And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
14. And the heaven departed ] i.e. parted asunder. The verb depart was so used (only in a transitive sense) in the Marriage Service until the last revision of the Prayer-Book, “till death us depart,” i.e. “till death part us.” Here we still have a reference to Isa 34:4. The word for “scroll” is the same as that rendered “book” in c. v. &c.
every mountain and island, &c.] Cf. Rev 16:20. There the convulsion is greater than here: and even there it does not imply quite so much as Rev 20:11 a fact to be remembered in the interpretation of this passage.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 14. And the heaven departed as a scroll] The whole system of pagan and idolatrous worship, with all its spiritual, secular, and superstitious influence, was blasted, shrivelled up, and rendered null and void, as a parchment scroll when exposed to the action of a strong fire.
And every mountain] All the props, supports, and dependencies of the empire, whether regal allies, tributary kings, dependent colonies, or mercenary troops, were all moved out of their places, so as to stand no longer in the same relation to that empire, and its worship, support, and maintenance, as they formerly did.
And island] The heathen temples, with their precincts and enclosures, cut off from the common people, and into which none could come but the privileged, may be here represented by islands, for the same reasons.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Two expressions more signifying the same thing. The first is used by the prophet, to signify the change God would make in the state of the Edomites, Isa 34:4, as will appear by comparing what that prophet saith, with what Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Obadiah say, upon the same argument, Jer 49:7-22; Eze 35:1-15.
And every mountain and island were moved out of their places; all sorts of people shall be destroyed, or all the paganish religion shall be rooted out.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
14. departedGreek,“was separated from” its place; “was made todepart.” Not as ALFORD,”parted asunder“; for, on the contrary, it wasrolled together as a scroll which had been open is rolled upand laid aside. There is no “asunder one from another” herein the Greek, as in Ac15:39, which ALFORDcopies.
mountain . . . moved out of .. . places (Ps 121:1,Margin; Jer 3:23; Jer 4:24;Nah 1:5). This total disruptionshall be the precursor of the new earth, just as the pre-Adamicconvulsions prepared it for its present occupants.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together,…. The manner of writing formerly was on rolls of parchment; hence the word volume is used for a book, which, when rolled up, the writing within could not be seen, not a syllable nor letter of it. In like manner the Roman empire, as Pagan, which was like a large sheet, or rather like the expanse or firmament of the heaven, stretched out over all the earth, was now, as to the Paganism of it, rolled up together, so that there were no more Heathen gods, nor Heathen priests; no more idolatry, and idolatrous worship of that kind were to be seen, and not so much as the names of Heathen gods to be heard of in the empire.
And every mountain and island were moved out of their places; by “every mountain” may be meant the places of idolatrous worship, which were usually upon mountains; see Jer 3:6; which were now shut up, or demolished, or used for Christian worship; and “every island” being moved also may show, that Paganism was not only rooted out of the provinces of the empire upon the continent, but out of the islands also; and the ecclesiastical history of these times informs us, that there were Christian churches in the isles, which enjoyed the Gospel free of persecution and distress; as in the isles of Cyprus, Crete, the Cyclades, Sardinia, Siciiy, Corsica, and in ours of England, Scotland, and Ireland o. Mr. Daubuz thinks, that as “mountains” design the temples of idols, “islands” signify the revenues of them, which were now taken away, and applied to other uses.
o Centuriator. Magdeburg. Cent. 4. c. 2. p. 5, 8.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Was removed (). First aorist passive indicative of , to separate, to part (Ac 15:39). “The heaven was parted.”
As a scroll when it is rolled up ( ). Present passive participle of , old verb, to roll up, in N.T. only here (from Isa 34:4) and Heb 1:12 (from Ps 102:27). Vivid picture of the expanse of the sky rolled up and away as a papyrus roll (Lu 4:17).
Were moved (). First aorist passive indicative of , to move.
Out of their places ( ). See also 16:20 for these violent displacements in the earth’s crust. Cf. Nah 1:5; Jer 4:24. Jesus spoke of faith removing mountains (of difficulty) as in Mr 11:23 (cf. 1Co 13:2).
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Departed [] . The verb means to separate, sever. Rev., was removed.
Scroll [] . See on Luk 4:17. Compare Isa 34:4. Mountain and island. Compare Mt 24:35; Nah 1:5.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “And the heavens departed,” (kai ho ouranos apechoristhe) “and the heaven or firmament unrolled,” came loose, unloosed; Isa 34:4 describes this awesome event – this time of indignation of the Lord.
2) “As a scroll when it is rolled together,” (hos biblion helissomenon) “As (similar to) a rolled up tight scroll. This appears to describe the termination of the planet heaven as Jesus descends thru it with his bride and the resurrected redeemed of the ages to end Armageddon and begin his thousand year reign on the earth, Luk 1:31-33; Act 15:13-18; 1Co 15:24-26; Rev 5:9-13.
3) “And every mountain and island,” (kai pan oros kai nesos) “And every mountain and island,” all the mountains of the earth and islands of the sea; High places, elevated places and positions of power, and isolated islands and positions of power, were brought low by this mighty earthquake as the presence of Christ rushed forward, Rev 1:7.
