Revelation 5 with interpretive notes

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Verse 1
And I saw that in the right hand of the One sitting upon the throne there was a scroll written on the inside and on the outside. The scroll was sealed [at its top, at seven places] with seven seals [so that it could only be unscrolled from one seal to the next, one place to the next, as the seals were broken one by one].

[Notes for verse 1:  As will be seen, it is a key to understanding the Book of The Revelation of Yehoshua HaMashiach to recognize that the seven seals are not all in a line on the side of the scroll but are placed at the top of the scroll, sealing off different sections of the scroll. As Yochanan (John) sees the Lamb break the seals one by one, he sees the scroll being unrolled until it is stopped at the next seal. Recognizing this will lead us to understand the great significance of this scroll being "written on the inside and on the outside".  It will also be the key to understanding the sequential nature and timing of the Revelation, which is marked by the shofar (trumpet) blasts.]

Verse 2
A very mighty angel then appeared asking [all creation] with a great voice, "Who is worthy to remove these seals and unroll the scroll?

[Notes for verse 2:  A very might angel then appeared. With a great voice he asked, "Who is worthy...?"  This great angel is described in chapter 10, and is the angel by whom Yehoshua has sent the whole of the Revelation to Yochanan, his servant.  The very great voice of the angel and the content of his question make it seem that he can be heard asking this question throughout all of creation.

This scroll, which is about to be opened, will contain all the Revelation from this point forward.  In the end, it will be seen that the contents of this scroll carries the whole book of the Revelation, the way that the core contents of a book carries the books covers as well as the title page, contents page, forward, preface, etc.  Once the seals of this scroll are, one by one, removed the Revelation of the Messiah of Israel to Jerusalem, to Israel, to all his own, and finally to all nations, begins.  The Revelation of the Messiah of Israel from the place he is now concealed in heaven brings with it the eternal Revelation of the One True God and of His Name.]

Worthiness to open the scroll is worthiness to bring judgment upon the nations and redemption to Israel, for the sake of the revelation of the true name of God, the truth of God and the Kingdom of God.]

Verse 3
No one in heaven nor on earth, nor in the underworld, was found who could open the scroll or reveal it contents. 

[Notes for verse 3:  It is the Messiah of Israel who will be revealed to Israel through the unsealing of this scroll.  Who is worthy to do this?]

Verse 4
And my tears came and my loud weeping, because no one was found who could open the scroll or reveal what was written within it. 

[Notes for verse 4:  The great mystery of why the Messiah of Israel was at first concealed from the collective whole of Israel and made known only to a remnant is the mystery that is highlighted here at the crux of The Book of The Revelation of Yehoshua HaMashiach.  It is because of this mystery that tears come to Yochanan's eyes.  In Psalms 102:12a David speaking prophetically of the concealment of Mashiach says,

My days are a lengthening shadow...

Concerning the literal meaning of this poetic expression, Rashi explains, 

At eventide, when the shadows lengthen, and when it becomes dark, they are not recognizable, but progressively disappear.

In the experience of his vision Yochanan is experiencing the true end of days. In the end of days there seems to be no end… Out of this agony from the seeming disappearance of the days of Mashiach through his long concealment, like a shadow fading into the evening darkness, even Yochanan cries when it seems no one can be found to open the seals of the Scroll of the Revelation…

Verse 5
Then one of the [twenty four] elders said to me, "Do not continue weeping! For look now and see! The Lion of Judah, [as prophesied by Jacob] the one who is the Root of David, has overcome [sin and death and has endured the great trial of faith], so that he can unroll the scroll, removing [each of] the seven seals [removing each one, one at a time as the unrolling of the scroll takes place.

(Continuing Notes for verse 5:)  Why he is called the Root of David and the Lion of Judah will be revealed in the volume of the Scroll of the Revelation itself, just as will the mystery of his concealment and revelation which he unseals.]

Verse 6
[Immediately] then [in the very place where I had seen the seven burning torches] in front of the throne among the four living creatures and the elders I saw a Lamb standing, looking like it had been slain, [and in the place of the seven torches] with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.

[Notes for verse 6:  Because the Lamb is seen standing before the throne, in the very place where the seven spirits of God in the form of a menorah has been standing, it is understood that the seven spirits of God have now taken a new form, the form of the seven horns and seven eyes of the Lamb.  Why seven horns?  Although he is a Lamb having the wounds of one having been slaughtered, he is alive and his power has been magnified sevenfold. 

Just as the Shechinah, the Divine Spirit and Presence of Hashem was magnified seven fold in the Exodus, in leading Israel out of Egypt, so now it is also, being incarnate in the Lamb.  And the Divine Presence is shown working through the power of the Lamb, symbolized by his seven horns.

