Revelation 20:11-15 (NKJV) Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
V11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away.” This judgment is the final judgment. All unbelievers from creation to the end of the Millennium are present. Sheol/Hades is a holding cell until this judgment. “Him” refers to God, most likely God the Son, Jesus (John 5:22, Acts 10:42, and Acts 17:31). Earth and heaven (universe) fled away = Jesus’s great authority and acknowledgment of it (2 Peter 3:10-12). There is no fleeing or hiding from God’s judgment. See Psalm 9:8.
V12 “And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.” Small and great = social and financial status. There is no favoritism with God. They did not sit or lie; they were standing. The books are the life of every unbeliever. It would include their thoughts, desires, words, and deeds. See Daniel 7:10 and Matthew 12:36. The Book of Life (Revelation 3:5, Revelation 13:8, Revelation 17:8, Revelation 21:27,Psalms 69:28, Daniel 12:1, Luke 10:20, and Philippians 4:3) contains the names of those who believed in God. No one’s name will be in the Book of Life unless they had trusted in Jesus (Genesis 15:6, Romans 4:5, and Galatians 3:9). Also see John 5:28-29.
V13 “The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.” It does not matter how or where they died, their souls will be there. God gives them an eternal body that cannot be destroyed. In this case, all unbelievers can survive and suffer the torments of the Lake of Fire. Death itself is through in the Lake of Fire, too, for death will no longer exist in this first creation (1 Corinthians 15:26). People who believe that they have done more good works than bad are badly mistaken. Each sin carries with it a death penalty (James 2:10). See Ezekiel 7:3.
V14 “Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.” All people are born once. Those who believe Jesus’s gospel are born a second time (John 3). They never die twice. Those who refuse to believe Jesus’s gospel are never reborn but die twice. Death is separation from life, God, goodness, etc. The important part is to recognize that death is separation. See Genesis 2:16-17 (MSB) And the LORD God commanded him, “You may eat freely from every tree of the garden, 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; for in the day that you eat of it, you will surely die.”
V15 “And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.”
We learn:
- Final judgment is approaching.
- Jesus is the final judge bringing the final judgment.
- If one’s name is missing from the Book of Life, they will be in the Lake of Fire for eternity.
Questions:
- Are your every thought, desire, word, and deed recorded in the judgment books?
- Is your name in the Lamb’s Book of Life?