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NASB | Revelation 20:4 ¶ Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Revelation 20:4 ¶ And then I saw thrones, and sitting on them were those to whom judgment [that is, the authority to act as judges] was given. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had refused to worship the beast or his image, and had not accepted his mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. [Dan 7:9, 22, 27] |
Bible Question:
"...And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God..." Rev 20:4 Just when I was beginning to think that "beheading" was over with in modern times, terrorists begin it again. In general, persecution is not so bad yet in the United States. But times are changing. Any comments? Pastor Glenn |
Bible Answer: Pastor Glenn, how right you are: times, they are a-changing and one would have to be either hyper Pollyannaish or just plain dull to think they are changing for the better. We live in a fallen world, brother. This is not the Garden of Eden. Jesus said there would be bad times ahead. But Jesus Christ be praised! We who are sheep of His pasture have the promise of the Shepherd himself that He will be with us always, even unto the end of the age. (Matthew 28:20). Pastor Glenn, many times I have said to the adult Sunday school class I taught for years, "America is at the crossroads. It has a choice of whether it will continue along the paths of its God fearing founders or deviate from those paths." This I said back in the 70's and 80's. No longer do I say this, because I'm not convinced that America is still at a crossroads. The leading indicators seem to be saying that we are beyond the crossroads and have taken the wrong path. The question now before us, and especially before the Christian community of believers, is, "Do we have the courage and fortitude to back up, go back to the crossroads and take the right path?" And my answer to that question is, "I simply don't know." But God is sovereign, He is in control, and our big challenge as Christians is to trust Him totally and to pray fervently and without ceasing. --Hank |