Stewart Custer BJU Press 2004-01-01

Custer, former chairman of the division of Bible at Bob Jones University, has written an excellent premillennial exposition of the Book of Revelation. In discussing various passages he often cites the views of others, including both amillenarians and premillenarians. Thus readers can see how expositors of various persuasions interpret those verses. As a futurist, he holds to literal interpretation, which of course includes figures and symbols without allegorizing or spiritualizing.

He believes that the twenty-four elders represent all the redeemed, both Israel and the church (p. 52). The scorpions in Revelation 9 are demonic spirits (pp. 105–6), the two hundred million troops in the sixth trumpet judgment are a literal army (p. 110), the two witnesses may be Moses and Elijah (p. 124; though Custer does not state this with certainty), and the seal and trumpet judgments are in the first half of the seven-year Tribulation (p. 128) and the bowl judgments are in the second half. The woman in Revelation 12 is Israel (p. 134), the first beast in chapter 13 is the Antichrist (p. 148), and the harlot in chapter 17 is the apostate church (pp. 188–89).

Several features enhance the value of the book: sixteen pages of color photos of the present sites of the seven churches of Asia, numerous applications at the end of each chapter, a prayer at the end of each chapter, and a ninety-page bibliography with each entry carefully annotated.

Anyone preaching or teaching the Book of Revelation will benefit from the in-depth helps in this volume.

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