APOCALYPSE NOW!!

Calendar of Joy or Calendar of Mourning?

1 – The things that have to be done

The word ‘apocalypse’ calls up scenes of death and destruction in which God pours out
bowls of tribulation. I was somewhat surprised when I first learned that ‘apocalypse’ is
simply a Greek word for ‘revelation’.1) It appears for the first time in the Bible in the
Book of Revelation: “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show his
servants – things which must shortly take place”. Major events are referred to here, for
then the text goes on to say that they who hear and take it all to heart will be blessed.
But that is not the finale, for those who have been liberated sing: “And we shall reign on
earth.” (Rev. 5: 9-10) And also - three verses further on - but now in chorus with all
creatures: “Blessing and honor and glory and power be to Him who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb forever and ever.” At the end of the book the holy city of Jerusalem
comes down to earth out of God’s heaven. (Rev. 21:10) It comes ‘out of’ God’s heaven.
But where does it land? Where else than on (the new) earth! With the announcement of
the final plagues the victors over the beast sing first the hymn of Moses, God’s servant,
which is also the hymn of the Lamb: “Great and marvelous are Your works, Lord God
almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the saints! Who shall not fear You, O
Lord, and glorify Your name? For you alone are holy, for all nations shall come and
worship before You. For Your judgements have been manifested.” (Rev. 15:3-4, Deut.
32:1-52) The book closes with the following words (Rev. 22:16): “I, Jesus, have sent
My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring
of David, the Bright and Morning Star. And the Spirit and the bride say: Come! And let

1) The misconceptions regarding the meaning of the word ‘apocalypse’ are encouraged
by the great deal of attention paid by readers of the Book of Revelation for the cata-
strophes described in that book, with books and films referring to the theme playing on
the misunderstanding. A film of this type is called: “Apocalypse then: A second look at
the first Gulf War”.
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him who hears say: Come! And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take
the waters of life freely.”

It would be extremely fatalistic to dare to state that all the bowls of tribulation and so
many more terrible events are the things “that must come to pass”, with the emphasis
on ‘must’. Although the text allows this, another interpretation is possible, one that is
not so obvious. The final goal of the Apocalypse is fixed: that God’s liberated ones, from
every family and language and people and nation will reign as kings on earth. This ‘must’
and ‘shall’ happen. There is no disputing the fact, and it will be thanks to the “golden
bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints”. (Rev. 5:8) And thus not all
the bowls are filled with tribulations. Hallelujah. Praised be the Lamb!

2 – Harvest Cycle of Mourning, a Mirror-Image of that of Joy

A remarkable aspect of the cycle of occurrences in the book of Revelation is the way in
which it regularly refers to a ‘harvest’. Rev. 6:6 speaks of “A quart of wheat for a
denarius ad three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine”.
In verse 13 we find mention of the fig tree that rejects its unripe fruits. In verse 4 of the
ninth chapter is the following: “They were commanded not to harm the grass of the
earth, or any green thing or any tree.” In Chapter 14 from verse 14 onwards writes in
terms of the grain and wine harvest, ending with the winepress being trampled, some-
thing that always occurs at the end of the season, this as a prelude to the seven final
plagues. In chapter 19, where the victory of Christ over the false prophet is proclaimed,
the winepress is once again trampled (verse 15).

Israel’s cycle of feasts accentuates the important events of the harvest season – happy
occasions. But here there is no thought of a cycle of joy but a cycle of mourning! The
remarkable thing is that when all this is over and the tears have been wiped from the
eyes and pestilential death has been conquered (Rev. 21:4) – an interpretation that
matches up with the meaning of the Hebrew word ‘mut’ or ‘death’ – then at that stage
the harvest cycle has turned into something quite different. Even then one will die (who
will then be born), not tired of illness but tired of years. (Isa. 65:20-22) That is the third
death. The lake of fire, intended for the god-haters, is the second death. (Rev. 20:14;
21:8) Indeed, since everything is new. The tree of life (Rev. 22:3) will produce fruits
every month. But all of this happens in a future which, at present, does not need to
concern us, except for the fact that it helps keep our hopes alive that everything will
come right.

In order to obtain a better understanding of the harvest cycle of mourning, we can turn
to Moses’ last speech at the gates of the Promised Land. (Deut. 27-33) 2) Here Moses
presents the blessing and the curse as two extremes in the same spectrum. He closes his
speech (after which he transfers command to Joshua) with the following words: “I have
set before you life and death, blessing and cursing, therefore choose life.” (Deut. 30:19)
What is that blessing exactly? The Lord will make you overflow with all that is good, in
the fruit of your loins, in the fruit of your cattle and in the fruit of your land; on the land
that the Lord swore to your fathers He would give to you. The Lord will open the rich
treasury of heaven for you in order to give your land rain at the appropriate time and to

2) In Exodus 15 Moses and the people of Israel join together in a song of praise
for God’s victory because of their passage through the Red Sea, a song referred to in
Revelation 15:3-4. The ten plagues of Egypt and the beginning of Exodus are a source
of exciting comparisons with the Book of Revelation. And there is also David’s hymn
of praise in II Samuel 22 that matches up wonderfully well with that material.
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bless all the works of your hands. (Deut. 28: 1-14) In the curse we find the mirror-image
in more or less the same words, but much more detailed (verses 15 to 68): “The Lord
will strike you with consumption, with fever, with inflammation, with severe burning
fever, with the sword, with scorching and with mildew (…) And your heavens which are
over your head shall be bronze, and the earth which is under you shall be iron. The Lord
will change the rain of your land to powder and dust (…) You shall carry much seed out
to the field but gather little in.”

