Revelation 5:1-14
1 And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.
2 And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?
3 And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon.
4 And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon.
5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.
6 And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.
7 And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.
8 And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours,a which are the prayers of saints.
9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
11 And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
12 Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
13 And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.
14 And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever.
From Now to the End of Time
Revelation
Ian Mackervoy
Chapter 5
*Worship of the *Lamb - Revelation 5:1-14
v1 Then I saw a *scroll on the right hand of him who sat on the *throne. There were words on both sides of the *scroll. There were seven (7) *seals, which locked it. v2 I saw a strong *angel. With a loud voice, he asked this question. ‘Who deserves to open the *scroll? And who is able to break its *seals?’ v3 But nobody in heaven, on earth, or under the earth could open the *scroll. Nobody could look inside it. v4 And I wept much because there was nobody good enough. Nobody could open the *scroll or look into it. v5 Then one of the *elders said to me, ‘Do not weep. See, the Lion of the *tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome. He is able to open the *scroll and to break its seven *seals.’
v6 Then I saw a *lamb. It seemed as if it had been dead. It was standing in the centre of the *throne. And it was in the middle of the four *creatures and the *elders. The *Lamb had seven *horns and seven eyes. The eyes mean the seven spirits of God, which he sent out into all the earth. v7 The *Lamb came. He took the *scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the *throne. v8 And when he had taken the *scroll, the four *creatures and the 24 *elders fell down in front of him. Each one had a *harp and gold bowls full of *incense. The bowls of *incense mean the prayers of God’s people. v9 And they sang a new song. ‘You deserve to take the *scroll. And you are able to break its *seals. This is because you died. And with your blood, you purchased people for God. They come from every *tribe, language, people, and nation. v10 You have made them into a *kingdom. And you have appointed them to be priests to our God. They will rule on the earth.’ v11 As I looked, I heard the sound of many *angels. They were round the *throne, and the *creatures and the *elders. There were millions of *angels. v12 They sang with loud voices. ‘The *Lamb, whom people killed, deserves to receive power, wealth, wisdom and strength. He deserves all honour and *glory and *praise.’
v13 Then I heard every *creature in heaven and on earth sing. And all *creatures under the earth, on and in the sea sing with them. They sang a song. ‘This song is to him who sits on the *throne and to the *Lamb. To them belong *praise, honour, *glory, and power without end.’
v14 The four *creatures said, ‘*Amen!’ The *elders fell down and they *worshipped.
Verse 1 On the right hand of God was a *scroll. The *Lord had written on both sides of the *scroll. On it, there were 7 *seals. Each of these *seals locked a part of the *scroll. To read the *scroll someone had to break all 7 *seals in order.
The contents of the *scroll were secret. God’s plans for the end of the world were in it. After each *seal, the *scroll showed the events that would happen.
History and the end of the world are in God’s plan. All will happen as he has decided. Nobody can know what is in God’s plan. When someone opens the *scroll God will show us the future.
Verses 2-3 John saw a strong *angel. This *angel called out in a loud voice. He asked, ‘Who can open the *scroll? Who can break the *seals?’
The sound of his voice went to the ends of space, heaven and the earth.
In all that God had created, nobody could open the *scroll. There was no *angel who was good enough. No man or woman had earned the right to open it. So, nobody could read what was in the *scroll.
Verse 4 It was very important to know what was in the *scroll. A person had to be perfect in order to open the *scroll. There was nobody good enough. This made John so sad that he wept.
Verse 5 One of the *elders spoke to John. He told John not to weep. There is someone who can open the *scroll. He will break the 7 *seals. He has won the right to do it. He has overcome *sin and death. He is perfect and he is able to break those *seals.
This person is Jesus Christ. The *elder used two special names to describe Jesus. Jesus is the Lion of the *tribe of Judah. And Jesus is the Root of David.
Judah was called a young lion (Genesis 49:9-10). The great king would come from the *tribe of Judah. The *Jews understood this king to be their *Messiah. So, the *Messiah is the same person as the Lion who will rule the earth. He is the Christ. He came from the *tribe of Judah.
