Category: <span>Commentary</span>

John’s visions in Revelation 20-22 brought Revelation to completion as a literary unit and did the same for the whole of the storyline of Scripture. The visions John saw referenced figures and imagery from Genesis to the latest prophets of Israel. In reading Revelation 20-22, John’s audience was able to read the Bible’s story of God’s fulfilled redemptive plan.

(1) In Rev 20:1-3, 7-10, John referenced Satan as the ancient serpent, recalling Genesis 3 and Ezekiel 38-39. The serpent was the craftiest animal God created and the serpent tempted Eve to doubt God (Gen 3:1). Eve ate the forbidden fruit because she believed the serpent’s lie that if she ate, she would be like God, knowing good and evil (Gen 3:2-4). John saw an angel bind Satan with a chain for 1,000 years so that Satan would be prohibited from deceiving the nations (Rev 20:2-4). John wrote that after the 1,000 years, Satan would be loosed. True to his character, Satan would deceive the nations so that they would gather against God’s people, thinking that they could destroy the saints dwelling in God’s city (Rev 20:7-10). John’s vision of the vast army that Satan gathered included imagery from Ezekiel 38-39, where the prophet saw God gathering a vast army to come against Israel so that He would be known as holy when He destroyed by cataclysm and earthquake those opposing His people. In John’s portrayal of the great final battle, God allowed Satan to be released so that he could lie to the nations and gather them against His people, underscoring God’s supremacy over evil throughout Revelation.

(2) In Rev 20:12, 15; 22:12, John understood that judgement would be rendered according to each one’s deeds recorded in books, recalling the prophets’ references to the function of record books in judgement. Isaiah proclaimed the destruction of Edom, saying that the Lord had ordered in books the number of wild animals that would inhabit the land of Edom after He destroyed them (Isa 34:16-17). Jeremiah confronted the people of Judah because they listened to deceptive prophets and had deceptive hearts. He told the people that the Lord knew their hearts and would render judgement based upon each one’s work, according to what he deserves (Jer 17:10). When Daniel saw the Ancient of Days take His throne to judge the fourth beast, “the court was convened, and the books were opened” (Dan 7:10). The angel revealing God’s mysteries to Daniel told the prophet that despite the distress that would come upon God’s people, all those whose names were found written in the book would escape (Dan 12:1). John wrote in Rev 20:12, 15 that when he saw God seated on His throne with the dead standing before Him, books were opened; anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire, condemned by their deeds recorded in the book of works. When Jesus spoke to John in Rev 22:12, He told the apostle that He was coming soon to judge each according to their works.

(3) In Rev 20:14; 21:4, John saw the demise of death and mourning, echoing Isaiah’s prediction of the Lord’s acts on the day of salvation. Isaiah prophesied that on the day when the Lord saved His people, He would destroy death forever and wipe every tear dry (Isa 25:7-8). John watched as death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire, where the beast, the false prophet, and all those whose names were not written in the Lamb’s book of life will dwell forever and ever (Rev 20:14). After Death had been destroyed, mourning and tears of grief would cease (Rev 21:4).

(4) In Rev 21:1, John saw a new heaven and a new earth, recalling Isaiah’s prediction that God would make all things new. Isaiah proclaimed that in the day of salvation, the Lord would create a new heaven and new earth with the result that all past events would be remembered no more (Isa 65:17). Isaiah proclaimed that just as the new heavens and the new earth will endure forever, so the offspring of His people will endure forever (Isa 66:22).

