Epilogue

This series of posts is my attempt to demonstrate that the language of the Revelation was actually symbolic code that was very intelligible to a first-century Jewish Christian living in the Roman Empire.  I’m re-writing the Revelation to communicate the same message, but to a twenty-first century American Christian audience, using symbols we understand.  This particular section parallels Revelation chapter 22.  If you want to catch up, here’s a PDF of the entire series so far: The Revelation to JR.

Look! I’m coming soon! The person who takes the words of this prophecy to heart is blessed.

I, JR., am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I put my hand over my heart and began to pledge my allegiance to the angel who was showing me all this but he stopped me, saying,

You can’t do that! I am a fellow citizen with you and your compatriots the prophets and everyone who takes the words of this prophecy to heart! Pledge allegiance to God!

Then he said,

Don’t hide these prophetic words; put them on your blog! Get them out as fast as you can because it’s almost time! So if you’re evil, keep it up. And if you’re an abomination, keep it up. If you’re just and righteous, keep it up! If you’re holy, keep it up! Because I’m coming soon, and I’m bringing your pay day with me. You’ll get what you’ve earned.

I’m the A and the Z, the first and last. The starting gun and the finish line. Everyone who washes their robes is blessed; they’ll be able to enter the City through my gates and eat from the Tree of Life. But outside? You’ll find the dogs and pagans, the promiscious and murders, the idolaters – everyone who loves falsehood and lives falsely.

I, Jesus, sent my messenger to you with this message for the churches. I am the ancestor and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.

The Spirit and the Bride both call to you,

Come!

Let everyone who hears their call echo it:

Come!

Let everyone who’s thirsty come. Let anyone who wants it take the water of life as a free gift. And here’s a warning to everyone who hears the prophetic word in this book:

You might think you have something to add; try it and God will add all the plagues in this book to your life.

You might want to skip over some of it, leave some stuff out; try it and God will take away your share in the Tree of Life and the holy City described in this book.

The one who sent this message says,

I’m coming soon. You can count on it.

It’s true! Come, Lord Jesus!

The grace and peace of the Lord Jesus be with all those who follow him. Let it be true.

All Things New

This series of posts is my attempt to demonstrate that the language of the Revelation was actually symbolic code that was very intelligible to a first-century Jewish Christian living in the Roman Empire.  I’m re-writing the Revelation to communicate the same message, but to a twenty-first century American Christian audience, using symbols we understand.  This particular section parallels Revelation chapter 21.  If you want to catch up, here’s a PDF of the entire series so far: The Revelation to JR. – Chapters 1-20.

Finally, I saw the entire universe recreated; the Old Order had passed away forever – nothing was chaotic or out of place. And I saw the holy City, the new Jerusalem, descending out of Heaven, as beautiful as a bride on her wedding day. A loud voice called out from the desk,

Look! God’s home is among humanity. He will live among them; he will wipe every tear away from their eyes. Death will be abolished. No one will have any reason to grieve or cry, and there’s nothing left that causes pain, because the Old Order has passed away.

Then the one seated behind the desk said,

Look: I am making all things new. Write all this down, because what I’m saying is reliable and true. You can count on it.

Then he said,

It is finished! I am the A and the Z, the origin and the goal. I’m the starting gun and the finish line. And when you’re thirsty during the race, I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life.

Everyone who conquers will inherit all this – I’m their God and they’re my children. But as for the cowards, the people who didn’t stick it out to the end, the polluted, the murderers, promiscuous, pagans, idolaters and liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. That lake is the second death.

The one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and told me,

Come with me and I’ll show you the bride, the Lamb’s wife!

And in the Spirit, he carried me to the top of Mt. Everest and showed me the holy City Jerusalem coming down out of Heaven from God. It oozes God’s glory, and glowed like a rare jewel, like the Hope Diamond. Just beautiful.

It has enormous walls with 13 gates (and each gate has its own angel), and on each gate is inscribed one of the names of the original colonies. The City’s wall has 13 foundations, and on them are the names of the twelve apostles and Paul, who were sent out by the Lamb.

