Today, we have the privilege of reading the second half of John's heavenly vision in Revelation. Last week, we made it through the first half, in chapter 4. This week, we'll see the second half. It's important that we see it, and hear it, all at once. So I'm just going to start, very simply, by reading Revelation 4:
(1) After these things, I looked,
and LOOK! A door open in heaven, [Ezekiel 1:1]
and the earlier voice that I heard like a trumpet speaking with me, saying,
[=Jesus; Rev. 1:1 "a revelation FROM Jesus," 10-11]
"Come up here,
and I will show you what must happen after these things!"
(2) Immediately I was in the Spirit, [Revelation 1:10; Ezekiel 8:3-4; 11:5]
and LOOK! A throne was set in heaven!, [Psalm 11:4; 103:19; 1 Kings 22:19]
and upon the throne One Seated, [Isaiah 6:1-3]
(3) and The One seated [was] similar in appearance to stone-- to "jasper" and "carnelian"--
and a rainbow [was] around the throne, similar in appearance to emerald, [Ezekiel 1:28]
(4) and around the throne [were] 24 thrones, [Daniel 7:9-10
and upon the thrones [were] 24 elders seated,
dressed in white clothing,
and upon their heads gold wreaths,
(5) and from the throne coming out, lightnings and sounds and thunders, [Rev. 8:5; 11:19; 16:18; Psalm 18:14; 77:18; Exodus 19:16; Ezekiel 1:4-14, 28]
and seven torches of fire burning before the throne, [Ezekiel 1:12-13]
which are the seven spirits of God, [Psalm 104:4; Rev. 1:4; 3:1; 4:5; 5:6; 8:2 (!) 2 Baruch 21:6; 4 Ezra 8:21; Tobit 12:15; 1 Enoch 20:1-7; 90:21]
(6) and before the throne [something] like a sea of glass like crystal, [Rev. 15:2-4]
and in the midst of the throne, and around the throne, four living beings full of eyes in front and in back, [contrast Ezekiel 1:4-28; Rev. 4:9-10; 5:8-10; 5:14; 19:4; 7:11; 14:3; 6:1-8; 19:7]
(7) and the first living being [was] similar to a lion,
and the second living being [was] similar to an ox,
and the third living being [was] having a face like a human,
and the fourth living being [was] similar to an eagle flying,
(8) and the four living beings-- each one of them [was] each having six wings,
around and inside full of eyes, (Rev. 4:6; 1 Enoch 71:7; 1 Enoch 39:12-13; 61:12; *Craig Koester)
and rest they don't have day and night, saying,
"Holy, holy, holy [is] the Lord-- the God, The Almighty, The One who was, and The One who is, and The One who is coming," [Isaiah 6:3; Rev. 1:4]
(9) and whenever the living beings give glory and honor and thanks to The One seated upon the throne-- to The One living forever-- (10) the 24 elders fall down before The One seated upon the throne, [contrast Rev. 13:4, 9, 12, 15; 14:9; 16:2; *Koester]
and they worship/bow down to The One living forever,
and they put down their wreaths before the throne, saying, [contrast Rev. 12:7-9]
(11) "Worthy, you [are], our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power, [Psalm 21:13; 59:16; 6:3; contrast Revelation 13:4; *Koester]
because you created all things, (Ps. 33:6-9; 95:1-7)
and because of your will/desire they existed,
and they were created,"
Our throne room scene continues this week in chapter 5. It begins with an "and" (see RSV, KJV) which tells us that what we are reading is a straightforward continuation of what we read last week. Let's just pick it up, and read Revelation 5:1-2:
(1) and I saw in the right hand of The One seated upon the throne, a scroll (Rev. 6:14),
having been written on inside and on the back, [Ezekiel 2:9-10]
having been sealed up with seven seals,
(2) and I saw a strong angel proclaiming in a loud/great voice:
"Who is] worthy to open the scroll,
and to break its seals?,"
What we "see" in these verses is a book, or scroll, that's been locked up tight. What we "hear," is a question: "Who is worthy to open it?"
And what we find ourselves asking, is "What's the book?" Right?
God is holding a book. What does this book represent?
There is some debate about this, but I think probably the idea with this book, is that this book represents God's plan for all of creation. Think about this plan as starting at Jesus' death, and running up to and including the new heavens and earth, and our ultimate home in the new earth. This plan covers the last 2,000 years, more or less, and goes until Jesus returns, and makes everything right.
