1:19 How are we to understand what Jesus says here?
1:19 How are we to understand what Jesus says here?
What Jesus says here provides a simple outline for the entire book of Revelation. The things which thou hast seen refers to the vision of Jesus John had just received (cp Re 10-18).
John saw the glorified Jesus here as present in the world in the church, "... in the midst of the seven candlesticks". The seven candlesticks represent the seven churches in Asia which, as we learned in our study on V4, are representative of all churches in all ages. The seven stars Jesus held in His right hand represent the leaders of the churches (cp Re 20). In Re 10-18 the glorified Jesus appeared to John clothed in robes of kingly power.
He surpassed the sun in His glory. The two-edged sword in His mouth in V 16 represents the word of God which either cuts away sin from the churches and individual members, or it cuts the churches and individual members away from the eternal kingdom in judgment (cp Re 2:12 with Jn 12:48; He 4:12-13; 1Pe 4:5). The purpose of John's vision of Jesus in Rev 1 is to give comfort and assurance of victory to the church. It is not to confirm their fears or threats of the enemy.
The things which are refer to the church age which Jesus addresses in Ch 2-3. They concern the spiritual state of the churches and the eventual "rapture" of those individuals still living prior to the great tribulation who are represented by the church at Philadelphia (cp Rev 3:7-13).
As we learned in our study on Rev 1:4, the word from in Re 3:10 means "out of". Jesus is going to save those represented by the church at Philadelphia out of the great tribulation. The tribulation is God's wrath poured out upon sinners, not saints (cp Ro 5:8-9; Eph 5:6; 1Th 1:9-10; 5:2-9; 2Pe 2:9).
These scriptures all prove that the church will be raptured to heaven before the onset of the great tribulation, and this is further confirmed in Rev 4:1 (cp Re 4:1). The things which must be hereafter, literally means the things which are logically necessary to fulfill God's purposes (cp Mt 16:21; 25:27; 26:54; Lk 15:32; Jn 3:7, 14, 30; 4:4, 24; 10:16).
This means that the things which must be hereafter are predestined to begin after Ch 2-3 - the church age - is fulfilled, not at the same time. This is clear evidence of a pre-tribulation "rapture". The "rapture" ends the church age (cp Jn 14:1-3; 1Cor 15:51-58; 1Th 4:13-18).
The church is never mentioned again as being on earth after Rev 3 because it is in heaven (cp Re 4:4, 9-11; 5:8-10, 19:1-4). The four and twenty elders here represent the raptured church in heaven. They identified themselves in Rev 5:9 as the church, redeemed to God from out of every tribe, language, people, and nation in the earth (cp Rev 5:9). The saints who are saved after Rev 4:1 come out of the great tribulation.
They are not the church as so many Christians believe (cp Mt 24:9; Rev 6:9-11; 7:9-14; 17:6). The tribulation saints are beheaded for their witness to Christ; they would not take the mark of the beast nor worship him (cp Re 13:7-8, 15-17; 14:13; 15:2-4; 20:4).
The things which shall be hereafter refers to the events that will come upon the earth after the "rapture" of the church. These things are all described in Rev Ch 4-22.
They include the revelation of Antichrist; the great tribulation; Christ's second coming; the battle of Armageddon and the defeat of both Antichrist and the devil; the judgment of the nations; Christ's millennial reign; the great white throne judgment; the final judgment of Satan and all the unrighteous; the creation of a new heaven and earth, and New Jerusalem coming down from heaven to earth to be the seat of government, from which both God and Christ will rule throughout eternity (see also comments on Lk 21:36, Jn 14:1-3, 1Cor 15:51-58, Php 3:20-21, 1Th 4:13-18, 5:1-11, 2Th 2:1-3, 2:6-8, 2Ti 2:18, Rev 3:7-13).