Tag resurrection

The following snippet is from my upcoming book “Edge of Eternity.”

“No one took my life from me,” Aryeh said joyously. “I laid it down of my own free will; I had the authority to lay it down, and I have the authority to take it back again!” (John 10:18) Enosh looked at those around him amazed at his proclamation for there was saying there among the dead, “what valiant man can live and not see death? Who can deliver himself from the power of Sheol?” (Ps 89:48) Enosh rejoiced at the thought that the place had no power over him and that death would have no power over him. (John 11:25; Rom 14:8; 2 Cor 5:14; Rev 1:18)

“Now I shall depart,” he said resolutely. Elyón is not leaving my soul in Sheol and is not allowing me to experience corruption. (Ps 16:10) The keys of Sheol and the keys of Death are now mine.” (Rev 1:18) Then he was gone. The virtuous dead cheered for it was the first time that anyone had ever left the Bor of his own accord!

 Yet still Enosh remained.

“It has now been thirty seven days since Aryeh left Sheol and yet here we remain,” Enosh said to Hava and the millions who were standing near them. “He promised he will deliver us from the depths of Sheol because his kindness for us great. (Ps 86:13) Hava said reassuringly. Elyón will truly redeem us from the power of Sheol. He will surely receive us! (Ps 49:15) Suddenly they felt themselves lifting up out of Sheol.

“At last,” Enosh called out joyfully. “We are finally, at the appointed time, escaping the place of our banishment. What a gift has given to us!” (Eph 4:8) They were quickly up over the Earth, though no living mortal could see them. They looked over and saw Aryeh also ascending from the Earth to a cloud which hid him from the living standing on the Earth below (Acts 1:9; Rev 12:5) as a door in the veil opened. (Acts 7:55, 56)

Enosh considered the days before there was a veil and how Elyón had simply wanted live with him and his sons and daughters without any separation between them. (Ezek 37:28, 43:9; 2Cor 6:16; Rev 7:15; 21:3) He had wanted to make his home with them and share his heart –  (John 14:23) all cut short cut short by the slander of Rakhíl. (I John 3:8) Consequently, Elyón’s compassion forced him to put a wall of separation (Eph 2:14) between himself and Earth to destroy it. (Isa 30:33) The veil had shielded the earth and its inhabitants from Elyón’s fiery lightning presence which was too powerful the degenerative and decaying Earth (Exod 19:18; Ps 97:5, 104:32) Only at the time at the restoration of all things, (Acts 3:21) when Enosh and sons (Rom 8:19-21) clothed with yeshuáh ((Proverbs 13:9, 20:20, 24:20; Job 18:5, 21:17; Isa 61:10; Dan 12:3; Mat 13:43; Rev 19:8) could the veil come down. (Isa 25:6-7, 34:4; 2Pet 3:10)

Rakhíl stood looking at Enosh and Hava and their sons and daughters passing by him through the second realm of heaven into the third, the domain of Elyón. He was utterly stunned by the expense that Elyón went to rescue the sons of Enosh. He was speechless for a time because he had calculated so cunningly and precisely that Enosh and his sons would never be free and would be slaves in Sheol forevermore. His authority over the planet was broken. He knew that Elyón could have squashed him at any moment if it were merely a matter of power. However, Elyón had given the earth to Enosh and he had foolishly forfeited it to Rakhíl which gave him authority over Enosh and his kin and the very planet itself; that was why he was able to take Aryeh and show him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory could give Aryeh all those things if he would just fall down and worship him. (Mat 4:8)

Rakhíl was obviously not willing to relinquish his authority freely which is why Elyón did not send Aryeh immediately after the Downfall but now Aryeh had completely disarmed him and his malakhim through his selfless and humiliating act on the tree and had made a public spectacle of them. (Col 2:15) Aryeh fixed his eyes which were like flames of fire on Rakhíl as he victoriously marched past with the captives declaring, “You have been judged (John 16:11) because from the power of Sheol I am rescuing them, from death I am redeeming them. Death, where are your plagues?!” Aryeh mocked. “Sheol, where is your destruction?!” He said laughing joyfully. “My eyes will remain closed to your pleas for compassion.”(Hos 13:14)

