www.biblestudyworkshop.org 1 Who Is Worthy? God the Father Revelation 4:1-11
www.biblestudyworkshop.org 2 Text: Revelation 4:1-11, Who is Worthy? God the Father 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. 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.
www.biblestudyworkshop.org 3 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. Introduction: I. Jesus Christ is honored on every page of Revelation. II. Revelation 4 glorifies God the Father while Revelation 5 glorifies God the Son. Commentary: Note: In these chapters, the visions begin to show forces by which the church is affected; viz., God Almighty, the Lamb, the devil, the beast, the false prophet, the apostate city. Then the visions show the victory of righteousness and the defeat of evil. Revelation 4:1, 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. I. It is great to look into heaven! It is even better to live there forever! Revelation 4:2, And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.
www.biblestudyworkshop.org 4 I. John s spirit (mind and emotions) was under the influence of God s directions. A. Speak, Lord, thy servant heareth; command, and I will obey. II. God s Spirit will not control us against our will. A. Psalm 103:19, The LORD hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all. B. Psalm 119:89, For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Revelation 4:3, 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. I. We do not have clear information about the stones mentioned; i.e., jasper and sardius. A. Phillips translation has diamond for jasper. B. The NEB translates sardius as carnelian, a fiery red stone. 1. The rainbow was like an emerald. 2. These are said to represent God s purity (diamond), judgment (ruby), and mercy (emerald). Revelation 4:4, And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting,
www.biblestudyworkshop.org 5 clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold. I. Twenty-four elders could be a combination of the twelve (12) tribes of Israel and the twelve (12) apostles, thus providing a continuity of both Old and New Testaments. A. Revelation 21:12-14, And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. B. The numbers 7 and 12 signify wholeness or completion. C. Double 12; that is, 24, is absolute perfection. Revelation 4:5, 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. I. This description is very similar to that at Mt. Sinai when God spoke to the people. A. Exodus 19:16-19, And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount. And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.
www.biblestudyworkshop.org 6 And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice. B. God s throne is fully illuminated, the source of spiritual light for the world. Revelation 4:6, 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. I. A sea of glass may represent the population of the earth. II. Four all seeing living creatures entire animate creation glorify God perpetually. III. Four living creatures are described in Ezekiel, Daniel and Revelation. A. Ezekiel 1:4-9, And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire. Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man. And every one had four faces, and every one had four wings. And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf's foot: and they sparkled like the colour of burnished brass. And they had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides; and they four had their faces and their wings. Their wings were joined one to another; they turned not when they went; they went every one straight forward.
www.biblestudyworkshop.org 7 B. Daniel 7:1-7, In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters. Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it. And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh. After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it. After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. Revelation 4:7, 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. I. Some church architecture has these creatures representing the four (4) gospels. II. Some identify them with the seraphim and cherubim of the Old Testament. A. Isaiah 6:2, Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.
www.biblestudyworkshop.org 8 B. Ezekiel 10:20, This is the living creature that I saw under the God of Israel by the river of Chebar; and I knew that they were the cherubims. Revelation 4:8, 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. I. All creation gives glory to God. Revelation 4:9-11, And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever, 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, 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. The universe was created by Almighty God and was found to be very good. Our job is to keep it that way! II. Domitian, Roman Emperor of the time, demanded that he be addressed as, Our Lord and God. Shrines were erected for his veneration. These words properly apply to Almighty God only. III. The Divine right of Kings and the purported Deity of the Japanese Emperors are claims with which we were familiar during and prior World War II.
www.biblestudyworkshop.org 9 Questions Revelation 4:1-11 1. is on every page of. Revelation 4 glorifies the while Revelation 5 glorifies the. 2. By what, according to Revelation 4 and 5, is the church affected? 3. To into is! To there is even. 4. John s ( and ) was under the of. s will not us against our. 5. Tell all you can about jasper and sardius.
www.biblestudyworkshop.org 10 6. What do the twenty-four elders represent? 7. What is signified by the numbers 7, 12, and 24. 8. What is represented by a sea of glass and the four living creatures? 9. Compare Ezekiel s, Daniel s, and John s four living creatures. 10. All gives to. The was by and was found to be very. our is to that way!