The horns of the male sheep are not among the most fearsome of horns but their power is like the power of battering rams.  It is as such that they are the foundation of the greatest among horns, the shofar. It is in the symbolism of the shofar that these seven horns, though they are of a lamb, contain the greatest power, that of the seven spirits of God. It is the seven trumpets of judgment of the seven spirits of God, which are to come, that these seven horns represent.  There will be Seven Thunders of the deepest revelation to inform Yochanan concerning the truth of the seven spirits of God. When we hear the seven blasts of those seven trumpets in the visions of the Revelation, therefore, we are to remember that within their sound are the seven spirits of God and that the consequence of each blast is the Revelation being watched by the seven eyes of the Lamb.]

Verse 7
And he went and received the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. 

[Notes for verse 7:  The Lamb who is the Lion of Judah, the Root of David, who was found worthy t open the seals received the scroll from The One who had always held it. As Yehoshua made known to Yochanan/John, the Revelation was given to him, Yehoshua HaMashiach (Jesus Christ) by God, Rev. 1:1.

Verse 8
When he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb.  Each of them held a harp, and a golden censer full of incense, which is [representative of] the prayers of the holy believers.

[Notes for verse 8:  In the volume of the Revelation we will learn much more about the Four Living Creatures and about the Twenty-four Elders. For now we can observe that as King David held a harp and composed songs of confession, praise and revelation in the word of God, so the twenty-four elders each hold a harp.  As Aaron held a golden censer and entered into the service of Hashem to provide atonement for Israel at the command of Hashem, so the twenty-four elders each hold a censer, to give life to the prayers of all holy believers in the presence of the One who sits upon the throne in the Temple in heaven.

These Twenty-four Elders of Israel have waited from the beginning, through all times and ages of prophecy for this very hour of the unsealing of the Revelation of their Mashiach.  As the circle of the greatest elders, they have overseen all.] 

Verse 9
And [now] they [the elders] composed a new song [to the Lamb], and sang, "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed us for God [Israel, and all who are incorporated into Israel] out of [Egypt at the first, and now out of] every tribe and language and people and nation, 

Verse 10
and you have made them [whom you have redeemed] a kingdom and priests to our God, and they [who are yours] shall reign [with you] on the earth."

[Notes for verses 9-10:  The song of the elders is one of a number of songs sung in heaven celebrating the Revelation of him who is revealed.  This song shows that the Good News and the Revelation are one and the same.]

Verse 11
Then I became aware that around the throne and the living creatures and the elders there were many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 

Verse 12a
and I heard them saying [all together as] with a [single, immensely] loud voice, 

[Notes for verses 11-12a:  Until now, the angels have kept themselves in the background to the Lamb, the elders and the four living angelic creatures, and the One seated upon the throne.  Now they form one voice to exclaim their agreement with the song of the Twenty-four Elders of Israel.]

Verse 12b
"Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to exercise power and bestow abundant blessing and wisdom and ability [while receiving all] honor and glory and reverential adoration!

Verse 13
[And to the song of the elders and the chorus of the angels,] I heard every creature in heaven, on earth, under the earth, and in the sea, everything that is in them all, responding, "May [all] praise, honor, glory, and power be acknowledged to belong to the One who sits on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever!"

[Notes for verse 13:  Indeed, now we know that the great voice of the angel asking, "Who is worthy to open the seals..." was heard throughout all creation! For now every creature in heaven and earth has heard its angel speak and, in a vision that goes out of time and reaches into the new, eternal creation, all creatures are heard together, each in their own voice, declaring their agreement with the song of the elders and with the angels expressing their gratitude for the Revealer of the Revelation, for its Good News.]

Verse 14
Then the four living creatures said, "Amen!", and the elders bowed down in worship.

[Notes for verse 14:  Listening to all, the Four Living Creatures close this great universal chorus of Song and Prayer by saying, "Amen"; the Twenty-four Elders of Israel bow down in awe and silence.]

Summary:
[The New Song composed by the twenty-four elders opens up the vision of Yochanan, and ourselves with him, to see beyond and through the moment when the Lamb takes the Scroll of The Judgment of the Nations out of the hand of the One who sits upon the thrown.  With Yochanan we are transported through the news of the New Song beyond place and time, to the very end of the Revelation when all the angels of heaven and all the living creatures on the earth and under the earth and in the sea, every living creature in creation, is filled with the knowledge of the grace and beauty and worthiness with which God has imbued the Lamb and with love for the Lamb.  It is from this place beyond place and time beyond time that God gives to Yehoshua this Revelation which (from our perspective) opens in chapter one with a vision of his glory.  We will come there, to that place and time where we are found, again when we reach the final chapter of this book.]

