Concurrent Events in Revelation | TheLastDays
No one knows how to tell a story better than our Lord. What He has given us in this book is not a simple narrative, but one that breaks into two streams. The primary timeline follows the successive judgments in Revelation which are all sent from the throne room where John remains a rapt observer. Those judgments begin with the Birth Pains and end just before the final battle, Armageddon. But there is far more to the story than these judgments! The camera must pan away from the throne room at times to show other actors and actions taking place elsewhere—simultaneously with the judgments. These secondary timelines—some brief, some extended—form the concurrent events in Revelation judgments which John is also shown.
And I looked, and lo, the Lamb stood on Mount Zion. And with Him were a hundred and forty-four thousands, having His Father's name written in their foreheads. Revelation 14:1
All scripture citations are from the English Standard Version (ESV) unless otherwise noted.
What Are the Concurrent Events?
The "Concurrent Events" in Revelation are composed of occurrences or characters that are not directly related to the throne room judgments, nor are they a part of the events of the closing sequence, except in minor ways. From the moment John arrives in heaven he records “A Series of Judgments” that is complete in its parts, moving from the opening of the first seal, through to the pouring out of the final bowl of wrath. Seven seals are followed by seven trumpets, which in turn are followed by seven bowls. When the last bowl is emptied the judgments come to an end. The very next things that happen on this timeline are the opening episodes of “The Closing Sequence.” Immediately after the seventh bowl is emptied, the nations gather for the final battle, the Lord returns, the Millennium begins, and other wonders ultimately follow. The Book of Revelation gives us a very clear picture of the order of these events.
If these events of judgment, taking place over possibly seven and a half years, and the events of the closing sequence which stretch out over a thousand years were the only events the Book of Revelation contains, every reader would have a crystal-clear understanding of the timeline for how they will unfold. However, the interweaving by John of what we are calling concurrent events into this timeline throws everything into chaos and confusion. There can be no question that we need to have all the information that these concurrent events in Revelation give us, but we do not need to naively assume that they are somehow a part of the book’s primary timeline. That’s why we have chosen to pull them off to the side into a separate category of their own. This allows the primary two timelines (the sequential judgments and the closing sequence) to be seen with stunning clarity. Just as importantly, it allows the timelines of these separate events to reveal their own character and duration.
Perhaps it is too little appreciated that what the Lord did in writing the scriptures was an artistic tour de force. For instance, the gospels were all written in a literary style and with a depth of characterization that would not come into its own until the great novelists of the 19th century "invented" the technique. Similarly, what He appears to have done in giving us the multifaceted vignettes of the Last Days is invent a method of storytelling that would not find expression until our movie makers perfected flashbacks and parallel narratives. It is too much to suppose that the gospel writers and John on Patmos were ahead of their time artistically by two thousand years. This is the Lord’s doing. Not to see this has led many to read the Book of Revelation as if it were an old school sequential narration, like any of the other histories which the ancient world produced.
That most of the concurrent events in Revelation do not fit nicely on the primary timeline is perfectly demonstrated by "The Woman Versus the Dragon" sequence. This begins with the birth of Jesus![1] How does that fit onto a timeline of judgments that awaits the Great Tribulation to begin unfolding? No, these concurrent events have timelines of their own, a fact easily seen by separating out the story of the antichrist which begins with his emergence “from the sea” and then tracks him through the events of his three-and-a-half-year reign.[2]
Most of what we have on the antichrist is given in Chapter 13 along with information about the false prophet, the image of the beast and their detestable mark. These companion characters are grouped together (for our convenience) and sandwiched in-between the seventh trumpet judgment and the seven plagues—a moment in time that is only seven months away from the Lord’s return. That’s not nearly enough time for their nefarious careers!
Finally, the two long chapters giving information on the Whore of Babylon and Babylon’s fall are squeezed in at the end of the judgment sequence, right between the seventh bowl of wrath and the last battle. There will be little more than a few days between those events—at most. Yet, the extraordinarily detailed picture given in those two chapters can only have taken place much earlier in the timeline when other actors on earth have a chance to observe and lament Babylon’s downfall.
List of Articles
The First 144,000 That there are two groups of 144,000 specially selected saints—and that they are both quite different—is confusing enough. But the sight of this first group is followed immediately by a throne room vision of a vast multitude which John cannot number. Those select souls in the first group are still living on earth; the second group have died and now live in heaven. The first group is Jewish; the second are Gentiles. The first are sealed for protection; the second were slain as martyrs. What unites them is their single-minded devotion to the Lord and the way Jesus “paused” the judgments sequence to show these two groups to John.
The Two Witnesses For a moment in time—three and a half years—to be almost exact, the landscape of the End Times will resemble the Wild West of America. These two witnesses are the stuff of legends. Like the high-riding cowboys who “won the West” through gunfights, these prophets go toe to toe with the antichrist himself. The first miracle is that they managed to “stay in the saddle” over three years. But then they had been given authority to kill with fire, to shut the heavens, and to rain down plagues. Even so, the greatest miracle is what happened when they died. Nobody saw that one coming.
