A Door Was Opened in Heaven (Revelation 4)

2013-03-24

Revelation 4:1-3: The Throne in Heaven

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. And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. 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.

Immediately after Jesus dictated these letters to John for the seven churches, John sees a door opened in heaven. He also hears a voice beckoning him to heaven. These things seem to indicate that Jesus Christ had left John after speaking of the church in Laodicea, and immediately went to heaven. Let us look at some of indicators of this.

First, this voice were as a trumpet. Previously, we saw Jesus speaking with “a great voice, as of a trumpet” in 1:10. Jesus speaks with a prominent voice--a voice of proclamation and commandment. This voice is very much the same.

Second, we just saw how Jesus opens and closes doors with the church in Philadelphia, in 3:7-8. The door to heaven is no different. Just as Jesus is the door of the sheep in John 10:7-9, he also is the door to heaven. Without Jesus opening the door for us to heaven, we are without help or hope. Christ opens doors in our lives every day as well, and we need to be able to hear his voice.

The reason for Jesus calling John to heaven is to reveal to John “things which much be hereafter.” This is a definite shift in the narrative, taking us away from the churches contemporary to John and moving to future events. It is clear that these events had not happened yet in John’s day, and since it is largely believed that Revelation was written after the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, this would cause us to be suspicious of any preterist interpretation of the book (at least as it being ultimately fulfilled in the first century). In addition, Revelation is filled with worldwide events that clearly have not happened yet in human history.

One misconception of this verse is that this is referring to the catching away of the saints, normally called the rapture. The evidence usually given is the use of Jesus’ voice “was as it were of a trumpet” and then John appeared in heaven. However, Jesus is telling John to “come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.” The context tells us that Jesus is talking to a single person, not an innumerable throng of people, such as in Revelation 7:9.

The Bible says that John was “in the spirit.” This appears to indicate that his body may not have ascended to heaven, but his spirit only. Either way, John was seeing actual events in heaven. What he saw strongly resembles what we see in Isaiah 6:1-3 and Ezekiel 1. This majestic scene we are about to see all revolves around this one who “sat upon the throne.” This is the living creator God.

His throne resembled beautiful stones, ones worthy of a great king. A rainbow around his throne is reminiscent of the rainbow of Noah’s day, as told in Genesis 9:8-17. God promised that “the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.” In his mercy, for all those who have believed the good news and accepted God’s amnesty in Jesus Christ, they also will never be destroyed by the fire that will come upon the entire universe. Like the Noahic covenant, this is an “everlasting covenant,” and is a prominent sign seen around God’s throne. The rainbow of today is a picture of this reality in heaven.

Revelation 4:4-11: Creatures in Heaven

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. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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.

In verse 4, we see that God is not alone in heaven. We see various other people and creatures in his presence. The first group we see is a group of 24 elders seated in seats. They are dressed in white raiment, which has been a theme throughout Revelation so far. In 3:4-5, we remember that there were those in Sardis that will walk with Christ in white because they had not succumbed to the deadness of their church. Likewise, we see that wearing white raiment is a future promise to those who believe on Jesus Christ. No matter the lifestyle they had lived in their former lives, as new creatures they could look forward to these pure garments given to them by God. These elders likewise have these white clothes.

These elders also have crowns. This is a reward that is given to believers, as we saw with the Philadelphians in 3:11. We saw how these crowns were similar to those who won races in 1 Corinthians 9:24-25. These crowns are made of gold, so these are great rewards that were given to these elders.

The number of them, 24, is also curious. Our minds want to immediately factor this number into 12 and 2, because 12 is a significant number throughout the Bible, signifying the 12 tribes of Israel. Here is an interesting passage of Scripture:

Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore? And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. (Matthew 19:27-28)

If the twelve disciples are to sit on 12 thrones judging Israel, perhaps 12 of these seats are such thrones? Who could the other 12 be? Perhaps it is the 12 patriarchs of Israel, the sons of Jacob. Of course, this is all speculation, but these could be possibilities.

Out of God’s throne “proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices.” The significance of lightnings and thunderings is significant in other parts of the Bible. After the giving of the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20:1-17, in verses 18-21 we read:

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. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. 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. And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.

These terrifying things appear with the glory of God, invoking fear upon the people. Throughout the Bible, we see many people thinking that they would die because they saw God (e.g. Manoah, Judges 13:22). Though we may see things that evoke fear, we should also remember the rainbow that surrounds the same throne.

These seven lamps of fire we see in Revelation 4:5 are likely the heavenly candelabra because of the similar language used in Exodus 25:37 and 37:23. We know from Hebrews 8:5 and 9:23 that the Tabernacle pictured heavenly things, so it makes sense that the heavenly throne room contains these same items found in the Tabernacle.

These seven lamps somehow represent the “seven spirits of God.” We will return to this concept when we discuss Revelation 5:6.

In addition to the 24 elders, we see that there are four beasts that are also around God’s throne. They are full of eyes, seeming to indicate that, while not omniscient, have a a great knowledge of the universe with all they can see.

Verse 7 gives paints a rather curious picture of these beasts. Not only are they full of eyes; each one of them resembles something different. One resembles a lion, another like a calf, another a man, and yet another like an eagle. In Ezekiel 1:4-14, we also get a similar picture. Each creature in this case has four faces, each of a man, a lion, an ox, and an eagle. These are likely the same creatures, but from John’s point of view, they looked a bit different.

Their job seems to be praising God day and night without rest. They say, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.” Compare the threefold refrain of “holy” in Isaiah 6:3: “Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.” A seraph is likely the same as a beast here. The have six wings like the beasts in Revelation 4. Now Ezekiel only records them as having four wings, but the evidence does seem to indicate that these are the same creatures. Whatever your conclusion, all of these creatures are for God’s glory, and they bear witness that God is worthy of mighty praise.

Their praise is a cue for the 24 elders to worship God. First, it is good to mention that God is called the one who lives “for ever and ever.” God is eternal, and being before all things and the originator of all things, he is worthy of all the glory he is receiving from these creatures. The elders, as they begin to worship, cast their crowns, because they know God is worthy of this glory. These crowns, which they received from God, are rewards that belong rightfully to God anyway because he is the one who empowers his people to serve him.

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Revelation 4:11:

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.

This verse, recited by the elders continually in heaven, is the meaning of life. We were created to give God pleasure. If you ever wonder about those existential questions as to why were are here, and what we should do with our lives, we should remember Revelation 4:11. Let me say it again: We were created for God’s pleasure. Anything else is temporal and loses sight of eternity.