Revelation Chapter 5 Worthy Is the Lamb “Just as we saw the 24 elders and the 4 beast fall down and worship God in Rev 4:9-11, in turn they witness that Christ is now able to open the book and to be worthy of worship. This next verse, in symbol, is saying that wisdom, justice, power and love, through all the scriptures, are going to testify positively about the Lamb and the salvation that he has won for us. From…
Revelation Chapter 5 VERSE 6 “And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth.” AND I LOOKED, AND BEHOLD: For the 3rd time in this chapter our focus is changed. The first focus of this chapter (5:1)…
Revelation Chapter 5 VERSE 4 “So I wept much, because no one was found worthy to open and read the scroll, or to look at it.” SO I WEPT MUCH: It is certainly possible that the literal John had this reaction. The expectancy aroused by Chapter 4 would have him in great anticipation of the implied blessings from the scroll. It is more likely, however, that John here pictures the Church before Pentecost during which time the brethren were in…
Revelation Chapter 5 VERSE 2 and 3 “Then I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to loose its seals? AND NO ONE IN HEAVEN or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll, or to look at it.” “The Apostle was impressed with the strength of the angel—possibly because the angel possessed a Herculean figure, and a booming voice to correspond with the largeness…
Revelation Chapter 5 VERSE 2 “Then I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to loose its seals?” THEN I SAW: Here is another marker. John wants now to draw our attention away from the hand and book and toward something else. A STRONG ANGEL: Who is this strong Angel then? First of all we need to ask ourselves, what the symbol of an angel could represent in the book…
Revelation Chapter 5 VERSE 1 continued, “And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals.” “Since a book or scroll is usually held in the left hand, this detail concerning the right hand should not be considered a more or less superfluous matter, for it indicates a deeper significance; namely, that the subject matter or content of the scroll was near and dear…
Having in our last segment examined Chapter 4 the Introduction to the Seven Seals we now move on to Chapter 5 Revelation Chapter 5 VERSE 1 “And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals.” AND I SAW: This is one of those phrases which mark changes in the Book of Revelation. In this case it shifts emphasis to the sealed book…
Words and Phrases The Seven Spirits The expression, THE SEVEN SPIRITS, occurs four times in the book of Revelation. A comparison of these usages reveals the likely interpretation of the meaning. Rev. 1:4: shows the seven spirits BEFORE THE THRONE —a symbol of the position of SERVICE. Rev. 3:1: points out that Jesus also has these spirits, that 1:4 showed them to be God’s is here strengthened by stating that they are “OF GOD.” Rev. 4:5: “defines” these spirits by…
Words and Phrases The Four Living Creatures HOW DO WE KNOW THE FOUR BEASTS REPRESENT GOD’S ATTRIBUTES? It has become standard Bible student response to say that the four living ones (four “beasts” in the KJV) of Revelation represent the four attributes of God —Wisdom, Justice, Love, and Power. From whence did this understanding come? It seems to have been defined by Brother. W. I. Mann in 1883 (See R529). To summarize his explanation, we give the following: By building…
Without Chronology, the Interpretation Goes Astray Many of those who attempt to interpret Revelation don’t see that the time periods of 1260 days, 42 months, and 3 ½ years are NOT to be interpreted as LITERAL time periods. For that reason, they think that many of the events fall into a future 3 ½ year period, a future time frame. Time in Revelation is interpreted symbolically, and it should, as a general rule, be computed at a day for a…