(5) In Rev 21:3, 22-23, John wrote that God would dwell among His people, echoing the prophets’ predictions that God would redeem and dwell with His people in the new covenant. Isaiah prophesied that the Lord would dwell with His people as an everlasting light (Isa 60:19-20). Zechariah noted that after the Lord went out to fight against the nations, His holy ones would gather to Him and day and night would cease (Zech 14:3-7). Jeremiah proclaimed that the new covenant would not be like the covenant God made with Israel when He brought them out of Egypt. Rather, the Lord would write His law on the hearts of His people, and on their minds, forgiving their sins forever and dwelling among them (Jer 31:31-34). Ezekiel saw a vision of dry bones coming to life when the Spirit of the Lord blew upon them and heard the Lord proclaim, “My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be My people. When My sanctuary is among them forever, the nations will know that I, the LORD, sanctify Israel” (Ezek 37:27-28). The voice John heard speaking from the throne in Rev 21:3 heralded the new covenant promises of Jeremiah and Ezekiel. John saw no temple or lamp in the New Jerusalem because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple and they illuminate it (Rev 21:22-23).

(6) In Rev 22:1, John saw a river of living water flowing from God’s throne through the new city, echoing Ezekiel’s prophecy of a river flowing from the new temple. In Ezek 47:1-12, Ezekiel recorded his vision of a river flowing out of the temple, nourishing the trees that live on both sides of its banks. The angel speaking to Ezekiel told the prophet that the fruit of the trees would be for food and the leaves of the trees would have medicinal value. John wrote that the trees surrounding the river in the new city produced twelve kinds of fruit and its leaves were for the healing of the nations (Rev 22:2).

(7) In Rev 22:11, the angel told John that the prophetic words he had written would confirm the righteous and the unrighteous in their spiritual conditions, recalling God’s words to the prophets regarding their ministries. When the Lord called Isaiah to prophetic ministry, He told him that his messages would harden in unbelief those that did not have eyes to see or ears to hear (Isa 6:9-10). When the Lord called Ezekiel, He told Ezekiel to proclaim, “Let the one who listens, listen, and the one who refuses, refuse—for they are a rebellious house” (Ezek 3:27). The angel speaking to Daniel told him that while many would be cleansed and purified, the wicked would go on in wickedness and spiritual dullness (Dan 12:10). Like Daniel, John was told, “Let the unrighteousness go on in unrighteousness; let the filthy go on being made filthy; let the righteous go on in unrighteousness; and let the holy go on being made holy” (Rev 22:11).

(8) In Rev 22:16, Jesus identified Himself as the One fulfilling the messianic roles prophesied by Balaam and Isaiah. Though Balaam faltered as a prophet (Num 22:22-35; 31:16; 2 Pet 2:15; Jude 11; Rev 2:14), he foretold of a day when a star and a scepter would arise from Jacob and subdue Moab, Edom, and Seir (Num 24:17-19). In Isa 11:1-2, Isaiah prophesied that the Lord would anoint with His Spirit One who would come from the line of Jesse, the father of King David (1 Sam 16:1). Isaiah said that the nations would seek after the One from Jesse’s line and all who sought Him would know the glory of His resting place (Isa 11:10). After John received the visions from an angel, the Lord Jesus Himself appeared to John and told the apostle that He was coming soon to judge each one according to what they had done. Jesus said, “I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright Morning Star” (Rev 22:16).

John’s portrayal of judgement in Revelation narrowed and slowed in reference to Babylon in chs. 17-19. The Babylonian Empire cast a shadow into Jewish and Roman relations in John’s day. Many Jews felt as though they were yet in captivity, having been overtaken first by the Babylonians and then, later on, by the Romans. John’s description of the judgement of Babylon in Revelation 17-19 encapsulated not just Old Testament references specific to that ancient empire but also general prophetic images of judgement. In the judgement of Babylon, God judged all nations that opposed His people.

