Apocalypse Revealed # 478
478. The mystery of God would be concluded, as He declared to His servants the prophets. This symbolically means that then will appear what was foretold in the Word of both Testaments and previously concealed, that after the Last Judgment upon those people who have destroyed the church, the Lord's kingdom will come.
To be concluded means, symbolically, to be fulfilled, to come to an end, and then to reappear. The mystery of God declared to the prophets symbolizes something foretold by the Lord in the Word and previously concealed. To declare good news means, symbolically, to proclaim the coming of the Lord and His kingdom, for the gospel is happy news. That this would come about after the Last Judgment was executed on the people who destroyed the church was also foretold in the Word. Therefore this, too, is symbolically meant.
It can be seen from this that all of these meanings are contained in these words.
[2] First we must say something here about the Lord's advent and His kingdom's being foretold in the Word of both Testaments:
In the Word of the Old Testament, in the spiritual sense of the prophetic portion, and also in its natural sense wherever the spiritual sense shines through, the subject is the Lord alone, namely, His advent in the fullness of time, a time when the goodness of charity and the truth of faith would no longer be present in the church, whose state then is called a consummation, a being laid waste, a desolation, and a cutting off. It includes as well His battles with the hells and victories over them, which constitute also the last judgment that He executed, and after that the creation of a new heaven and the establishment of a new church, which are the Lord's kingdom to come. All of this is found in the Word of the New Testament, too, in the portion called the Gospels, and in particular in the book of Revelation.
[3] That it is the Lord's kingdom that would be declared in the days of the sounding of the seventh angel is apparent in the next chapter (chapter 11) from the following:
Then the seventh angel sounded: and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!" And the twenty-four elders... fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying, "We give You thanks, O Lord God..., who are and who were and who are to come, because You have taken Your great power and reigned. (Revelation 11:15-17)
[4] This mystery, in almost the same words as in Revelation here, is described in Daniel, where we find the following:
I heard the man clothed in linen..., when he held up his (hands) to heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever, that it shall be for a set time of set times and a half..., when... all these things shall be finished... But he said, "Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end." (Daniel 12:7, 9)
Till the time of the end refers to the present time. That the Son of Man would then receive His kingdom - this Daniel foretells in these words:
I was watching in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! ...Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, and all peoples, nations, and languages will worship Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom one which shall not perish. (Daniel 7:13-14)
[5] That declaring good news symbolizes the Lord's advent and His kingdom then, is apparent from the following passages:
Get up into the... mountain, O Zion, who brings good tidings; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, who brings good tidings... Say..., "Behold your God!" Behold, the Lord Jehovih is coming with strength, and His arm shall rule for Him. (Isaiah 40:9-10)
How delightful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of goodness, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, "Your King shall reign!" (Isaiah 52:7, cf. Nahum 1:15)
Sing to Jehovah, bless in His name; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day... ...Jehovah, for He is coming... (Psalms 96:2, 13)
The Spirit of the Lord Jehovih is upon Me; therefore Jehovah has anointed Me to bring good tidings to the poor..., to proclaim liberty to the captives..., to proclaim the year of Jehovah's good pleasure... (Isaiah 61:1-2)
The angel said to (Zacharias), "(Behold)..., your wife... will bear... a son..., (who) will go before (the Lord God) in the spirit and power of Elijah..., to prepare a people for the Lord... I am Gabriel..., and I was sent... to bring you these glad tidings." (Luke 1:13, 17, 19)
...the angel said to (the shepherds), "Do not be afraid, ...behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy... For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." (Luke 2:10-11)
The Lord brought good tidings of the kingdom of God: Matthew 4:23; 9:35; Mark 1:14-15. So did John the Baptist: Luke 3:18.
The Lord also said to the Disciples,
Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to every creature. (Mark 16:15)
This, too, is the everlasting good news or gospel that "the angel flying in the midst of heaven" had "to proclaim to the those who dwell on the earth" (Revelation 14:6).
[6] Our being told that the mystery of God would be concluded means that something would be fulfilled that was not fulfilled before, namely, the coming of the Lord's kingdom. It was not fulfilled by the Jews because they did not acknowledge the Lord. Neither has it been fulfilled by Christians because they do not acknowledge the Lord to be God of heaven and earth even in respect to His human element; for they regard this as being like anyone else's human element. Consequently they do not turn to Him directly, even though He is Jehovah who came into the world.
1 Samuel 17:23-51
23
As he talked with them, behold, there came up the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the ranks of the Philistines, and spoke according to the same words: and David heard them.
24
All the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were terrified.
25
The men of Israel said, "Have you seen this man who is come up? He has surely come up to defy Israel. It shall be, that the man who kills him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father's house free in Israel."
26
David spoke to the men who stood by him, saying, "What shall be done to the man who kills this Philistine, and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?"
27
The people answered him in this way, saying, "So shall it be done to the man who kills him."
28
Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, "Why have you come down? With whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride, and the naughtiness of your heart; for you have come down that you might see the battle."
29
David said, "What have I now done? Is there not a cause?"
30
He turned away from him toward another, and spoke like that again; and the people answered him again the same way.
31
When the words were heard which David spoke, they rehearsed them before Saul; and he sent for him.
32
David said to Saul, "Let no man's heart fail because of him. Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine."
33
Saul said to David, "You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth."
34
David said to Saul, "Your servant was keeping his father's sheep; and when a lion or a bear came, and took a lamb out of the flock,
35
I went out after him, and struck him, and rescued it out of his mouth. When he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and struck him, and killed him.
36
Your servant struck both the lion and the bear. This uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, since he has defied the armies of the living God."
37
David said, "Yahweh who delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine." Saul said to David, "Go; and Yahweh shall be with you."
38
Saul dressed David with his clothing. He put a helmet of brass on his head, and he clad him with a coat of mail.
39
David strapped his sword on his clothing, and he tried to move; for he had not tested it. David said to Saul, "I can't go with these; for I have not tested them." David took them off.
40
He took his staff in his hand, and chose for himself five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in the shepherd's bag which he had, even in his wallet. His sling was in his hand; and he drew near to the Philistine.
41
The Philistine came on and drew near to David; and the man who bore the shield went before him.
42
When the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him; for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and withal of a fair face.
43
The Philistine said to David, "Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?" The Philistine cursed David by his gods.
44
The Philistine said to David, "Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the sky, and to the animals of the field."
45
Then David said to the Philistine, "You come to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a javelin: but I come to you in the name of Yahweh of Armies, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.
46
Today, Yahweh will deliver you into my hand. I will strike you, and take your head from off you. I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky, and to the wild animals of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel,
47
and that all this assembly may know that Yahweh doesn't save with sword and spear: for the battle is Yahweh's, and he will give you into our hand."
48
It happened, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew near to meet David, that David hurried, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.
49
David put his hand in his bag, took a stone, and slung it, and struck the Philistine in his forehead; and the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth.
50
So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and struck the Philistine, and killed him; but there was no sword in the hand of David.
51
Then David ran, and stood over the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of its sheath, and killed him, and cut off his head therewith. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.
