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.
Καὶ εἶδον θρόνον λευκὸν μέγαν καὶ τὸν καθήμενον ἐπʼ αὐτοῦ, οὗ ἀπὸ προσώπου ἔφυγεν ἡ γῆ καὶ ὁ οὐρανός, καὶ τόπος οὐχ εὑρέθη αὐτοῖς.
This Scripture by its revelation carries us away, it seems, to a time and place far removed from our own, and yet which may be much closer than we think—the Last Day and that single, momentary scene of all human beings from the beginning of the world gathered together for final judgment. For ever afterward, we shall all take our place, irrevocably, among the righteous or the wicked, and dwell there. By faith, let us behold the sober vision solemnly through John’s prophetic eyes.
Stunning Context
Everything about the vision inspires awe and wonder. It comes immediately after the final conflict between Satan with his cohorts and God (vv. 7–8). Just as Satan closes in on the beloved city, God attacks the enemies with fire from heaven, and, helpless, they are cast into the lake of fire (vv. 9–10).
The next paragraph (vv. 11–15) is a revelation of judgment on the Last Day, where everyone, even all “the dead, small and great, stand before God” (v. 12), all resurrected from their graves, or wherever their remains were scattered. The great distinction among these human beings is that some on that Great Day are found written in the book of life—the elect—while others are not (v. 15). The non-elect are consigned to a perfectly just punishment according to their works (v.12), namely, to be tormented eternally in “the lake of fire” (v. 15). The righteous go into life eternal (Matt 25.46).
Following this, John saw the appearance of “a new heaven and a new earth” (22.1), breathtakingly beautiful and blissful. As John Bunyan’s character Christian said, “I can better conceive of them with my mind, than speak of them with my tongue.”1 This is the setting in Scripture of our arresting text, Revelation 20.11.
Central Figure
John testified by the Spirit, “And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it.” He saw two things, and together they make an indelible impression. The first thing he mentions is a “throne” (the noun θρόνον is first), both “great” (adjective μέγαν) and “white” (adjective λευκὸν Eng. leukemia, disease of white blood cells). The throne is an obvious symbol in this context of absolute sovereignty and authority, fitting only for the eternal Creator, to whom all creatures owe their very existence, and all moral beings are accountable, and for whose glory all were created. This is the greatest throne of all. It is not just the color “white,” but bright, shining, gleaming2, radiant3. This throne is the throne of the ineffably glorious and Most Holy God.
Does Scripture provide any other insight about the identity of this central figure in John’s vision? Indeed, John himself records it in his gospel, with Jesus Christ saying, “The Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son: that all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him” (John 5.22-23). The glorified Jesus now and forever occupies the throne of His Father (Rev 3.21; 5.13; 22.1, 3). Our glorious Lord Jesus Christ is the Creator, King, and Judge of all.
Creaturely Reaction
Further, John says that from Christ’s “face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.” In other words, they disappeared! Mentioning earth and heaven together like this is a typical way in Scripture to designate all creation (Gen 1.1; 2 Kgs 19.15; Matt 11.25). Here, the central figure is revealed to be absolutely transcendent and holy by the existential chasm which appears symbolically between Him and His creatures. All are wholly unworthy to stand in the presence of His glory. Moreover, this is the time when the old creation passes away (Matt 24.35; cf. Heb 1.10–12; 2 Pet 3.10), and the new creation is consummated (Isa 65.17).
But wait—suddenly, though everything else vanishes, John beholds “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” (v. 12). Consider it! We shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ, bowing our knees to Him, and confessing with our mouths, that He is Lord, with each and every one of us giving an account of himself or herself to God (Rom 14.10–12).
With what profound reverence, then, must we daily hold Christ in our hearts! He is Lord of all and Judge of all, our God forever and ever. Ω
___________________________________________
1 Bunyan, J. (2006). The Pilgrim’s Progress. Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.
2 Arndt, W., Danker, F. W., & Bauer, W. (2000). A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature (3rd ed.). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
3 Balz, H. R., & Schneider, G. (1990–). Exegetical dictionary of the New Testament. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans.