Revelation Chapter 10 And An Examination Of The Rainbow Series

REVELATION CHAPTER 10 AND AN EXAMINATION OF THE RAINBOW

THE PERSON OF REVELATION 10:1

{{Revelation 10:1 “I saw another strong angel coming down out of heaven, clothed with a cloud, and the rainbow was upon his head, and his face was like the sun, and his feet like pillars of fire,”}}

This verse will happen about the middle of the Tribulation after the end of the sixth trumpet judgement. The vision John saw was of this figure descending from heaven. Before we look at the description, I suppose we are curious who this unnamed person is.

He is called an angel and “???e??? (angelon)” means messenger so this is a messenger from heaven. We know in Revelation that the word refers to an angel proper and to persons and messengers. Also we know in scripture that the word angel can (often) refer to the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Between the sixth and seventh Seal judgements, with the sealing of the 144 000 we read {{Revelation 7:2 “and I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, having the seal of the living God, and he cried out with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea . . .”}}

That was the Lord, for no one else is worthy to carry the seal and to seal people. There He was called an angel. Without doubt the strong angel of Revelation 10 verse 1 is the Lord. A few of the commentators are not sure who it is, with a couple suggesting the Lord is a possibility, but most commentators just bypass any reference to the identity of the angel.

THE DESCRIPTION OF THE PERSON OF REVELATION 10:1

(a). “Clothed with a cloud.” Jesus is clothed in glory for He is The King of Glory, and the Glorious One, and has ascended into glory. Moses was not permitted to see the glory of the Lord on Mt Horeb and the whole mountain shook and was covered with clouds. Jesus was with His disciples on the day of the ascension and this is what we read – {{Acts 1:9 “After He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.”}}

Jesus left earth and ascended into the cloud and was entering the glory of heaven. That was obscured from the disciples. As He went in a cloud, so He appears here in Revelation in a cloud, and the description Jesus gave for His Second Coming is this one – {{Matthew 24:29 “but immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light and the stars will fall from the sky and the powers of the heavens will be shaken, Matt 24:30 and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.”}}

(b). “His face was like the sun”. {{Revelation 1:16 “In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and His face was like the sun shining in its strength. Acts 26:13 at midday, O King, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining all around me and those who were journeying with me,”}}

(c). “His feet like pillars of fire”. Daniel had a vision, one we call a theophany, and it was of the Lord which is what that word means – {{Daniel 10:5 “I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, there was a certain man dressed in linen, whose waist was girded with a belt of pure gold of Uphaz. Dan 10:6 His body also was like beryl, his face had the appearance of lightning, his eyes were like flaming torches, his arms and feet like the gleam of polished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a tumult.”}} The vision Daniel had was of the Lord.

(d). Now I want to do the one I left out – “and the rainbow was upon his head”. Jesus is described as having this rainbow upon His head, but what was the significance? We have to go back to a previous reference in Revelation, this one of a green rainbow – {{Revelation 4:3 “and He who was sitting was like a jasper stone and a sardius in appearance, and there was a rainbow around the throne like an emerald in appearance.”}} From that we understand that the throne of God is surrounded by a rainbow. Without doubt the rainbow is a VERY special symbol of God.