The angel who talked to me had an endless tape measure (made of gold, of course), and used it to measure the City and its walls and gates. The City is stretches to the four corners of the earth – it’s 50 billion miles on each side. The whole City’s made of gold and platinum that shines like glass. And the walls are jewel mosaics. There’re twelve kinds of jewels: Garnet, Amethyst, Aquamarine, Diamond, Emerald, Alexandrite, Ruby, Peridot, Sapphire, Opal, Topaz and Tanzanite. The 13 gates are solid pearls, and the streets are paved with gold.

There wasn’t a church building in the entire City because the Church is the Lord God, the Almighty and the Lamb. And the City doesn’t need a sun or moon because God’s glory lights the whole City, and the Lamb is the City’s streetlights. All the world’s peoples walk by its light, and the presidents and prime ministers and dictators and kings will all bring their peoples’ very best into the City. Its gates won’t shut during the day – as long as it’s light people can come and go freely. Oh yeah, and it’s never going to be night. Ever. So there’ll be an endless stream of people bringing their very best. But nothing unclean will enter, and no one whose life is abominable or false. Only the persons who have been written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, crystal-clear, flowing from God’s desk (and the Lamb’s desk) in the center of the City. On either side of the river I could see the Tree of Life with its twelve kinds of fruit – one for each month, and its leaves heal all the world’s peoples. Remember the curse? Well that’s part of the Old Order. In this City? Nothing cursed even exists anymore.

But God and the Lamb’s desk is in the City, and his people will pledge their allegiance to him. They’ll see his face and his name will be written on their hearts and wallets. And there won’t be such a thing as ‘nighttime’ anymore; they won’t need flashlights or a sun because the Lord God will be their light. And they’ll rule to infinity and beyond.

The angel told me,

What I’m saying is reliable and true; you can count on it because the Lord, the God who inspired the prophets, has send this angel to show his people what must happen soon.

The Second Death

This series of posts is my attempt to demonstrate that the language of the Revelation was actually symbolic code that was very intelligible to a first-century Jewish Christian living in the Roman Empire.  I’m re-writing the Revelation to communicate the same message, but to a twenty-first century American Christian audience, using symbols we understand.  This particular section parallels Revelation chapter 20.  If you want to catch up, here’s a PDF of the entire series so far: The Revelation to JR. – Chapters 1-20.

Then I saw an angel descending from Heaven, holding the key to the bottomless pit and enormous hand-cuffs.  He seized the dragon – that ancient monster, who is the Deceiver and Prosecutor, and bound him for a billion years and tossed him into the pit, then locked and sealed it over him, so that he couldn’t deceive the nations anymore.

At least until the billion years were up… (after that, he has to be let out for a little bit).Continue reading

The Lamb’s Wedding Feast (Medium-Rare)

This series of posts is my attempt to demonstrate that the language of the Revelation was actually symbolic code that was very intelligible to a first-century Jewish Christian living in the Roman Empire.  I’m re-writing the Revelation to communicate the same message, but to a twenty-first century American Christian audience, using symbols we understand.  This particular section parallels Revelation chapter 19.  If you want to catch up, here’s a PDF of the entire series so far: The Revelation to JR. – Chapters 1-19.

After all that, I heard what sounded like an enormous multitude in Heaven, and together they said,

We pledge allegiance to God!  Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
Because his judgments are true and just.
He has judged the great whore who corrupted the earth with her adultery,
And he has given her what she deserves for the blood of his servants.

And they cried out once more,

Pledge allegiance to God! She burns forever, and the smoke rises up like a just incense forever.

Then the fifty congresspersons and the four living creatures stood, placed their hands over their hearts and pledged allegiance to God who is seated behind the desk by saying,

This is truth! We pledge allegiance to God!

Continue reading

Lady Liberty’s Funeral

This series of posts is my attempt to demonstrate that the language of the Revelation was actually symbolic code that was very intelligible to a first-century Jewish Christian living in the Roman Empire.  I’m re-writing the Revelation to communicate the same message, but to a twenty-first century American Christian audience, using symbols we understand.  This particular section parallels Revelation chapter 18.  If you want to catch up, here’s a PDF of the entire series so far: The Revelation to JR. – Chapters 1-18.

Then I saw another angel descending from Heaven, wielding incredible authority.  His beauty lit up the whole world.  He cried out,

Fallen, fallen is the Third Reich
It has become a home for demons, haunted by every kind of evil spirit, every disgusting bird and awful creature.
All the world’s nations have drunk the juice of her adultery,
The politicians have committed adultery with her,
And the corporations of the world have gotten wealthy from the power of her luxury.

