Revelation 5:1-14.The Lamb and the Scroll.
American Journal of Biblical Theology
American Journal of Biblical Theology
Revelation 5:1-14.
The Lamb and the Scroll.
And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.
In chapter 4 we were introduced to John’s vision of heaven, a place were Jesus is the central authority, surrounded by earthly and heavenly beings who worship Him. The heavenly beings are described as four living creatures, or beasts, who exhibit godly virtues. They, with 24 elders serve to lead in the worship of God. John describes heaven as a place that is free of the world’s sin and conflict, a place of peace where God’s covenant promise with man is fulfilled.
One of the encouraging messages of John’s revelation concerns God’s future judgment of those who have rejected Him and persecuted His church. The first-century Christians found themselves persecuted while the ungodly culture seemed to prosper. However, the period of ungodly prosperity will end and those who have been patient and longsuffering will be vindicated.
When the Revelation refers to the right hand it is referring to the authority to get work done. The One on the throne has the authority to accomplish what is about to be described.
The second object of this verse is the sealed book. A book contains knowledge, but since it as written knowledge, it is information that is not subject to change. Scrolls were usually written on a single side, but this one is described as having writing on both sides of the material (opisthograph). Such scrolls were usually intended for personal use rather than for public sale or display. The central idea of the metaphor is that the One who holds the book holds a great deal of information, the maximum amount of information possible, and that information is personally relevant to the one who is to read its contents.
The seal accomplishes two purposes. First, it allows the information to be kept hidden until the seal is broken. The information, or knowledge, that John speaks of is that which is heretofore unrevealed. The seal also identifies the nature of the sender and can only be broken by one whom the sender intends. Generally a scroll would be sealed with a single seal. The concept of seven seals illustrates that the seal is secure, and the one placing the seal is God. We will also find that the seven seals will divide the information into seven parts, allowing the content of the scroll to be revealed progressively. It is as if the scroll were actually seven scrolls rolled over one another. This is a very unusual scroll, indeed.
At this point we might be intrigued by John’s vision. The One on the throne, the One who holds the authority in heaven also holds a great deal of what is heretofore unrevealed but relevant information, material that has been kept secure by God through the power of the Holy Spirit. What is the nature of the content of the scroll? What will be revealed as the seals are broken?
And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof? 3And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon. 4And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon.
Who is the one to open a sealed scroll? The intent of the seal is to keep the information from all except those whom the writer intends. Consequently only the writer or the intended recipient has the authority to open the scroll. However, the intended recipient of the revelation is mankind. God has a message for people of faith, but there is no person who is righteous enough to approach the scroll. God has a plan and purpose for man, but sin gets in the way. On our own, no human is worthy to touch this scroll, nor even to look upon it. We are creatures of our own sin and unrighteousness, in need of a Savior. Note the inclusiveness of all humanity, those in heaven, and those on earth both living and dead.
Even John, who was a faithful Apostle and leader of the church was not worthy to touch or look on the scroll. John understands the sinful state of mankind and can only weep.
And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.
However, God has provided an answer for mankind’s unrighteousness. There is One who is righteous. There is One who can serve to bring God’s plan for mankind to completion. Who is that One? John describes him as the “Lion of the tribe of Judah” (Hosea 5:14) and the “Root of David,” both common Old Testament Messianic titles. If we have any doubt that the One referred to is Jesus, we might look at Rev. 22:16:
I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star (Rev. 22:16).
Jesus serves to bridge the gap between man’s unrighteousness and God’s holiness. There is no need for us to weep in hopeless, for our hope is in Jesus.
And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.
As the angel proclaims the authority that Jesus has to open the scroll, John reminds us of Jesus’ presence at the throne. In this description He is described as a living, yet slain lamb, a clear reference to the Passover lamb and Jesus’ atoning death on the cross of Calvary and His resurrection. John will continue to use this Lamb metaphor throughout the Revelation. Jesus is described as having seven horns and seven eyes. Of course, true lambs do not have horns as illustrated here, and certainly not seven. The first-century Christians were not awaiting a lamb-Messiah, they were awaiting a lion-Messiah. They were awaiting a military leader who would overthrow Rome. However, this is not a weak and powerless lamb. The seven horns illustrate Jesus’ complete and even infinite power to accomplish God’s purpose. What is the source of this power? Though John reuses the metaphor of seven eyes which represent complete knowledge and understanding, John makes it clear that in this instance, the metaphor of the eyes is to be understood as the full presence of the Holy Spirit in Jesus.
And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.
In the Greek language, the word “took” is very dramatic. We have noted the power that is implied in the right hand, and for Jesus to “take” the book from the right hand of Him who sits on the throne, Jesus’ authority must be equal to the One who sits on the throne. Where, up to this point we might witness the humanity of Jesus as the Lamb of God who gave His life on the cross, John also makes clear the deity of Jesus. This also symbolically illustrates that the One on the throne fully authorizes Jesus to take the scroll, to execute God’s plan for the redemption of mankind. It is impossible to fully separate the three persons of the Holy Trinity, but John’s Trinitarian viewpoint is clearly demarked, particularly if we choose to hold that the One on the throne is God the Father. However, since John is using metaphors to present the gospel, there is no real need to make such a choice since so limiting the Person on the throne could serve to confuse the metaphors used in chapter 4.
