Book of Revelation Archives » From Daniel to Revelation

2025-03-212025-05-05

Revelation’s Beast is the Church of the Roman Empire.

Overview

This article is essentially a combination of the conclusions from previous articles. Concerning the Book of Daniel, previous articles concluded:

The fourth animal in Daniel 7 symbolizes the Roman Empire.

The 11 horns growing from this animal are the kingdoms formed when the Roman Empire fragmented.

The 11th Horn is the Antichrist, identified as the Church of the Roman Empire. In the fourth century, the Church was divided into factions, but the Empire made one faction its sole religion. This became the Roman Church, subject to the authority of the emperor. However, the Empire outlawed and severely persecuted other factions.

After the Roman Empire fragmented, the Roman Church survived as a distinct organization and grew in power in power to become the Church of the Middle Ages.

Concerning the Book of Revelation, previous articles concluded:

The Dragon, from which the Beast receives its authority, is the Roman Empire.

The Beast is equivalent to Daniel’s 11th Horn, symbolizing the Roman Church.

The 42 months during which the Beast will rule (13:5) are the Middle Ages.

The Middle Ages ended when religious freedom prevented the Roman Church from persecuting. That is the fatal wound to one of the heads (phases) of the Beast (13:3). Today, we are living during this fatal wound.

In the End Time, the wound will be healed (Rev 13:3) when an Image of the Beast (a replica of the system from the Middle Ages) is established, which will once again persecute its opponents.

Book of Daniel

The fourth animal in Daniel 7 symbolizes the Roman Empire.

Daniel 7 symbolizes four successive empires as four animals emerge from the sea. The 4th animal is the Roman Empire:

There are only two animals in Daniel 8; the Ram and the Goat, explicitly identified as “the kings of Media and Persia” and as “the kingdom of Greece” (Dan 8:20-21). By comparing them to the animals in Daniel 8 (see here), the animals in Daniel 7 are identified as ancient Babylon, Medo-Persian, Greece, and the Roman Empire.

The 11 horns are the kingdoms formed when the Roman Empire fragmented.

From the 4th animal (the Roman Empire), 11 horns grow. The first 10 symbolize the nations of Europe into which the Western Roman Empire divided in the fifth century. [Show More]

The 11th Horn is the Antichrist.

After the first 10, an 11th Horn comes up from the fourth animal (the Roman Empire). It is different from the others. It becomes larger than the other horns and opposes God. It blasphemes the Most High, persecutes His people (Dan 7:8, 24-25), and will only be destroyed when Christ returns (Dan 7:26-27).

[Show More]

The 11th Horn is the Church of the Roman Empire.

The 11th Horn is one of the kingdoms into which the Roman Empire fragmented in the fifth to eighth centuries. In the Roman Empire, the emperors decided which religions and factions of religions to allow. In practice, after Christianity was legalized, the emperors were the heads of the Church and the ultimate judges in doctrinal disputes. [Show More]

“The truth is that in the Christian church of the fourth century there was no alternative authority comparable to that of the Emperor. The century did indeed see an increase in the power of the bishop of Rome, but he still could not be regarded as a figure even remotely as powerful as that of the Emperor.” (Hanson, p. 854)

“If we ask the question, what was considered to constitute the ultimate authority in doctrine during the period reviewed in these pages, there can be only one answer. The will of the Emperor was the final authority.” (Hanson, p849)

“The idea of papal sovereignty was foreign to the Byzantines. … unintelligible, unreasonable, and unhistorical. … (in) their concept of the order of the Christian world … The Christian Roman Emperor was the elect of God and … God’s vice-gerent [God’s agent on earth] on earth … His patriarchs or supreme bishops of the Christian Empire … were the spiritual heads of the Christian world, acting in harmony with him. Church and State were therefore one, indissoluble and interdependent.” (A Cambridge article)

“Simonetti remarks that the Emperor was in fact the head of the church.” (Hanson, p. 849)

