REVELATION 4:1 “Things that shall take place after this”: Christ’s defense of his church and destruction of its enemies. Having identified the strengths and weaknesses of the seven Asian churches, which represent “all the churches” (Revelation 2:23), Jesus speaks again. He summons John “in the Spiri... [ Continue Reading ]
REVELATION—NOTE ON REVELATION 4:3 John describes God’s glory in bright colors—JASPER, CARNELIAN, RAINBOW, EMERALD. The jewels mentioned in Revelation 1:1 (compare Revelation 21:19) are not meant to be interpreted individually but together represent God’s splendor and majesty. John does not precisely... [ Continue Reading ]
REVELATION—NOTE ON REVELATION 4:4 On TWENTY-FOUR THRONES sat TWENTY-FOUR ELDERS. Their number may reflect the orders of priests serving in the OT temple (see 1 Chronicles 24:7). More likely they symbolize the unity of God’s people. This includes OT Israel (led by the heads of the 12 tribes) and the... [ Continue Reading ]
REVELATION—NOTE ON REVELATION 4:5 LIGHTNING, RUMBLINGS, and THUNDER display the terrifying splendor of God’s glory, as at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19:16). ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
REVELATION—NOTE ON REVELATION 4:6 The peaceful SEA OF GLASS often appears in prophetic visions of God’s throne room (Exodus 24:10; Ezekiel 1:22; Revelation 15:2). It is the “floor” of heaven and the “ceiling” of the created universe. Four living creatures have the features of cherubim (FULL OF EYES;... [ Continue Reading ]
REVELATION—NOTE ON REVELATION 4:9 God’s receiving of POWER does not suggest that an omnipotent being can become stronger. Rather, the strength of his creatures is used to honor him. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]