Revelation Chapter 2

 The Revelation of Jesus Christ

Revelation Chapter 2

 

At the end of the first chapter of Revelation, we are introduced to the Seven Church Ages as represented by the Seven Lampstands. These Seven Church Ages make up what is called “the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 13). It is also called “the mystery of God” (Revelation 10:7) identified by the Apostle Paul as a period in which the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob blinded the Jews and turned to the Gentiles to call a people — “For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in” (Romans 11:25). 

 在《启示录》第一章的结尾，我们看到了七个教会时代，它们由七个灯台象征。这七个教会时代构成了所谓的“天国”（马太福音13章）。它也被称为“神的奥秘”（启示录10:7），使徒保罗将其描述为亚伯拉罕、以撒和雅各的神使犹太人眼瞎，转而呼召外邦人成为祂子民的时期——“弟兄们，我不愿意你们不知道这奥秘，恐怕你们自以为聪明，就是以色列人有几分是硬心的，等到外邦人的数目添满了”（罗马书11:25）。

The “fulness of the Gentiles” will soon be complete as we are living at the very end of the Seventh Church Age known as the Laodicean Church Age. Then God will turn to Israel and deal with her once again. The Bible shows us that God personally called Abraham and dealt with him at a time when the world was filled with religious darkness. Abraham was “redeemed”, so to speak. God made a covenant with Abraham and promised him a “SON”. Abraham was to be the Father of many nations, but only through Israel was the oracles of God given. From the year of his calling (1920 B.C.) to the year when the “SON of God” came and finished the work of redemption (30 A.D.) was a total of 1950 years (i.e. 40 Jubilees). Now, does God allocate the same number of years for the Gentiles to come into His household of saints, that is, from 53 A.D. to 2003 A.D.?  Only time will tell. 

随着我们生活在第七教会时代（又称老底嘉教会时代）的末期，“外邦人的丰满”即将完成。那时，神将再次转向以色列，与她建立关系。圣经告诉我们，神亲自呼召亚伯拉罕，并在世界充满宗教黑暗的时期与他交往。可以说，亚伯拉罕得到了“救赎”。神与亚伯拉罕立约，并应许赐给他一个“儿子”。亚伯拉罕将成为多国的父，但神的圣言只能通过以色列传达。从亚伯拉罕蒙召之年（公元前1920年）到“神的儿子”降生并完成救赎工作之年（公元30年），共计1950年（即40个禧年）。那么，神是否也为外邦人进入祂的圣徒之家预留了同样多的时间，即从公元53年到公元2003年呢？时间会给出答案。