The text describes further dark disasters… You will plant vineyards yet drink no wine.
You will have olive trees but will be unable to anoint yourselves. Pests will overtake all
your orchards and the fruit of your land. And so it goes on with bilious curses. No wonder
that these verses have gained little popularity in Judaism. The harvest calendar of joy is
mirrored in one of mourning, something that continually comes into the foreground
when God’s people leaves the right path. Then the abundant blessings of the other
calendar are cut short with judgement as the logical consequence. On the other hand we
may say that the harvest calendar of mourning is mirrored in one of joy, something that
comes to the fore every time when God’s people is on the right path or turns from its
devious ways.

We recognise this pattern in the New Year’s festivities in the month of Tishrei that end
in the great Day of Reconciliation or Yom Kippur on the tenth of the month. Typically,
New Year’s Day is also known as the Day of Judgement. The first and tenth days of this
month developed into official days of repentance and in the course of time came to be
known in the synagogue as the ‘Yamim Nora’im’, the fearful and terrible days with, in
between, an interlude of peace. How can it then be that the Great Day of reconciliation
in Judaism is preceded by fear and feelings of doom – fear that the plagues of Egypt, or
worse, will strike the people of Israel? The explanation is to be found in the mirror-
imaged alternative within God’s plan of creation. The choice is ours. A similar kind of
sombre reflection also applies to the weeks leading up to Whitsun (Shavuot), which are
spent in semi-mourning. The Jewish wise ones do not actually know precisely why.
Coincidentally it would seem that Shavuot is also the exact day on which the beginning
of the handing over, from Heaven, of the Horeb laws and prescriptions occurred, which
was cloaked in darkness, thunder and smoke. And thus it is here that the start of the
covenant saga is commemorated, with all its blessings and curses. If the mourning ca-
lendar is in force, it can turn into a festive calendar provided that the requirements of
penance and repentance are fulfilled. The festive calendar and that of mourning both
turn out to be conditional but not exactly one another’s mirror-image, for the Lord is
slow to anger and quick to forgive. And, as already pointed out, the Magna Carta of this
historical pattern is laid out in the last speech of Moses before the people’s entry into the
Promised Land. Every judgment can turn into an anti-climax, and that is what in the end
will happen, not just for the people of Israel but also for the whole world. Their blessing
will turn out to be everyone’s blessing – and ours too! 3)

3 – Call to Repentance
That the punishments, announced by God, are conditional, is found in the writings of Jere-
miah who announced shortly before Judah went into Babylonian exile: (Jer. 18:7-11)
«« The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck
up, to pull down and to destroy it, if that nation against whom I have spoken turns

3) The end of Tishrei 1 might agree with Matthew 24:30 and Tishrei 10 with
2 Thessalonians 2:8. The day of completion of the harvest cycle on Tishrei 22 might
agree with Matthew 25:31.
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from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. And the
instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to
plant it, if it does evil in my sight so that it does not obey my voice, then I will
relent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it. Now therefore,
speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem: “Thus says the
Lord: I am fashioning a disaster and devising a plan against you. Return now
every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good.” »»

At a later stage the prophet speaks out against Zedekiah, the last king of Judah, who had
done wrong in the eyes of God. In addition, the leaders of the priests and the people
sinned more and more, practising the horrors committed by the nations, and they
dishonoured the House of God that He had dedicated in Jerusalem. Zedekiah refused to
humble himself before the Prophet Jeremiah, who spoke from God’s mouth (Jer. 38:17):
“If you surely surrender to the king of Babylon’s princes, then your soul shall live; this
city shall not be burned with fire and you and your house shall live.” Even at this
advanced stage of loss of the true belief and in a state of misery, the merciful God, like
a caring and loving mother, showed his people a way out of destruction. Judah had al-
ready endured great sufferings under two recent invasions, the last involving a major
deportation of the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Nonetheless Zedekiah refused to humble
himself. And so it happened that Israel was rejected from God’s presence, yes, 19 years
after the first invasion. Around that time the last small remnant of the people was torn
away, thereby issuing in the start of the seventy years of exile.

A well-known example of a king who did listen to God’s call to repentance was Manas-
seh. It would be difficult to find a greater sinner than this man. In Kings and Chronicles
it is written Manasseh misled his people to the point that they committed greater evils
than the Canaanite peoples that God had driven away for the Israelites. (2 Kings 21;
2 Chron. 33) For he built up the sacred places on the mountains where his father had
previously demolished them. He set up altars to the Baals in every part of the land. He
offered his children up to Moloch ‘the King’ in the fires of the Tophet in the Valley of
Hinnom. He put his own son through the fire, gave himself up to all kinds of wicked
fortune-telling ad magic and consulted exorcists and mediums. He even caused a carven
image of Ahshera to be erected in the Temple of Jerusalem. It was only after he had been
taken prisoner by Assurbanipal that he returned to God’s ways. So we read in 2
Chronicles 33:12-13: “He humbled himself greatly before the Lord God of his fathers
(…) (and God) brought him back to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew
that the Lord was God.”

4 – Prayer is not Useless

It is therefore possible that all the disasters foretold in the book of Revelation and there
presented to us can change into the opposite if the world repents and turns to God. It is
possible – but if it will happen is another question. If you want my personal opinion, I
find it unrealistic to expect the world to come to its senses and turn away from its evil
paths, thereby changing the calendar of mourning into the calendar of rejoicing and thus
enabling us to change every curse of the Apocalypse into a blessing. God in His wisdom
has chosen to write the book of Revelation in terms of the calendar of mourning. So
despite its conditional character, we would do well to take seriously into consideration
the fact that the events will happen as written. It does seem realistic to me to assume that
within the worldwide scenario some countries will be an exception. For that reason a
prayer for the conversion of the Netherlands must not be seen as a useless exercise, but
to be just as useful as a prayer that the calamities should be lessened once they have
come, even if the prayer is only for what happens in our immediate vicinity.