Revelation Chapter 8 VERSE 3 continued, “Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.” THEN ANOTHER ANGEL: This angel is Jesus —the same one who in Rev 1:13 is standing in the midst of the Seven Churches which these Seven Trumpets serve. There HE has a voice “LIKE a…
Revelation Chapter 8 VERSE 3 “Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.” Why is the Incense Altar Inserted Here? Why are we being shown the seven angels being given trumpets, and then before we see what the trumpets are we have the description of the incense altar scene?…
Revelation Chapter 8 Introduction to the Seven Trumpets (Rev 8:2-6) A WORD REGARDING THE CONSTRUCTION OF THIS INTRODUCTION For reasons which will become more apparent when Verse 6 is discussed, it is likely that the Introduction to the Seven Trumpets is constructed something like this: Verse 2: introduces the angels & their trumpets. Verses 3-5: are Parenthetical Verse 6: Re-introduces the angels & their trumpets. This kind of construction has precedent in Revelation. For an example, see Chapter 12 Verses…
Revelation Chapter 5 VERSE 11 “Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands.” THEN I LOOKED: For the fourth time in this chapter (5:1, 2, 6) John directs our attention elsewhere. Now he is looking forward to the time when his last sentence (5:10 —“they will reign upon the earth”) will be true….
Revelation Chapter 5 VERSE 9 “And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; for you were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation.” “After Christ had proven worthy, all the scriptures could then in perfect correctness and harmony point to him as the one who did it. The new song that they sing is the revealing…
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…