That great day of God Almighty – Part 5: And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together.
It has been widely taught that at the end of the world (also known as the Last Day, Judgment Day, the Second Coming, and the day of the Lord), the heavens, or the cosmos as we know it, will also pass away. There are many passages in Scripture that teach about the departing of the heavens as well as the creation of new heavens and a new earth, as in the following.
Matthew 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
We can know that the passing away of the heavens will occur on the same day as the return of Christ because of what we read in 2 peter 3.
2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
We can also know that the passing away of the heavens and the earth will occur just before God judges the unsaved from what we read in Rev 20.
Rev 20:11-13 And I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
There is no question from reading Rev 20:11-13 that the judgment of the unsaved will occur after the passing away of the heavens and the earth. Because this passage tells us these “dead” are “standing before God”, we can know that they are experiencing a conscious existence after the passing away of the earth and the heavens.
And in the books of Isaiah and Revelation we find the following passages.
Isaiah 13:13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.
Isaiah 51:6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner: but my salvation shall be forever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished.
Isaiah 65:17 For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
Isaiah 66:22 For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.
Rev 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away.
In the following passages, there are several links that connect the passages to each other.
Isaiah 34:4 And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree.
Rev 6: 13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together.
Matt 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken.
In the 3 passages above, the links that are made go as follows:
Link #1 - The passing away of the heavens is described as a scroll that is being rolled up together.
Link #2 – The removal of the stars from heaven is described as stars that fall down (to the earth) just as figs that fall from a tree (to the earth) when the tree is shaken by a mighty wind.
Link #3 – The stars fall from heaven because of a shaking that is taking place.
As we read further into the passage of Rev 6, it continues to describe this scenario, and I will verses to show it in its context.
Rev 6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 17 For the great day of his wrath is come ; and who shall be able to stand?
This scenario is also described in the books of Isaiah and Joel.
Isaiah 2:19-21 And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when He ariseth to shake terribly the earth. In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats; To go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when He ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
Joel 2:10-11 The earth shall quakebefore them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining: And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?
Joel 3:14-16 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
I used to believe for 25 years that the scenario of Rev 6:12-17 was describing events that would occur before the Rapture, but now I am fully convinced that all the passages that I have quoted above are describing the scenario that will take place after the Rapture and the resurrection of the dead, and that this is also where and when the battle of Armageddon will take place, as we read in the following passage.
Rev 16:15-16 Behold , I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.
The place called Armageddon is where the judgment upon the unsaved will take place. It is where they will be seen standing before God while the books are being opened, and they are judged "out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works." And it will take place after the passing away of the heavens.
Rev 20:11-13 And I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
Matthew 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
We can know that the passing away of the heavens will occur on the same day as the return of Christ because of what we read in 2 peter 3.
2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
We can also know that the passing away of the heavens and the earth will occur just before God judges the unsaved from what we read in Rev 20.
Rev 20:11-13 And I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
There is no question from reading Rev 20:11-13 that the judgment of the unsaved will occur after the passing away of the heavens and the earth. Because this passage tells us these “dead” are “standing before God”, we can know that they are experiencing a conscious existence after the passing away of the earth and the heavens.
And in the books of Isaiah and Revelation we find the following passages.
Isaiah 13:13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.
Isaiah 51:6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner: but my salvation shall be forever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished.
Isaiah 65:17 For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
Isaiah 66:22 For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.
Rev 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away.
In the following passages, there are several links that connect the passages to each other.
Isaiah 34:4 And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree.
Rev 6: 13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together.
Matt 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken.
In the 3 passages above, the links that are made go as follows:
Link #1 - The passing away of the heavens is described as a scroll that is being rolled up together.
Link #2 – The removal of the stars from heaven is described as stars that fall down (to the earth) just as figs that fall from a tree (to the earth) when the tree is shaken by a mighty wind.
Link #3 – The stars fall from heaven because of a shaking that is taking place.
As we read further into the passage of Rev 6, it continues to describe this scenario, and I will verses to show it in its context.
Rev 6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 17 For the great day of his wrath is come ; and who shall be able to stand?
This scenario is also described in the books of Isaiah and Joel.
Isaiah 2:19-21 And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when He ariseth to shake terribly the earth. In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats; To go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty, when He ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
Joel 2:10-11 The earth shall quakebefore them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining: And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?
Joel 3:14-16 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
I used to believe for 25 years that the scenario of Rev 6:12-17 was describing events that would occur before the Rapture, but now I am fully convinced that all the passages that I have quoted above are describing the scenario that will take place after the Rapture and the resurrection of the dead, and that this is also where and when the battle of Armageddon will take place, as we read in the following passage.
Rev 16:15-16 Behold , I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.
The place called Armageddon is where the judgment upon the unsaved will take place. It is where they will be seen standing before God while the books are being opened, and they are judged "out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works." And it will take place after the passing away of the heavens.
Rev 20:11-13 And I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
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