Time Out: Do Clocks Keep Ticking in Eternity?
Nope. That’s what I thought growing up in church. When the end of the world comes, all clocks will stop. Revelation 10:6 seemed clear on this point: “There should be time no longer.”
Then, at church, we often sang “When the Roll is Called Up Yonder.” The answer to the question leapt from the hymnal: “When the trumpet of the Lord shall sound, and time shall be no more. And the morning breaks, eternal, bright and fair.” When that eternal morning breaks, so do the clocks.
As a child, I devoured C. S. Lewis’ allegories in The Chronicles of Narnia. In The Silver Chair, the great giant, Father Time, slumbers in the underworld awaiting the end of the world. When he finally awakes in The Last Battle, Father Time snuffs out the sun, shrouding Narnia in the finality of darkness. I understood this to mean that where eternity began, time ended.
But I was wrong. Here’s why.
Time Is Not a Curse.
Time began before the Fall. In six days, God created the world. From Day One, God established time, defining days with evenings and mornings. On Day Four, He created the sun, moon, and stars, specifically to calculate the passage of time: “Then God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years” (Genesis 1:14). Not until Genesis 3 did humankind fall into sin, resulting in the curse on all creation. Yes, God promised to reverse that curse. But time itself was not part of the curse and needs no reversal. Time is a good gift from “the Father of Lights” (James 1:18).
Time Passes in Eternity.
After God has reversed the curse in Revelation 21–22, time continues forever into eternity.1 Revelation 22:2 reveals that the tree of life bears “twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month.” Different fruit coming in different months necessitates the passage of time. Michael Vlach, in his book, The New Creation Model, argues that the kings of nations from around the world coming and bringing glory and honor into the New Jerusalem also infers the passage of time as they travel to and from the city.2 When eternity begins, time rolls on.
Time Itself Is Not Addressed in Revelation 10:6.
Then what about Revelation 10:6 which states that “there should be time no longer”? In context, this passage is not speaking of time itself. Instead, the reference to time points to the events of the seventh trumpet judgment. When the seventh trumpet sounds, the time for repentance is over. The merciful delay of God’s judgment comes to an end (2 Peter 3:15). As Revelation 11:15–18 declares, “Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!’ … The nations were angry, and Your wrath has come, And the time of the dead, that they should be judged, And that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints, And those who fear Your name, small and great, And should destroy those who destroy the earth.” When Revelation 10:6 says that “there should be time no longer” (KJV), it means that “there would be no more delay” (NKJV). Time is up. The alarm is now ringing. The final judgment is at hand, but time itself will go on.
Conclusion
So yes, clocks keep ticking in eternity. And it’s a good thing. Time is not our enemy.
Time is a blessing from God. It’s valuable—more valuable than money. We must redeem the time given to us (Ephesians 5:16; Colossians 4:5). We should “number our days so we can gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12). As we consider what time we may have left, we should use it to live for what truly has eternal value (Colossians 3:1-2).
Yes, our time in these current mortal bodies will expire. Our life is “a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away” (James 4:14). Yet, those who place their trust in Christ alone will live on with God forever in an active and fulfilling existence in the New Earth (1 John 5:12).
One day, time will be no more—as in, there will be no more time to repent and believe in Jesus Christ. God’s offer in the last chapter of the Bible is available until that time: “Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely” (Revelation 22:17). Take the water of life while there is still time.3
Dr. Conrad serves in urban Asia. He is the author of missionary devotionals Daring Devotion and Daring Dependence. He blogs at Rooted Thinking, we republish his material by permission.
Photo by insung yoon on Unsplash
- Time also passes in heaven. Revelation 6:11 speaks of “a little while longer” before the martyrs are avenged. Revelation 8:1 refers to “half an hour” of silence in heaven. Whether that half hour is calculated using earth’s sun or some other heavenly means is not specified in the passage. But time is clearly going forward in heaven. [↩]
- Michael Vlach, The New Creation Model: A Paradigm for Discovering God’s Restoration Purposes from Creation to New Creation (Cary, NC: Theological Studies Press, 2023), 97–112. [↩]
- For a clear explanation of how to take the water of life freely, read the introduction (p. 19–26) of my book Daring Dependence. You can access these pages for free on Church Works Media’s website. [↩]