TABLE OF CONTENTS |
Part
I
The Anomaly of the Lamb
The Lamb in Daniel
The Lion and the Lamb
Qualities of the Lamb
The Lamb's Rejection
|
Part
II
The Lamb in
Revelation
The Lamb Opens 7 Seals
The Lamb and Great Company
Washing in the Blood of the Lamb
The Shepherd Lamb
The Dragon and the Lamb
The Lamb's Book of Life
The Lamb on Mount Zion
Followers of the Lamb
The Song of the Lamb
War with the Lamb
The Word of God
Marriage of the Lamb
Marriage Supper of the Lamb
The Lamb's Wife
No Temple Here
The Throne of God and the Lamb
The Lamb is the Lamp
|
Part II
The Lamb in Revelation
In Revelation 5:6 we have the first reference to the Lamb. He stands
between the throne and the four living creatures, and among the 24 Elders.
It is interesting to note that when the strong angel asked, "Who
is worthy to open the scroll and break the seals?" that one of the elders
declared, "The Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has
conquered." (Revelation 5:2,5)
Oddly enough, it is not the "Lion of the tribe of Judah"
that takes the scroll in the scenario. You would normally expect this to happen. If the
Lion conquered, you would expect the Lion to step forward for the scroll. But no, it is
the Lamb, looking as though it had been slain, that steps forward to take the scroll from
the right hand of the One seated on the throne.
True, Jesus was a conqueror from the Davidic line,
but he conquered as a Lamb—offering himself in sacrifice. In verse 9, the Lamb is
declared worthy to take the scroll because he was slain and became the ransom. In verse
12, the Lamb is declared worthy "to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and
strength, and honor, and glory and blessing." Then there is a joint acclaim both to
the One who sits on the throne, Jehovah, and to the Lamb: "Blessing and honor and
glory and might for ever and ever!" (Revelation 5:13) The Lamb here, for the first
time, shares in the acclaim that ascends to the Father.
When Jesus was on earth, he permitted no worship of his person. He
even said, "Why callest thou me good? there is none good but
one, that is, God."
(Mark 10:18) But in his resurrection glory God said, "Let all
the angels of God
worship him." (Hebrews 1:6) And so when we honor and worship the Son, we honor the
Father.
The Lamb Opens 7 Seals
It is the Worthy Lamb who opens
the seals. Under the 6th seal, we hear the kings and great men, the generals,
the rich and the strong calling to the mountains and rocks, saying, "Fall on us and
hide us from the face of him who sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the
Lamb." (Revelation 6:16) This compounds the anomaly. The mighty of the earth are seeking
refuge from the wrath of the Lamb. |
Now a Lamb is not a wrathful creature. Even if they
could be enraged by some special method, lambs would be more cute than fearful. But this
Lamb shares the great wrath of the One sitting on the throne. The power of God and the
Lamb is here recognized. These mighty of earth say, "For the great day of
his wrath is come, and who
shall be able to stand it?" (Revelation 6:17)
The Lamb we speak of has wrath and unlimited power to deal with
those who pervert the way of righteousness. Oh, if men would only take heed to this Lamb
and his righteous wrath, it might make them more careful. But men somehow feel they are
beyond the judgments of the Lord and the Lamb. The greatest folly men indulge in today is
believing that somehow they can escape the judgments and punishment due for their
pernicious ways. The Lord has allowed the sins of nations and religious institutions to
accumulate. He has not settled his accounts with each generation. Rather, the final
settling of the national accounts is before us in the coming trouble in
the Armageddon crash.
The wrath of the Lamb will reach them. The mountains, the caves,
and the holes in the rocks
will not save any from the wrath of this Lamb.
The Lamb and the Great Company
Revelation 7:9, 10,
13-19
In chapter 7, the scene focuses on the Great Company and its worship
of God and the Lamb. The faithful overcomers also worship God and the Lamb, but the Great
Company are said to have white robes and to wave palm branches as a symbol of final
victory and peace. The Great Company have a delayed victory and owe their
final overcoming to the mercy of the Lamb.
While they appear in white robes, representing that they finally
attain righteousness, their robes were not always so white. James tells us that pure
religion is to "visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep
oneself unstained from the world." (James 1:27) Apparently, the Great
Company class failed in this respect. Instead of helping the poor and oppressed, they
sought tithes from these and demanded payment in their ministry so they could do great
works for God. They added to the affliction of the afflicted.