Enosh smiled jestingly at Rakhíl, the prince of the power of the air and at his principalities, his powers, his rulers of darkness of that age, and past the spiritual hosts of wickedness in those heavenly places behind the veil (Eph 6:12) as they traveled triumphantly past who all looked on with contorted, exasperated and confounded faces at those who were formerly slaves without any apparent hope. (Col 2:15) Aryeh led his entourage to his throne which was at the right hand of Elyón; all of the rebellious malakhim, authorities, and powers had been made subject to Him. (1Pet 3:22)

Aryeh saved them from the power of darkness and brought them into his kingdom (Col 1:13) because he overcame Rakhíl. They had been slaves under the basic principles of the world, yet when the appropriate time had come, Elyón sent Aryeh, born of a woman under the law of sin and death (Gal 4:4; Rom 8:2) in order to redeem those who were under the law and adopt them as sons of Elyón with the spirit of Aryeh in their hearts they would cry out “Abba!” (Gal 4:5-6) They actually became new creations and were born not of the earth but of the immaterial, created directly by Elyón (2 Cor 5:17; Gal 6:15)

We thank you, Aryeh,” Enosh said, “for you are far above every ruler, authority, power, dominion, and every name that can be named, not only in in this age, but also in the age to come!”  (Eph 4:10, 1:21)

The above snippet is from my upcoming book “Edge of Eternity.”

The New Age and Alien Channelers often speak of bodies of light that the other-worldly beings possess.  The truth is, however, that bodies of light were first spoken of in the Bible. In this post we will examine the many places Scripture speaks of bodies of light and how our DNA emits light. Understanding the truth will again help us to spot the demonic deception that is coming in these last days.

We have seen that Adam was created in God’s image and likeness which includes the appearance of God. We can deduce more of how Adam was before the Fall and also how we shall be upon resurrection from the teaching of the Lord Jesus. We first note that while up by Cesarea Philippi Jesus took the disciples Peter, James and John to the top of Mount Hermon. [i] “And He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light [phos φως],” (Matthew 17:2). Jesus’ clothes were not only white, but they were literally white as light, which is the Greek word φως phos from which we get the word photo or photon. In other words, the light of Jesus, Who is the source of that light, emanated through His clothing. When the end of the tribulation draws to a close the Lord Jesus will return to earth on a horse and those who have trusted in Him will return with Him. Speaking of the called out ones (believers in Jesus) John notes in Revelation: “And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright [lampron λαμπρον], for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints,” (Revelation 19:8).

We see from this verse that the covering will be bright or luminous. The Greek word λαμπρον lampron signifies bright or shining. The Liddell, Scott and Jones Classical Greek Lexicon defines it as “bright, radiant, of the sun and stars”. Thus, when we occupy our heavenly or celestial bodies we will also be enveloped in or clothed in garments of light. Jesus confirmed this reality when he said concerning the righteous in the world to come: “Then the righteous will shine forth [eklampo ἐκλάμπω] as the sun in the kingdom of their Father,” (Matthew 13:43). The same was revealed to Daniel concerning the resurrection of the righteous. The Septuagint (LXX) version uses the same word as is found in Matthew 13 above, which is also related to the garments in Revelation 19:8.

Those who are wise shall shine [LXX: eklampo ἐκλάμπω, Heb. יַזְהִ֖רוּ] like the brightness [LXX: lamprotes λαμπρότης] of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever, (Daniel 12:3).

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The question regarding the last years of earth’s history is, in a sense, very similar to that regarding earth’s first days: what do numbers and units of time in the Bible actually mean?  Are they merely figurative or are they to be taken literally? The interpretation of the days in Genesis 1 and the meaning of the thousand years in Revelation 20 are related due to the use of numbers and measurements of time in the Bible.

In Revelation 20 verses 2-7, six times we are told that Satan will be bound and that Christ will reign for a thousand years.  Understanding this to be a literal period of one thousand years or an allegory of an indefinite period of time has been an issue that has, generally speaking, created two camps of believers.  When we look at the ancient interpretations of both the creation account and Revelation 20, we will see that before the time of Augustine (354 to 430 A.D) both were interpreted literally.  Those holding to a literal interpretation are historically called millenialists (although today they are called premillenialists) and believe that the Great Tribulation will occur before Jesus returns to set up His kingdom for a literal period of a thousand years in which He will reign physically from Jerusalem.  Justin Martyr, a church father from the early second century A.D. declared emphatically in his Dialogue with Trypho,

