Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. (Revelation 20:11, 12a, 13, NIV 1984).
My Musing – This Great White Throne apparently differs from the throne that is mentioned more than 30 times in Revelation beginning with Revelation 4:2. It is a great throne, because all the sinners of history will stand before it. It is a white throne because it represents the unchanging holiness of God. White also connotes victory throughout Revelation.
The Judge sitting on the throne is none other than Jesus Christ, for God the Father has committed all judgment to Him (Matthew 19:28; John 5:22–30; Acts 17:31). Earth and sky flee from His presence, and there is no place for them. Standing before the throne are the lost sinners throughout the history of mankind who rejected Christ in their lifetime. Now, at the end of history, they must be judged by Him to face eternal death.
The Great White Throne Judgment will be nothing like our modern court proceedings. There will be a Judge but no jury. There will be a prosecution but no defense. A sentence will be delivered for which there is no appeal. No one will be able to defend himself or accuse God of unrighteousness. There will be no plea bargains and no getting off because of technicalities. Before God ushers in His new heavens and earth, He will deal with sin once and for all, banishing it for all of eternity. All this will be done at the Great White Throne.
Today He is the merciful Savior of the world. On that day, when time is no more, He will be the righteous Judge. Christ as Prophet (and Messiah) was prominent in His first advent and earthly ministry. During the time between His ascension and second advent He mediates as our High Priest. His Kingship will be prominent after His second advent during the Millennium. At the Great White Throne, He will be (as He always has been) the righteous Judge.
As previously noted, it appears that all the righteous dead have previously been raised. This would include the Old Testament saints (age of the Law and Prophets), New Testament saints (age of God’s grace – Church age), and the dead from the Great Tribulation (age of God’s wrath – tribulation). Thus, it follows that Revelation 20:11–15 must refer to the second resurrection, or the resurrection of the wicked dead. Revelation 20:5 specifically states that they will not be resurrected until after the thousand years are ended, having had no part in the first resurrection.
The Great White Throne Judgment should not be confused with the Judgment Seat of Christ, where believers (three groups mentioned above) have their works judged and rewarded. At the Great White Throne Judgment, there will be only unbelievers. There will be no rewards, only degrees of punishment. John describes a sobering scene. Heaven and earth will flee away leaving no place for sinners to hide. Death will give up the bodies, and hades or torments (the realm of the spirits of the dead) will give up the spirits. There will even be a resurrection of bodies from the sea.
No sinner will escape, all must face the Judge. This moment when the body and soul of the lost sinner are reunited before Christ’s judgment throne is the only relief from punishment these sinners will know before being cast into Hell. No lost sinner will escape, the time for redemption having passed. All lost sinners will be sent there, small and great, rich and poor (Hebrews 9:27). God’s omniscience will not allow the most insignificant to escape unobserved, His omnipotence will force even the mightiest to obey the summons, and His perfect righteousness will cause the sentence to be served without hope of a parole. No time off for good behavior. Being “good” was insufficient on earth and it will be insufficient in Hell.
My Advice – Don’t plan on being able to plead your case if you stand before this throne. The time for “retaining” Christ as your advocate will have passed. At this point He can only return one verdict as judge.
Resources:
Walvoord, J. F. (1985). Revelation. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 982). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
Wiersbe, W. W. (1992). Wiersbe’s expository outlines on the New Testament (p. 854). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
Barry, J. D., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Mangum, D., & Whitehead, M. M. (2012). Faithlife Study Bible (Re 20:11). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.
Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 620-621). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (Vol. 2, p. 600). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
The Brew Is A Musing 