The Root of David shows that Jesus belonged to the family of David. The *Old Testament speaks about the king who would come. That king would be from the family of King David. That king would be even greater than David was. The *Lord Jesus is that king.
Verse 6 Then John saw the *Lord Jesus. He did not see Jesus as the king. He was not like a lion but like a *lamb. He stood in the centre of the *throne. He was with God. Round him were the *creatures and the *elders.
The *Lamb (in other words, Jesus) had been dead but was now alive. The marks of that death were still there. He had given his life for us and died. But death could not keep him. He had risen from the grave. We call Jesus, ‘the *Lamb of God’, because he died as a *sacrifice for us. He takes away the *sin of the world (John 1:29).
Normal *lambs have two *horns but this one had 7. He also had 7 eyes. The number 7 in the Bible often means that something is perfect or complete. So, this description shows that Jesus has perfect power and wisdom. Nobody can overcome the power of the *Lamb. Nobody can hide anything from the *Lamb. He knows all things.
The eyes are the 7 spirits of God (see Revelation 4:5). These 7 are the Holy Spirit. Jesus has sent him into all the earth. He is the agent of Jesus to bring people to God.
Verse 7 The *Lamb stepped forward. He had taken the *scroll from the right hand of God.
Verse 8 Then John saw the four *creatures and the 24 *elders fall down. They praised the *Lamb. They made music to the *Lamb on their *harps.
They gave to the *Lamb what was in the gold bowls. *Incense has a sweet smell. It gives pleasure to those who smell it. This *incense meant the prayers of God’s people. Their prayers pleased God.
The *worship of the *angels is for God alone. Here they *worship the *Lamb. Christ the *Lamb is one with the Father. Christ is God.
Verses 9-10 The four *creatures and the 24 *elders sang a new song. They sang this song to the *Lamb. The song was new not only in time. It was new in quality. It spoke about what the *Lamb had done. He had made a new contract between God and his people.
The *Lamb had earned the right to take the *scroll. He had done what nobody else could do. He alone was able to break the *seals.
They gave three reasons why the *Lamb could take the *scroll.
1. He died and he overcame death. Now, he is alive and he will always live.
2. When he died, he took away the *sins of the people. By his death, he purchased people for God.
3. He made God’s people a *kingdom. He made them priests to God.
Jesus has bought many people by his blood. They come from all the countries of the world. They are from all the nations. There will be in heaven those who speak every language.
All who believe in Christ are part of his *kingdom. Each one of them is a priest to God. As a *kingdom, they will rule with Christ. As priests, they serve the *Lord God. Because of Christ, they can come to God.
Verses 11-12 Then all the *angels joined in with those who were praising the *Lamb. There were millions of *angels. There were so many that nobody could count them.
This vast crowd of *angels live to serve God. They surrounded the *throne of God. And with loud voices, they sang to praise Jesus the *Lamb.
They sang that the *Lamb deserves to have seven qualities. These are power, wealth, wisdom, strength, honour, *glory and *praise. The *angels praise him because he has all these qualities. He always had them as the Son of God. But then he earned them. He died and he rose again from death. He now deserves that all people and *angels should praise him.
Verse 13 Then every *creature joined in the song of *praise. All that God had created sang. They sang to praise God and the *Lamb.
Verse 14 At the end of the song, the four *creatures said ‘*Amen’. The 24 *elders fell down and they praised God.
worship ~ the act when someone shows honour to God (or to an idol). Someone who worships, praises God. That person thanks God. And that person respects God.idols ~ objects that people worship instead of God.
lamb ~ a young sheep.
Lamb ~ a name for Jesus because he died as a sacrifice for our sin. He is the Lamb of God.
sacrifice ~ the priests killed a special animal and they burned it on an altar. This was to ask God to forgive sins. Jesus died as a sacrifice for our sins.
sin ~ sin is the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. Those who sin are called sinners.
altar ~ the special table where priests burned animals and other gifts that they offered to God.
forgive ~ to forgive is to remove sin.
scroll ~ a book in the form of a long piece of material. People would roll up the scroll in order to store it.
throne ~ the special chair for the king or for an important person.
seal ~ something that people stuck on the outside of a scroll as a kind of lock.
scroll ~ a book in the form of a long piece of material. People would roll up the scroll in order to store it.
angel ~ a servant of God from heaven. God made angels to serve him and to take his messages. So, angels are God’s servants from heaven. But there are evil angels who opposed God. These evil angels now serve the devil.
elders ~ usually they are older men. In the Book of Revelation, they are the 24 people who sit on thrones in heaven.
throne ~ the special chair for the king or for an important person.
tribe ~ a large family from one man. The nation called Israel grew from the 12 sons of Jacob. These 12 families became the 12 tribes of Israel.
