Souls
Cut Off for Jesus
Revelation
20:4. And I saw thrones, and they sat on
them, and judgment was committed to them. And the souls
of those who had been “beheaded” (cut
off) for their witness
to Jesus and for the Word of God, who had
not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their
foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a
thousand years. 5. But the rest of the dead did not live again
until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. 6.
Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first
resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be
priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.
While certainly some martyrs have been beheaded such as
John the Baptist and some of the apostles as have been reported, not all have
been or will be executed in this manner.
Isaiah
53:8. He was
taken from prison and from judgment, and who will declare His generation? For
He was cut off from the land of the living; for
the transgressions of My people He was stricken.
Daniel
9:26. "And after the sixty-two
weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for
Himself; and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and
the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, and till the end of the war
desolations are determined.
Hebrew Strong's Ref. #
3772 Romanized karath Pronounced kaw-rath' a
primitive root; to cut (off, down or asunder);
by implication, to destroy or consume;
specifically, to covenant (i.e. make an alliance or bargain, originally by cutting flesh and passing between the pieces): KJV--be
chewed, be con-[feder-]ate, covenant, cut (down, off),
destroy, fail, feller, be freed, hew (down),
make a league ([covenant]), X lose, perish, X
utterly, X want.
The Greek word used for “cut off”
is actually Hebrew terminology which is mistakenly
translated as “beheaded” in the book of Revelation is “pelekizo” which literally means “axe.” The head was
simply assumed to be the reference for the cutting off of by Strong’s and other
supposed scholars but scriptural study proves otherwise. That which Revelation
refers to is the “souls” that were “cut off.”
Greek Strong's Ref. # 3990 Romanized
pelekizo Pronounced pel-ek-id'-zo from a derivative
of GSN4141 (meaning an axe); to chop off (the
head), i.e. truncate: KJV--behead.
Strong's Number: 4141 Transliterated: plesso
Phonetic: place'-so Text: apparently another form of 4111 (through the
idea of flattening out); to pound, i.e. (figuratively) to inflict with
(calamity): --smite. Compare 5180.
The greek word used for beheaded
in the Gospels is quite literal in its interpretation.
Matthew
14:10. So he sent and had John beheaded in
prison.
Greek Strong's Ref. # 607 Romanized
apokephalizo Pronounced ap-ok-ef-al-id'-zo from GSN0575 and GSN2776; to decapitate:
KJV--behead.
Strong's Ref. # 2776
Romanized kephale Pronounced
kef-al-ay' from the primary kapto (in the sense of seizing); the head (as the part most readily taken hold of),
literally or figuratively: KJV--head.
Strong's Number: 575
Transliterated: apo Phonetic: apo' Text: a primary particle; "off," i.e. away (from something near), in various
senses (of place, time, or relation; literal or figurative): --(X here-)after,
ago, at, because of, before, by (the space of), for(-th), from, in, (out) of, off, (up-)on(-ce), since, with. In composition (as a
prefix) it usually denotes separation, departure, cessation, completion,
reversal, etc.
Revelation
6:9. When He opened the fifth seal, I
saw under the altar the souls of those who had been
slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. 10.
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, "How long, O Lord, holy
and true, until You judge and avenge our blood
on those who dwell on the earth?''
Daniel
11:33. "And those of the people who
understand shall instruct many; yet for many days they
shall fall by sword
and flame, by captivity
and plundering. 36. "Then the king shall do according to his
own will: he shall exalt and magnify himself above every god, shall speak
blasphemies against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the wrath has been
accomplished; for what has been determined shall be done.
457 times in 215 verses the term “cut
off “is used in the 66 books of the Bible. The majority of those
referred to in the Old Testament for the wicked who shall be cut off from
everlasting life in New Jerusalem with our Father and savior Lord Jesus Christ.
Most times they refer to the loss of life or soul. Our Lord Jesus was cut off from the land of the living in the
flesh for our benefit and then the first to be resurrected into everlasting
life. The interpreters of the book of Revelation mistakenly interpret souls cut off to mean beheaded
but in reality means “cut off from the land of the
living” as in killed or murdered.
The book of Revelation is written in the prophetical
manner of the Old Testament prophecies from God and one must study and research
those prophecies to understand what is written. The beloved and wise prophet Daniel studied the book of Jeremiah to interpret the
70 weeks of judgment proclaimed against Jerusalem.
This is a better interpretation:
Revelation
20:4. And I saw thrones,
and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were cut
off for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which
had not worshipped the beast, neither his image,
neither had received his mark upon their foreheads,
or in their hands; and they lived and
reigned with Christ a thousand years. 5.
But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were
finished. This is the first resurrection.
6. Blessed and holy is he that hath part
in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall
reign with him a thousand years.
Obviously not every individual in this large group was
beheaded and included in the first resurrection for their witness of Jesus and
the Word of God in the past and I guarantee you that not all those being
murdered now or in the future are being beheaded. What will happen in the
future remains to be seen but the word “cut off”
refers to being cut off from the land of the
living. This group contains every single individual who will reign with
God and Christ for what is commonly known in Christian circles as the “millennium.” Those who sit on the thrones whom judgment is given to are the same
whose souls were cut off and they reign with Christ on his throne for 1000
years.
Revelation
1:5. And from Jesus Christ, who is the
faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the
kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his
own blood, 6. And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father;
to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
Revelation
5:9. And they sung a new song, saying,
Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast
slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and
tongue, and people, and nation; 10. And
hast made us unto our God kings and priests:
and we shall reign on the earth.
Revelation
12:11. "And they overcame him by the blood
of the Lamb and by the word of their
testimony, and they did not love their lives
to the death.
1
Corinthians 6:2. Do you not know that
the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be
judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? 3. Do
you not know that we shall judge angels? How
much more, things that pertain to this life?