Even if it's symbolical, not literal months, you do at least agree that the 42 months can't take place during the thousand years, correct?
Agreed!
Revelation 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
The focus being the following----and 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
The first questions one has to ask, when did they initially refuse to not worship the beast, neither his image? When did they initially refuse to not receive his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands? These martyrs seen in Revelation 20:4, are they martyred before the time of satan's little season? Or are they martyred during satan's little season? Obviously since the thousand years precede the little season, they are initially martyred before the time of satan's little season.[/quote]
Keep in mind carefully that John penned that he SAW the
Souls of the Martyrs, not people reigning on earth. John,
seeing those souls in heaven, sees the First Resurrection.
What can't their martyrdom precede? It can't precede the 42 month reign of the beast.
ALL Christians suffered tribulation and trails during the Church age while Satan was bound. This was promised to the Saints. However, this tribulation become "greater" once Satan is loosened for 42 months AFTER the building of the church (the millennial kingdom).
Therefore they are obviously martyred during the 42 month reign of the beast.
No. Christians were martyred all the time, whether by natural cause or physically killed by something in 200AD, 1500AD, 1967AD, etc. BEFORE beast could come out of the bottomless pit. Although his power was taken or restrained, Satan still rules through the unsaved world where we suffered tribulation.
So until one beast rises out of the sea first, and one of it's heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed, is fulfilled first, and another rises out of the earth, and then fulfills Revelation 13:14-18, there can not yet be a beast to worship or not worship. There can not yet be a mark to receive or not receive.
The fatal head took place at the Cross when Satan suffered a defeat and his power being taken away and cast out of God's congregation. It means that the power of Satan was taken away so that he could not deceive the nations where God can save people through the church. At least for temporary until God finish building his church with all Elect being sealed. Then the 42 months will start. Not before while he was still in bottomless pit! Selah.
And like I have pointed out, Revelation 20:4 clearly places the 42 month reign of the beast, not during satan's little season, but prior to it instead. And since the 42 month reign of the beast can't fit the thousand years either, what does that leave as the only option? It fits before the thousand years even begin. What position does that fit then? Premil or Amil?
Rev 20:4-6
(4) And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and
judgment was given unto them: and
I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and
for the word of God, and which had
not worshipped the beast, neither
his image, neither
had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
(5)
But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
(6)
Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
In verse 4 John tells us that he saw the souls of the martyrs who did not worship the beast, nor receive his mark. First of all, notice that John does "not" say he saw the martyrs, nor does he say that he saw their bodies or the persons, or he saw souls (
which could be illustrating people). He is very specific! He saw the souls "
of" those that were
beheaded for the witness of God. The souls of them, nothing more! Again, this is the Spiritual picture that the Lord is giving us. First, the Messenger of the Covenant comes from heaven and binds Satan that the New Covenant Church can be built, and then John sees the souls of those martyred raised up to reign with Christ on thrones. In other words, they are made kings and Priests unto God after Christ binds Satan. If you look at verse 5 you'll see that this (
the souls of these martyrs up on thrones) is called
The First Resurrection. It's now a simple matter of Biblical deduction to discover exactly when and what was "The First Resurrection?"
Again, fitting perfectly into place we see that it was at the cross! These Souls were raised up to reign with Christ because of the work at the cross and Christ's resurrection thereafter. Christ is the "First" Resurrection. Those who have part in the first resurrection are all the True Believers who have part in Christ's First Resurrection. They are the First Resurrection (
the second being at Christ's return). Those who have died in Christ have gone to be with the Lord, having been raised with Christ to reign. That's the First Resurrection these martyrs have part in, which precludes the second death.
The very fact a first resurrection is spoken about, indicates that there is a second. And the second resurrection is at Christ's return. This is at the time of the Rapture when the rest of the dead will be raised to stand for Judgment. And then there will be the second death, of which those who have part in the First Resurrection (
raised with Christ, ie. being born again) have no need to worry about. Likewise, the very fact that a second death is spoken about, implies that there is a first death.
Romans 5:12-14
- "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
- (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
- Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come."
The first death is our death in Adam. For in him we are all dead in trespasses and sin. As God told Adam, "
but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." And in Adam, we all die, which means that we are all dead in trespass and sin. This is that first death.
1st Corinthians 15:21-22
- "For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.
- For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive."
Did Adam die on the very same day when he ate of the tree? Yes, but not physically, he died
spiritually that pass down to us today. Therefore the first resurrection from the dead is not physical,
but spiritual. Selah! It is in Christ, the firstfruit. And we shall 'realize' that eternal life resurrection at his coming.
Do not be confused by this First and Second Resurrection, and the First and Second Death. This is the way the Lord writes things that His sheep 'alone' will receive it. Just as in the parables He told. If we look at these verses carefully and objectively, we can see that the thousand years are not literal. These souls are those of the martyrs in heaven. It says these are those beheaded because of the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and are those who didn't receive the mark of the beast in their foreheads (sign of bondage to satan).
