Bible Commentaries
Revelation 4

Verses 1-4

10 Endurance will be a cardinal virtue in that day of stress and distress. Seven times are we reminded of it ( Rev_1:9 ; Rev_2:2-3 ; Rev_2:19 ; Rev_3:10 ; Rev_13:10 ; Rev_14:12 ). He that endures to the end shall be saved ( Mat_10:22 ; Mat_24:13 ; Mar_13:13 ). In the present economy salvation depends entirely on faith in Christ.

10 The English idiom to keep out , conveys a false impression to many. Here it does not mean to keep from , but to keep those who are in the trial so that they come out victoriously.

12 The conqueror with but little power who hides in the temple during the hour of trial will be openly acknowledged in the kingdom by giving him a place of prominence and power like the great pillars, Jachin and Boaz. It may be that they will have a special place of authority over the vast crowd who serve Him day and night in His temple ( Rev_7:15 ).

12 The 144,000 are sealed on their foreheads ( Rev_7:3 ) which exempts them from the judgment of the locusts ( Rev_9:4 ). This seal is probably the Father's name. In the new earth the slaves of the

Lambkin are thus sealed ( Rev_22:4 ). On the other hand, the false prophet causes all to receive the emblem of the wild beast ( Rev_13:16 ), marking them for God's indignation ( Rev_14:9 ). Only those who refuse this symbol live and reign with Christ the thousand years ( Rev_20:4 ).

14 God's creative Original. See Col_1:15 note. He is called the Origin or Beginning three times in this scroll in the phrase "Origin and Consummation" ( Rev_21:6 ; Rev_22:13 ).

16 To spew as the result of an emetic.

17 Naked in the sense of scantily clad, not necessarily nude.

21 The promises to the conquerors increase in proportion to the apostasy with which they contend. In Ephesus they are promised a place in the paradise of the new earth. This will doubtless be shared by all the other conquerors as well. In Laodicea, the nauseating ecclesia,

the conqueror is promised a place with Christ on His millennial throne. This is the highest place to which an Israelite could aspire ( Mat_20:21 ). This is fulfilled when the wages are paid ( Rev_11:18 ) and the saints reign with Him the thousand years ( Rev_20:4 ).

22 A low state of spirituality is denoted by the hearing ear. Job said "I heard of Thee by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees Thee" ( Job_42:5 ).

This section deals with the establishment of the kingdom of Christ and His saints ( Dan_7:14 ; Dan_7:18 ) over the whole earth, as the Temple Section ( Rev_11:19 ; Rev_20:1 5) breaks down all opposition to the worship of Jehovah and the priesthood of Israel. There are three distinct divisions in this section: the Seals, the Trumpets, and the Thunders. Each of these is preceded by a preparatory vision, the Seals by the Throne, the Scroll and the Lambkin, the Trumpets by the 144,000 and the Vast Multitude, the Thunders by the Messenger and the Open Scroll.

1 The "openings" of this prophecy should be given careful consideration. They are like the rising curtain which reveals the next act in this great tragedy. There are four pairs of "openings", each of which should be studied together. They are as follows:

Heaven-A Door (41) Providential Judgements.

Heaven ( Rev_19:11 ) Public Judgements

The Earth-A Well ( Rev_9:2 ) The Terrible Cavalry.

Its Mouth ( Rev_12:16 ) Swallows the Floor

The Scrolls-Seven Seals ( Rev_5:2-5 ; Rev_5:9 ; Rev_6:1 ; Rev_6:3 ; Rev_6:5 ; Rev_6:7 ; Rev_6:9 ; Rev_6:12 , Rev_8:1

The Scrolls ( Rev_20:12 ) Individual Judgement.

The Temple- The Temple ( Rev_11:19 ) Ark, Covenant.

Tent of Testimony ( Rev_15:5 ) Law Exposed

3 The emerald rainbow assures us that God will remember His covenant with every living creature ( Gen_9:9 ; Gen_9:17 ). There shall not be another deluge. These days will be like the days of Noah in many other respects ( Mat_24:37 ; Luk_17:26 ).

4 Elder, or senior or presbyter , is a title of honor and respect implying authority rather than advanced age, as in our "alderman". These elders follow the living creatures in worshiping the Creator ( Rev_4:10 ). An elder assures John that the Lion will break the seals ( Rev_5:5 ) and when He takes the scroll they celebrate ( Rev_5:8 ; Rev_5:11 ). They fall and worship in unison with all creation ( Rev_5:14 ). They echo the worship of the vast crowd ( Rev_7:11 ) and one of them tells John who they are ( Rev_7:14 ).