Continue reading

Lady Liberty

This series of posts is my attempt to demonstrate that the language of the Revelation was actually symbolic code that was very intelligible to a first-century Jewish Christian living in the Roman Empire.  I’m re-writing the Revelation to communicate the same message, but to a twenty-first century American Christian audience, using symbols we understand.  This particular section parallels Revelation chapter 17.  If you want to catch up, here’s a PDF of the entire series so far: The Revelation to JR. – Chapters 1-17.

Next, one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came to me and said,

Follow me, and I will show you the judgment of the great whore who looks out over the ocean.  She’s the one with whom all the politicians have committed adultery.  The one with whose juice of adultery the world’s peoples have gotten drunk.

So he carried me away in the spirit to a desert, and I saw a woman sitting on a Beast that was covered with blasphemous names, and it had thirteen heads and fifty dollar signs.  The woman wore a green robe and a crown that looked like a sunburst.  With one hand she held a cup like a torch in the air, and it was full of abominations, of the juice of her adultery.  In the other hand she held a book, on which was written a mysterious name: “The Third Reich, Mother of All Whores and Abominations”.  The woman was clearly drunk on the blood of the saints and witnesses to Jesus.Continue reading

Armageddon

This series of posts is my attempt to demonstrate that the language of the Revelation was actually symbolic code that was very intelligible to a first-century Jewish Christian living in the Roman Empire.  I’m re-writing the Revelation to communicate the same message, but to a twenty-first century American Christian audience, using symbols we understand.  This particular section parallels Revelation chapter 14.  If you want to catch up, here’s a PDF of the entire series so far: The Revelation to JR. – Chapters 1-16.

Next, I saw another awesome sign in heaven: seven angels that had seven plagues (these are the last plagues, because once they’ve been unleashed, God’s wrath will be fulfilled).  I saw what looked like a sea of molten glass, and along its shore, sitting at organs or playing Taylor guitars, stood all the peoples who had conquered the Beast and his image and the number of his title.

They sang the song Moses – God’s slave – wrote, and the Lamb’s song:

Lord God, General of Heaven’s Armies,
What you’ve done is wondrous and amazing!
President of all countries,
Your policies and ways are always just and correct.

Lord, who doesn’t respect and give you your due honor?
Because you alone are holy and righteous.
Every country and people in the world will come and worship you,
Because your judgments have finally been revealed to everyone.

Then I looked and the Temple (which is really the Tabernacle in Heaven) was opened, and out came the seven angels that had the seven final plagues.  They were wearing bright white graduation robes and they had beautiful golden sashes across their chests.  One of the four creatures gave the seven angels seven golden offering plates full of the eternal God’s wrath.  God’s glory was so bright that the Temple seemed to be filled with a smoke or haze, and so powerful that no one could enter until the seven angels’ plagues had finished.

A loud voice from the Temple called out to the seven angels:

Go and pour out onto the Earth the seven offering plates of God’s wrath.

So the first angel poured his bowl onto the Earth, and anyone who had the Beast’s mark or worshiped its image developed a putrid, painful sore.  The second angel poured his bowl into the ocean, and it turned into congealed blood, and everything in the oceans died.  The third angel poured his bowl into the rivers and they turned to blood.  At this, the angel that commands the water said,

Eternal Holy One, you have judged these things and your judgments are just.
They shed the blood of saints and prophets, so you have given them blood to drink.
It’s what they deserve.

And I heard the altar respond,

Yes, Lord God, General of Heaven’s Armies, your judgments are always just and correct!

The fourth angel poured his bowl into the sun, and it was allowed to burn them.  They were burned by the sun’s fierce heat, but they cursed God, who had authority over the plagues.  They didn’t repent or acknowledge God’s supremacy.

The fifth angel poured his bowl on the desk of the Beast, and its nation fell into darkness.  The peoples’ sores were so bad they gnawed their tongues and cursed the God of heaven… but they still didn’t repent.