This page was updated on September 10, 2007

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Revelation 4 with interpretive notes

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TABLE OF CONTENTS  for this study

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Verses 1-4

After I saw and heard these things, I saw a door open into heaven. The same voice I had heard speaking to me before like a trumpet [as in the first chapter of the book] said, Come up here! I will show you the things that must take place afterwards. 

[Comments for verses 1-4:  The revelation of Yehoshua HaMashiach (Jesus Christ), which will come and is come already in measure through the Holy Spirit and through the visions of this Book and in all the Scriptures, actually begins with the unsealing of the great scroll received by the Lamb, as recorded in chapter five.  When the great trumpet voice says to Yochanan (John) that he will show him the things that must take place "afterwards", the meaning of "afterwards" here is in reference to Yochanan's personal experience.  In reference to the Revelation itself as it is unfolded in heaven it is Yochanan's appearance before the One seated upon the Throne, as recorded next, which sets the stage for the beginning of the Revelation.

Since the time of Mashiach's/Christ's ascension into heaven he has been concealed from Israel and from the whole earth.  This book is about that concealment coming to an end — how that is to happen, why there is a concealment and why there is a revelation.  The actual Revelation will begin with the Lamb opening the Scroll of The Revelation.  After the Revelation is given completely in the form of visions to Yochanan, it is then taken into time in the Spirit and given to Yochanan, "on the Lord's Day, as recorded in chapter one.  Receiving then the whole of the Revelation, Yochanan writes down all that he experienced in the Great Revelation vision.

Instantly I was in the Spirit, and I saw [a vision of the] One seated on a throne in heaven. The appearance of the One sitting on the throne was like jasper and carnelian stone, while an emerald rainbow circled the throne. Around the throne [of heaven] were twenty four thrones. Twenty four elders sat upon the twenty four thrones, wearing white robes and golden crowns of victory. 

[Comments for verses 1-4 continued:  While on earth Yochanan's experience began with the vision of the glorified Mashiach/Christ.  In heaven his experience began with the vision of the One seated upon the Throne.  Yochanan knows himself to be caught up in a vision of the One Upon The Throne, like Ezekiel and Isaiah and other prophets were, and records his experience in dialogue with their experiences as recorded in the Scriptures.

We must begin, then, by understanding that the vision of the One seated upon the throne is a vision received from the beginning among the prophets of Israel. It was seen by all the children of Israel on Mount Sinai. Knowledge of it has been received through the generations in Israel as the tradition of what is called the vision of the Chariot.  A most remarkable difference between wha tYochanan experiences here and what is recorded as having been experienced before in visions of the chariot is that the twenty four elders appear here and that there is much action and dialogue that takes place between all present in the vision.

That there are to be twenty four elders seated upon thrones around the Chariot is a revelation that is given for the first time here in the Book of the Revelation of Yehoshua HaMashiach (Jesus Christ), as prophesied in Psalms 107:32. Like the Tabernacle moved from place to place, the Chariot was before seen to move from place to place; now with the Revelation of Yehoshua HaMashiach it is seen in a vision to have come to rest in one place. It is as if the Temple in Heaven is built in one place by the Throne coming to rest in one place. This is shown at this beginning point in the book of the revelation of Yehoshua HaMashiach, in order that it might be seen that the thrones of the twenty four elders are set up and established around the throne of the One Who Is Above All for the purpose of the twenty four elders of Israel being witnesses to, (from their rightful place), the immediate revelation of the Mashiach and his full redemption of Israel.

"As I looked, thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze." Daniel 7:9

[To clarify what has been said:  In the first chapter of the Book of the Revelation of Yehoshua HaMashiach we are told that God gave the Revelation to him to give to his servants. It is to be understood that God gave it to him in a place outside of time. It is a supernatural place "after which" all that is written in the revelation is complete and "before" the eternal judgment of the world. From that supernatural place outside of time Yehoshua sends this revelation by his angel to Yochanan (John) in time. It is at the point of, and by the action of, the Revelation being given to Yehoshua and from Yehoshua to Yochanan that the twenty four thrones of the elders are set up. Just as Yochanan (John), and we through him, are the audience to the visions of this Revelation, so the twenty four elders are seen to be set up upon their thrones to form a part of the audience of the visions of this revelation, to be its lead witnesses. These things are signified to us by fact that the twenty four elders are said to (already) be "wearing white robes and golden crowns of victory."