And we read the
rest of the dead lived not again for 1000 years (verse 5). This also illustrates that this is not speaking about a future first resurrection, for there is only one future resurrection of the just and the unjust. And it is not (nor can it be) the first. If this were indeed a literal number of years, then even all of the "rest of those who died" would have all had to die on the same year which is NOT the case. Else they could not have died and not lived again for
that literal thousand years. Did everybody (
the rest of the dead) all die the same year? ..see how convoluted this gets? Likewise in the 1000 years the believers who died lived and reigned with Christ, is it the same thousand years Satan is bound? If so, how can the souls of the dead be reigning with Christ in heaven when Christ is (supposedly) reigning with men here on earth in literal Jerusalem in the middle east? Moreover, if the rest of the dead for a thousand years refers to the same thousand literal years Satan is bound, then when Satan is loosed after the thousand years, these "rest of the dead" must also live again, and we have a world with dead people walking around, because scripture emphatically says they lived again after the thousand years? Does Satan have an army of "literal" dead people helping him deceive the nations and coming against the camp of the Saints? For the rest of these dead live after this thousand years, and Satan is loosed after a thousand years. On and on this inconsistency and torture of scripture is endless in the premillennialist doctrine. If we just bother to look at it carefully we understand that it simply cannot be literally a thousand years.
But here is the truth of the matter. We should understand that everything in this Revelations chapter 20 is going along in a logical chronological progression. Christ, The Messenger of the Covenant, Comes down from heaven with this Key (
Christ is the one with the Keys to Hell and death -Rev. 1:18) and great chain and lays hold on Satan and bounds him 1000 year (
the fullness time for the Lords purpose) so that He can free Satan's prisoners and populate Christ's Kingdom with the spoil.
He shuts Satan up in this spiritual prison symbolized by the fathomless abyss where he can't deceive the world and prevent the Lord's plan to build His Temple by spoiling satan's house! God sets a seal on him (indicating that He assures this). This is God's "signification" of security that no one can loose Satan but God who bound him. Satan will be not loosed
until the fullness of time is accomplished. This is what 1,000 years symbolically! Fullness of whatever is in view. So after Satan is bound,
John sees the souls of the martyrs then
living and reigning on thrones. This is consistent with the scripture of the binding of Satan, and the work of Christ on the cross which allows these souls to have been raised up from the dead to "live" and reign with Christ! They are kings and Priests unto their God having had part in Christ's Resurrection. These are those who are
not servants of Satan (
received his mark of servitude), but they are/were
martyred because of their witness and for the Word of God they brought. And they all live and reign (spiritually) 1000 years with Christ. And it is by the work of this messenger of the Covenant that they can be translated into the Kingdom and live and reign with Christ.
Ephesians 2:56-57
- "Even when we were Dead in sins, hath made us alive together with Christ, by Grace ye are Saved,
- and hath Raised us up together, and made us to sit in Heavenly places in Christ Jesus".
See? What raising up or resurrection from the dead is this? If it's not the "first" then all scripture is untrustworthy and nothing to be believed! Because God says Christ is the First born from the dead, that in all things he might have preeminence. Is that true or not? These souls reigning with Christ reign because they were in Christ when He went to the cross and they were raised up with Him (
The First Resurrection) to be seated in heavenly places having the Judgment of God with Power, because God dwelleth within them. Anyone who tries to tell you that the first resurrection hasn't happened yet, either doesn't know the scriptures very well, or is deliberately ignoring them.
If you recall when Mary's brother Lazarus died, Jesus came to her and she said, I know he will be raised at "The Last Day". Well, the last day is the day of the Rapture, but it's the
second resurrection, not the first! But Jesus made it perfectly clear to her of another Resurrection. The First! Consider wisely what Jesus said:
John 11:25
- "Jesus said unto her, I Am The Resurrection and the Life. He that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live,
- and whosoever that liveth and believeth in Me shall never die. Believeth thou this?"
Perhaps we should ask the Theologians of the Premillennialist Churches today if Jesus indeed was the Resurrection, because it doesn't appear that they believe this is true. Jesus was telling her, the first Resurrection unto Life is in Me, it's right here! I Am the Resurrection! He that liveth and believeth in Me shall never die! In other words, neither Lazarus nor you have have to die physically and wait until the end of the world (
The resurrection at the Last Day as Martha says) to be Resurrected. In fact, if you do wait till that time to be resurrected, you won't see life! The First resurrection is RIGHT HERE and RIGHT NOW, and without it, you are subject to the second death! Period! But if you have part in this First Resurrection (
in Christ) the second death hath no power over you on the day of Judgment! And that is exactly what Revelation 20 said about the First Resurrection.
He that liveth and believeth is Resurrected in Christ so that he'll never die (physical death yes, the second death, No). And he that is dead (as these martyred souls John saw), don't really die, because they had part in that 1st Resurrection in Christ. i.e., as Christ said, the true Believer will never die! That scenario is only possible if they have part in the First Resurrection, which is in Christ. When a believer is martyred, his soul leaves the body, and he goes to live and reign with Christ forever (Symbolized by the number 1000 years). Because He had a part in the First Resurrection. And that, of course, is what John was talking about in Revelation 20.
Souls of the Martyrs,
not people reigning on earth. John, seeing
those souls in heaven, sees the First Resurrection.