The fourth-century church “did not regard Constantine’s authority as secular.” Rather, the church regarded the emperor as its “’bishop’ and pastor.” (Williams, 88)

“The emperor has the right, like any authoritative teacher, to examine and criticize and, where necessary, discipline or expel his pupils – language and ideas clearly visible in, for example, Constantine’s correspondence with Arius.” (Williams, 88)

The authority of the emperor over the ‘pope’ is illustrated by an incident in 378, when a church council in Rome granted the bishop or Rome authority over bishops as well as immunity “from the judgment of any tribunal save the Emperor’s court.” Emperor Gratian responded with a decree “allowing the Pope’s authority over bishops within his jurisdiction but refusing him immunity from ecclesiastical law.” (Hanson, p. 794)

“The history of the period shows time and time again that local councils could be overawed or manipulated by the Emperor or his agents. The general council was the very invention and creation of the Emperor. General councils, or councils aspiring to be general, were the children of imperial policy and the Emperor was expected to dominate and control them.” (Hanson, p. 855)

“In the later Roman Empire, civil and ecclesiastical authority blended. One example of this blending is the ecclesiastical edicts of Constantine and his successors.” (Boyd)

“Constantine established the precedent for imperial intervention in ecclesiastical affairs … while Gratian and Theodosius finally and decisively fixed the alliance of the state with ecclesial creed and persecution.” (The Ecclesiastical Edicts of the Theodosian Code – Boyd, p33)

“Constantine gave the episcopal (papal) courts a place in the judicial system of the empire. … the episcopal arbitration was transformed into a legal mode of procedure. … the place given him (the bishop) in the system of justice was similar to that of the judges of the public law courts. … Moreover, the conception of his office as arbitrator was that of an authority transcending (exceeding) the regular civil courts.” (The Ecclesiastical Edicts of the Theodosian Code – Boyd, p90-91).

In the fourth century, the Church was divided, mainly between Arian and Nicene factions. However, in 380, the Roman Empire made Nicene theology the State Religion of the Empire (see here), meaning that it was subject to the authority of the emperors but also received protection from the emperor. At the same time, the Empire outlawed and severely persecuted the other forms of Christianity. The Empire confiscated Arian churches and prohibited Arians from residing in cities. Outside the Empire, Christianity remained Arian.

The Church of the Roman Empire later became the Church of the Middle Ages.

In the next (fifth) century, Germanic tribes wrestled control of the Western Empire from the Romans and fragmented it into several Germanic kingdoms, symbolized by the first ten horns of the fourth animal. Since these tribes converted to Christianity when Arianism dominated, they were Arians. The Roman Church, with its teachings and hierarchy of bishops, survived as a distinct organization but was now subject to Arian rule.

In the sixth century, the Eastern Empire sent troops to the West and liberated the Roman Church by subjecting three Arian nations. This enabled the Roman Church to rule itself. This event is symbolized as the 11th Horn coming up by uprooting three other horns. However, it was still subordinate to the Eastern Roman emperors and depended on them for protection.

In the eighth century, Muslim armies significantly weakened the Eastern Empire, rendering it unable to protect the Western Church. The Church survived by seeking the protection of other rulers but was still subject to such rulers, who appointed (invested) the popes and the bishops.

Beginning in the 12th century, in the High Middle Ages, the Papacy attained power that rivaled and exceeded that of the Western Monarchs. It became the Church of the Middle Ages, which dominated the nations of Europe and persecuted God’s people. Read Article

Book of Revelation

The Dragon, when mentioned with the Beast, is the Roman Empire.

There are three seven-headed beasts in Revelation: the Dragon, the Sea Beast, and the Scarlet Beast. These beasts are part of the series of animals in Daniel 7, and explain those empires in more detail. Revelation 12 uses “Dragon” as a general symbol for all God’s opponents, but in Revelation 13, where it is described with the Beast, the Dragon is specifically equivalent to Daniel’s 4th animal (see here), representing the Roman Empire.