And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Just as the four living creatures and the twenty elders fell down before the throne to worship the One who sat upon it (Rev. 4:10), they now fall down before Jesus to worship Him. If one holds any doubts as to the deity of Jesus Christ, one only needs to look here. Biblical Christology has served as a great stumbling block to those who choose to reject the gospel. There is no general disagreement that Jesus was a man, but how could a man truly be God? Biblical Christology teaches that Jesus the man is Yahweh the Creator who came to earth in the form of a human baby, taking on the form of a man but surrendering none of his deity. Just as John opens the revelation with this message, he also opened his written gospel with the same message. John had a clear understanding that Jesus and Yahweh are one. In this same way, Jesus could correctly state that “I and my Father are One” (John 10:30.)
How is Jesus worshipped? We see the living creatures and the elders worshipping Jesus with singing and with prayers. The metaphor illustrates each of them holding a harp and a collection of golden vials. John does not need to explain the metaphor of the harp, since a harp only has one purpose: to produce music. However, the golden vials need some explanation. John states that the vials of incense serve are actually the prayers that are lifted up by those who have placed their faith and trust in Jesus. Furthermore, the Greek term refers to petitions lifted up to God in prayer.
The use of prayers in worship probably needs little more explanation. However, why singing? Why do we sing when we worship? Like a prayer, singing in worship is intended to be directed toward God. When we sing to the LORD, we find that we can easily share personal testimony that we otherwise may find more difficult to put into words. When we sing we can also sing words that are directly speaking to the LORD, making them musical prayers. Whether we can carry a tune that is pleasing to men or not, we can sing testimonies and prayers to the LORD that are pleasing to Him. Sometimes people believe that, because their singing voice is not as pleasing to people as others, they cannot take part in worship when the congregation sings. Nothing could be further from the truth, for God is pleased with our worship, not with our voice.
We get a clear vision of worship that is characterized by praise, testimony, and petition.
And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; 10And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
The remainder of this chapter describes three hymns of praise. What starts as praises lifted up by the beasts and elders around the throne undergoes a crescendo as it includes all of those in heaven, and then all of those in the earth. The words of this first hymn are a praise lifted to Jesus, the Lamb of God. It voices much of the basic doctrines of the faith that serve to bring the lost to salvation. We see three of those basic doctrines in the first hymn:
- Jesus is worthy to take the book. Jesus is worthy to execute God’s plan for the redemption of those who place their faith in Him, and to judge even to eternal separation those who reject God’s offer of grace.
- God has always demanded that a sacrifice be paid for sin, but mankind cannot provide that sacrifice himself. Note that the Old Testament sacrificial system only served to atone for unknown sins, or guiltless sins. The Old Testament faithful could only trust in God’s grace for the atonement from sins of choice. That sacrifice only God could pay, and He did so when He came to the earth as the Christ child and shed His own blood on the cross. That act of atonement serves to redeem all people who place their faith in Him, without regard to their race or nationality.
- The redeeming act of Jesus gives every believer some of the attributes of kings and priests. Certainly, those whom John intended this letter for did not feel like kings and priests. However, the truth is that those who love the LORD are a royal priesthood who have been given both the authority to execute God’s word and the authority to approach the throne of God. These are the functions of kings and priests, respectively. Furthermore, the authority to execute God’s word is not limited to, or even intended for, heaven, but rather that those in the royal priesthood would execute that word here on earth. Christians reign on this earth in the areas that are truly important. Where an earthly king’s reign is limited to his possession of all of the worldly objects within his little domain, a Christian’s reign is characterized by an unlimited possession of love, mercy, and grace. Where the earthly king loses all of his possessions upon death, the Christian keeps all of his.
And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; 12Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
The number of those that John sees praising God now increases to a countless number of worshippers, similar to that in Daniel’s vision (Daniel 7:10). The numerology that John uses may not impress 21st century culture. We might simply state that this is something over an “oh-hum” one-hundred million, a group about a third of the population of the United States today. It would be good to understand that to the ancients, a thousand was considered a huge number. A thousand thousands was used to represent a number beyond the ability to count.
We might note that the number seven is again employed in the nature of the praise that is lifted by this great multitude. Jesus is worthy to continually receive (note the aorist verb tense) seven attributes of Godly authority: power, riches, wisdom, strength, honor, glory, blessing. The ancients often employed a seven-fold chant in order to emphasize the majesty of God. John is clearly describing both Jesus’ deity, and His worthiness to be LORD.
And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. 14And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever.
It what appears to be a prophesy of the future, the praise of Jesus increases to include every creature in heaven, and every creature on the earth, both living and dead. Driving the point home, John refers to the living as all of those on the earth and on the seas. He refers to the dead as all those under the earth and in the seas. This is consistent with the prophesy that there is coming a day when every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is LORD (Romans 14:11, Phil. 2:11).
We may be able to see that John, though the vision that he was given of heaven, simply presents the gospel message, but in a very dramatic and colorful way. We can see how the apocalyptic literature style can be used to present the same message as that which is presented in more traditional prose. However, through the use of such dramatic imagery, a broad and meaningful message can often be presented in far fewer words as the writer allows the pictures to tell the story. The metaphors that John uses become a mnemonic that helps us to remember the truths of the gospel that he presents. We can draw a picture of the scene that he describes (and many have done so), and by explaining each of the details of that picture we find the whole truth presented. Where it may be difficult to remember all of the doctrinal details, it is not difficult for those with a photographic memory to retain the images. This gives apocalyptic literature a unique way to present the gospel message, yet in its uniqueness there is a power and depth of understanding that can be difficult to place into imageless words and sentences.
Consequently, the Revelation and the apocalyptic passages in Ezekiel and Daniel are not intended to be ignored, but to be read. We can enjoy the task of visualizing the imagery and letting our knowledge of the gospel, guided by the Holy Spirit, show us a deeper and richer understanding of God’s word. Do not be afraid of the Revelation. Revel in it.