(1) In Rev 17:5, John saw the name of the harlot, Babylon, whom the Lord was going to judge, recalling Isaiah’s and Jeremiah’s pronouncements against Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar was the Babylonian king whom the Lord raised up to destroy Jerusalem and the temple because of the idolatry of His people (2 Kgs 25:1-21). Isaiah announced that the Lord would come against Babylon just as He had used Babylon to come against Israel. Babylon would become like Sodom and Gomorrah, inhabited by wild animals, void of the culture and life it once knew (Isaiah 13). Isaiah’s prophetic word against Babylon was intended to encourage his audience in the justice of God (Isa 21:1-10). Jeremiah likewise proclaimed that the Lord would execute justice against Babylon and make her desolate just as she had laid waste nations in the days when Nebuchadnezzar ruled (Jeremiah 50-51). One of the seven angels emptying the bowls of God’s wrath told John that God was going to judge Babylon. The angel told John that Babylon was a prostitute, the dominion of everything vile (Rev 17:1-4). Isaiah and Jeremiah announced the Lord’s judgement upon Babylon because Babylon was filled with the blood of Israel; John heard of the Lord’s judgement upon the great prostitute Babylon because she was filled with the blood of the saints (Rev 17:6).

(2) In Rev 18:11, 18-19, John described the merchants’ mourning at the sudden downfall of Babylon, using language that Ezekiel used to describe the merchants’ mourning at the downfall of Tyre. In Ezekiel 27, the prophet confronted Tyre for arrogantly admiring her own beauty and location at the gateway of the sea. She had access to all the goods of the earth; Tyre was adorned and adored by the nations. “But the east wind has shattered you,” Ezekiel declared (Ezek 27:26). Those once enthralled with Tyre lamented the downfall, wailing over Tyre, shaving their heads and covering themselves in sackcloth (Ezek 27:28-31). Ezekiel wrote, “Those who trade among the peoples hiss at you; you have become an object of horror and will never exist again” (Ezek 27:36). John heard the kings of the earth and all who exchanged with Babylon cry out, “Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the mighty city! For in a single hour your judgment has come” (Rev 18:10). John said that those who profited from Babylon would never do so again. The seafarers and sailors stood watch and mourned Babylon’s destruction, saying, “Woe, woe, the great city, where all those who have ships on the sea became rich from her wealth; because in a single hour she was destroyed” (Rev 18:19).

(3) In Rev 19:13, John saw that the garment of the rider on the white horse was stained with blood, echoing the blood-stained clothes of the victor Isaiah prophesied. Isaiah declared God’s vengeance, noting that the blood staining the Lord’s garment was the blood of those crushed in the winepress of His anger as he trampled His opponents (Isa 63:1-3). John saw heaven opened and the One called Faithful and True coming forth riding a white horse to do battle, having the armies of heaven in tow (Rev 19:11). The One proceeding on the white horse had a robe stained with blood (Rev 19:13), His own, by which He conquered (Rev 1:5; 5:5, 9).

(4) In Rev 19:18, John heard an angel call the birds to gather and feast on the flesh of the kings of the earth destroyed by the rider on the white horse, recalling Ezekiel’s prophecy that birds would gather to eat the flesh of horse and rider on the day the Lord executed His vengeance against His enemies. Ezekiel prophesied that the Lord would gather the nations as a large army to come against Israel and on the day of battle, He would conquer them and execute His vengeance (Ezekiel 38). The Lord told Ezekiel to proclaim to the birds of heaven that they should gather to the mountains of Israel because He was going to set before them a sacrificial feast consisting of the flesh of horse and rider that He gathered against Israel (Ezek 39:17-20). John saw an angel standing in the sun as it called out to the birds to gather for the supper of God: the flesh of kings and horses, the flesh of both slave and free (Rev 19:18). They were destroyed by the sword that proceeded from the mouth of the rider, Faithful and True, and the beast and the false prophet were thrown into the lake of fire (Rev 19:19-21).

John used similar terms to describe the seal (Rev 6:1-17; 8:1-6), trumpet (Rev 8:1-9:21; 11:15-19) and bowl judgments (Rev 16:1-21). John’s visions of judgement included common figures and imagery because the Lord who called His people out of Egypt and spoke to the prophets of Israel was the same Lord who revealed to John what would soon take place on earth. The judgement scenes in Revelation brought to fulfillment the Lord’s work in Israel and Jesus.