4) “Were moved out of their places,” (ek ton topon auton ekinethesan) “Were moved out of their locations;” their positions of imagined stability, Rev 16:20; Jer 3:23.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
14. Heaven departed as a scroll Compare our notes on the passing “away with a great noise,” of 2Pe 3:10; and also on “the earth and the heaven fled away,” of Rev 20:11. These parallels prove the identity of this dissolution with that of those two passages, as well as with that of Mat 24:29. This identity of the three is conclusive against a pre-millennial advent.
A scroll A sheet of parchment, papyrus, or paper, loosely crumpled and vanishing away. To the eye of the spectator, in this scene of rocking terrene convulsion, the apparent sky of clouds and firmament will seem to crumple and rush away.
Mountain island moved As seen from a bird’s-eye view, the prominent geographical points will appear to change their places.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
Ver. 14. And every mountain ] See Trapp on “ Rev 6:12 “ Cinis quidam noxius e Visuvio emissus, Romam venit (inquit Dio) ita ut incolae putare coeperunt omnia sursum deorsum ferri, solemque in terram cadere, ac terrain in caelum conscendere. I myself saw, saith Bellarmine, a huge hill removed by an earthquake, and brought down to a town, which was wholly covered by it, and as it were buried under it. Perhaps he meant Pleurs in Rhetia, which was overcovered suddenly with a mountain, so that 1500 persons were buried there alive.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
departed = parted asunder. See Act 15:39.
scroll. See Rev 1:11.
when, &c. = rolling itself up.
moved = removed, as Rev 2:5.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
the heaven: Psa 102:26, Isa 34:4, Heb 1:11-13, 2Pe 3:10
and every: Rev 16:20, Isa 2:14-17, Jer 3:23, Jer 4:23-26, Jer 51:25, Hab 3:6, Hab 3:10
Reciprocal: Job 9:5 – removeth Job 14:18 – the mountain Psa 46:6 – earth Psa 99:1 – earth Psa 104:5 – that it Isa 1:31 – as tow Isa 13:13 – I will Isa 24:21 – the Lord Jer 25:35 – the shepherds Mat 24:35 – Heaven Luk 6:48 – the flood 2Pe 3:12 – the heavens Rev 20:11 – from
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Rev 6:14. The heaven refers to the region that covers the earth, used here as a symbol of the great domain in which important men ruled with selfish interests. The disappearance of this reign of selfishness is likened to a scroll that is rolled up and laid away. Mountains and isles in symbolic language means seats of government, and these began to be altered by the revolutionary work of Constantine.
Comments by Foy E. Wallace
Verse 14.
5. The heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled– Rev 6:14.
The word heaven here refers to the seats of government, the powers of dominion. The persecuting powers would depart, fold up, as a scroll, and roll back. Using the same figure in describing the fall of Babylon, Isaiah said “the host of heaven shall be dissolved and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll.” (Isa 34:4)
The disintegration of the enemies of the church was also foretold in the Messianic prophecies of Isaiah by the use of the same figures as John employed in the imagery of Revelation; and it is again comparable to the Lord’s pronouncement concerning the events after the fall of Jerusalem, that with a great sound of a trumpet, he would send his messengers to “gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other”–(Mat 24:31) -a description of expansion of the gospel after the destruction of Jerusalem and the downfall of Judaism. And in Mat 24:34, the Lord said with the emphasis of Verily I say unto you that “this generation shall not pass until all these things be fulfilled.” Here is the blanket proof that these events belonged to that time, that they pertained to the church and the nations of the persecution period and not to a distant future of far and remote centuries.
6. Every mountain and island were moved out of their places–Rev 6:14.
This is another symbolic expression to designate the divine visitations on the persecuting powers. Figuratively the mountains denoted places of authority in a kingdom (Amo 4:1) , and the powerful concentration of enemies (Isa 41:15). The island denotes the inhabitants of the sea, from over the sea, or any land bordering the sea; and the prophets referred to the Gentile peoples as the “isles of the Gentiles” and “isles of the sea.”
In the imagery of this sixth seal mountains and islands –both Jewish and Gentile persecuting authorities, Palestinian and Romans–would be overthrown, moved out of their places, their power dissipated. Pronouncing judgment on Tyrus for oppressing Jerusalem, Ezekiel said the isles would “shake” and “tremble” at her fall and “all the isles of the sea shall be troubled at thy departure.” (Eze 26:15-18) So of these Jewish and Gentile authorities “after the tribulation of those days.” Jesus said “the powers of the heavens shall be shaken.” (Mat 24:29)
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Evidently the sky will appear to split and roll back in two opposite directions (cf. Isa 34:4). [Note: Thomas, Revelation 1-7, p. 454.] The universe will seem to be coming apart. Apparently the opening of the sky will give earth-dwellers a glimpse into the throne-room of heaven (Rev 6:16). Probably the earthquake (Rev 6:12) will cause mountains and islands to rise and fall (cf. Nah 1:6).