Israel ~ the country of the Jews.
Jews ~ people who were born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the families of their children.
lamb ~ a young sheep.
Lamb ~ a name for Jesus because he died as a sacrifice for our sin. He is the Lamb of God.
sacrifice ~ the priests killed a special animal and they burned it on an altar. This was to ask God to forgive sins. Jesus died as a sacrifice for our sins.
sin ~ sin is the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. Those who sin are called sinners.
altar ~ the special table where priests burned animals and other gifts that they offered to God.
forgive ~ to forgive is to remove sin.
creatures ~ Things that are alive. In the Book of Revelation, there are 4 special angels in heaven called creatures.
angel ~ a servant of God from heaven. God made angels to serve him and to take his messages. So, angels are God’s servants from heaven. But there are evil angels who opposed God. These evil angels now serve the devil.
horns ~ the bones that some animals such as goats and male sheep have on their heads.
harp ~ an instrument of music.
incense ~ something that gives a sweet smell when it burns. The priests burned it when they praised God in the temple.
temple ~ a special building for the worship of God. The Jews had a temple in Jerusalem for the worship of the real God. But at other temples, people worshipped false gods.
worship ~ the act when someone shows honour to God (or to an idol). Someone who worships, praises God. That person thanks God. And that person respects God.
Jews ~ people who were born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the families of their children.
idols ~ objects that people worship instead of God.
kingdom ~ the place or territory where a king rules.
glory ~ great honour and beauty.
praise ~ words that give honour to God.
amen ~ a word from the Hebrew (Old Testament) language, which means ‘we agree’. Or, ‘it is true’.
Old Testament ~ the first part of the Bible; the holy things that the writers wrote before Jesus’ birth.
worship ~ the act when someone shows honour to God (or to an idol). Someone who worships, praises God. That person thanks God. And that person respects God.
idols ~ objects that people worship instead of God.
Lord ~ a title for God, or Jesus, to show that he is over all people and things.
lord ~ a title for someone who rules.
sin ~ sin is the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. Those who sin are called sinners.
Jews ~ people who were born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the families of their children.
Messiah ~ God promised the Jews that a special person would come to save them. That person is the Messiah. Jesus is that Messiah but the Jews did not believe it. Messiah is a Hebrew word. In the Greek language, the word is Christ. The word in both languages means anointed (that is, God chose him and sent him).
Jews ~ people who were born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the families of their children.
Hebrew ~ the language of the Jews and of the Old Testament.
Greek ~ the original language of the New Testament.
Old Testament ~ the first part of the Bible; the holy things that the writers wrote before Jesus’ birth.
New Testament ~ the last part of the Bible, which the writers wrote after the life of Jesus on earth.
'Old Testament ~ the first part of the Bible; the holy things that the writers wrote before Jesus’ birth.sacrifice ~ the priests killed a special animal and they burned it on an altar. This was to ask God to forgive sins. Jesus died as a sacrifice for our sins.
altar ~ the special table where priests burned animals and other gifts that they offered to God.
forgive ~ to forgive is to remove sin.
sin ~ sin is the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. Those who sin are called sinners.
incense ~ something that gives a sweet smell when it burns. The priests burned it when they praised God in the temple.
temple ~ a special building for the worship of God. The Jews had a temple in Jerusalem for the worship of the real God. But at other temples, people worshipped false gods.
worship ~ the act when someone shows honour to God (or to an idol). Someone who worships, praises God. That person thanks God. And that person respects God.
Jews ~ people who were born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the families of their children.
idols ~ objects that people worship instead of God.