Multiple Tripple Views in Revelation
Scriptural texts frequently employ repetition, wherein a message is initially stated, subsequently restated using different wording, and often reiterated a third time to ensure comprehension. The Book of Revelation exemplifies this approach.
REVELATION ARTICLES
James Schucker
Three views of the Church During the Gospel age
Scriptural texts frequently employ repetition, wherein a message is initially stated, subsequently restated using different wording, and often reiterated a third time to ensure comprehension. The Book of Revelation exemplifies this approach, at times incorporating a seven-fold pattern within this structure. Having studied Revelation for fifty years, I have discovered that there are three 7 fold views of the Church During the Gospel age, three 7 fold views of the The Harvest Age, and Three views of the Millennial Age Church. There are also three views of the Antichrist-System Controlling the Roman Beast that had power over the Church during the Gospel Age and Three views of the take down of the Antichrist Roman Beast during the Harvest of the Gospel Age.
The first 7 fold view of the Gospel age Church is given in the messages to the seven churches of Revelation chapters two and three. That is, 1 Ephesus, 2 Smyrna, 3 Pergamum, 4 Thyatira, 5 Sardis, 6 Philadelphia, and 7 Laodicea. The messages to these churches reflect what the Lord desired to communicate to the Church across seven periods during 2000 years of the gospel age. These periods are aligned with major shifts in the political landscape. Christianity grew stronger where the Lord sent his seven messengers to the church and where the Jewish people also faced consequences for not recognizing their Messiah. Christians, connected to Jewish heritage, also experience persecution as part of this history. Faithful Christians were to suffer just as the prophets of old suffered for their speaking truth to Israel. This was done to fulfill: Luke 6:22-23 “Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil because of the Son of Man. 23Rejoice on that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For their fathers treated the prophets in the same way.” God must test your willingness to suffer persecution for righteousness before he will reward you with immortal life.
The second 7 fold view of the Gospel age Church is given to us in the opening of the seals beginning in Revelation 5:1 running through 8:5. Think of the seals as the prophetic understanding being opened by the seven messengers. What was revealed is what was written to occur for that corresponding stage of the gospel age. The angel/messenger which was sent to that stage of the church by the Lord would help unlock the corresponding seal. What historically happens because of the seal being broken by the corresponding messenger is described by that seal.
The third 7 fold view of the Gospel age Church is given to us in the sounding of the seven trumpets beginning in Revelation 8:6 through 10:11. The perspective described in these passages reflect a poor response to the message given by the seven messengers from people who identify as Christians but have been following a perversion of the Gospel. Reference: the parable of the wheat and the tares in Matthew 13:24-43. Hence the message from their perspective is seen as a plague. The message is a rebuke to the tare class. But it is good for true Christianity and shows the spread of Christianity against those of the Church who have the Nicolaitan spirit. Yet it is bad for the tare class who profess Christ but do not really follow Him. The hypocrites of Christianity are like the hypocrites of Judaism which ended up killing their Messiah. And the tare or weed class does the same in their desire to kill true Christians as they do not like being told the truth which is the way the plague is written. Looks bad but is really good.
Three views of the Antichrist System
The first view of the rise of the antichrist system is given in Revelation 12:5-17 where we see the Dragon about to devour the “man child” the antichrist about to be born of the woman (representing the early church which contained many of those who had the Nicolaitin spirit within it.) The Nicolaitin Antichrist system was ‘devoured’ by the Dragon representing Rome when Rome made itself look like it adopted Christianity or was it Christianity adopting paganism and calling itself Christian and casting out the old paganism, you decide. This corresponds to the ‘enemy sowing tare seeds into the wheat field’ in the parable of wheat and tares found in Matthew 13:24:24-30 and 36-43. This is also described by Jesus as ‘Satan casting out Satan’ (Matthew 12:26) which Satan is loath to do, but he was losing the battle. And he begins to take the tactic if you can’t beat them, join them… and kill them from within.
The second view of the rise of the antichrist system appears in Revelation 13:1-10. It depicts Rome regaining power after the deadly wound to its head—an event historians call the “Fall of the Roman Empire” in 476. This wound resulted from the war described in chapter 12. Chapter 13 portrays Rome rising again amid that conflict, now taking on a more religious character and beginning a reign often described as lasting 1,260 years from 539 to 1799. The Dragon, representing civil power, moved from Rome to Constantinople in Greece and, in 539, transferred its authority and seat to the Papacy, which remained in Rome. Revelation 13 describes what the Apostle Paul referred to in 2Thessalonians 2:7: “For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work [in the church].Only he who now restrains it [Pagan Rome] will do so until he is taken out of the way.” Constantine moved Rome’s seat of power to Constantinople. After the ‘war against paganism’ had been won, Papal Rome—the antichrist system—arose in Rome. Also as described in Daniel 7:8 as a “horn, a little one, that came up among them [the 10 first horns] and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like those of a man and a mouth that spoke words of arrogance.” Thus showing its Nicolaitin spirit.
