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The Throne of God
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nd After this I looked, and, behold, a door was
opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet
talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which
must be hereafter. 2 And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne
was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. 3 And he that sat was to look
upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the
throne, in sight like unto an emerald. 4 And round about the throne were four
and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting,
clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold. 5 And out
of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were
seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of
God. 6 And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in
the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of
eyes before and behind. 7 And the first beast was like a lion, and the second
beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth
beast was like a flying eagle. 8 And the four beasts had each of them six wings
about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night,
saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.
9 And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the
throne, who liveth for ever and ever, 10 The four and twenty elders fall down
before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and
ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, 11 Thou art worthy, O
Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things,
and for thy pleasure they are and were created. (Rev 4:1-11 (KJV)
This text reveals a glorious image of many to
follow in this Book. John has been shown
things which were (at the time of the writing) and which are. We now are
introduced to those things which are to come. But those things which are to
come are melded in with those things which are today, and then, prevailing on
earth and in Heaven. 1 After this I looked, and, behold, a door was
opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet
talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which
must be hereafter.
Please
bear in mind, again, John is writing with a vocabulary insufficient to describe
the full majesty and grandeur of those visions which are shown him. Even our
modern day vocabulary, heavily enriched with technologically advanced
cinematography, would also fall short of descriptive adjectives to express the
Holy and Heavenly visions that John sees, and will see, as the narrative
continues in Revelation.
The
Voice of God is an unbearable Voice for human ears to conceive. You will
remember the descent of the Glory of God upon Sinai (in the smoke, cloud, and
thundering) and the response of the people thereto. 18 And all the
people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet,
and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood
afar off. 19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we
will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. 20 And Moses
said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear
may be before your faces, that ye sin not. 21 And the people stood
afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was. (Ex 20:18-21) That which John sees in vision now is perhaps of
even greater profundity because he is viewing a scene through the very Door of
Heaven.
The
Voice John heard commanded, Come up hither! Of course, John could not, in physical form,
arise and pass through the gates of Heaven – he was in the Spirit and
therefore enabled to experience travel that flesh and blood cannot do. And
immediately I was in the spirit.
John
was privileged to see what no other mortal has seen – the Throne of God. And,
behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. The beauty
and brightness of the being escapes description. John employs every wonderful
manner of description he can muster in relating to a dull and short-sighted
world the wonder of that vision on High. 3 And he that sat was to look
upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the
throne, in sight like unto an emerald. The jasper can be a stone of variant
colors from red to green. It may even have been a diamond of greenish luster
since a jasper is not so valuable. Having the glory of God: and her light
was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.
(Rev 21:11) Since the sardine stone is red or deep orange, I
would venture that the jasper stone was green for contrast. The rainbow about
the Throne seems to represent the new Covenant which is that to which the old
pointed. God is constant in His Will and Divine Purpose.
Now
we must consider the four and twenty elders. Since these are gathered
around the Throne of God, we must consider that they must mean the completeness
of some manner of God’s plan. and upon the seats I saw four and twenty
elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of
gold. It seems quite logical to me that these represent the Twelve
Patriarchs of the Old Testament Church and the Twelve Apostles of the New
Testament. They have gained a victory as evidenced by their gold crowns, and
are clothed in white raiment with the imputed righteousness of our Lord.
And
out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there
were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits
of God. These lamps of fire burning before the Throne are represented in
the Tabernacle by the seven-branched candlestick before the Holiest Place
representing the Spirit and Presence of God.
And
before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in
the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts
full of eyes before and behind. (Rev 4:6) This sea of glass may have comparison in the Molten Sea
before the Sanctuary of the Temple. We are cleansed by the washing of the Word
ere we come to the Presence of God. This sea of glass is like unto Crystal and
is not of a liquid nature, but is firm and steady, deep and wide. The
judgments of God are described as a deep. Thy righteousness is like
the great mountains; thy judgments are a great deep: (Psalm 36:6) The four beasts described are between the Throne
and the people and may have reference to the true ministers of God. The
able and dedicated minister is diligent in the searching the Scriptures for
meaning. He knows the History of the Word, and he knows what God has revealed
of the future in prophecy. Full of eyes before and behind.
And
the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the
third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.
Below is how the editors of the Geneva Bible margins describe the four beasts:
By instruments used, in that he has both a most ready treasury and a
workhouse excellently furnished with all things, to the executing of his will,
which things flow from his commandment, as repeated in (Revelation 15:2) and has also the angels ready administers of his
counsel and pleasure to all parts of the world, continually watching, (in this
verse) working by reason otherwise than the instruments without life last
mentioned, courageous as lions, mighty as bulls, wise as men, swift as eagles
(Revelation 4:7) most apt to all purposes as furnished with wings on every
part, most piercing of sight, and finally, pure and holy spirits always in
continual motion (Revelation 4:8)
The TRISAGION (Holy, Holy, Holy) of the Godhead is
also given. And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of
hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory. Isaiah 6:3 (KJV) We
find the Trisagion also presented in the 99th Psalm
sequentially: 3 Let them praise thy great and terrible
name; for it is holy. . . . Exalt ye the Lord our
God, and worship at his footstool; forhe is holy. . . . Exalt
the Lord our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the Lord our
God is holy. (Psalms 99:3,5)
9 And
when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the
throne, who liveth for ever and ever 10 The four and twenty elders
fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for
ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, 11 Thou
art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast
created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. I quote
from Jamieson-Faussett-Brown with this closing note on 9-11: The ground of
praise here is God's eternity, and God's power and glory manifested in the
creation of all things for His pleasure. Creation is the foundation of all
God's other acts of power, wisdom, and love, and therefore forms the first
theme of His creatures' thanksgivings. The four living creatures take the lead
of the twenty-four elders, both in this anthem, and in that new song which
follows on the ground of their redemption. (Rev. 5:8-10) — Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
Bible Commentary