The Beast is equivalent to the 11th Horn, symbolizing the Church of the Roman Empire.

The Beast of Revelation, whose Mark in the Time of the End will be put on the foreheads of people (Rev 13:15-16), receives its authority from the Dragon (Rev 13:2). In other words, it received its authority from the Roman Empire. The Beast is the same as the 11th Horn that grows out of that fourth animal in Daniel 7 (see here), which has been identified as the Church of the Roman Empire.

For clarity, this article reserves the term “Beast” for the Beast in Revelation 13:1 and refers to the creatures of Daniel 7 as animals.

The Beast is a Christian organization.

Revelation confirms as follows that the Beast is the ‘church,’ and not just a political power:

(1) It is a deliberate counterfeit of Jesus Christ:

Like Jesus, the Beast has a ministry that lasts three and a half years (Rev 13:5) and was killed but resurrected from death (Rev 13:3).

While Jesus received His authority from the Father (Matt 28:18), the Sea Beast received its authority from the Dragon (Rev 13:2). [Show More]

While Jesus is the image of God (Col 1:15; John 14:9), the Beast is an image of the Dragon because both have seven heads and ten horns.

(2) The Beast persecutes explicitly God’s people (Rev 13:6-7). Only a Christian organization is able to persecute God’s true people, for God’s people are identified by their protest against unbiblical doctrines and practices in the church.

(3) The Beast uses a lamb-like beast as its agent (Rev 13:11-12). Revelation refers 28 times to Jesus as a lamb. This is the only instance in Revelation where “lamb” does not refer to Jesus. The lamb-like beast, therefore, looks like Jesus but “spoke as a dragon” (Rev 13:11). It is dragon-like with a Christian face! It claims to serve Jesus, yet its actions serve the Dragon!

(4) The New Testament elsewhere often predicts that the Church would apostatize. For example:

“The Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons” (1 Tim 4:1; cf. Acts 20:28-31; 2 Tim 3:1-5; 1 John 2:18-19).

The Beast rules for 42 months.

According to Revelation 13, one of the Beast’s seven heads would have a fatal wound, but the wound would be healed (Rev 13:3). This means that the Beast would be strong for a period, followed by a period of weakness, before it again becomes strong.

The Land Beast “makes the earth and those who dwell in it
to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed” (Rev 13:12). In other words, the end-time persecution of God’s people, as described in the last part of Revelation 13, describes the time after the Beast’s wound healed.

Revelation 13 also says that the Beast would have “authority to act” for 42 months (Rev 13:5). Since this cannot be the period of weakness, the question is, do the 42 months precede or follow the Wound?

The 42 months describe the Middle Ages.

The article discussing the 42 months (see here) concludes as follows:

1. The “time, times, and a half,” 42 months, and 1260 days are the same period. [Show More]

2. This period is not the End Time but always precedes the End Time. [Show More]

3. The 3½ times it is not literally 1260 days but symbolic of a much longer period. [Show More]

4. A Day must be counted as a Year. That is how the Reformers interpreted the apocalyptic time prophecies. Therefore, 1260 days represent 1260 years.

5. The 3½ times or 42 months are the Middle Ages:

Daniel 7 states that the 11th Horn comes up when it uproots three of the other horns (Dan 7:8). That refers to Emperor Justinian’s wars in which he subjected the three Arian nations that dominated the Roman Church. Those wars began in 533 and ended in 552.

The authority of the Roman Church was wounded by the introduction of religious liberty in the time of Napoleon and the French Revolution in the 1790s. The period from the 530s to the 1790s is 1260 literal years. Therefore, it is proposed that that was the period of authority of the Roman Church.

Therefore, the ‘Roman Church’ exists through three stages.

1. The 42 months represent the many centuries during the Middle Ages when it massacred people who did not accept its blaspheming doctrines and practices.

