Fathers

Revelation 20

Tap a verse to read the Fathers. Press and hold, then drag, to make a card.

And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

About · Privacy · Credits · Support VRSZ

What the Fathers say

Revelation 20:11

Eastern Fathers

Oecumenius

And I saw a great white throne and the one who sat on it, and from before his presence the earth and the heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. He calls the white throne, bright and flashing. The passage alludes to the passing of the heavens and the alternation and transformation of the earth. "For the heavens will pass away with a great noise," (2 Peter 3:10) according to the divine Peter and according to the prophet who says: "At the beginning you founded the earth, O Lord, and the heavens are the work of your hands. …

Commentary on Revelation ↗

Dionysius bar Salibi

And I saw a great white throne, and him who sits upon it: and from his face fled the earth and the heaven—After the day of revelation that the faithful and unfaithful see, he will say to those who are left and have not yet tasted death: Come with me, that you enter your chambers and hide until the wrath has passed. Because, however, the heavens and the earth fled, and a place was not found for them, he shows the stupor of all creation and the commotion of the elements, because of the wrath that occurs. …

Commentary On The Apocalypse 20:11 ↗

Irenaeus

And in the Apocalypse John saw this new [Jerusalem] descending upon the new earth. For after the times of the kingdom, he says, "I saw a great white throne, and Him who sat upon it, from whose face the earth fled away, and the heavens; and there was no more place for them." And he sets forth, too, the things connected with the general resurrection and the judgment, mentioning "the dead, great and small." "The sea," he says, "gave up the dead which it had in it, and death and hell delivered up the dead that they contained; and the …

Against Heresies Book V ↗

Western Saints

Augustine of Hippo

John picks up again the theme of the last judgment (which is to accompany the second and bodily resurrection of the dead) and describes the manner of its revelation to him.… Note that he does not say, "One who sat upon it, and from his face earth and heaven fled away," because this "flight" had not yet taken place, that is, not before the judgment of the living and the dead. What he says is that he beheld One sitting on the throne "from whose face earth and heaven fled away"—not then but subsequently. …

City of God 20.14 ↗

Bede

And I saw a great white throne, etc. He said he saw someone sitting on the throne from whose presence earth and heaven fled away. This signifies that, after the judgment, there will be no more heaven and earth as they are, because there will be a new heaven and a new earth, meaning a transformation of things, not their complete destruction. For the figure of this world is passing away (1 Cor. 7); it does not say the substance. It is believed that the same substance will be changed for the better.

Commentary on Revelation ↗

Alcuin of York

QUESTION: And I saw a great throne, and one sitting upon it, and before him the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life. ANSWER: Another edition has "which is the book of the life of each person." So, by the books opened he means the Testaments, for the world shall be judged according to both Testaments. By the book of the life of each person he means the memory of our actions, not that the Knower of secrets has a book to remind him of things. …

Questions And Answers Manual On Revelation ↗