2014년 5월 5일 월요일

Who are the Merchants Who Weep and Mourn in Revelation 18?

Who are the Merchants Who Weep and Mourn in Revelation 18?


Main reference: Rv 18:10-15

Those who weep and mourn in this passage are the kings and merchants of the earth (Rv 18:9-11).

The kings of the earth are pastors who belong to the spiritual nation of Babylon. The merchants of the earth are evangelists who belong to the pastors of Babylon. The prostitute of Babylon rules over the beast with the seven heads and ten horns (Rv 17:3). The seven heads of this beast represent seven hills, which are also seven kings (Rv 17:7-10). These seven kings are seven pastors in a leadership position over the kings of the earth. The peoples, multitudes, nations, and languages in Rv 17:15 encompass all the pastors and congregation members of Babylon. In other words, they are like the scribes and Pharisees who took over Jerusalem and whom Jesus called serpents in the time of his first coming (Mt 23). They are the pastors and congregation members that belong to the denominations of the spiritual nation of Babylon--the kingdom that has destroyed the tabernacle of heaven according to Rv 13 with its ecclesiastical authority today at the time of Revelation's fulfillment.

The merchants in this passage are also spiritual. They buy and sell spiritual goods (refer to Mt 13:45-46). They belong to the great prostitute of Babylon, who owns all nations, and they sell Babylonian goods. They sell Babylon's maddening wine of adultery (i.e. Satan's doctrines and church laws) and extend their influence with the might of her luxuries (Rv 18:3, Darby).

In Mt 25, Jesus spoke in parables about the future. When a man (Lord) went on a journey, he called his servants and entrusted a few talents of gold to them. After a long time the master of those servants returned (second coming) and settled accounts with them. He rewarded or punished his servants according to what their deeds deserved.

In Mt 13, Jesus talked about a merchant looking for fine pearls. When this merchant found a pearl of great value, he went away and sold everything he had so he could buy it. These gold and pearls are not literally gold and pearls. They should be figuratively understood. They actually refer to the priceless word that endures eternal life (refer to Prv 2:1-5; Ps 12:6; Mt 7:6; Rv 3:18). The buying and selling of these words symbolizes the process of evangelism.

The merchants in our main passage do business (i.e. preached the word) with the Babylonian doctrines of Satan. Thus, these merchants are the evangelists of Babylon and their goods are the Babylonian doctrines.

These doctrines come from the wild wine, and they are the venom of serpents and the deadly poison of cobras (Dt 32:31-33). The Bible promises three entities who must appear in the end times: the betrayers (refer to Rv 1:19-20), the destroyers (refer to Rv 17:3-7), and the savior (refer to Rv 10:7, Rv 12:5, Rv 21:7). These goods are the goods (doctrines) of the destroyers.

This testimony is true because it is being spoken by the one who has seen and heard the fulfillment (refer to Rv 1:2, Rv 22:16).




SHINCHEONJI: Healing All Nations  


http://cafe.daum.net/scjschool/E3qZ/158

댓글 없음:

댓글 쓰기