Woman verses Dragon This woman is certainly the damsel in distress of the End Times story. A dragon is chasing her no less! He is out to destroy her at both the beginning and the end of this action-packed chapter. This makes her a highly sympathetic character, not at all like her opposite number—the Harlot of Babylon. However, just like that femme fatale she presents a mystery. It is not the mystery of iniquity, but that of righteousness. Who is she? What does she represent and what can we do, if anything, to help her out?
The First Beast Here’s the villain of the story. This archenemy of humanity and of the Lord Himself is going to make his way onto the world stage several years before Jesus arrives. And there is nothing we can do to stop him. Trained by the Enemy and likely possessed by him, this cruel deceiver will be deceived. He will be fully convinced he can succeed in destroying the church, enslaving humanity, and seizing the earth as his own dominion. But the Lord will overthrow him “with the breath of his mouth” and destroy him “by the splendor of his coming.” Don’t overrate his power, but don’t underrate his cruelty. Here’s what we can know about him now.
The Second Beast Just as the antichrist is a counterfeit messiah, so the false prophet is a pseudo John the Baptist. His nefarious role will be in preparing the world to receive the lawless one as a man of peace and the answer to the world’s problems. This he will accomplish by creating a one world religion, something that for centuries has seemed utterly impossible. Nevertheless, there are already signs that this merging of the world’s religions is in the making. Even Christians and Jews will be taken in by this deception, so it’s worth understanding in advance all that we can know of the false prophet’s ways.
The Image and Mark Whatever you do, do NOT take this mark! Some of the direst imprecations (curses) in scripture are spoken against those who take the mark of the beast. Without question, the unbelieving and unperceiving world will take it to their doom. Either they will be wooed by worshipping the beast into thinking it is somehow for their good; or they will take it against their better judgment due to the threat of death or slow starvation that are imposed on those who refuse it. Christians will know better, but this gift of revelation comes at high demand: Even Christians who take it will be damned forever. Don’t take it!
The Second 144,000 This second assembly of 144,000 specially chosen believers is nothing like the other group. That first group will be composed exclusively of Jewish heritage people only—no Gentiles allowed. This one is for anyone who has been redeemed by the Lamb—Jewish or Gentile. But not just anyone. Only the most devoted, most sold-out followers need apply. These are the ones who go everywhere the Lamb goes and nowhere that He doesn’t. There is one further qualifier. It may be way too late to make the cut.
Three Angel Messages Spliced in between the sight of 144,000 totally devoted followers of Jesus and a stunning vision of the earth’s final harvest, come these three angelic messengers. Although they are flying high over John’s head, their message is not lost in the clouds. Fortunately, for us John recorded their warnings faithfully. None of us like bad news, but if trouble is coming our way, we are far better off being fully prepared to face it, than caught off guard.
The Harvest of the Earth There is a harvest coming and we will want to be a part of it. The End Times harvest of souls for the kingdom of God will be sensational! Huge numbers of desperate people will turn to faith in God and Jesus in the days ahead and this will likely continue well into the Tribulation. Only at the very end as the seven bowls of wrath are out poured will there be no one left to repent and be saved. While this is going on, however, there will also be a harvest of those fated to eternal death—by their own rejection of God’s gracious offer. These will be “harvested” by one series of calamitous judgments after another. Behind the scenes—hidden from our eyes—the Lord and the holy angels will be working the harvest with “sharp sickles.”
The Harlot Babylon Though there are many contenders, one of the most riveting images from the Book of Revelation is that of the “Great Whore” riding a scarlet beast—the antichrist himself. She doesn’t know it, but she is being carried to her doom. Such a divine judgment is pronounced upon her that all her wealth and worldly glory are destroyed in a single day. Even the beast is said to throw her down, trampling her the way rodeo bulls do their unseated riders. She is called “Mystery Babylon.” The larger part of that mystery, no doubt, is the “mystery of lawlessness” at work in the Last Days. The abiding mystery for us, however, is just who this fallen woman represents. Does she represent the United States of America?
The Fall of Babylon Even good things come to an end in the cycle of life, but this was never a good thing. Babylon only seem to be good on the way up. Like any addiction, those poor souls hooked on what this treacherous “lady” offered just couldn’t say no. Mystery Babylon is on the one hand a nation and on the other a mindset—a mind set on adultery with the world. Spiritual unfaithfulness to the God of Life always puts one in bed with the dark powers of this age. The beast showed his true colors throwing his haughty rider down. Now, the Lord God will be throwing down judgment upon her and the nation which gave her “a dwelling place.”
Next Piece of the Puzzle
The First 144,000 That there are two groups of 144,000 specially selected saints—and that they are both quite different—is confusing enough. But the sight of this first group is followed immediately by a throne room vision of a vast multitude which John cannot number. Those select souls in the first group are still living on earth; the second group have died and now live in heaven. The first group is Jewish; the second are Gentiles. The first are sealed for protection; the second were slain as martyrs. What unites them is their single-minded devotion to the Lord and the way Jesus “paused” the judgments sequence to show these two groups to John.
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Endnotes
[1] And the dragon stood before the woman being about to bear, so that when she bears he might devour her child. And she bore a son, a male, who is going to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her child was caught up to God and to His throne. Revelation 12:4b-5
[2] And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. Revelation 13:1