studies in revelation—lesson 34
You are reading: How many books will be opened on judgement day
reta halterman finger
Behold a great white throne and all the dead stand before it! Revelation 20:11-15 describes the final judgment in a scene that, like Daniel 7:9-10, contains a throne, books, and fire. the books are opened and the dead are judged according to their works. and then, before the final vision of the new heaven and the new earth, death and hades and all the vestiges of evil are put in their proper place; they are thrown into the lake of fire.
This brief paragraph (Rev. 20:11-15) is the sixth in John’s last series of seven visions, or comprises both the sixth and seventh visions. if “and I saw…” in Revelation 20:12 begins the seventh vision, then 21:1-22:5 represents a final and glorious vision separate from the seven that preceded it.
a throne and many books
We’ve seen thrones before, in chapters 4-5 and in 20:4. But this time the “great” throne represents God as the true source of political power over the false claims of the dragon and the beast in 13:2. it is “white”, here symbolizing purity. it is so radiant that the earth and sky flee from the presence of the one on the throne, as if there were nowhere else to go!
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the figure on the throne has no name. in revelation, god is never identified apart from christ, nor vice versa, observes eugene bored. rather, these two figures “fade into each other. the lamb is never independent…but always lamb-representative-of-god; god is never a figure defined apart from christ, but always god-who-defines-[god himself]-by-christ.” John therefore refuses to portray a judging god versus a compassionate Christ (p. 211).
john sees all the people who have ever lived standing before god, including those who were lost at sea. then the books are opened (20:12). consulting log books is an idea found in many traditions. In addition to being aware of what scholars have discovered in non-biblical sources, see Exodus 32:32-33; psalm 69:28; Daniel 7:10; Malachi 3:16 (Metzger, p. 96). here in Revelation 20:12-15, there are two sets of books. the name and works of all, small or great, are in the first books, and each one is judged by what he has done in life. the second book is called the “book of life”. contains only the names of those who are not thrown into the lake of fire (20:15).
Their works follow them
Keep in mind that people are judged by their works, not what they have believed. This repeated emphasis in verses 12 and 13 functions as a warning to John’s churches. He wants to remind them that the things that Jesus has against them in the letters of chapters 2 and 3, like the lukewarm Laodiceans’ commitment to riches (3:15-22), are written in these books.
Some commentators see the difference between the two sets of books as a paradox: the early books emphasize works and the book of life as God’s grace. Can these two concepts be reconciled? Charles Talbert thinks that this paradox “can only be resolved when one returns to one’s own experience with God and finds that divine grace and human responsibility are joined in an indissoluble union” (p. 98). Even though “all have sinned,” I believe true repentance before God and (often) others is required. many people refuse to acknowledge and accept personal responsibility for their own sins. we can imagine “god in christ” hoping to include each person’s name in the book of life until his last breath.
Is there really a final judgement? should we even expect a symbolic “lake of fire” to deliver justice? Talbert states that “the Christian belief in a final judgment in which God settles accounts according to God’s standards. . . it is decisive for human behavior” (p. 98). quotes luke johnson, who says that, without divine judgment, we ourselves must take responsibility for justice in the world. and with no heaven or hell, we humans must punish evil now. Unfortunately, this legitimizes, even requires, taking revenge on those we believe to be unjust, which often leads to more violence (Johnson, Faith’s Freedom [Fortaleza, 1990], p. 23). How many wars are fought because both sides think they are doing justice by punishing their opponents?
recovering our moral data
In the technological culture we live in now, it’s easier to imagine keeping track of each person’s thoughts and actions than it was in the past. Given that Google created “the cloud” in which vast amounts of information are stored in immaterial cyberspace, why couldn’t God have imagined something like this long ago? then god can restore the trillions of neural connections in each brain when “the dead are judged” (rev 20:12).
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But humans misappropriate vast amounts of data, as we’ve learned from several data breaches and, more recently, the revelation of Facebook’s misuse of the personal data of more than 87 million users. and now that the genome of each individual can be recorded, more questions about privacy issues arise. Those more knowledgeable about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (collectively summarized in the root of the acronym) could surely add other examples. All of this is to say that human beings are not god, and human greed will continue to thwart justice in the world, no matter how advanced civilization becomes. we are in no danger of outgrowing our need for a god who will judge the deeds of mankind with perfect righteousness and justice.
questions for discussion and reflection
- do you believe in a final judgement? why or why not?
- if john had written this scene today in the american empire, could he have imagined it differently? in what way?
- what do you think will happen to people when/if they face god’s judgment with resentments and other unresolved issues in their lives?
sources used:
boring, m. eugenio revelation. interpretation comments. John Knox Press, 1989. p. 211.
johnson, lucas. the freedom of faith. fortress, 1990. p. 23.
metzger. Bruce M. crack the code: understand the book of revelation. abingdon, 1993. p. 96.
talbert, carlos. the apocalypse. westminster john knox, 1994. p. 98.
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