Time, Times, and a Half (Part 1)
The Little Open Book...within the last Book of the Book of books!
We all – meaning those who believe the Bible to be the inspired Word of God – recognize the concept of the “Book of books”. The idea that, by a miracle, an act of God Himself, sixty-six different books written by some forty different writers, spanning some 1,600 years were able to contribute their stories to a single compilation that accurately depicts God’s interactions with His creation within the confines of time.
We should not (and likely are not) surprised to find that within the books of the “Book of books” can also be found…books! (The Matryoshka (nesting) dolls of literature.) Literally, from Genesis to Revelation, with many cases in between, can be found “books” – though primarily an Old Testament phenomena – with the last examples found in the Revelation of Jesus Christ…three of them.
John tells us that he was charged by God to write in a book the things he sees, the things that are, and those things that must soon come into being (Rev.1:11,19). And that he was to then send the book to seven specified cities – cities to which the Lord Himself had a specific message. Also included in John’s commission was the promise of blessing: “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy and guard (put value in) the things that are written in it, for the time is near.” (Rev.1:3)
As John proceeds through his three-fold commission – writing first of what he sees (Rev.1:4-20), then of the things that are (chapter 2-3), finishing with those things that must “become” in the remainder of the Revelation. It is within the fulfillment of this final charge that John (and us) is introduced to three books identified within this, the final book of the “Book of books”.
So, within the book he is told to write and send – the book we know as the “Revelation of Jesus Christ” – can also be found the Book in the hand of He Who sits on the throne; the little open Book in the left hand of the Strong Messenger Who is descending from heaven; and the Book of Life – first seen (within the Revelation) in the hand of Jesus and then being used by He Who sits and judges from the great white throne.
In a previous work (Understanding the REVELATION) I have taken the opportunity to review all of the phrases in the Revelation, in the order that they were witnessed by John with the desire to understand what he saw and heard…which more amazingly, was how those to whom it was read in the seven cities heard it. We, in this time in history, are blessed to have so many tools and instruments for studying and dissecting the Word of God at our disposal. For the better part of 1800 years, access to the Word was greatly limited (even forbidden) for those of His body who were not “elevated” to a position of authority – first because of technology and illiteracy, later because of fear that the “laity” might not hear from God what the clergy determined they should hear.
Today, with time and desire, any of us can search out a matter (Prov.25:2) like the kings and queens we are! We need not fear: for the Lord has promised to send us His Spirit, who will lead us into all truth (John 16:13). But we should also recognize the absolute difference between interpretation and application as we endeavor to hear from the Lord. There is only one interpretation (2Pet.1:20) but we can all find edification and encouragement in His Words to us.
As for the books within the Revelation, even without any further detail or explanation, the realization of Who the holders of these books are should be enough to incite our curiosity. The anticipation of the importance and implications of any one of them (let alone the combining of them within the final book of the Bible) is reason for us to look deeper.
In their order of appearance within the Revelation, the first one we see is the Book of Life. In chapter 3, as John continues to scribe the letters from Jesus to the Christians who gather in fellowship in certain cities, there is a message to those in Sardis that he is asked to write. It is around 96 AD (which, according to the brilliant work of Martin Anstey and Philip Mauro, would be 4133 years from the creation of Man). Though determining the relevant details of the culture and setting of the city of Sardis is not our goal here (there are other resources available for those details) it should be remembered that what Jesus had to say to them – and what it meant to them – is the correct interpretation. What we can glean from it is application and it can be extremely profitable in our endeavors to follow Him.
By what we read we know that those who gathered struggled to demonstrate the life of Christ to the community in which they lived. Jesus warned them of their need to awaken – actually using the word that suggests resurrection – or else His coming will find them unprepared. And though the “coming” of which He spoke is spiritual in nature (in this case He is not referring to His return), their lack of awareness would cause them to be unable to recognize His presence. Those few in the fellowship whose outward and visible testimony (their “garments”) were “not defiled” are promised the opportunity to walk with Him, “dressed” in purity and holiness.
He then promises to those who overcome, walking in the victory He provides, that they: “will thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the ‘book of Life’ and I will confess his name before My Father and before His messengers.” It is intriguing that our introduction to the Book of Life in the Revelation includes the realization that one’s name can be “erased” (the actual term means to blot out since ink cannot be erased) – a concept that begs for additional pursuit – but that pursuit will have to wait for another endeavor.
The next book, within the book of the Revelation, is seen on the hand of God in Revelation 5:1. Though often overshadowed by the cataclysmic seals seen on the “scroll”, the book itself is of significance (the “Book of Redemption” by this author delves into the crucial nature of the revelation of this book to the plan of God throughout the ages). Chapter 5 includes the greatest recorded display of worship in heaven and all of creation – and it all has to do with the One found worthy to take the book from the hand of the Father. He who is found worthy – our near kinsman/redeemer – is the One who, first and foremost, is allowed to take the book and open it. It is that truth that then enables the disclosures and insights that are found behind the seals. The seals are intriguing – in part because of the symbolism John uses to describe them – but the possession and opening of the book, on their own, merits attention.
The third book within the last book of the Book of books is the one we will discover in detail in an upcoming project. Seen first in chapter 10 of the Revelation, it too is in the hand of God – Jesus (seen as the Jehovah Messenger), descending from heaven and holding it in His left hand. (I choose to use the translation for the Greek word transliterated “aggelos” but inserted as “angel”, which is “messenger” in order to disrupt any of the nearly automatic pictures that come to mind when we hear or read the errant transliteration.) This is likely the least recognized of the three – with most commentators noting only it’s size (little) and status (open or not sealed) as points of comparison to what we refer to as the Book of Redemption. What importance it might have and what actions it inaugurates are often seen as disconnected; thus, missing the congruence of His plan and the causative nature of this missive.
What follows in the Revelation are the details – the incremental and associative actions – that the introduction of this book initiates. John’s increasing involvement – not just as witness and scribe, but as an active participant – leads to some of the most controversial details within the Revelation on the whole. Once again, the realization and reminder that chapters and verses were not a part of the original manuscripts but added in order to provide a means of quality assurance for translators and duplicators (a noble motive), will help us to realize the almost shocking implications of this transition from the horrors of the sounding of the sixth trumpet to the introduction of the little open book!
In what, by many expositors, seems a ransom insertion that produces a somewhat meandering rabbit trail, will be found the exact, appropriate next element in the revelation of those things that must soon come into being.
John was commissioned to write what he sees – and we recognize the fulfillment of that commission in Revelation chapter 1. He was also commissioned to write the things that are: found in the seven letters to the fellowships of believer in the seven cities of Asia Minor which addressed their conditions in circa 96 AD. Lastly, John was commissioned to write those things that must (of necessity) “come into being” (though often translated “come to pass” or “done” – this is a creative word in the Greek that mirrors the Hebrew word that the Lord used when He gave Moses His eternal name). The fulfillment of that commission begins when the Father calls him to “Come here and I will show you” at the beginning of our chapter 4 and runs through until John is no longer “in the Spirit” near the end of our chapter 22.
The Strong Messenger – descends from heaven (the word for heaven applies to all three levels – here it refers to the throne room of God). He then places His left foot on the land and His right foot on the sea and cries out like the roar of a lion. He then raises His right hand to heaven…and in doing so places Himself in the three domains Adam was charged to rule over – the three domains over which our adversary was given rights when Adam fell. And swears by Him who lives forever and ever.
This is the setting of the introduction of the little book that is not sealed – the little open book. Rivaled in its implications of importance and power only by the Book of Redemption. A book that deserves our attention and our understanding of it!
More to come…