Additionally, the Great Company became spotted with the world and
all its defilements. When a cause became popular in the world, they jumped on the band
wagon to look good. But when the kingdoms of this world started to fall around them, they
then made their stand for the Lord. They loved the Lord; when placed against the wall they
stood for their Master.
Washing in the Blood of the Lamb
The Revelator tells us they wash their robes
"in the
blood of the Lamb."
What does this mean? "In their sufferings they will
learn to appreciate as never before their relationship to the Lamb of
God and to his atoning merit, and by faith will be permitted to apply
the same to their own cleansing." (Reprint 4036) Tribulation will bring about a proper penitence for sin and a proper appreciation
of the divine standard of truth and righteousness.
Washing in blood is another anomaly. Normally, blood does not make
white, but stains very badly. But the "blood of the Lamb" is
different. It makes white as snow when properly applied.
Here is the most beautiful anomaly. When the Great Company finally
get cleansed and overcome, they shall be "before the throne of God and serve
him day and night within his temple; and he who sits upon the throne will shelter them
with his presence. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; the sun shall not
strike them, nor any scorching heat." (Revelation 7:15,16) Then
—
The Lamb Will Be Their Shepherd
Normally a shepherd leads sheep and
lambs. He leads them to pasturage and to streams of living water.
But notice the anomaly here
—
"For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide
them to springs of living water; and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes." |
Here the Lamb has reversed the role. He leads the Great Company as a
shepherd. How wonderfully blessed to have the Lamb as their shepherd.
Lambs normally do not occupy thrones, but here again we see
God’s Lamb is different. He is a regal Lamb invested with the powers of the throne of
God.
This Shepherd Lamb vision lingers, it will not leave my vision and I
hope not yours either. It is so beautiful, a joy forever. Not only does God love the
Great Company, but so does the Lamb. Together they provide for the comfort and refreshment
of this tempest-tossed and afflicted class.
The Dragon and the Lamb
 
In Revelation 12:11 the
"manchild" who subsequently develops into the "man of sin" proclaims,
speaking of the martyrs who preceded them,
"They have conquered him (the Dragon) by the blood of the Lamb and by
the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death." |
True saints did
not conquer the Dragon. Whom are they speaking of? We quote Gibbons,
volume 2, page 363
—
"Many of these fanatics were possessed with the horror of life,
and the desire of martyrdom; and they deemed it of little moment by what means, or by what
hands, they perished, if their conduct was sanctified by the intention of devoting
themselves to the glory of the true faith, and the hope of eternal happiness. Sometimes
they rudely disturbed the festivals, and profaned the temples of Paganism, with the design
of exciting the most zealous of the idolaters to revenge the insulted honor of their gods.
"They sometimes forced their way into the courts of justice, and
compelled the affrighted judge to give orders for their immediate execution. They
frequently stopped travelers on the public highways, and obliged them to inflict the
stroke of martyrdom, by the promise of a reward, if they consented, and by the threat of
instant death, if they refused to grant so very singular a favor. When they were
disappointed of every other resource, they announced the day on which, in the presence of
their friends and brethren they should cast themselves headlong from some lofty rock; and
many precipices were shown, which had acquired fame by the number of religious suicides.
"In the actions of these desperate enthusiasts, who were admired
by one party as the martyrs of God, and abhorred by the other as the victims of Satan, an
impartial philosopher may discover the influence and the last abuse of that inflexible
spirit, which was originally derived from the character and principles of the Jewish
nation."
Nowhere is self immolation taught in the Scriptures, yet we see here
how, under the frenzy of Satan’s spirit, men became enamored with martyrdom. The path
was paved for the man of sin to grow and flourish. These were not true martyrs for Christ.
These were martyrs who imitated the Christian faith. If Moses’ rod could be turned
into a serpent, so Jannus and Jambres could do the same. Indeed, it is true, "They
loved not their lives unto death." We doubt the class referred to here are
true saints. Rather, a class claiming to be true Israelites or Jews, claiming
to be of the Lamb, but really of the "synagogue of Satan."
(Revelation 2:9)
The Lamb's "Book of
Life"
Lambs normally do not have a book
— much
less a book of life. We read in Revelation 13:8, of
"the book of life
of the Lamb that was slain." |
People go through a great deal of effort sometimes to
get their names to appear in books, magazines and papers. It is big business having names
appear in bronze on doors, or on stained glass windows, or in "Who’s Who."
Having your name appear in prestigious circles is a must for those aspiring to amount to
something in this world. Some have built monuments to their names, from great pyramids to
whole cities. Dynasties were built on names. Ruling houses and corporate dominions thrive
on names and so do businesses.