2. Its authority received a fatal wound through religious liberty and the separation of Church and State around the time of the French Revolution. We are today living during the fatal wound. The Church is no longer able to compel people to comply with its prescripts, as it was during the Middle Ages.

3. In the End Time, the wound will be healed (Rev 13:3) when an Image of the Beast (a copy of the system during the Middle Ages) is set up, which will again kill its opponents.

The Beast is not directly involved in the end-time war.

Just like the Beast received its authority from the Dragon (Rev 13:2), symbolizing the Roman Empire, the Beast gives its authority to its end-time assistant, the Land Beast (Rev 13:12). The Land Beast then convinces the people of the world to make an Image of the Sea Beast (Rev 13:14). The Image persecutes and kills God’s end-time people (Rev 13:15).

The Image is an end-time organization in the likeness of the Beast. It is an end-time organization that functions on the principles of the Church of the High Middle Ages, but it is not the Beast itself. It will not be the same organization as during the Middle Ages. The Beast is resurrected by the creation of the Image, but it will be a different organization.

The Image of the Beast is religious persecution.

The Church of the Middle Ages brutally persecuted and executed believers who dared to stand up to its doctrines and practices, but the religious oppression and intolerance of the Protestant Orthodoxy (in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries) were disturbingly similar to the Church in the High Middle Ages. For example, the role Calvin played in the murder of Michael Servetus. Bosnia, Rwanda, and the Holocaust show that today’s version of institutional Christianity has not significantly improved over that of the Middle Ages.

Whenever we see persecution and killing of people for their religious convictions, whatever form that persecution takes, we see the spirit of Satan at work, for God never uses force. If God used force, He would not have allowed evil to develop. But He created us as free beings with the wonderful ability to make our own choices. He protects our freedom, for if He overrides our freedom to choose against Him, He would destroy the miracle He has created.

The Sealed Book (Revelation 5) is the Lamb’s Book of Life.

Overview

The Sealed Book

Revelation 5 describes a book in heaven that no one can open because it is sealed with seven seals (Rev 5:1-3), causing great sorrow in heaven (Rev 5:4). This book symbolizes something that no one in heaven understands or can explain.

However, the sorrow describes the time before Christ. Through His death, Jesus earned the right to open the book, turning the sorrow into joy (Rev 5:5-6).

He does not open the book immediately. In Revelation 6, He begins to break the seals, meaning to remove the barriers to understanding. Breaking the seals causes catastrophes on Earth, implying that He explains the things the angels do not understand through these events on Earth. As soon as everything is understood, He will return.

The Sealed Book is the Book of Life.

The Book of Life, containing the names of the people God elected to eternal life, is more fully called “the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain.” Since Jesus receives the Sealed Book when He appears as “a Lamb … as if slain” (Rev 5:6-7), this is strong evidence that the Sealed Book is the Book of Life. This conclusion is supported by the facts, as this article shows, that both books:

- - Are necessary for redemption,
  - Will be opened only after Christ’s return, and
  - Distinguish the living from the dead.

Revelation 12

Revelation 12 provides further evidence that the Sealed Book is the Book of Life. For the following reasons, Revelation 5 and 12 describe the same crisis:

In both chapters, there is a crisis in heaven, symbolized by the sealed book in Rev 5, and a war in heaven in Rev 12.

In both chapters, as shown in this article, Christ’s death ended the crisis in heaven, but it continues on earth and will only be finally resolved through God’s people.

In both chapters, the crisis is caused by things not understood. In Rev 5, this is symbolized by the Sealed Book. In 12, Satan accuses God’s people. Since this caused a war in heaven, the angels had very different views about God’s people, which also means things not understood.

These similarities mean that the “war in heaven” (Rev 12) and the Sealed Book (Rev 5) describe the same crisis. Therefore, the war in heaven explains the Sealed Book:

In Rev 12, the identification of Satan as “the accuser of our brethren” explains the cause and nature of the crisis, as well as the nature of the Sealed Book.