But I and others, who are right-minded Christians on all points, are assured that there will be a resurrection of the dead, and a thousand years in Jerusalem, which will then be built, adorned, and enlarged, [as] the prophets Ezekiel and Isaiah and others declare.  (The Fathers: Dialogue with Trypho Chapter 80)

Clearly, Justin Martyr took the literal interpretation rather than a figurative or typological approach as Augustine, who is the father of the amillenial position, would later do. [i] The amillenialists purport that the thousand years in Revelation should be taken figuratively and that, in fact, there will not be an actual, literal, physical reign of Christ nor a binding of Satan for a literal, thousand years.  Again, we are faced with the question of whose view is right.  Is it really a matter of theological preference as to which view one holds?  Or is there some key to unlock this enigma?  Rather than looking to the Church Fathers for validation, let’s first look at the passage and allow Scripture to interpret itself.  I believe that we will find that, as with Genesis 1, only one of the two approaches is acceptable.

There are in essence two words that we need to study in order to determine the duration of time in Revelation 20.  We will first of all look at years to appreciate how the word is used in the Bible.  Once we have recognized what is the normal meaning, we will explore what writers meant when stating one thousand.  Does the number have just a simple meaning of thousand?  Or if as the amillenialists state, should it be understood as an indefinite period of time similar to the days of creation as purported by evolution supporters?

Years in the Bible

The word year (ete ἔτη) appears a total of 29 times in the New Testament.  In every occurrence the meaning of year (or years) is simply that of a real, literal period of a year whenever a number precedes it.  For example, we read in Mark 5:25, “Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years.”  The text treats this as a real number of real years — and why shouldn’t it?  What else could years mean?  In Luke, we read of the prophetess Anna, “and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years…” (Luke 2:37).  In John 2:20, the Jewish leaders reply to Jesus’ claim, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?”  Furthermore, in Acts 13:20 we read, “After that He gave them judges for about four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet.”  In all of the examples, the word years (ete ἔτη) is referring to a real (specific) amount of time and is used in its literal sense.  The 450 years of the time of the judges is considered to be a real amount of time.  The fact is that year, when preceded by a cardinal number, is never used in any other way.  Years always refers to what we understand to be a year – that is, the completion of twelve months (with the exception of an occasional 13^th month added every several years to balance out the Jewish calendar), once around the sun.  Similarly to day in the Old Testament, which when preceded by a cardinal number means only a real day, so too when the words years and years are preceded by a cardinal number, they always and only signify a definite period of time.

The Number Thousand

Since year (and years) has only a literal and absolute meaning when preceded by a cardinal number, our next undertaking is to try to correctly understand “thousand.”  Is there something in the word which would lead us to conclude that thousand could mean something other than its literal and plain meaning?

Thousand (chilia χίλια) occurs in the New Testament eleven times, six of those being in the twentieth chapter of Revelation.  Twice it occurs in 2 Peter 3:8, “…that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”  The other three occurrences are in the book of Revelation as well.  The number of verses with which we can compare the word thousand in the New Testament in order to correctly determine the meaning is somewhat limited since six of the eleven examples occur in Revelation 20.  Thus, we need to turn to the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament translated from the Hebrew in approximately 270 B.C.

The word thousand appears 504 times in the Septuagint where it is translated from the Hebrew word אלף elef, which simply means thousand.  It never refers to any kind of imaginary number, nor does it signify an indefinite quantity.  The Septuagint merely translates that word literally and carries the same meaning.  There are cases where a text will say thousands in the plural and of course, that by definition is indefinite.  But whenever a text refers to one thousand it is speaking in a literal sense.

So, you might ask, why doesn’t the word one appear before the word thousand?  Quite simply, Greek does not require the word “one” to appear before thousand for it to be understood that it means one thousand.  Many languages are parallel to Greek in this respect.  For example, in Hebrew, there is no need to say one before thousand.  In fact, it is impossible to say that and to do so would sound very foreign; so too in Greek.  When it is only one thousand, then no other word is necessary to qualify the number.  Only when it is two thousand plus does a number come in front of it.

The Definite Article

The phrase thousand years appears six times in the passage of Revelation 20:2-7.