Let's turn to Daniel 12. This is a key passage, but it's also tricky, figuring out how to relate it to Revelation (NRSV updated):
12 “At that time Michael, the great prince, the protector of your people, shall arise. There shall be a time of anguish such as has never occurred since nations first came into existence. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone who is found written in the book. 2 Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth[a] shall awake, some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky,[b] and those who lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. 4 But you, Daniel, keep the words secret and the book sealed until the time of the end. Many shall be running back and forth,[c] and evil[d] shall increase.”
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Enoch 81:1-4 (the similarity is helpful here-- not that it's scripture, or even completely agrees with Revelation, but it's helpful). From Robert Henry Charles, ed., Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament, vol. 2 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1913), 245–246:
81:1 And he said unto me:
‘Observe, Enoch, these heavenly tablets,
And read what is written thereon,
And mark every individual fact.’
2 And I observed the heavenly tablets, and read everything which was written (thereon) and understood everything, and read the book of all the deeds of mankind, and of all the children of flesh that shall be upon the earth to the remotest generations. 3 And forthwith I blessed the great Lord the King of glory for ever, in that He has made all the works of the world,
And I extolled the Lord because of His patience,
And blessed Him because of the children of men.
4 And after that I said:
‘Blessed is the man who dies in righteousness and goodness,
Concerning whom there is no book of unrighteousness written,
And against whom no day of judgement shall be found.’
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God reveals the future to Daniel. In Daniel, this future begins, right now, with a time of suffering. That suffering will only last so long before God's people are delivered. Everything ends with a final day of judgment. And in the meantime, verse 3, God's people are to shine like stars, and lead many to righteousness. They are to be like lights, who call people to live faithfully in covenant with God.
Big picture, it's all pretty clear. But in verse 4 we see that there are some specifics to this that are to be sealed up until the time of the end.
So we see this sealed book, right? And this sealed book describes God's plan.
I think Revelation plays off this, in a not completely straightforward way (again, it's better to avoid thinking in straightforward prophecy-fulfillment categories).
God has this plan for all of creation. But his creation, before Jesus came, was in this terrible condition. People had several enemies that they could not defeat: Sin, Death, and Satan. They were trapped inside of Satan's kingdom. People were destroying the earth (Revelation 11:18) through idolatry, and immorality, and greed, and violence. They'd turned on each other, and made the world a dangerous, broken place.
So God has this plan to fix that, and make the world look like the Garden of Eden. But the world is broken, and God's plan is stuck on pause. God's plan is like a blueprint for a beautiful new structure that can't be built. It looks like it's just a dream.
Let's turn back to Revelation 5:2:
(2) and I saw a strong angel proclaiming in a loud/great voice:
"Who is] worthy to open the scroll,
and to break its seals?,"
What the angel is asking here, is who can unlock God's plan? Who can press the play button, to bring God's plan to fruition? Who can make all of creation look like God wants?
Verse 3:
(3) and no one was able in heaven nor upon the earth nor under the earth to open the book nor to see it,
(4) and I was weeping greatly,
because no one worthy was found to open the book nor to see it,
What we see in verse 4, is that ideally, two things would happen. God's plan needs to be opened, unlocked. And God's plan needs to be seen. It would be great, if people knew God's plan.
And there is no one on heaven or earth who can open or see the book. It's locked up indefinitely. And that's a true tragedy. Will this world be broken, caught in slavery to Sin, Death, and Satan, forever? Will we forever taint this world with greed, and violence, and immorality, and idolatry? Is it hopeless?
In response to this weeping, verse 5:
(5) and one of the elders says to me,
"Don't weep!
LOOK! He has conquered/overcome-- The Lion-- the one from the tribe of Judah, the root of David-- to open the book and its seven seals!,"
In response to this hopelessness, and this weeping, an elder encourages John to take another look at this heavenly throne room scene. There is someone else. There's a Lion. Who is this Lion? John doesn't tell us, but we know the answer, right? It's Jesus. The elder describes Jesus using two of the most important messianic prophecies in the OT. Jesus is the fulfillment of Genesis 49:8-12-- the Lion of Judah. And Jesus is the root of David, in fulfillment of Isaiah 11, who will rightly judge the earth, and make it safe for all people.
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Probably, I won't read them for the sake of time. Just put the references in the translation handout.
Genesis 49:8-12 NRSV updated:
Judah, your brothers shall praise you;
your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;
your father’s sons shall bow down before you.
9 Judah is a lion’s whelp;
from the prey, my son, you have gone up.
He crouches down, he stretches out like a lion,
like a lioness—who dares rouse him up?
10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
until tribute comes to him,[b]
and the obedience of the peoples is his.