Satan accuses specifically God’s people, by implication, saying they are sinners and do not deserve God’s mercy. Since God’s people are identified in the Book of Life, the things not understood relate to the Book of Life, confirming that the Sealed Book is the Book of Life.

It follows further that the seals of the book, the obstacles to understanding, are Satan’s accusations. Breaking the seals would then mean refuting Satan, and opening the book implies that God’s selective mercy to only some sinners is understood.

The Sealed Book

The Book that nobody is able to Open

John saw a book in heaven sealed with seven seals (Rev 5:1; cf. 4:11). It is not a literal book. A book symbolizes knowledge, and a sealed book symbolizes concealed knowledge or things that were not understood.

Before Christ, no one was able to open the book (Rev 5:3). Not even God could open the book because He forces no one. He wants His creatures to understand.

This caused John to weep greatly (Rev 5:4), symbolizing the great sorrow in heaven because the angels do not understand. Understanding these things is vital for the happiness of the universe. Should no one be found to open the book, the consequences would be severe. This is a crisis in heaven. [Show More]

Christ is able to open the Book.

But then, in verse 5, the sorrow turns into joy, for “the Lion that is from the tribe of Judah … has overcome so as to open the book and its seven seals” (Rev 5:5) Through His death, Jesus earned the right to open the book. [Show More]

He breaks the Seals in Revelation 6.

Jesus takes the book (Rev 5:7) but does not open it immediately. In Revelation 6, He begins to break the seven seals one by one, resulting in catastrophes on Earth:

- - The seals prevent understanding.
  - Breaking the seals means removing the barriers to understanding and explaining what was not understood.
  - Since breaking the seals results in catastrophes on Earth, these catastrophes explain to the angels what they do not understand.

Therefore, to understand these catastrophes in Revelation 6, we must first understand the Sealed Book.

Christ will return as soon as the book is open. [Show More]

The Sealed Book is the Book of Life.

Revelation mentions the Book of Life six times. It will be opened in the last judgment, 1000 years after Christ’s return (Rev 20:12; cf. 19:11; 20:7), and it identifies the people whom God elected to eternal life (e.g., Rev 21:2, 27; 20:14-15; cf. Psa 69:28; Phil 4:3; Rev 3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:15; 21:27). For the following reasons, the Sealed Book is the same as the Book of Life:

1) The Book of the Slain Lamb

The “book of life” is explained as “the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain” (Rev 13:8; 21:27). Since Jesus receives the Sealed Book when He appears as “a Lamb … as if slain” (Rev 5:6-7), this is strong evidence that the Sealed Book is the Book of Life.

2) Both books are necessary for redemption.

Jesus died to “purchase” people for God (e.g., Revelation 5:9). In other words, the people listed in the Book of Life are saved through His death. But He also died to open the Sealed Book (Rev 5:5, 9). Therefore, both books are necessary for the redemption of God’s people.

3) Both books are opened after Christ’s return.

Since the sixth seal begins with the signs of Christ’s return (Rev 16:12-14; cf. Matt 24:29-30), the Sealed Book will only be fully open at or after His return. The Book of Life, similarly, will be opened in the final judgment (Rev 20:12).

4) Both distinguish the living from the dead.

The sixth seal describes the unrepentant masses as hiding in the mountains from Him who sits on the throne (Rev 6:15-17). Therefore, this must be shortly before Jesus returns, when they will be put to death (Rev 19:21). The sixth seal also shows God’s people standing before the throne and before the Lamb (Rev 7:9). (Read Article) Therefore, the sixth seal divides the people of the world into two groups. The seventh seal shows the silence in heaven caused by the sorrow in God’s heart when the unrepenting masses are destroyed. (Read Article)

“The book of life,” similarly, will be opened in the final judgment (Rev 20:11-12) and will distinguish those who will be “thrown into the lake of fire” (Rev 20:15) from those who will enter the New Jerusalem (Rev 21:27).