The sixth angel poured his bowl on the Pacific Ocean, and its waters dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the Orient.  I saw three evil spirits like snakes coming out of the mouths of the Dragon and the Beast and the False Prophet.  These are demons that work miracles and go to the kings, presidents and prime ministers of the whole world to call and assemble their armies for battle on the great Day of God the General of Heaven’s Armies.

Watch! I’m coming like a thief!  The one who says awake, ready and dressed, is blessed.  Don’t go around naked and embarrass yourself!

The demons assembled the world’s powers at the place that in English is called “The Meadows” and in Spanish is “Las Vegas”.

The seventh angel poured his bowl into the air, and a loud voice called out from the Temple,

It is done!

Lightning fell like hail, thunder crashed like jets flying overhead, and an 10.0 earthquake struck – worse than anything anyone’s ever experienced.  The great city split in three and all the great cities of the world fell.  God didn’t forget about Babylon – he made her drink from his cup, the juice of his furious wrath.  Every island sank and every mountain fell.  Huge hailstones the size of Volkswagens fell on people from the sky, and everyone cursed God because the hail plague was so horrible.

The Merciful Harvest

This series of posts is my attempt to demonstrate that the language of the Revelation was actually symbolic code that was very intelligible to a first-century Jewish Christian living in the Roman Empire.  I’m re-writing the Revelation to communicate the same message, but to a twenty-first century American Christian audience, using symbols we understand.  This particular section parallels Revelation chapter 14.  If you want to catch up, here’s a PDF of the entire series so far: The Revelation to JR – Chapters 1-14.

Next I saw another angel flying through the stratosphere – it proclaimed Good News to every person on the planet (every nation, ethnicity, language and people group, now and throughout all of human history).  He announced loudly,

Fear God and give God glory, because it’s finally time for God’s judgment.  Worship the One who created the entire universe – everything from stars and galaxies to atoms and quarks.  The sky, earth, salt and fresh water.

A second angel followed the first.  It said,

Defeated!  The great Babylon is defeated!  She has made all the peoples of the world drink her juice (which is really the consequences of her unfaithfulness).

A third angel followed the second.  He announced loudly,

The people who worship the Beast or its image (on TV) – anyone who received its mark on their hearts or wallets – all of them will also drink the juice of God’s wrath.  The wine is poured undiluted (it’s 160 proof!) straight into the cup of God’s anger.  They’ll be punished with fire and burning sulfur in front of the Lamb and the holy angels.  The smoke from their punishment rises into the sky forever and ever.  It’ll be 24/7 – the people who worship the Beast and its image and receive its mark won’t get a break.

Saints – if you keep God’s commandments and hold to the faith of Jesus – pay attention!  This is a reminder for you to stick it out and stay faithful!

Then I heard a voice from heaven say,

Write this down: “Anyone who dies from now on and believes in God is fortunate.  The Spirit agrees, ‘They’ll get to retire from their work because what they’ve done speaks for itself.’”

I looked and saw a white cloud, with someone sitting on it.  But it wasn’t an angel with a harp.  It was someone like the Son of Man.  He was wearing a gold medal and was driving a combine.  Another angel came out of God’s Temple, and yelled to the one on the cloud,

Put the combine in gear and start harvesting.  It’s harvest time and the earth’s harvest is ripe.

So the one on the cloud dropped the combine into gear and drove it over the earth, and harvested the whole round ball.  Then another angel came out of God’s Temple (in heaven), and he also drove a combine.  One more angel came out of the altar (it was the one that commands fire), and he yelled to the angel in the combine,

Put your combine in gear and harvest the earth’s vineyards – the grapes are ripe and it’s time!

So the angel drove his combine over the earth, gathered the grapes and tossed them into the great Welches factory of God’s wrath.  The Welches factory (it was outside the city) crushed the grapes to get their juice, and blood flowed from the Welches factory deep enough to cover a doorway, and covered the earth from East to West.

The Dragon’s Army vs. the Lamb’s

This series of posts is my attempt to demonstrate that the language of the Revelation was actually symbolic code that was very intelligible to a first-century Jewish Christian living in the Roman Empire.  I’m re-writing the Revelation to communicate the same message, but to a twenty-first century American Christian audience, using symbols we understand.  This particular section parallels Revelation chapter 13 (and a little bit of 14).  If you want to catch up, here’s a PDF of the entire series so far: The Revelation to JR – Chapters 1-13.

