The book of Revelation is a book of judgment, and Revelation 8:3-5 unveils Christ as the Executor of God’s judgment. Verse 3 says, “Another Angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer, and much incense was given to Him that He should add it to the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.” This another Angel is Christ, not as a common angel but as a special Angel. In the administration of God’s judgment on earth, Christ is the Angel standing in the position of One who has been sent by God. Here Christ appears as another Angel to execute God’s administration over the earth in the way of ministering to God as the High Priest with the prayers of His saints. As Christ offers the prayers of His saints to God, He adds His incense to them. Hence, verse 4 says that “the smoke of the incense went up with the prayers of the saints out of the hand of the Angel before God.” The smoke of the incense indicates that the incense is burned to God with the prayers of the saints. This implies that by the incense which is added to them the prayers of the saints become effective and acceptable to God.
Verse 5 continues, “The Angel took the censer and filled it with the fire of the altar and cast it to the earth; and there were thunders and voices and lightnings and an earthquake.” This implies the answer to the prayers of the saints, especially the prayers in Revelation 6:9-11 and Luke 18:7-8. These prayers must be for the judgment of the earth which opposes God’s economy. The answer to the saints’ prayers is the execution of God’s judgment upon the earth. To cast fire to the earth is to execute God’s judgment upon the earth. Therefore, the thunders, voices, lightnings, and the earthquake come as signs of God’s judgment executed by Christ.
In the divine administration Christ is also the Possessor of the sea and the land. Revelation 10:1-7 is a vision of Christ coming to possess the earth. Verse 2 says, “He placed His right foot on the sea and the left on the land.” For Christ to place His feet on the sea and on the land is to tread on them, and this means that He takes possession of them (Psa. 8:6; cf. Deut. 11:24; Josh. 1:3). Christ is coming to take possession of the earth. Only He is worthy to open the scroll of God’s New Testament economy, and only He is qualified to possess the earth.
According to Revelation 18:1 and 2, Christ is the One declaring the judgment over Babylon the great. Verse 1 says, “I saw another Angel coming down out of heaven, having great authority; and the earth was illumined with His glory.” This another Angel is Christ, coming down out of heaven, with whose glory the earth is illumined. In His appearing for the judgment of Babylon the great, Christ will come as the Angel sent by God. In Revelation 10:1 Christ is clothed with a cloud, and in 14:14 He is sitting on a cloud, but His glory in 18:1 shines over the earth, indicating that His coming back to earth is closer than the coming mentioned in 10:1 and 14:14. Christ will come down out of heaven on the cloud secretly, then He will come on the cloud openly, and eventually He will shine over the earth to destroy Babylon the great, the city of Rome, with great authority. At this time He will take full possession of the earth, and earth will become His kingdom (Rev. 11:15). Therefore, the judgment of Babylon the great will take place at the appearing of Christ.
As the One declaring the judgment over Babylon the great, Christ says, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! And she has become a dwelling place of demons and a hold of every unclean spirit and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird” (v. 2). In Revelation 14:8 an angel said, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great,” and in 18:2 Christ cries out with the same words. This indicates that Babylon will have two falls, the fall of religious Babylon and the fall of material Babylon. The fall of religious Babylon will take place at the beginning of the great tribulation, and the fall of material Babylon will occur at the end of the great tribulation. In 18:2 Christ declares judgment over material Babylon, not religious Babylon, for this city is ugly and abominable in the sight of God.
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