11 Binding his foal to the vine
and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine,
he washes his garments in wine
and his robe in the blood of grapes;
12 his eyes are darker than wine
and his teeth whiter than milk.
Isaiah 11 (NRSV updated no reason):
11 A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch shall grow[a] out of his roots.
2 The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him,
the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might,
the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
3 His delight shall be in the fear of the LORD.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see
or decide by what his ears hear,
4 but with righteousness he shall judge for the poor
and decide with equity for the oppressed of the earth;
he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
5 Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist
and faithfulness the belt around his loins.
6 The wolf shall live with the lamb;
the leopard shall lie down with the kid;
the calf and the lion will feed[b] together,
and a little child shall lead them.
7 The cow and the bear shall graze;
their young shall lie down together;
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8 The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp,
and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den.
9 They will not hurt or destroy
on all my holy mountain,
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD
as the waters cover the sea.
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So John is encouraged to look. What he hears, is that he's about to see the Lion of Judah.
This is what he sees, verse 6:
(6) and I saw in the middle of the throne and of the four living beings and in the middle of the elders, a Lamb,
standing like one having been slaughtered/slain,
having seven horns and seven eyes, [compare Zechariah 1:18-21; 4:2, 10]
which are the seven spirits of God-- the ones having been sent out into all the earth--
What John sees, is a Lamb, who has been slaughtered, yet stands, and who has seven horns, and seven eyes.
When you slaughter an animal, that's the end of it. Right? You go hunting, you shoot a deer, or pheasant, or goose. It ultimately ends up in your freezer. Or in the OT, if you slaughter a lamb at Passover, the blood is put on your door in remembrance of that night of exodus from Egypt. The meat is eaten. Whatever is left over is burned, and disposed of. A lamb gets slaughtered, and that marks its natural, inevitable end.
Jesus is a different type of Lamb. He rose from the dead. He stands. Horns are a symbol of strength and power (Zechariah 1:18-21). Seven is the number of perfection. So Jesus is all-powerful. Jesus has the seven spirits of God, which is debated. Is it angels, or is it the Holy Spirit? But either way, the idea is that Jesus sees everything. Jesus is all-powerful, and all-knowing.
This is the one who has conquered, through his death, and can open up the book, and its seven seals. This is the one who can see inside.
Before I move on, I just want to say one thing. Jesus is the Lamb. But he is still, also, at the same time, the Lion. The angel says, LOOK! The Lion of Judah. And John sees a Lamb. Jesus is, at the same time, a lion and a lamb. He is the Lion-Lamb, who conquered through his suffering and death.
Verse 7-9:
(7) and he came,
and he took from the right hand of The One seated upon the throne,
(8) and when he took the book, the four living beings and the 24 elders fell down before the Lamb,
each one having a harp and golden bowls full of incense,
which are the prayers of the holy ones,
(9) and they are singing a new song, saying,
"Worthy, you are to take the book and to open its seals,
because you were slaughtered/slain,
and you purchased [people] for God by your blood from every tribe and tongue and people and nation, [Exodus 12:38]
and you made them for our God a kingdom and priests, [Exodus 19:6]
and they will reign upon the earth,"
We see two main ideas in these verses.
The first, is that Jesus is worthy of worship. Jesus is praised in the same way as we'd praise God the Father. There's no distinction, in how we worship. In these verses, we see the heavenly beings praising Jesus. And they sing a new sing, because Jesus has done a new thing.
Jesus is worthy, for four reasons, to be praised:
(1) Jesus was slaughtered. He conquered through his suffering.
(2) Jesus purchased people for God, by his blood, from every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation. God's people, from the very beginning of their exodus from Egypt, was made up of a mixed multitude. God's people was never a "pure" ethnicity (Exodus 12:38). And God always intended that his people would bless all people (Genesis 12:1-3). God's ultimate plan always included all of the nations, and tribes, and people groups. Jesus unlocked God's plan, through his blood.
(3) Jesus made those people into a kingdom, and priests. God's kingdom is not centered around a place. It's not about controlling the land from the River to the Sea. It's about people. God's kingdom has now spread across the world, through the church. We, the church, are God's kingdom. And we are the priests that Israel was supposed to be, but often failed to be.
(4) Jesus made it so that we will one day reign on the earth. Originally, in the book of Genesis, God commanded that all people would be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the earth, and rule over it. The Garden of Eden was something that would be extended, to cover the earth.
