I get your point and your question is valid. We should understand that Johns revelations were of the future I studied the book of Revelation hard for about eight years and there is so much that I could not answer of figure out. I tried to figure out the sequence of the vials, trumpets and seals but I was not able to figure it out. I was able to match historical events to the discription of the seven chruches. Here is a small example of what my research revealed to me.
The church of Smyrna, which came into existence around 67 A.D. was the persecuted church. The word “Smyrna” comes from the root word spelled “myrrh” or “myrrha” (pronounced myrra) and means “to be strengthened.” It is an aromatic resin and an ingredient in a sacred anointing oil used by the high priest in the temple. Exodus 30:23-25 says, "Take also to you principle spices, of pure myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet cinnamon half so much, even two hundred and fifty shekels, and of sweet calamus two hundred and fifty shekels, And of cassia five hundred shekels, after the shekel (weight) of the sanctuary, and of oil (from) olive an hin: And you shall make it an oil of holy ointment, an ointment compound after the art of the apothecary: it shall be an holy anointing oil".
Because it was a resin from a certain tree or shrub, it had to be beaten or crushed before it could be used as the resin would dry and harden after extraction and the more it was beaten and crushed the more fragrant the risen became. It was very expensive and very fragrant. The Christians of the church of Smyrna were also beaten and crushed. But the more they were beaten and the more they suffered, the more fragrant was their testimony and faith in Christ. In them we see the age-old statement, “The blood of martyrs is the seed of the church.”
The church age of the church of Smyrna lasted from 67AD until about 312 AD. when the persecution of the church was halted by Constantine the Great.
The woman riding the scarlet beast is an interesting subject. The correct way to spell Europe is "Europa" and Europa is a goddess. The legend say that she was stuck on an island and Zeus disguised himself as a bull and presented himself to her. She got on the bull and rode the bull to Greece where they mated and she had children.The interesting thing is that right now outside of the EU headquarters in Brussels Belgium there is a statue of a woman riding a reddish colored bull and she has the bull by the horns. If you pay close attention to the descriptions of the seven churches you will find for an example that the church of Ephesus is nothing like the church of Laodicea. The church of Ephesus was an anointed church.
Rev 2:2 I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
Rev 2:3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.
Verses the description of the church of Laodicea.
Rev 3:14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;
Rev 3:15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
Rev 3:16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
Rev 3:17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
I don't believe for a minute that both of these two church types are existing at the same time in our day and time. A church age would be speaking of the over all condition of the church of the day in general as a whole and we are nothing like the church of Ephesus today.
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