Revelation 20 - In Depth Bible Commentaries

2347
(...continued)
Gregg entitles Revelation 20:11-15 “The End of the World” (pp. 478-79), even though
this phrase is not found in the biblical text, or in the entirety of Revelation. He refers to the
premillennial view that “The glory of Christ (or God) is so intense as to dissolve the universe
(compare 2 Peter 3:10, 12), so that John declares that the earth and the heaven fled away
(verse 11) [obviously, we think, a personification, in which both earth and heaven are depicted
as ‘running away’!]. These will be permanently removed, so that ‘there was found no place for
them.’ In the opening verse of the next chapter, the old heavens and earth are said to be
‘passed away.’ This makes place for the creation of a new heaven and earth.” (P. 478)
Hendricksen, quite differently, comments that "Not the destruction or annihilation but
the renovation of the universe is indicated here. It will be a dissolution of the elements with
great heat (2 Peter 3:10); a regeneration (Matthew 19:28); a restoration of all things (Acts
3:21); and a deliverance from the bondage of corruption (Romans 8:21). No longer will this
universe be subject to "vanity." (P. 196)
Walvoord comments that "The majesty of the person sitting on the throne results in the
earth and the heaven fleeing away, that is, the throne is in space rather than in heaven as in 2
Corinthians 5:10 or on earth as in Matthew 25:31. The time is clearly at the end of the
millennium in contrast to the other judgments which precede the millennium." (P. 305)
But these passages are not describing the "place" or the "time" of the divine judgment
in the way assumed by Walvoord. As Aune notes, “The location of the throne is necessarily
vague, since heaven and earth have been destroyed (compare 20:11; 21:1).” (P. 1100) We
say it is necessarily vague, because this is the very nature of biblical prophecy–it is enigmatic,
it is “through a mirror darkly,” and we are not to expect exact chronological or geographical
information from such material!
Walvoord’s view reads a great deal of theological precision into this highly symbolical
ancient document, which shows no real knowledge of or concern with such particularities. His
distinction between three different judgments in three different locations is rooted in his insistence
on a literal, non-symbolical understanding of this language. But it is far better to acknowledge
the enigmatic, puzzling nature of biblical prophecy, in which inconsistencies are bound
to arise–as Romans 8:21 envisions the whole creation liberated from bondage to decay, and
2 Peter 3:10 envisions the heavens disappearing and earth being consumed by fire.
And we ask, can such a vision really mean that heaven and earth have been destroyed,
when immediately following this description the sea is depicted as giving up its dead, and in
the succeeding visions the nations of the earth are depicted as coming and bringing their gifts
into the new Jerusalem (21:24) and the leaves of the trees serve for the healing of the nations
(22:2)? If the universe has been destroyed, would these nations not also have been destroyed?
This is no problem for those who recognize the enigmatic, non-exact, visionary, symbolical
nature of John’s (and of all prophetic) visions. It is only a problem for those who interpret
(continued...)
1038