The Dragon straddled the earth, from sea to shining sea.  And I saw a Beast rising out of the shining sea.  It had fifty dollar signs all around its thirteen heads, and each head was decorated with a presidential seal, covered in blasphemous names.  As the Beast emerged, I got a better look at its uniform – it was wearing a redcoat covered in a swastika imposed over a rising sun, and the Beast was carrying a hammer and sickle.  One of its heads looked dead, like it had been sacrificed, or like two fallen towers, but its mortal wound had been healed.

The whole earth saw this and was amazed, so they followed the Beast.  They worshipped the Dragon, because he gave the Beast its authority, and they worshiped the Beast.  They said,

“Who is like the Beast?  Who can win a war against it?”

The Beast was given a mouth that spoke prideful and blasphemous slogans, and it was allowed to exercise its authority for 42 months.  It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming God’s name and God’s Temple (which is those who live with God in Heaven).  The Beast was also allowed to wage war on the saints, and to conquer them.  It was given authority over every ethnicity and nation and language and people group.  Everyone who lives on the earth will worship it, everyone who’s name has not been recorded in the Lamb’s book of life since the creation of the world.

Anyone who has ears should listen to this:

“If you’re taken captive, then you’re going into captivity.
If you kill with a sword, then you’re going to be killed with a sword.”

Saints, pay attention.  That’s a reminder for you to stick it out and stay faithful!

Then I saw another Beast that came down out of the purple mountains majesty and across the fruited plains.  This second Beast had two horns – just like a lamb – but it spoke like a dragon.  It speaks for the first Beast, and does everything on its behalf.  It leads the whole world to worship the first Beast, the one whose mortal wound was healed.  It performs signs and miracles – it even calls fire down from the sky in full view of everyone.  It’s all these signs that it performs on behalf of the first Beast that let the second Beast deceive the people of earth.

It tells them to buy televisions so they can view the image of the Beast it helped them to create, this beast that had fallen like twin towers and yet lived.  The second Beast was allowed to breathe life into the image of the Beast on the televisions so that it could speak to the people of the earth, and it was allowed to cause anyone who did not follow the way of the Beast to be killed.

The second Beast causes everyone, important or unimportant, rich or poor, first world and third world, to receive a mark on their hearts and on their wallets and purses, so that no one can buy or sell who doesn’t have the mark.  The mark is the name of the first Beast, the number of its name.  You need to be clever to figure this out, but with a little effort, you can calculate the number of the Beast, because it’s the number of the title on its seal.  The number itself is 392.

Then I looked and woah! The Lamb was standing on Capitol Hill!

And he had the 500 billion with him, those who have his name and his father’s name written on their hearts and wallets.  I heard a voice from heaven that sounded like a tidal wave or a loud jet engine, and it was as musical as a majestic symphony.

They sang a new song for the one seated at the desk and for the four creatures and the fifty congresspersons.  No one could learn the song except for the 500 billion who had been bought from the earth.  They haven’t been sleeping around; they’ve stayed faithful.  They follow the Lamb wherever he goes.  They’ve been bought from among humanity; they’re the tithe of humanity, offered to God and to the Lamb.  They’re completely blameless – not even a little white lie passes their lips!

Declaring War

This series of posts is my attempt to demonstrate that the language of the Revelation was actually symbolic code that was very intelligible to a first-century Jewish Christian living in the Roman Empire.  I’m re-writing the Revelation to communicate the same message, but to a twenty-first century American Christian audience, using symbols we understand.  This particular section parallels Revelation chapter 12.  If you want to catch up, here’s a PDF of the entire series so far: The Revelation to JR – Chapters 1-12.

An incredible sign appeared in heaven: I saw a woman who wore the sun like a gown and used the moon as a footstool.  She wore a gold medal made of twelve stars like a set of pearls.  She was pregnant, and was clearly in labor.

Then another sign appeared: an enormous, blood-red dragon with thirteen heads and fifty dollar signs all around it.  It had thirteen presidential seals on its heads.  His tail swept across the sky, knocking a third of the stars out of the sky, throwing them down on the earth.  Then the dragon positioned itself in front of the woman so it could devour her child as soon as it was born.Continue reading