Nansings and Chance,

Thank you both for looking at that particular end-times description, which has stirred me up to think about it more.

Revelation 20:6 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.

  7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,

  8 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.

  9 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.

  10 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.

  11 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.

  14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

From the time I first read this passage, after I was saved, until I read what the two of you were writing, I always thought that line 11 happens immediately after the judgment of lines 9&10.

Essentially, I saw it all as rapid succession: fire, then fire, then fire, and then fire.

That is because I placed what Peter wrote, to occur right then, like that:

II Peter 3:7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

  10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

  11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,

  12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?

That first the fire that comes down upon those compassing the camp of the saints.

Then the devil cast into the lake of fire.

Then the earth and heaven burned with fire.

And then death and hell cast into the lake of fire.

But that idea of rapid succession fire, fire, fire, and fire, leaves out other things that may happen.

For one, the bodies of those killed by the fire in Revelation 20:9, may not necessarily be totally consumed like:

I Kings 18:38 Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.

But perhaps, closer to:

Leviticus 10:1 And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not.

  2 And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.

  4 And Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said unto them, Come near, carry your brethren from before the sanctuary out of the camp.

  5 So they went near, and carried them in their coats out of the camp; as Moses had said.

So, the scorched bodies may be initially picked at by the fowls and beasts, and then still require burying, like in Ezekiel 39.

Also, when the LORD defeats that great company, would there not be praise and worship going on? Similar to the praise and worship in Revelation 19, after Babylon is burned?

The survivors of the nations, that didn't join that host for battle, will see that the enemies of the LORD are defeated, and the LORD is gloriously vindicated.

Additionally, as Nansings pointed out, that may be the time when the weapons are burned, again, as a witness to the power and glory of the LORD.

Will the LORD then allow the nations, for a while, to witness, and live in, peace, like there was when Jesus first established the kingdom, a little over a thousand years earlier?

Will there be the final part of the resurrection, before the earth and heaven are dissolved, the resurrection of those who will stand before the great white throne judgment?

Because if it all happens in rapid succession, then immediately after the LORD burns the hosts compassing the camp of the saints, the earth and heaven would be burned up?

That would mean that the survivors, apparently saved people, would need to be instantly resurrected, while they behold their homes, horses, cattle, and pets burned up with everything else?

Would that be more like a judgment upon the saved, who survive the judgment upon the enemies of the LORD - everything is burned up at essentially the same time?

The only difference, being that they would be spared from burning, themselves, by being resurrected in anticipation of the new heaven and new earth?

Also, I have a couple more questions: Do any saved people die during the thousand year kingdom? If so, are they buried until the end? Or, are they immediately resurrected when they die?

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