Does Revelation 22:19 Indicate That God Will Take What Unbelievers Only Seem to Have?


J.C. Thibodaux


  One of the standard tactics of Calvinist theologians when dealing with the clear warnings in scripture against apostasy (since apostasy of the elect does not fit into their monergistic doctrine) is to either a.) State that the warning was given so that the elect would never fall away (ultimately self-defeating, since according to that logic, one is better off believing an errant warning), or b.) Insisting that the warning does not apply to the elect. Here I address John Gill who in his exposition of the Bible employed the latter tactic.

God shall take away his part out of the book of life; by which is meant eternal election, which is the meaning of the phrase throughout this book, in which whoever are written shall certainly be saved. The worshippers of the beast, or the antichristian party, who are chiefly regarded here, are not written in it, Revelation 13:8 wherefore taking away the part of such, is only taking away that which they seemed to have; see Luke 8:18 and the sense is, that such shall be cast into the lake of fire, which is the second death, and will be the portion of all that are not written in the book of life, Revelation 20:15. The Alexandrian copy, one of Stephens's, and the Complutensian edition, read, "the tree of life"; and so do the Syriac and Ethiopic versions; the sense is the same; see John 15:2 and out of the holy city; the new Jerusalem, before described, a part in which is a right to enter into it through the gates, and possess the glories of it: what is mentioned here is only a seeming one, which wicked men may flatter themselves with; and the meaning is, that such shall never enter into it, and enjoy the happiness of it, but shall ever be without, Revelation 21:27

John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible



  One of the most creative of the arguments I have heard thus far, but ultimately flawed. Let's look at Jesus words in Luke 8:18 and its corresponding passages in the gospels.

[Answer as to why He spoke in parables] "He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but but to them it is not given. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people's heart is waxed gross, and [their] ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with [their] eyes, and hear with [their] ears, and should understand with [their] heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. But blessed [are] your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear."

Matthew 13:11-16


"Take therefore the talent from him, and give [it] unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

Matthew 25:28-30


"If any man have ears to hear, let him hear. And he said unto them, Take heed what ye hear: with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall more be given. For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he hath."

Mark 4:23-25


"Take heed therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have."

Luke 8:18


"And he said unto them that stood by, Take from him the pound, and give [it] to him that hath ten pounds. (And they said unto him, Lord, he hath ten pounds.) For I say unto you, That unto every one which hath shall be given; and from him that hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him."

Luke 19:24-26



  Luke 8 is the only passage that uses the phrase "seems to have" or "thinks he has." Of course eternal securists jump on this in a hurry and then publish it as evidence that imaginary things can be taken away from someone, and hence any warnings about one's share in eternal life must only apply to those who merely think they possess them. The word for "seems" or "thinks" in that passage is 'dokeo,' which translates as 'think,' 'suppose,' 'reputed as,' or 'seems.' Where their argument falls short is that they do not recognize that dokeo can be used in a variety of ways to express different ideas.


"Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall."

1 Corinthians 10:12


Such a person is standing in a sense (for he could not fall if it were not so), but only thinks he stands if he will not take heed to himself.


"If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord."

1 Corinthians 14:37


The word "think" (dokeo) here does not imply that the man only thinks he is a prophet without actually being one. One can seem to be something and be said thing at the same time.


"And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we [should go] unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision."

Galatians 2:9


An example similar to the verse above. The New International Version I believe more clearly words it as, "James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars..."


"And if any man think that he knoweth any thing, he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know."

1 Corinthians 8:2


The idea being expressed behind this verse is that one can truly know facts etc, yet not know anything that is important, and so in another sense, know nothing.

  One can in one sense possess a thing, and in another only think he does. For instance, a temporal ruler has power in a sense, but in an ultimate sense does not, for God ultimately retains all power. Therefore while they do have power entrusted to them by God (Romans 13:1), a ruler who boasts against God only thinks he has real power, for the God who gave it can just as easily take it away (see Jesus' words to Pilate in John John 19:11, and 1 Kings 11:31, 1 Samuel 13:13-14). This type of idiom is clearly being used in 1 Corinthians 8:2, for while men may have deep knowledge of things, they only think that they have knowledge apart from the knowldge of Christ. Likewise, Jesus is not making reference to God mysteriously taking away imaginary attributes that someone never had; He is clearly employing a similar expression to 1 Corinthians 10:12, saying that men must hear and receive the gospel, and thereby be given more understanding and fullness of it. But if they "have not," i.e. fail to acquire more (such as the unprofitable servant of Matthew 25) understanding by hearing and listening (see Zechariah 7:11), then even the little power to understand that they do have, which they can only think they have apart from God's revelation, will be darkened (Romans 1:25-28). This is evidenced by the various false teachers that have arisen over the years, which start by not heeding the voice of God in their doctrine or practice, and end up denying the very fundamental truths of His word.

"But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived."

2 Timothy 3:13




  In conclusion, even if the meaning of Luke 8:18 were arbitrarily forced onto Revelation 22:19 (or any other passage relating to one's part in the kingdom of God being taken away), it would still not bolster the case for unconditional perseverance of the saints, for one could indeed have possessed a part in the kingdom of God at one time, but only think (or seem) to continue to possess it if he ceases to abide in Christ.

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