He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while. And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.  Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison.  (emphasis mine)

Three times in the passage the author, John, states “…bound him [Satan] for a thousand years” (Revelation 20:2); “…And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years” (Revelation 20:4); and “…and shall reign with Him a thousand years” (Revelation 20:6).  In all three of these passages, the literal rendering of the text is that Satan is bound and the saints reign one thousand years (one is included in the word thousand in Greek).  The other three occurrences “…till the thousand years were finished” (Revelation 20:3); “again until the thousand years were finished” (Revelation 20:5); and “…when the thousand years have expired…” (Revelation 20:7) all refer to a specific time indicated by the use of the definite article the.  The word the is a limiter or a definer.  It tells us that something specific is indicated.  Therefore, the time frame is not something undefined but in fact it is very defined.  “The thousand years…” reinforces the fact that a literal amount of time is indicated since it points back to “a thousand years” already mentioned in verse 2.

Summary of Years

In conclusion, we have seen that years and numbers (just like days) in both the Old and New Testaments are taken as literal.  Years always refers to a literal amount of time.  Year, when used with a number, is never used to refer to anything more than once around the sun.  When the writer wished to indicate a longer period, then the exact number of years was mentioned.  We also saw that the number thousand is treated just like the other numbers in both Testaments.  The references to years in the New Testament are numerous and all of them are treated as real years, including the one of 450 years.  Furthermore, the Greek word chilia χίλια, meaning “one thousand,” is used hundreds of times in the Greek Septuagint and every time has a simple meaning of a literal number, that is one thousand!  And finally, we noted that the grammar in Revelation, by the use of the definite article, limits the use of what one thousand can mean.  It is not an indefinite period of time, but rather is very definite.

Thus we are left with the conclusion that the thousand years of Revelation should be understood to mean precisely that – one thousand, literal years.  Having used Scripture to interpret Scripture, we see that any other interpretation is both inconsistent with the teaching of the Bible and grammatically unsound.

[i] Augustine formulated this eschatology primarily in response to the Donatists’s drunken feasts in their “cult of the dead” ceremonies honoring the martyred brothers.  Augustine also reacted to the millenialists’ anticipation as the year 500 approached since they thought that to be the culmination of the 6000 years since creation. (Anderson 2002: 4)

But now Christ is risen from the dead, [and] has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. (1 Cor 15:20)

Jesus the firstfruits of the resurrection

Yeshua/Jesus through His incarnation, death and resurrection has become the paradigm of what we are going to be like when we awake in His likeness (image, form). The Psalmist stated it beautifully when he said:

As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness. (Ps 17:15)

Peter boldly stated that we will become partakers of the divine nature!

…by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption [that is] in the world through lust. (2Pet 1:4)

Yeshua/Jesus death and resurrection give us so much reason to celebrate because of our sins forgiven and also what we shall become!

And so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam [became] a life-giving spirit. However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual. The first man [was] of the earth, [made] of dust; the second Man [is] the Lord from heaven. As [was] the [man] of dust, so also [are] those [who are made] of dust; and as [is] the heavenly [Man,] so also [are] those [who are] heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the [man] of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly [Man.] (1Cor 15:45-49)

How thankful we are that Yeshua/Jesus was willing to take on flesh, die and then rise again! May we contemplate on His incredible love througout this day!

– Doug

If you are already a Christian, then be encouraged that God loves you, and He rejoices in your resolve to believe His Word to the fullest.  He has many wonderful promises in store for you that are written in the pages of the Bible.

Your Creator Loves You

If you have come to the conclusion that God’s Word is faithful and accurate in all that it says but are not a Christian, then I would like to invite you to enter into a relationship with the God who created everything.  God is awesome and mighty – just imagine how He made everything in only six days!  Nevertheless, even more amazing is that He paid for our sins in less than one day!  Jesus paid the price that our original parents, Adam and Eve, brought upon the world through their disobedience.  But He also paid for your and my personal sin.  Put your trust in Him now and receive a new life.  You can trust the word that He speaks to you:

For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again […] Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.  Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.  For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. (2 Corinthians 5:14-21, emphasis mine)

Jesus Himself also invites you to believe in Him: “Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.  And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.  Do you believe this?’” (John 11:25-26).

If you believe that Jesus died for your sins, as the Scriptures clearly say, then you can have eternal life.  I invite you to receive His gift of life to you and then to rest in the promise that you are a new creation and will live forever with Christ.  If you would like pray or to speak with me one on one, please don’t hesitate to write!