That the twenty four elders are the twenty four elders of Israel is itself an aspect of this revelation. Their number corresponds to the twelve tribes of Israel. It corresponds to the number of the tribes of Israel in a manner which is doubled for reasons we will understand later. At this point we can find a clue as to who these twenty four elders are by recognizing that Yochanan's vantage point in seeing all the visions would seem to be from the distance of the circle of the thrones of the twenty four elders itself. Although we are not told explicitly that this is the case, we could easily imagine that Yochanan himself is seeing all that he sees while sitting in, or rising from, one of the twenty four thrones.]

Verses 5-6a

Flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder came from the throne. Directly in front of the throne were seven blazing torches [as in a seven branched menorah] these [lights] were the seven spirits of God [the sevenfold Spirit of God]. Approaching the throne was something like a sea of glass, like clear crystal. 

[Comments for verses 5-6a:  All that has come and that will come as the visions of this Revelation come from the throne and come in the form of revelations of lightning and thunder. At a distance it is a strike of lightning which creates the thunder. But as the storm of judgment approaches it is the reverse. First thunder comes as a warning. Then lightning strikes home. And then the final thunder comes to announce what has been done.

The Spirit of God is one with a sevenfold manifestation, as when the Shechinah, the form of the Spirit of God as accompanying and dwelling with All Israel, had a sevenfold manifestation as seven pillars of cloud by day and seven pillars of fire by night. Four pillars of the Divine Presence accompanied the tribes of Israel by surrounding them on the East, South, West and North. One pillar of the Divine Presence travelled beneath their feet, one above them, and one in front of them leading their way. As this was done on earth, the seven spirits of God in the sevenfold menorah stood before the One who sat upon the throne in the Temple of heaven. Likewise, it was always so, and is, that, while being present in heaven before the throne, the Divine Presence accompanies Israel on the earth, in the Land of Israel and in exile, though it is not always made so visibly to those who dwell upon the earth.

The sea of glass, like crystal, has reference to the firmament that separated the upper waters from the lower, the heavens from the earth.  That divide will be overcome when God reigns upon the earth as he reigns in heaven. This comes with the final Revelation of Israel's Messiah. There is much to be said about the sea of glass, the apparent waters, like clear crystal, approaching the throne. In this approach to the throne is the mystery and secret of the relationship of faith and knowledge, and we must return to this later.]

Verses 6b-11

Adjacent to the the throne in each direction there were[being made as one] four living creatures, all of them having eyes in front and behind. Of the four living creatures, one was like a lion, another like an ox. A third had a face like that of Adam. And the fourth had the head of an eagle [appearing] as though it were in flight. Each of the four living creatures had six wings [making them able to move and carry the throne in every direction, as well as to cover themselves before the throne when still] and [together and individually they] possessed eyes to see in every direction. Day and night [the four living creatures, speaking in the Holy Tongue, they] never cease to say, “Kadosh, kadosh, kadosh Adonai Elohei-Tzva’ot, asher haya v’hoveh v’yavo!" [which translated is, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God of Hosts, who was and who is and who is to come!”

About the Four Living Creatures there is much more to be said and known in the Revelation of Mashiach and for his sake.  We must also return to this later.]

At those times when the living creatures give glory, honor, and thanks to the One who sits upon the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty four elders bow down and worship the One who lives forever and ever. 

[The relationship between the Four Living Creatures and the Twenty-Four Elders of Israel will be seen to be a relationship that is entwined in every way.]

They throw their crowns of victory down in front of the throne and say, "You are worthy, our Lord and God, to [be the One recognized to] have[the] glory, honor, and power,[by those who experience salvation]because you created all things; they came into existence and were created because of your will."

[Summary of some points for 6b-11:  Preliminary concerning The Four Living Creatures: as said, there is to be much revealed concerning the role of the Four Living Creatures in the revelation of the Mashiach of Israel. The nature of the four creatures represents their attributes, and those attributes are essential attributes through which the One who sits upon the throne rules the world and reveals His Mashiach, first to Israel, then also to the world — in order to bring His throne to rest in the heavens in one place.

Also as I have said, through consideration of the actions of these angelic creatures, and consideration of their relationship with the twenty-four elders, as given in this book, there is much that is meant to be revealed to us. This will come out in the chapters to come. The importance of this point is emphasized here by the statement that it is when the Four Living Creatures bring forth their praise of the One upon the throne that the twenty four elders of Israel follow their lead to offer their praise of the One who sits upon the throne. The praise that The Twenty-four Elders give here is the praise that embodies corporate repentance for Adam. For it was Adam's failure to praise the One upon the throne as being worthy of Adam's faith in Him as the Creator of all things that brought the judgment of death upon the world. Only the twenty four elders of Israel have the place, the ability and the authority to make this confession on behalf of corporate Adam.]

This page was last updated September 10,, 2017

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