In The Evening Time There Shall Be Light
By Cohen G. Reckart, Pastor
Jesus Messiah gave unto John the beloved a series of visions that are recorded in the book of Revelation. Some of these visions are identical in revelation they are just different in the manner the symbolism depicts the unfolding of the events. In the visions that are identical in purpose and revelation, there are different events of the same vision that become unveiled.
The chapters in the book of Revelation are NOT written in chronological order so as to say chapter one is fulfilled and then follows chapter two to be fulfilled, etc, until each of the 22 chapters are fulfilled each following the one going before.
The book of Revelation is written in a combination of literal and symbolic form. Where symbolism is used the intent was to bring out a literal event using symbols to describe the events. The Book is not written in a spiritualist manner that needs a special spiritualist interpretation. It is a spiritual book in that it is holy and God ordained, but it is NOT a *mystical book* that needs a special spiritual or numerical code to unlock the meanings of the visions.
The purpose of the book is stated in the very first words: To show the things that *must shortly come to pass*. Some of the things that must come to pass are described in the revelation with a historical background such as the ten horn beast that is pictured in Daniel and we know to be the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire was not to shortly come to pass or to come into existence. The point here is that in obtaining a correct interpretation of the visions and revelations there must be an attempt to reconcile the symbolism with events then current when the Revelation was written and follow this foundation to the conclusion of the whole of all the revelations, all the way to the end of the world in chapter 22.
So, the Revelation was not just a book to be fulfilled by 70AD as the Preterist claim, which afterward they throw the book of Revelation away as unneeded by the Church as a guide to prophecy to be fulfilled prior to the second advent of the Lord.
Some have made a big play on the words or Revelation 1:1--*which must shortly come to pass* saying this statement can apply only to the first century and therefore everything in the book has already been fulfilled. This is false. The book of Revelation has undergone some text changes from the original autograph of John and some words or parts of the scripture have been translated differently. In the fragments of the works of Dionysius (200-265AD), as recorded in volume 6, page 83, of the Ante-Nicene Fathers, the original verse one was written: "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which He gave to him to show to His servants quickly; and He sent and signified it by his Angel to His servant John, who bare record of the Word of God, and of his testimony, and all things that he saw."
Since the Catholic Church from the time of Saint Augustine, held for its view on eschatology the Preterist heresy that all of the contents of the book of Revelation had been fulfilled by 70AD, there was no attempt to translate the words of the book correctly. There is a BIG DIFFERENCE in the words: "which He gave to him to show to His servants quickly" and the words now in the KJV "to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass." In the first, John is instructed to show the revelations quickly to the other Apostles. In the KJV the emphais is changed to show the Revelation quickly to the other Apostles to the ideas that what is shown WILL COME TO PASS IMMEDIATELY!
There is absolutely NO INTENTION in the orginal text to suggets IMMEDIATE fulfillment and the iminent resurrection of the dead in Christ and the appearing of Jesus by 70AD, which many are teaching (the doctrine of Pheletus and Hymenaus that the resurrection is past). This view is called the Post-Millennial doctrine. The Amillennialist who are the descendants of this Post-Millennialist heresy, adopted the Post-Mill Preterist view of the book of Revelation after the alleged millennial of one thousand years expired near the end of 1000AD and the end of the world did not come as Augustine had predicted. The Amillennialist now want to change the 1,000 years from actual time to a spiritualist time covering the whole present Church age. This view of the Revelation is heresy.
To build an entire interpretation of when the book of Revelation would be fulfilled on the KJV rendering of verse one in chapter one, and claim this is the unequivocal and inerrant Word of God, ...is wrong! The KJV of the scriptures has many alterations, modifications, interpolations, substitutions of words, and although the BEST present English version in existence, it is NOT THE FINAL AUTHORITY upon which we rely for the correct wording. Where the KJV is correct we do no quibble or argue but where there is a more ancient rendering that is closer to the original autograph and contains a clearer understanding of the intent of the text, that is the text we will use.
The purpose of the Revelation was not to create an argument among the *servants* about words, but rather the unveiling of the prophetic events that would effect the Kingdom of God, the Church, from the then present age until the age of the appearing of the Lord Jesus Messiah from heaven.
The book describes the political forces that will be used against the Messianic Judaism of Jesus in the early age and that there will be political forces of the same mind all the way to the very end in Revelation chapter 22. It reveals that there are two women pictured as religious systems that will co-exist throughout this time period. The great whore who claims she is no widow will become an ally of the political forces of the world and cause them to drink of her hatred and cruelty against the woman of Revelation chapter 12. The trail of blood of the slain identifies the Great Whore as apostate Judaism under the Talmudic Pharisees.
When players of the forces against the Messianic Judaism of Jesus in the first century are identified as a basis for understanding the visions, the political forces allied against the Church with the rulers of the nation of Israel is clearly seen as the Talmudic Pharisees in league with the Roman Empire. Thus, the political system of the ten horns, the beast that carried the first Great Whore, is the ancient whore Israel, and she is pictured as a cruel and bloody woman out to destroy the Messianic Judaism of Jesus and his New Testament Church. In some manner from the first century until the second advent, when the whore draws the whole world to persecute the Messianic Judaism of Jesus and its converts, there must be secret dealings with all nations to use or adopt political powers to create anti-missionary laws and to persecute the woman and the remnant of her seed.
A clear picture is that the judgments of the seven seals, the seven trumpets, and the seven vials, are against the great whore and all the political systems of the world who will assist her in her final plan to purge the world of believers in Jesus Messiah. The battle of Armageddon and the stomping out of the grapes of wrath in Jerusalem with the appearing of the Lord Jesus in flaming fire to take vengeance, will not FAIL! Regardless of the interpretations of men, the WORD OF GOD WILL NOT FAIL! I call on all nations to repent and NOT TO CREATE ANTI-MISSIONARY LAWS AGAINST THE LORD'S ENDTIME PROPHETS AND MINISTERS. I call upon Israel and all unbeliving Jews to repent AND NOT TO PERSECUTE THE LORD JESUS' ENDTIME SAINTS, PROPHETS, OR MINISTERS. I call upon Israel not to build a new temple, not to offer animal sacrifices, and not to follow the coming ANTICHRIST who will set his throne in Jerusalem and the issue the mark of that beast nation or revived religious system upon the world.
Do not allow the tiny details of the seals, trumpets, and vials, to blind you to the principal players in the endtime scheme of prophetic events that are right now unfolding. Keep your eyes upon the One-World political system that will substitute for the Roman Empire. Keep your eyes on the ancient Great whore and the endtime nations that will ally with her in Jerusalem, from thence will arise an antichrist who will cause all to receive his religious mark of denial of Jesus as the Messiah, or a person cannot buy or sell.
The Revelation is the endtime newspaper of prophetic events. If we allow anyone to reinterpret the contents different from the identity of the players of the first century, then the book can be made to fit any theory or spiritualist concocted mystical interpretation.
These studies are designed for better understanding of the meanings of the text. If you disagree with them that is fine, you can believe the Catholic, Jewish, Protestant, or other theories or views and we will not protest your liberty. But do not deny us ours!
Cohen G. Reckart, Pastor
Studies
Is There A Gentile Dispensation
The Errors Of Dispensationalism
Can The Mark Of The Beast Be A Computer Chip