Revelation of John 20:12

The dead, small and great - All ranks, degrees, and conditions of men. This description seems to refer to Dan 7:9, Dan 7:10. And the books were opened - See Dan 12:1. "Rab. Jehuda said: All the actions of men, whether good or bad, are written in a book, and of all they shall give account." - Sohar Gen., fol. 79, col. 298. "How careful should men be to shun vice, and to act uprightly before the holy blessed God, seeing there are so many which go throughout the earth, see the works of men, testify of them, and write them in a book!" - Ibid., fol. 105, col. 417. "In the first day of the new year the holy blessed God sits that he may judge the world; and all men, without exception, give an account of themselves; and the books of the living and the dead are opened." Sohar Chadash, fol. 19, 1. The books mentioned here were the books of the living and the dead, or the book of life and the book of death: that is, the account of the good and evil actions of men; the former leading to life, the latter to death. St. John evidently alludes here to Dan 7:10, on which the rabbinical account of the books appears to be founded. The expressions are figurative in both. According to their works - And according to their faith also, for their works would be the proof whether their faith were true or false; but faith exclusively could be no rule in such a procedure.

the dead--"the rest of the dead" who did not share the first resurrection, and those who died during the millennium. small and great--B has "the small and the great." A, Vulgate, Syriac, and ANDREAS have "the great and the small." The wicked who had died from the time of Adam to Christ's second advent, and all the righteous and wicked who had died during and after the millennium, shall then have their eternal portion assigned to them. The godly who were transfigured and reigned with Christ during it, shall also be present, not indeed to have their portion assigned as if for the first time (for that shall have been fixed long before, Joh 5:24), but to have it confirmed for ever, and that God's righteousness may be vindicated in the case of both the saved and the lost, in the presence of an assembled universe. Compare "We must ALL appear," &c. Rom 14:10; Co2 5:10. The saints having been first pronounced just themselves by Christ out of "the book of life," shall sit as assessors of the Judge. Compare Mat 25:31-32, Mat 25:40, "these My brethren." God's omniscience will not allow the most insignificant to escape unobserved, and His omnipotence will cause the mightiest to obey the summons. The living are not specially mentioned: as these all shall probably first (before the destruction of the ungodly, Rev 20:9) be transfigured, and caught up with the saints long previously transfigured; and though present for the confirmation of their justification by the Judge, shall not then first have their eternal state assigned to them, but shall sit as assessors with the Judge. the books . . . opened-- (Dan 7:10). The books of God's remembrance, alike of the evil and the good (Psa 56:8; Psa 139:4; Mal 3:16): conscience (Rom 2:15-16), the word of Christ (Joh 12:48), the law (Gal 3:10), G…

And I saw the dead,.... An account being given of the Judge, next the persons to be judged are described, and in this clause, by the state and condition in which they had been; for it cannot be thought they were dead when they stood before the throne, but were raised from the dead; for this character is not descriptive of them as dead in trespasses and sins, though they are such as die in their sins, and rise in them, who are meant, but as having been corporeally dead; these are the rest of the dead, the wicked, who lived not again until the thousand years were ended, Rev 20:5 as for the righteous, they will be judged upon their resurrection from the dead in the beginning of the day of the Lord; and will be declared righteous and blessed, and be called upon and introduced to inherit the kingdom prepared for them, which they shall have possessed a thousand years when these wicked dead will be raised: who are said to be small and great; which may refer either to their age, being children and adult persons; or to their condition, being kings and peasants, high and low, rich and poor; or to their characters, as greater or lesser sinners; and this description respects them as they are in this world, and is designed to show that no consideration whatever, of age, condition, or character, will exempt them from the general judgment. This is a way of speaking used among the Jews (h), who say, "in the world of souls, , "the great and the small", stand before God.'' The disputations of the schoolmen, about the age and stature in which mankind will rise and be judged, are vain and foolish: these John saw stand before God; that is, Christ, who is God and Judge of all; before his judgment seat and throne, in order to be judged; for they will stand not as ministering to him, nor as ha…

This chapter is thought by some to be the darkest part of all this prophecy: it is very probable that the things contained in it are not yet accomplished; and therefore it is the wiser way to content ourselves with general observations, rather than to be positive and particular in our explications of it. Here we have an account, I. Of the binding of Satan for a thousand years (Rev 20:1-3). II. The reign of the saints with Christ for the same time (Rev 20:4-6). III. Of the loosing of Satan, and the conflict of the church with Gog and Magog (Rev 20:7-10). IV. Of the day of judgment (Rev 20:11, etc.).

20:12 books were opened: See Ps 56:8; Dan 7:10. • The Book of Life holds the names of faithful people who have experienced God’s saving power (Mal 3:16; see Rev 3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:15); they are probably the same ones as those who experience the “first resurrection” (20:5-6). • And the dead were judged: The works of both the redeemed and the unredeemed will be judged (see 22:12; Matt 16:27; 25:31-46).