Revelation 7:9-17
We open up to a glorious scene of worship. An innumerable crowd of people from every nation, every tribe, and every tongue was present, praising God together. Most notably, they are singing about God's kingship and the fact that salvation lies in the hands of God all while the angels are bowing down and blessing God, exalting His attributes.
The passage takes another turn at the elder's question. This multitude is that which was saved from the tribulation (No, I refuse to debate eschatological views. Verses 9 and 14 seem to be dispensationalist-leaning, despite my post-tribulational cant). What is important is that these are individuals who have been saved, i.e. Christians, and they have entered the presence of God, where there is no hunger, thirst, severe sun or heat; etc., because Christ will be their shepherd in person, tending to each individual.
On verses 9 and 14, this mass of people, if read as a sequential passage, could be raptured during the beginning of the tribulation, or this vision could be, as John Gill (an 18th Century theologian) believes, a foreshadowing of later events to be prophesied/to occur (so, after the tribulation and second coming of Christ). Matthew Henry (another 18th Century theologian) goes so far as to suggest that these are Christ's firstfruits, his forerunners of the Christians and that the others, the converted Gentiles will follow afterwards. Take from these theologians what you will regarding the end times, for this is not my main point, but rather that every people, language, and nation are represented here in this scene and they are all worshipping, free of worries, cares, and burdens.
Glorious
No comments:
Post a Comment