do it. And then we move on to chapter 16. Where we read of the seven bowls of wrought these are bowls of wrought. All this may just happen in one day 24 hours. The church has taken up the wrought is poured out upon the earth and Jesus comes down with the church to rain upon the earth.

There are various things there which are various types of calamities that are going to hit the earth and it says here about The great battle of Armageddon the great day of God verse 14. When there's going to be a battle and Finally the seventh bowl verse 17 is poured out very similar to some of the earlier judgments and The city of Babylon is split into two this three parts.

Babylon the great city was split into three parts and Babylon was remembered to be judged and huge hailstones fell. Then we come to chapter 17 and Chapter 18 which refer to this religious political system called Babylon.

Babylon and Jerusalem: Greatness, Holiness, and Compromise

Listen carefully. It's a religious system and a political system. It speaks of Christianity that joins in with politics in the world. Which wants state power and also wants God's power. You can't have it.

Jesus said my kingdom is not of this world. You can't be a disciple of Jesus and have the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of earth at the same time. But Babylon tries to have both. They want all that they can on earth and go to heaven and in the end they discovered they don't get heaven.

They only get what is on the earth. Everything on earth first of all in chapter 17 religious Babylon. There it speaks about. You know, I want to say notice one thing. It says here in verse 5 Babylon the great.

11 times Babylon is called the great. The book of Revelation. Jerusalem is called the holy in chapter 21. What's the difference between great and holy? Great is great in size quantity. Holy is quality.

What is the difference between Babylon and Jerusalem? Essentially the difference between quantity and quality. Great or holy. I want to ask you. Do you want to be great in Christendom or holy in Christendom?

That's your choice. But depending on that choice you're going to build Babylon or Jerusalem if you want to be great. I Don't care what doctrine you hold you will build Babylon if you want to be holy. You may not be great, but you'll build Jerusalem.

It's always a choice that faces us in Christian work. Quantity or Quality. If you lower quality you can easily increase quantity. But everybody will be destroyed if Noah had lowered his standards. He'd have got 800 people in his church and nobody would have been saved.

Thank God he kept quality and eight people only were there but he saved them all. You can go out and try to bring people to Christ and not make them disciples. Just bring numbers numbers because you got to write Reports and the end result is you have quantity numbers.

It'll be great. It'll be a huge church. They won't be disciples. It'll be Babylon and I believe this Babylonian spirit is found in every group in Christendom. Every group whatever it is, whichever group it's called.

I've seen the spirit of Babylon in the churches. I have planted so don't think it excludes me. Because I've seen that spirit comes in so easily among people. Spirit of compromise spirit of worldliness the spirit of Seeking honor in this world seeking greatness in this world seeking wealth in this world and also Wanting to be a disciple of Jesus.

It does not work. You've got to either seek to please God or seek to please men. You cannot have both. Babylon is a system that's being built in the world today my brothers and sisters. Don't ever think you can escape it by going from one group to another group.

There are so many people who accuse the Roman Catholic Church of being Babylon, but the people who left the Roman Catholic Church have got Babylon there too and there are People who've left some Protestant Church and Savior separated churches and that is Babylon, but there's Babylon right here, too.

These pastors are running after money just as much as those even more than those. So Babylon is everywhere. You cannot escape it unless you put the flesh to death in your own life. Unless you get rid of the spirit of the world.

Babylon is not a particular group with a particular denominational name. It's not a particular church group. It's a system like the world system. It penetrates and permeates wherever there are Christians, and you can sit in the holiest group and be a member of Babylon.

Please remember that. Don't think you because you got out of some church you got out of Babylon. It's not that easy. It's a spirit that can be found in you when you sit in the best church in the world a spirit that mingles Christ with money God with money Christ with comfort Heaven with this earth and they don't mix like oil and water.