That mandate is unlocked through Jesus. The final page of God's plan, revolves around us living in community, in peace, with God and with each other. We will serve and worship The One seated on the throne, and the Lion-Lamb. We will receive the earth, to rule over. And this is how it will be, forever. Our ultimate end is not to end up in heaven. There will be a new earth, and we who conquer will reign on that new earth. Our reign will be like the reign of the 24 elders. We will reign responsibly, and in total submission to God and to the Lion-Lamb. But make no mistake: we will reign.
In verse 11, John's gaze widens out. His ears distinguish something new. He sees and hears more:
(11) and I looked,
and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living beings and the elders,
and their number was ten thousand of ten thousand, and thousands of thousands,
saying with a great voice/sound,
"Worthy is the Lamb-- the one slaughtered/slain-- to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise,"
(13) and every created being in heaven and upon the earth and under the earth and in the sea and all the things in them, I heard saying,
"To The One seated upon the throne, and to the Lamb, [be] praise and honor and glory and power forever and ever (or: for the ages of ages),
(14)and the four living beings were saying,
"Amen!,"
and the elders fell down,
and they bowed down/worshipped.
What starts with the four living beings and the 24 elders, extends to all of creation. All created beings offer praise, and honor, and glory, and power, to who? Verse 13. To The One seated upon the throne, and to the Lamb. When you see God's plan unlocked, and revealed, you will worship.
That's the vision of heaven that John sees. There are three things in particular I want to point out. 2 are short; 1 is long:
(1) Many of our greatest worship songs take their starting place in Revelation, and specifically at 4 and 5, for a reason. God and the Lamb are worthy of all praise. They're worthy of everything we can offer. We will sing songs about how they are worthy, as long as this church stands. Hopefully, now that we've read these chapters, you'll sing them understanding them better. And you'll worship just a bit better.
(2) Jesus is worshipped equally with God the Father. If you ever find yourself struggling with Jehovah's witnesses, or any other cult, and what they say about Jesus, remind yourself of what Revelation 4 and 5 together teach.
(3) The book sealed with seven seals, that we see in Revelation 5, is key for understanding Revelation as a whole. We find ourselves, at the end of chapter 5, with a great opportunity to give you an bird's eye view of where we are going. So in like 4 minutes, I'm going to explain the entirety of the book of Revelation. You can try to hang on to that summary as best you can.
At this point, at the end of Revelation 5, Jesus has taken this book from The One seated on the throne. He's worthy to take it. He's worthy to open it. But the book, at this point, is still sealed.
In the coming chapters, chapters 6-9, more or less, the seals will come off, one by one (#1: Revelation 6:1-2; #2: Revelation 6:3-4; #3: Revelation 6:5-6; #4: Revelation 6:7-8; #5: Revelation 6:9-11; #6: Revelation 6:12-17; #7: Revelation 8:1; these are then relooped over-- more or less-- with the trumpets, bowls and censers). Each time a seal is removed, God's judgments on humanity accompany that. God sends judgments of famine, disease, inflation, and war. He allows Satan to harm people in destructive, painful ways (Revelation 9). These judgments are partial. They could be bigger. They could be worse. But they are partial. And the judgments are not simply punishment. They are designed to make people realize that there are living in rebellion to God, and that they need to turn from their sin, to God. But those judgments, by themselves, will fail to do that (Revelation 9:20-21).
It's into this failure, that angel emerges from heaven with the same book we see in Revelation 5. In Revelation 10, the angel gives John this book, which is now unlocked, and John eats it. God's unlocked plan sits in his gut, and his job at that point, is to speak God's plan to all people. He becomes a prophet. He is then joined in Revelation 11 by two witnesses. The identity of the two witnesses is fiercely debated in popular Christianity, but here's the right answer (smiling): it's the church. We are the two witnesses, who join John in prophesying. As prophets, we have been given insight into God's plan. As prophets, we can offer an interpretation. We can explain to people why the world looks like it does, and where things are ultimately going.
So long as people are full, wealthy, healthy, and feel safe, they tend to not be very open to the good news. They tend to think they don't need good news. But when God takes those things from them, by sending famine, inflation, disease, and war, that's our opportunity to point people to God. When inflation is 20%, and people are finding that their stored up wealth isn't worth so much anymore, we encourage people to chase the gold that Jesus offers (Revelation 3:18). When young people find that the world doesn't work for them as well as it worked for their parents, and they become disillusioned, we invite them to come to Jesus. This world doesn't work for them, but Jesus offers something better. So God's judgments by themselves don't bring people to God (again, Revelation 9:20-21 anticipates chapters 10-11). But combined with our testimony, they can do what God intends them to do.
