Free Bible Commentary
“Revelation 20:11-15”
Categories: Revelation“Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
---End of Scripture verses---
Other than visions of eternal victory to encourage the overcoming saints given in interludes and snippets, the majority of the book of Revelation deals with “the things which must soon take place” (Revelation 1;1). But today’s verses clearly comprise a concise depiction of the Final Judgment that will take place at the end of time. Homer Hailey wrote concerning other judgment scenes in the book: “Thus far in the book several scenes of judgment have been described, but none depicted the final judgment. There was a judgment of the nations on behalf of the saints (11:18), one of those who poured out the blood of the saints (16:5), one of the harlot (18:8; 19:2), and of the beast and the false prophet (19:11-12); but all of these pertained to the period of Roman rule.” Now we get a glimpse into the grand finale.
John was shown a vision of “a great white throne and Him who sat upon it” (verse 11). This throne is “great” because of the greatness of the One seated there, and it is “white” because, as the symbol of purity and holiness, all of His judgments are perfectly just and purely unassailable. There can be little doubt that Jesus, “the righteous Judge” (2 Timothy 4:8), is the “Him” who sits as the great adjudicator of all mankind in verse 11. “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10). The Great Conqueror “called Faithful and True” who sat upon a white horse judging and waging war “in righteousness” (Revelation 19:11), now executes that righteous judgment seated upon a white throne.
From His “presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.” The Psalmist wrote in Psalm 102:25-27: “Of old You founded the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands. Even they will perish, but You endure; and all of them will wear out like a garment; like clothing You will change them and they will be changed. But you are the same, and Your years will not come to an end.” At the coming of Christ in judgment, John sees a vision of “the day of the Lord” coming “like a thief, in which the heavens…pass away with a roar and the elements” are “destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and all its works” are “burned up” (2 Peter 3:10).
John saw “the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne” (verse 12). This is one appointment that no one will be able to postpone or cancel. ALL people must stand before the judgment throne of Jesus the Righteous. It doesn’t matter if you are rich or poor, weak or strong, beautiful or repulsive, a king or a servant, red, white, black, yellow or brown (verse 13). On that great and final day, “At the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and…every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” (Philippians 2:10-11). And all will receive the sentence of eternal life or eternal death.
Robert Harkrider wrote concerning the “books” that were open in verse 12: “The ‘books’ (plural) at the judgment scene signify the different standards by which all the living shall be judged (Heb. 1:1; Rom 2:14; 2 Cor. 5:10). The dead were judged by the word God gave in each dispensation and how they responded to it (Rom. 2:6-11; 2 Cor. 5:10). ‘Another book was opened’ which included God’s roll of righteous people throughout all ages, for this is the ‘book of life’ (Exod. 32:32-33; Mal. 3:16-17; Luke 10:20; Phil. 4:3; Rev. 3:5; 21:27).
Friend, is your name written in the Lamb’s book of life? How have you responded to the Gospel of Jesus Christ? What will your answer be to the Lord’s invitation (Matthew 11:25-30)? What will you do with Jesus? Where will you spend your eternity? Jesus Himself said: “He who as believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned” (Mark 16:16).
Please read Revelation 21:1-4 for tomorrow.
Have a super day!
-Louie Taylor