A funny thing happened to my little business
— a shoe box
operation. Somebody called Dunn and Bradstreet to find out about my business. Well, they
had no information on me, so presto, they picked up the phone and called me to make a
telephone inquiry about my business, picking up over the phone bits of information. Lo and
behold, my little operation was on Dunn and Bradstreet. Suddenly, I received a great
increase of financial papers and all kinds of mail intended for Dunn and Bradstreet-listed
companies. Not only that, but I received an invitation to write up some kind of pedigree
as a possible listing of "Who’s Who" in the Midwest, which I promptly
disposed of. I figured if I could appear in Who’s Who, it wasn’t worth anything.
The world thrives on phony information! Who needs to be a part of that!
There is only one place that is important for our name
to
appear—in
the Lamb’s book of life. All else counts for nothing. If your name is in
the Lamb’s book, you are something. If it is not there, you are nothing. No
matter how one’s name may be emblazoned in the sky, unless our names get into the
Lamb’s book of life and remains there, all is lost. We get a probationary listing in
the Lamb’s book now, but if we overcome, Jesus has promised, "I will not
blot his name out of the book of life; I will confess his name before my Father and before
his angels." (Revelation 3:5) Yes, Jesus has a blotter which can erase your
name and mine from that wonderful book. Let us give all diligence to overcome so that our
name will remain there.
The only way we will prove overcomers is by being like the Lamb who
holds this book. He has the "heart of a servant." Never mind
the "Who’s Who." Jesus said, "Learn of me for I am meek and lowly of
heart." Let us be serious about having the "heart of a servant."
|
Jesus had the "Heart
of a Servant."
"Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me,
"I delight to do thy will, O my
God: yea, thy law is within my heart."
Psalms 40:7,8 |
The Lamb on Mount Zion
Revelation
14:1
— "Lo, a lamb stood on Mount Zion and with him an 144,000, having his
Father’s name written in their foreheads."
Here is another anomaly of the Lamb.
In this vision, Mount Zion, the ruling hill, the place of David’s throne—which
was to be an everlasting throne and never lack a ruler to sit upon it—comes to view. |
What would you expect to find on this ruling kingdom
mountain? A king, of course. And so it is; this Lamb is king. If this Lamb stood on Mount
Zion without regal authority, then he would have no right to be there. Does anyone believe
this Lamb stood where he ought not be? Was this Lamb on Mount Zion after the kings of
earth collapsed? Or was he there before the kings of earth surrendered?
Psalm 2 indicates that the rulers of earth take counsel together
against the Lord and His Anointed. To no purpose, however, for God says, "I
have set my king on Zion, my holy hill." (Psalm 2:6)
This Lamb on Mount Zion was indeed our returned Lord.
Daniel added, "In the days of those kings, the God of
heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, nor shall its sovereignty be
left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an
end, and it shall stand for ever." (Daniel 2:44)
What could be clearer. There were not two kings on Mount Zion. Only
one—the Lamb. And by adding the 144,000 with him, it brings us to the date 1878-81.
Notice it does not say the 144,000 were granted clothing of fine linen bright and pure. It
does not say the 144,000 were called, chosen and faithful. Not at this point.
They did have the Father’s name in their forehead. And they
liked to sing. Have you ever tried to sing a hard song and you just couldn’t seem to
get the parts right? Well, the song these sang was special. Only the 144,000 seemed to be
able to get the melody. Others, try as they might, ended up singing sour notes. It takes
the Holy Spirit to tune the tongue, and the notes and music are the harvest message.
Followers of the Lamb
The vision in Revelation 14:4,5 introduces the requirements of
the 144,000 who stand with the Lamb on Mount Zion. The record is clear. "These
have not defiled themselves with women, for they are chaste (or virgins); it is these who
follow the Lamb wherever he goes; these have been redeemed from mankind as first fruits
for God and the Lamb, and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are spotless."
(Revelation 14:4,5) What extraordinary qualities!
Virgins belong only to the Lamb. They are disciplined. They do not
flirt with the world as the churches do. They are not God-and-country people. They are not
God-and-business people. They are followers of the Lamb.
The record is clear—they "follow the Lamb wherever
he goes." What a wonderful company! Many would like to follow the Lamb on
occasion, especially if he happens to be going the way they would like to go for the
moment. Then, there are those who would like to follow him most of the time and just
leave off following once in a while. But such will not be of this class. The record is
clear,
"These follow the Lamb wherever he
goes."