The third view of the rise of the antichrist system is given to us in Revelation 13:11-18. Here we see a two horned beast rising to new heights of power after the ‘war’ had been won, having two horns like a lamb, but speaking like a dragon. This is the third description of the antichrist system rising out of both Rome and Constantinople having the two horns one from the fourth beast (Rome) described in Daniel 7 and one from the Grecian Goat of Daniel 8. In these two visions of Daniel the antichrist system is being shown to grow out of both Rome and Greece. This describes the time when the inquisition was beginning to be set up. Here the papacy becomes an image of the beast that has the 10 horns, so the papacy acquires 10 Papal States - Britannica… and ends up ruling the beast (the Roman Empire) itself. (The Origin and Decline of the Papal States)
The book of Daniel also has three views of the antichrist system. Daniel 2:42 the clay and iron mix, Daniel 7 the horn upon Rome that plucks up 3 others, and Daniel 8 the little horn that waxed exceedingly great whose power was not its own Daniel 8:24. And so, it should not surprise us that Revelation also has three views of the antichrist system.
Three Women Described in Revelation
One may ask the question is there not a fourth view of the antichrist system in chapter 17? My response is that 17 is dealing with a woman in the same way that chapter 12 starts out about a woman. These two women represent churches or cities which are always female. As opposed to the antichrist system which is always described as male. The 12th chapter woman is the Early Church. The woman in the 17th chapter represents the Roman Catholic Church located in the City of Rome which grew and became powerful during the middle ages. Not surprisingly there is a third woman in Revelation 21:2 which is the true and completed Church which is the bride and body of Christ. Note again; the ‘Man of sin’ is Male and represents the position of the Pope as head of the Papal political system. Note the Pope himself is not the antichrist but he does occupy that position. There are details about the beast – Rome in the 17th chapter, but they are details of explanation from the time perspective of the Apostle John the writer of Revelation in 90 CE. We know this because in the explanation of the beast he states that “the ten horns had received no power as yet”. The horns began to receive power when Constantine moved the Roman Empire's capital to Constantinople. Also note that those horns continue in power until they destroy the Papal Power in 1870. Then their destruction begins at the end of the 2520 years which is in 1914. Whereas the Papal destruction begins with the French revolution as stated in Daniel 7:25.
Also note that the horns of the beast of chapter 17 are not showing themselves so much against the true church, but are deceived into fighting against the true Church during the 1260 years. Then they come to their senses and hate the Harlot that rides the beast. See: Revelation 17:16.
Three views of the Churches Harvest Age
And the Take Down of the Antichrist System
The harvest is described in the parable of the wheat and tares as the ‘end of the age’ this is where we are presently in God’s Plan of the Ages. The harvest age is represented as the last day that Israel went around Jericho but went around it seven time on that single day. Joshua 6: The Walls of Jericho
The first view of the Harvest age Church in Revelation 14. This parallels the Gospel age with seven messages delivered by seven angels. At the time of harvest six of the angels of the Gospel Age had been resurrected and were being seen as instructing the seventh messenger what to write in the 6 volumes of “Studies in the Scriptures”. Charles Russel gave his personal seventh message after passing away in the “air” on October 1, 1916. The structure—three angels, then Jesus, then three more angels—mirrors the pattern found in Ezekiel 9, with chapters 9 and 10 closely resembling Revelation 14–16.
The second view of the Harvest age Church appears in Revelation 15 & 16, where the seven last plagues are poured out on institutional Christian Churches. These plagues closely mirror the trumpets, highlighting their connection to the siege of Jericho in Joshua 6. Also, to get you to understand that whatever method you use with your interpretation of the trumpets, you must use with your interpretation of the plagues. Interpretations of the trumpets align with those of the plagues, as both share similar messages because they are guided by the resurrected messenger of that church era.
The third view of the Harvest age Church is presented in Revelation 18. At first, identifying its seven sections can be challenging, as the harvest church has struggled with interpretation. However, many are gaining a better understanding of its meaning now. Notice that, just as each of the three views of the gospel age was split into seven stages, all three perspectives on the harvest are also divided into seven distinct periods. For a better understanding of this see: Revelation Unredacted Chapter 18
Three views of the Millennial Age Church.
The first view of the kingdom, for which we pray, is given in Revelation 20. There we see the Dragon (from Revelation 12) as Satan being bound so that he can no longer deceive the nations for a thousand years. Also described as a time when the books were opened and everybody was judged out of those things written in the books Revelation 20:12.
The second view of the kingdom is given in Revelation 21:1-8. Here we see “the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride [the glorified Christian Church] adorned for her husband.”
The third view of the kingdom is given in Revelation 21:9-22:5. Here we see the new Jerusalem again ‘coming down from heaven’ and is then described and measured in 21:15.
Three views of Jesus coming down from heaven
Revelation gives us three views of Jesus’ return (Revelation 10, 18, and 20). These three echo Daniel’s vision in Daniel 7:9–14 where “the court was convened, and the books were opened.” Revelation 10 appears to mark the opening of the first of these books, while Rev 20:12 states again “And the books were opened”. Notably, there are ten chapters in Revelation where a book, the bible, is being unsealed, and another ten where it seems the last book in the bible is in process of being unsealed. It also appears the seventh angel/messenger (Charles Taze Russell) is meant to record for us what the seven thunders—whose words in Revelation 10:4 had been sealed—said.
I believe all these events are meant to be tied together to help us understand the chain of events written in Daniel 7 specially 9 through 26. Note: Revelation 5:1 & Revelation 10:4 The Gospel age seals are unsealed during the gospel age and understood by its end during the 7th trumpet. The harvest age seals are unsealed during the harvest age and understood by its end during the 7th plague. Remember these are secrets that must be kept from Satan which if he understood could be used to frustrate the plan of God. This is why only those who have the Holy spirit are able to understand the things that are written there.
Call: Jim Schucker 808-754-8978 for help in understanding.