When people are attacked, or hurting, or starving, where do they end up? If we do our job, some of them will end up turning to God. They will come to Jesus. They will end up in church, joining God's kingdom.
Now, there is a cost to all of this, to us. We fulfill our prophetic calling in the midst of suffering. Satan attacks us through people-- through hostile governments and through hostile religious movements (Revelation 13-- the two beasts). Some of us will be killed. There is no rapture in this book. There is no rapture in God's plan. There is no escape from suffering. In this time, we will have to wrestle with how committed we are to God and the Lamb. How much are you willing to suffer? How much cost can you handle? How brave will you be in telling people about Jesus? And can you handle what happens next, when you do? Our calling is to be faithful "through" this time of suffering (the first century church is promised that Jesus will "keep you THROUGH" the time of suffering, Revelation 3:10, not that they'll be raptured "from" the suffering; cf. Revelation 7:14). And our calling is to faithfully proclaim Jesus, up until the day when Jesus returns for the final time, for the final judgment. On that day, the ones destroying the earth with their sin will be destroyed (Revelation 11:18). Heaven and earth will be joined together. And we, the church, the new Jerusalem, God's holy temple, will descend like a bride from heaven, and live together with God forever.
That's God's unlocked plan, more or less. We can see God's plan. We can see our role within that plan. And we should realize that this plan has already been set in motion through Jesus. It's happening right now, all around us. And that plan has been revealed, in this book of Revelation. This book is a revelation of God's plan, from Jesus ("from," not "of"; Revelation 1:1; NIV gets it right), to an angel, to John, to us.
So God's plan has been set in motion. It's been made known to us. And our response to that, should be to rise up, as God's army of priests, and faithfully tell people about Jesus. Our response to that should also include worship.
When we see God's plan, and think about it, worship makes sense. It's the logical response. God the Father, and the Lion-Lamb, are worthy of everything we can offer. God's plan has now been unlocked, and that plan is a demonstration of incredible kindness, and love, and power. Who are we, that God would send Jesus as the Lion-Lamb to die for us? Who are we, that Jesus' blood gives us entrance into God's kingdom? Who are we, that we have the privilege of serving as priests in that kingdom? And who are we, that the earth would one day be given to us?
To the One seated on the throne, and to the Lamb, belong power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise, forever and ever. Amen?
Translation:
(1) And I saw in the right hand of The One seated upon the throne, a scroll,
having been written on inside and on the back, [Ezekiel 2:8-9]
having been sealed up with seven seals,
(2) and I saw a strong angel proclaiming in a loud/great voice:
"Who is] worthy to open the book/scroll,
and to break its seals?,"
(3) and no one was able in heaven nor upon the earth nor under the earth to open the book nor to see it,
(4) and I was weeping greatly,
because no one worthy was found to open the book nor to see it,
(5) and one of the elders says to me,
"Don't weep!
LOOK! He has conquered/overcome-- The Lion-- the one from the tribe of Judah, the root of David-- to open the book and its seven seals!," [Genesis 49:9-10; Isaiah 11:1-4; Jer. 23:5; 33:15; Rev. 19:15; Zechariah 6:12--Rev. 11:1; 21:22]
(6) and I saw in the middle of the throne and of the four living beings and in the middle of the elders, a lamb,
standing like one having been slaughtered/slain,
having seven horns and seven eyes,
which are the seven spirits of God-- the ones having been sent out into all the earth--
(7) and he came,
and he took from the right hand of The One seated upon the throne,
(8) and when he took the book, the four living beings and the 24 elders fell down before the Lamb,
each one having a harp and golden bowls full of incense,
which are the prayers of the holy ones,
(9) and they are singing a new song, saying,
"Worthy, you are to take the book and to open its seals,
because you were slaughtered/slain,
and you purchased [people] for God by your blood from every tribe and tongue and people and nation,
and you made them for our God a kingdom and priests,
and they will reign upon the earth,"
(11) and I looked,
and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living beings and the elders,
and their number was ten thousand of ten thousand, and thousands of thousands,
saying with a great voice/sound,
"Worthy is the Lamb-- the one slaughtered/slain-- to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise,"
(13) and every created being in heaven and upon the earth and under the earth and in the sea and all the things in them, I heard saying,
"To The One seated upon the throne, and to the Lamb, [be] praise and honor and glory and power for ever and ever (or: for the ages of ages),
(14)and the four living beings were saying,
"Amen!,"
and the elders fell down,
and they bowed down/worshipped.