Revelation 12

Revelation 12 provides further evidence that the Sealed Book is the Book of Life. However, reading this section requires an in-depth understanding of Revelation 5 and 12 On the other hand, these concepts are critical for a proper understanding of a large part of the Book of Revelation:

Revelation 5 and 12 are similar.

Crisis in both chapters

In both Revelation 5 and 12, there is a crisis in heaven, symbolized as a sealed book in 5 and the war in 12. [Show More]

Christ ended the crisis in heaven.

In both Revelation 5 and 12, Christ’s death ended the crisis in heaven. In Rev 5, Christ’s death allowed Him to break the seals and open the book. [Show More]

In Rev 12, Christ’s death resulted in the expulsion of Satan from heaven. In this way, the war in heaven, which raged for countless ages before the time of Christ, was ended. [Show More]

The Crisis continues on Earth.

In both chapters, after Christ’s death ended the crisis in heaven, it continues on earth:

In Revelation 5, after Jesus “has overcome so as to open the book,” turning the sorrow in heaven to joy (Rev 5:4-5), the war on earth continued in Revelation 6. [Show More]

In Revelation 12, after Christ’s death, Satan and his angels were driven out of heaven (Rev 12:8-9), bringing the war in heaven to an end, but the war continued on earth (Rev 12:12-13). [Show More]

God’s people must resolve the Crisis.

In both chapters, the war on earth will only be finally resolved through God’s people.

In Rev 5-6, Jesus resolves the crisis on earth by breaking the seals, and the seals reflect the experience of God’s people. [Show More]

In Revelation 12, to overcome Satan required both the blood of the Lamb and the testimony of God’s people (Rev 12:10-11), even when faced with death. For a further discussion, see – Why has Christ not yet returned? What is God waiting for?

Conclusion

These similarities mean that the “war in heaven” in Rev 12 and the Sealed Book in Rev 5 describe the same crisis. Therefore, the nature of the war in heaven helps to explain the concealed information in Revelation 5.

Revelation 12 identifies the Sealed Book.

War in Heaven

The Bible is mainly concerned with the war on earth. However, the war on earth is caused by the war in heaven. Satan brought the war in heaven to earth when he deceived our first parents. Although the Bible is mainly concerned with what happens on Earth, there are indications of the war in heaven elsewhere in the Bible. In those instances, the crisis is a dispute specifically about whether God’s judgments are always right. [Show More]

Accuser of our Brethren

In Rev 12, the identification of Satan as “the accuser of our brethren” (Rev 12:10) explains the cause and nature of the “war in heaven.” Satan accuses God’s people “day and night” (Rev 12:10). He does not accuse his own followers but specifically God’s people, showing that they are sinners and deserve to die. [Show More]

Therefore:

By accusing God’s elect, Satan effectively accuses God of faulty judgment.

Since God’s judgments are reflected in the Book of Life, Satan claims that there are errors in the Book of Life.

That Satan’s accusations caused a war shows that his accusations could not be decisively refuted. Therefore, both the great sorrow in heaven (Rev 5) and the war in heaven (Rev 12) are caused by things not understood. This is additional evidence that the two chapters describe the same crisis. [Show More]

The Sealed Book is the Book of Life.

This explains the Sealed Book:

Since the two chapters describe the same crisis, Rev 12 explains that the lack of understanding, symbolized as a Sealed Book in Revelation 5, symbolizes uncertainty over the perfection of God’s judgments.

Furthermore, since God’s judgments are contained in the Book of Life, this confirms the previous conclusion that the Sealed Book is the Book of Life. The Book of Life is sealed in the sense that nobody can show the perfect accuracy of God’s judgments in all instances.

