- Sep 26, 2016
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Revelation 17:8 The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.
There are clearly 3 periods of time in view.
1) was
2) is not
3) shall ascend out of the bottomless pit
Currently which period of time are we living in? Anyone that might choose 3) needs to provide evidence of some kind as to when this time initially began, and not just claim it is so without bothering to prove how it is. Anyone can do that. That's called having an opinion, and not actually proving something instead. As to 2), that was apparently the period of time they were living in when John received the visions. This tells us that martyrs, such as Stephen, were living during the time of 2), therefore one cannot also apply the time of 3) to him as well. That means, even though he was martyred, it had zero to do with being martyred for not worshiping the beast, nor it's image, etc. Those things are not even possible until we enter this time first, that being 3).
This also brings up another important point.....I saw the souls of them...which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands(Rev 20:4)..that this particular form of martyrdom is not even possible until we enter the period of 3). But don't some, or maybe even all Amils for all I know, claim there are already martyrs currently reigning in heaven with Christ who have already been martyred during the period of 3)? And does not the period pertaining to 3) involve the 42 month reign of the beast? Would the 42 month reign of the beast be paralleling the thousand years? Of course not.
The 42 month reign of the beast occurs when satan is not in the pit, and that Revelation 20:4 clearly indicates the 42 month reign of the beast has already come and gone before satan is even released from the pit after the thousand years. So why are none of these things significant, according to Amils? How can Amil be the correct position when the 42 month reign of the beast can't and doesn't fit after the thousand years, but fits prior to them instead? And if Amils place the beginning of the thousand years around the time of the cross, that pushes the time for the 42 month reign back even further, before the time of the cross, though that period of time clearly fits in the end of this age instead.
There are clearly 3 periods of time in view.
1) was
2) is not
3) shall ascend out of the bottomless pit
Currently which period of time are we living in? Anyone that might choose 3) needs to provide evidence of some kind as to when this time initially began, and not just claim it is so without bothering to prove how it is. Anyone can do that. That's called having an opinion, and not actually proving something instead. As to 2), that was apparently the period of time they were living in when John received the visions. This tells us that martyrs, such as Stephen, were living during the time of 2), therefore one cannot also apply the time of 3) to him as well. That means, even though he was martyred, it had zero to do with being martyred for not worshiping the beast, nor it's image, etc. Those things are not even possible until we enter this time first, that being 3).
This also brings up another important point.....I saw the souls of them...which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands(Rev 20:4)..that this particular form of martyrdom is not even possible until we enter the period of 3). But don't some, or maybe even all Amils for all I know, claim there are already martyrs currently reigning in heaven with Christ who have already been martyred during the period of 3)? And does not the period pertaining to 3) involve the 42 month reign of the beast? Would the 42 month reign of the beast be paralleling the thousand years? Of course not.
The 42 month reign of the beast occurs when satan is not in the pit, and that Revelation 20:4 clearly indicates the 42 month reign of the beast has already come and gone before satan is even released from the pit after the thousand years. So why are none of these things significant, according to Amils? How can Amil be the correct position when the 42 month reign of the beast can't and doesn't fit after the thousand years, but fits prior to them instead? And if Amils place the beginning of the thousand years around the time of the cross, that pushes the time for the 42 month reign back even further, before the time of the cross, though that period of time clearly fits in the end of this age instead.