Verses 5-11

At the seventh trumpet they fall and worship, the tenor of their words showing that they are not included among His slaves the prophets or the saints ( Rev_11:16 ). They hear the song of the 144,000 ( Rev_14:3 ) and join the hallelujahs at the destruction of Babylon ( Rev_19:4 ). David patterned the twenty-four courses of the priesthood after them ( 1Ch_24:3 ; 1Ch_24:5 ; Heb_8:5 ; Heb_9:23 ). They lead heaven's worship and combine the offices of prophet, priest and king, for they sit on thrones, present the worship of others, and speak for God. Their "crowns", however, are not regal, but wreaths of victory.

6 The throne attendants of the Divine Majesty vary according to the character and title which He assumes. Jehovah is attended by the Living Ones, or Cherubim. These are intensely animate and are incorporated into the very throne itself. All creation is represented in this august session. The heads of the heavenly hosts sit on thrones. The messengers attend. All of these are heavenly spirit beings. The realm of earth is represented by the heads of the animal kingdom, including man. These are the divisions of creation (Gen. 1) except fish and creeping things. With these only God established His covenant after the flood ( Gen_9:9-10 ). They are living souls , rather than spirits. They conform to the scene about them. When we first see the cherubim, guarding the way to the tree of life (for this tree was a source of the life they represented) no wings are mentioned ( Gen_3:24 ). When they form part of the mercy seat, they seem to have had two wings ( Exo_25:20 ). When Ezekiel sees them they have four wings ( Eze_1:6 ). Here they have six wings each. Ezekiel tells us they looked like living coals of fire. Here they are full of eyes. Ezekiel calls them by the same name they are given here when he says: "It is the animal which I saw under the God of Israel at the stream Chebar: and I know that they are cherubim" ( Eze_10:20 ). According to these passages they do not seem to be confined to a set physical manifestation, but conform to their spiritual activity and environment. Isaiah calls them

Seraphim or Burning Ones in connection with the title Adonai.

11 The elders worship the Creator rather than a Redeemer.

Throne Section-The Lambkin

1 The scroll is not a "book". It was applied to a legal document ( Mat_19:7 ; Mar_10:4 ). This is its probable meaning here, for it is endorsed on the back and sealed like a mortgage "acccording to the law and custom" which obtained in Israel in ancient times ( Jer_32:8-14 ). What the breaking of the seals involves is clear from the new song of the animals and elders ( Rev_5:9 ) when the Lambkin gets the scroll. The sovereignty of the earth, which is Israel's, has passed from them. It is held by alien powers which must be dispossessed. It is Jehovah's purpose that Israel shall reign over the whole earth. The redemption of their lost heritage is the subject of this section. Nothing could more aptly portray the process of this redemption than the gradual breaking of the seals of the scroll. When all are broken the incumbrance is removed-the sovereignty of the earth becomes our Lord's and His Messiah's for the eons of the eons ( Rev_11:15 ).

6 Lambkin , the diminutive form, is used to distinguish it from the usual word lamb ( Joh_1:29 ; Joh_1:36 ; Act_8:32 ; 1Pe_1:19 ). It is used only once elsewhere ( Joh_21:15 ), in contrast to a full grown sheep. This tender and delicate form adds much to the loving pathos of this prophecy. The utter weakness of a very young Lamb is in striking antithesis to His character as the Lion and to the mighty acts which He performs as a result of His suffering and death. It is in beautiful accord with the new name of His wife, who is now called the bride. Youth is renewed in resurrection.

8 The ancient "harp" was shaped like the lyre and was used in prophecy ( 1Sa_10:5 ; 1Ch_25:1 ) and thanks and praise ( 1Ch_25:3 ; Psa_92:1-3 ; Psa_149:3 ), which are seen in this new song which they sing.

8 The prayers of the saints may be summed up in one word: "Thy kingdom come!" ( Mat_6:10 ). How fit that these should find remembrance when He is about to fulfill their request!

9 The elders and animals are bought , not redeemed. They celebrate Israel's deliverance. The failure to note this distinction and the consequent attempt to reconcile the two parts of this song, has led to much confusion in the manuscripts.