This means the Lamb is on the move. He is active in the harvest work.
He is active in proclaiming the Elijah message.
In all these ways, the 144,000 gladly follow. That is the basis of
discipleship, "Take up thy cross and follow me." |
In Matthew 8:19 a scribe said to Jesus, "Teacher,
I will follow you wherever you go." The scribe said this, probably not
realizing the great difficulty to be encountered in following Jesus. "The Son
of man did not have a place to lay his head." Following the Lamb requires
total commitment, courage, and discipline. Yes, the strongest word is "cross-bearing."
We are not told what the scribe did, but it seems Jesus’ answer must have discouraged
him. Sometimes, discipleship is sold to people without telling them the whole truth. Jesus
didn’t do that.
The Song of the Lamb
In Revelation 15:3, we learn of the Song of the Lamb, which is not
really new because it is also the song of Moses. (Deuteronomy 32) Now, normally a lamb
bleats, but this is an anomaly of this Lamb. He has a song. It is a certain type of song
with a specific message. This is not normal for an ordinary lamb. But this Lamb has a song
he has taught to the saints and they are able to sing it.
Certainly, we expect the Lamb’s song to be sweet and gentle.
But no, this Lamb’s song tells how God’s wrath will end, which is the prelude to
the establishment of the Kingdom and the overflowing restitution blessings. Before this
can take place, God’s judgments must and will be revealed.
Those enemies of God and his people are not going to tip-toe into
the kingdom time as make-believe servants of God. These "tares" and
"wolves" portrayed themselves as servants of God and righteousness. Therefore,
God will manifest the iniquity of their deeds for all the world to see and know.
We do not have to guess at the words of this song, for they are
recorded, as follows:
"Great and wonderful are thy
deeds,
O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are thy ways,
O King of the ages!
"Who shall not fear and glorify thy name,
O Lord?
For thou alone art holy.
All nations shall come and worship thee,
For thy judgments have been revealed."
Revelation 15:3,4 |
War with the Lamb
The story of the Lamb moves toward its climax amongst the mysteries
of this awesome book. In Revelation 17:14 we read,
"They will make war on the Lamb, and
the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him
are called and chosen and faithful." |
This is the great turning-point in all human history.
When this battle is over, the way will be open for the full establishment of the Kingdom.
The ten horns are ten kings who have not received kingdoms, but finally do and then give
this kingly power to the scarlet-colored beast. Why? That, too, is explained. Because
"God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one
mind and giving their royal power to the beast, until the words of God shall be
fulfilled." (Revelation 17:17)
Without going into the details of this chapter, the point we all can
agree on and rejoice in is the final judgment and overthrow of this cursed woman, which is
"the great city which has dominion over the kings of the earth."
Her fall will end the tryst between kings of the earth and this Jezebel woman, or apostate
church. Babylon’s fall will herald the binding of Satan and all the powers of
darkness that have stood in the way of our Kingdom which cannot be moved.
But of special interest to us in this prophecy is the clear time
mechanism which one can misread. The time of this triumphant conflict is not in the past.
For at no time could it be argued that "all with Him are called, chosen and
faithful," short of believing the door to the heavenly calling is closed.
But even here, the "closed-door" Christians are faced with an impossible victory
in which the kings, beast and woman still go grandly on. A very hollow victory for the
King of kings.
By faith we can savor the sweet taste of victory here. The Lamb
overcomes them. If we are among those "called, chosen and faithful" ones, then
we will surely say with the Psalmist, "When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with
shouts of joy; then they said among the nations,
'The Lord has done great
things for us; we are glad.'" Psalm 126:1-3
The Word of God
One exception to the Lamb story is in
Revelation 19. When the leopard beast and false prophet and kings of the earth make an
alliance against the Lord, we find he makes war against these under the title of the
"Word of God." (Revelation 19:13) |
In this picture we see our Lord not as a Lamb, but as
a representative of God’s Word. You see, God is never referred to as a Lamb. That
title or appellation would be inappropriate to Him. There are scripturally limited ways
that we may refer to Jehovah. And certainly, the title Lamb would be totally unacceptable
applied to God Himself. Hence when it comes to fulfilling the Word of God, the title of
Lamb is dropped. The message is loud and clear.
When Jesus has on the mantle of God’s
Word he is not a Lamb. He speaks for God Almighty and as such the authority and eminence
of God’s throne with infinite sovereignty is shown.