Resultant Interpretations

The identification of the Sealed Book as the Book of Life does not explain why nobody was able to open that book, what the seals are, or what breaking the seals means. But Revelation 12 does explain all of these:

The Seals are Satan’s accusations.

The seals symbolize the barriers to understanding. Since it is the book of God’s judgments, the seven seals are Satan’s brilliantly presented and informed accusations against the people whom God elected to eternal life.

God’s judgments are known but not understood.

That the book is sealed does not mean that God’s judgments were unknown or not explained but that nobody was able to entirely refute Satan’s accusations and objections to God’s grace for the people identified in the Book of Life. Nobody was able to show conclusively that God’s judgments are always perfect. [Show More]

Therefore, opening and reading the book does not mean learning WHO is saved but understanding WHY they are saved, and only they.

God cannot explain because He will not force.

God certainly explains, but created beings, without His infinite knowledge and understanding, and in the context of Satan’s accusations, are unable to understand. God is unable to open the book Himself only in the sense that He created intelligent beings who are truly free, and He wants His creatures to understand (cf. John 15:15)! He will not force them to accept His judgments. God does not want us to accept His word!

John cried because heaven saw no solution.

John’s tears (Rev 5:4) represent the sorrow in heaven in the time BEFORE Christ’s victory. At that time, the loyal angels were unable to fully refute Satan’s allegations that God judges unfairly. Since God will only execute His judgments when all understand them, it seemed as if God would NEVER be able to do so. Consequently, Satan and evil would have to exist for all eternity, and God’s people would never be resurrected. There seemed to be no way to bring the crisis to an end.

But Christ died to bring an end to this crisis. If Jesus had not “overcome” (Rev 5:5), evil would have had to exist for all eternity.

His death did not provide the ultimate solution.

Jesus breaking the seals means He directs events on earth to obtain evidence to refute Satan’s objections. His death did not provide the answers but the means by which answers could be obtained.

Christ’s return is delayed.

Until all understand that His judgments are perfect, God delays Christ’s return and the implementation of His judgments. These concepts are discussed further in other articles. See, for example:

- - Why did Jesus have to die to open the book?
  - Why did Christ not yet return?

The Book of Revelation 10

One of the possibilities that Jon Paulien lists for the Sealed Book is that it is related to the book of Revelation 10. My main argument against that proposal is that the sixth seal contains the signs of Christ’s return (Rev 6:12-14). This means that the seventh seal will only be broken at or after Christ’s return (Rev 6:17). Therefore, while the book with the seven seals remained sealed until AFTER the return of Christ, the book in Revelation 10 is open when it comes down, is eaten (understood) by John, and becomes the basis for his preaching (Rev 10:10-11), which must happen BEFORE the return of Christ.

Furthermore, as Jon mentions, a different word for book is used (Greek: Rev 5 biblion, Rev 10 biblaridion).

Overview

Book of Daniel

Book of Revelation

Other Articles

Overview

The Sealed Book

The Sealed Book is the Book of Life.

Revelation 12

The Sealed Book

The Book that nobody is able to Open

Christ is able to open the Book.

He breaks the Seals in Revelation 6.

The Sealed Book is the Book of Life.

1) The Book of the Slain Lamb

2) Both books are necessary for redemption.

3) Both books are opened after Christ’s return.

4) Both distinguish the living from the dead.

Revelation 12

Revelation 5 and 12 are similar.

Crisis in both chapters

Christ ended the crisis in heaven.

The Crisis continues on Earth.

God’s people must resolve the Crisis.

Conclusion

Revelation 12 identifies the Sealed Book.

War in Heaven

Accuser of our Brethren

The Sealed Book is the Book of Life.

Resultant Interpretations

The Seals are Satan’s accusations.

God’s judgments are known but not understood.

God cannot explain because He will not force.

John cried because heaven saw no solution.

His death did not provide the ultimate solution.

Christ’s return is delayed.

The Book of Revelation 10

Other Articles

The Seven Seals

Other