[Chapter 4-1] Look at Jesus Who Sits on God’s Throne (Revelation 4:1-11)
(Revelation 4:1-11)
“After
these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And
the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me,
saying, ‘Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place
after this.’ Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne set
in heaven, and One sat on the throne. And He who sat there was like a
jasper and a sardius stone in appearance; and there was a rainbow around
the throne, in appearance like an emerald. Around the throne were
twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders
sitting, clothed in white robes; and they had crowns of gold on their
heads. And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings, and
voices. Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are
the seven Spirits of God. Before the throne there was a sea of glass,
like crystal. And in the midst of the throne, and around the throne,
were four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back. The first
living creature was like a lion, the second living creature like a calf,
the third living creature had a face like a man, and the fourth living
creature was like a flying eagle. The four living creatures, each having
six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not rest
day or night, saying:
‘Holy, holy, holy,
Lord God Almighty,
Who was and is and is to come!’
Whenever
the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on
the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall
down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever
and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying:
‘You are worthy, O Lord,
To receive glory and honor and power;
For You created all things,
And by Your will they exist and were created.’”
Exegesis
Verse
1: “After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in
heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking
with me, saying, ‘Come up here, and I will show you things which must
take place after this.’”
The
gate of Heaven had been closed before. But this gate was flung open
when Jesus delivered sinners from their iniquities by coming to this
earth, being baptized by John, dying on the Cross, and rising from the
dead again. Through His angels, God revealed to the Apostle John what
awaits the world in the end times.
Verse 2: “Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne.”
Through
the open gate of Heaven, John saw that there was another throne
prepared in Heaven, and that the One who sat on it was Jesus Christ.
Around the throne were four living creatures, 24 elders, and the seven
Spirits of God.
The
Lord received the throne of God from the Father for the completion of
His work of saving sinners from the sins of the world. While on this
earth, the Lord took upon all the sins of the world on Himself by
receiving baptism from John the Baptist, and delivered all the sinners
from their iniquities by dying on the Cross and rising again from the
dead. This is why God the Father permitted this throne in Heaven for His
Son.
There
is a tendency to see Jesus in a somewhat limited scope, recognizing Him
as the Son of God and the Savior, but no more. But Jesus Christ now
sits on the throne of God as the sovereign King who reigns over Heaven.
This
does not mean, of course, that Jesus contended against the Father for
His throne. God the Father’s throne is still there. He permitted another
throne in Heaven for His Son, crowning Him as the King of Heaven and
establishing Him as the Judge of all those who stand against God. The
Father raised Jesus Christ high above everyone else in Heaven and earth
as God. Jesus Christ is now God, coequal to the Father. We must
therefore praise and worship Jesus, who is our Savior and God.
Verse
3: “And He who sat there was like a jasper and a sardius stone in
appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance
like an emerald.”
This verse describes the glory of God sitting on the new throne.
Verse
4: “Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones I
saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white robes; and they had
crowns of gold on their heads.”
Around
the throne of Jesus Christ our God sat His ministers. It says here that
the throne of God was surrounded by 24 more thrones, and that on these
thrones sat 24 elders with crowns of gold on their heads. It was a great
blessing of God for these elders to sit on the 24 thrones. These elders
are those who, while on this earth, labored and were martyred for the
Lord’s Kingdom. This Word tells us that the Kingdom of Heaven has now
become the Kingdom of our Lord God, existing eternally under His reign.
Verse
5: “And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings, and voices.
Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven
Spirits of God.”
God is the One who creates and reigns over all spirits.
Verse
6: “Before the throne there was a sea of glass, like crystal. And in
the midst of the throne, and around the throne, were four living
creatures full of eyes in front and in back.”
The
four living creatures are, along with the 24 elders, the ministers of
the Kingdom of God. They always seek the will of God and praise His
holiness and glory. And they are the ones who implement God’s will in
obedience.
Verse
7: “The first living creature was like a lion, the second living
creature like a calf, the third living creature had a face like a man,
and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle.”
The
four living creatures are God’s ministers devoted to the different
tasks given to each, who faithfully serve all His purposes.
Verse
8: “The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes
around and within. And they do not rest day or night, saying: ‘Holy,
holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!’”
Just
as God does not sleep, the four living creatures also are always awake
by His side, constantly praising Him for His glory and holiness. They
praise the holiness of God who became the Lamb and His almighty power.
They praise God as the One who was, is, and is to come. The One being
thus praised by them is God the Father and Jesus Christ, who is God.
Verse
9: “Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to
Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever,”
God’s ministers thus give glory, honor, and thanks to Him who sits on the throne forever and ever.
Verse
10: “the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne
and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns
before the throne, saying:”
When
the four living creatures were praising God, the elders sitting on the
24 thrones also cast their crowns before God and praised Him, “You are
worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power.”
Verse
11: “You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For
You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.”
The
praise that the 24 elders gave to God came from their faith that God
was worthy to receive all glory, honor, and power, for He created all
things and all things exist by Him.
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