The Marriage of the Lamb
The highlight of the Lamb story is the marriage of the Lamb. In
Revelation 19:6,7 the announcement is made,
|
"Hallelujah! For the
Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the
marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready."
|
|
There is an enigma here. It is not the Lamb, nor, nor
is it the bride singing "Hallelujah." Their feelings are not expressed in this
account. Maybe there is no way you could express two thousand years of preparation and
anticipation culminating in this marriage of first-borns. But, here, the Great Company is
apparently shouting Hallelujah and quite excited about events leading to the consummation
of hope and joy in the union of the Bride and the Lamb.
When is the marriage of the Bride and the Lamb? (Question
Book 300)
—
When
each member is raised to glory the union takes place. (Question
Book 462)
— "When the last
member of the body shall have finished his course and has been changed into the glory of
the Lord." (Reprint 3200)
— "The event of the very near future."
We believe both thoughts are necessary. In one sense, those
resurrected in spiritual glory are joined with the Lord, in a moment in a twinkling of an
eye. (1 Corinthians 15:52) There is a very special union that takes place. But there is another sense when the
last member shall have finished his course and the bride is finally complete. That will be
an exhilarating moment.
Whatever of personal glory and joy comes to each in the
resurrection, we must remember that there is a certain sense that there is sorrow and
suffering in heaven. As long as one member suffers, they all are concerned and share in
that suffering. Hence, their joy cannot be complete, nor can they drink the cup of joy
anew with Christ, until they all drink together on the other side of the veil.
Who Are Invited to the Marriage
Supper?
Revelation 19:9 says,
"Blessed are those who are
invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb."
Certainly it is not the bride who is invited. She will send out the
invitation along with the Bridegroom. While this is the nuptial feast of the Lamb and the
Bride, Bro. Russell suggests the Great Company are invited to this feast. (Reprint
3834:5) This
feast is merely a picture of the joyous occasion that will follow the marriage. (Question
Book 296:T)
In other words, this takes place a short while after the Bride is all glorified and after
the Great Company finishes its fiery trials. So the Great Company goes through a great
tribulation only to be glorified and invited to the joys of this marriage supper.
The Lamb's Wife
Revelation 21:9, "Come, I will
show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb."
Here we read of the glorified church.
The bride, it turns out, is the holy city of Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God.
The bride of the Lamb is portrayed as a jeweled city or government invested with authority
from God, and having the glory of God. We can scarcely take it all in! |
One thing emerges that is very significant. The city
has twelve foundations in its walls bearing the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
(Revelation 21:14) Here dies all claims to apostolic succession. These twelve apostles
have a special place in God’s Kingdom, eternally. We must never forget, they are the
Lamb’s apostles. We could not love the Lamb and not honor his choice. Those who love
the Lamb will love the Lamb’s apostles.
No Temple Here
The New Jerusalem is a city without a temple. The Revelator John,
whose keen eye misses nothing, says, "And I saw no temple in the city."
(Revelation 21:22)
Not exactly. "The Lord God the Almighty and the
Lamb" are the temple of it. This city does not need a temple under such
conditions—not when God and the Lamb meet with them. They do not need the sun and its
gospel light, nor the moon with the light of the Law. Why?
The Lamb is the city's Lamp.
God is its light.
Then there is the Lamb’s book of life. (Revelation 21:27) No
one becomes a resident of this holy city without a listing in this book. You know there
are all kinds of "Who’s Who" lists, but unless an individual qualifies
during the Kingdom time, his name will be nothing.
The Throne of God and the Lamb
 |
The Lamb provides water.
Revelation 22:1,3
— Just as in Eden there was pure water flowing
out, so in God’s
kingdom God and the Lamb will supply the life-giving water of Truth.
Yes, nothing accursed shall be there. No vestige of sin, no impure
teaching, no deception.
Truth, truth, truth—everywhere, all the time. Why? Because
the "throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it."
|
Revelation 22:5
—
"And night shall be no more; they
need no light of lamp or sun for the Lord God will be their light, and they shall reign
for ever and ever."
As the nations are healed and cleansed, they shall see God’s
face, and His name shall be on their foreheads.
The Lamb Is the Lamp
Remember the Lamp
of Revelation 21:23. The Lamb is the lamp. Revelation 22:5
— "They need no light of lamp or sun
— for the Lord
God will be their light."
When the work of restitution is complete, then Christ will step out
from between God and men. Then they will not need Gospel sun or the light of the Lamp of
the Lamb. The Lord God will be their light. How very beautiful! Then the victors "shall
reign for ever and ever"
— world of mankind. (Reprint
3572)
