John tells us that those who have a part in the first resurrection (Revelation 20:6) are blessed and holy (hagios – G40). God is holy, because he stands apart from his creation. Creation, itself, is common, meaning it can be used for corrupt matters or for good purposes. Things set apart for the worship of the Lord were considered holy things, whether that was the land upon which the Lord stood (Exodus 3:5), the sacrifices offered to him (Exodus 29:33) or the ceremonial materials used in worship of him (Exodus 30:25; Numbers 5:17; 1Kings 8:4) etc. All things, objects, animals or men, that were set apart for the service of God were holy (hagios – G40). In the context of those who were part of the first resurrection (Revelation 20:6), they have a special place in the history of mankind, because they had been chosen, set apart if you will, for the fulfilling of the commission of God to spread the Gospel over the whole civilized world (cp. Matthew 28:19-20).
According to the text (Revelation 20:6), those who are a part of the first resurrection are not under the authority or power (i.e. jurisdiction) of the second death. **Second** death??? How many deaths must we die? The term appears four times in the Bible and only in the Apocalypse, first at Revelation 2:11. There the Lord tells the church of Smyrna that he who overcomes would not be hurt by the ‘second’ death, implying one would go through the second death, but the experience would have no effect, or at least no lasting effect, upon the triumphant believer, but what does all this mean in plain language?
I’ve already written a study on the subject of the second death when I studied what the Lord told the Church at Smyrna (Revelation 2:11).[1] This study will reach the same conclusion as that study, but how we get there will be different. That study concerned chronological matters, but this study will concern matters of degree. There I spoke of spiritual death and physical death, the first death (chronologically) would have been spiritual and the second would have been physical death. In this study the first and second deaths concern degree or importance, not chronology.
In my first study I explained that when Adam rebelled he died spiritually, immediately, on the very day that he ate the forbidden fruit. That is, his life was separated from the life of God, and this was brought out in the fact that Adam was cast out of the Garden (Genesis 3:23), which symbolically meant he was cast out of the Most Holy Place (where the Presence of God resides). The Temple at Jerusalem typified the geographical areas of Genesis 2 & 3. The Most Holy Place, where the Presence of God dwelt, was the Garden. Adam was removed from there and made to dwell in the Holy Place or Eden. The flaming sword is typified by the veil that stood between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place of the Temple.
In the context of the Apocalypse, Revelation 1 through 3 take place in the Holy Place of the Temple. Jesus’ presence in the midst of the lampstands (Revelation 1:12-13) is typified by the lampstand in the Holy Place of the Temple. What is different in the Apocalypse is John was called into the Most Holy Place, where the Lord’s throne is (Revelation 4:1-2), but this was impossible in the context of Genesis 3:23-24. What occurred during the first century AD that would permit John to pass through the veil or the flaming sword into the Most Holy Place?
Paul tells us to come boldly before the throne of God (Hebrews 4:16), to which we have been given access (Romans 5:2; Ephesians 2:18, 3:12) by the precious blood of Jesus (Hebrews 10:19-20). So, this is what has changed under the New Covenant that was not so under the Old Covenant. Access to the throne of God, the Most Holy Place has been given to man through the death of Jesus (2Timothy 1:10). It is his death that makes the spiritual life possible, which I referred to in my previous study of Revelation 2:11.[2] So, according to the larger picture, the first death is more than one of chronology, i.e. first there was the spiritual and secondly came physical or literal death. It also points to deaths by degree (cp. 1Corinthians 12:28). In other words, first and foremost is Christ’s death, and secondly there is the death of man, which is also abolished later when it is cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 21:14). If man’s death was all there was, mankind would eventually cease to exist. It is only because of the death of Jesus that eternal life can be considered. It is through his death that mankind has access to the Father (Hebrews 10:19-20), and therefore to life. Christ’s death swallows up the spiritual death and eventually the physical death of mankind.
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[1] See my study: He Won’t Be Hurt by the Second Death
[2] Ibid.
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