(1) In Rev 15:3, John heard the victorious saints singing the song of Moses and of the Lamb, recalling Moses’ songs after the exodus and just before his death. After the exodus, Moses and Israel sang to the Lord a song of praise for delivering them from Pharaoh’s clutches (Exodus 15). Moses and Israel extolled the Lord as the warrior against Whom no one could stand, the One orchestrating the natural world as an instrument of judgement, the One reigning forever. John heard the faithful standing on a sea of glass crying out to God and proclaiming His greatness as King of all nations, the only Holy One (Rev 15:3-4).

(2) In Rev 15:5-8, John saw a heavenly tabernacle opened and filled with smoke from God’s glory so that no one could enter—just as smoke prevented anyone from entering the tabernacle and the temple after they were constructed. When the tabernacle and all of its furnishings were completed, Moses placed the ark of the covenant in the tabernacle and offered the burnt offering and grain offering as the Lord commanded (Exod 40:16-29). Then a cloud covered the tabernacle and the Lord’s glory filled it, preventing Moses from entering (Exod 40:34-35). When Solomon constructed the temple and the priests brought the ark of the covenant into the most holy place, a cloud of the Lord’s glory filled the temple and the priests could not enter (1 Kgs 8:1-11; 2 Chron 5:13-14).

(3) In Rev 16:10, John saw the beast’s kingdom plunged into darkness, echoing the darkness that came upon Pharaoh and the Egyptians in the ninth plague. The Lord told Moses to stretch out his hand to the heavens and a thick darkness would come over all the land of Egypt except where Israel dwelt (Exod 10:21-23). The fourth angel poured its bowl on the sun, intensifying its heat so that those dwelling on earth were burned. The fifth angel poured out its bowl of God’s wrath upon the throne of the beast who was empowered by the dragon (Revelation 13) and his kingdom was encompassed by thick darkness (Rev 16:10). The contrast between the fourth and fifth bowls demonstrated God’s sovereignty over the heavenly bodies, enhancing or diminishing them for His own purposes.

(4) In Rev 16:12-21, John saw demonic forces gathering earthly kings for the battle at Armageddon, recalling the prophets’ predictions of a great, final battle when God would orchestrate natural disasters to annihilate His enemies. Ezekiel described the period when the Lord would call the nations for battle with Israel so that He would show Himself as the holy God of His people by executing Israel’s enemies with cataclysm and natural disaster (Ezek 38:1-39:20). Joel likewise announced that on the Day of the Lord, the Lord would demonstrate His greatness by raising His voice against Israel’s foes (Joel 2:11), having gathered them for battle to exact His vengeance upon them (Joel 3:2). When the sixth angel poured its bowl on the Euphrates River, unclean spirits like frogs came forth from the mouth of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet to summon the nations for the war on the day when God, the Almighty, would show His dominion (Rev 16:14-16). When the seventh angel poured its bowl into the air, the Lord demonstrated His great anger by sending cataclysmic storms and an earthquake in order to glorify Himself before those dwelling on earth (Rev 16:17-21).

Revelation 12-14 provided a backstage view of the Devil’s war against the followers of Christ. The visions in these chapters—in accord with descriptions of judgement in the sixth (Rev 6:12-17) and seventh (Rev 8:1-6) seals, and the seventh trumpet (Rev 11:15-19)—showed the fulfillment of God’s word to the serpent in the Garden of Eden. There God announced to the Devil that the seed of the woman would strike his head (Gen 3:15). Having been defeated by Christ’s death and resurrection (Rev 5:5-12; 12:1-12; 1 Cor 15:51-57; Col 2:15; Heb 2:14-15), the Devil employed every deceptive force in his arsenal to wage war against believers (Rev 12:13-13:18; Eph 6:10-17). Even during the Devil’s last hurrah, God demonstrated His supremacy over the forces of evil, enabling the faithful to endure and inherit their reward of eternal life. In Revelation 12-14, John employed a variety of Old Testament ideas to synthesize Scripture’s storyline.

(1) In Rev 12:3, John saw a dragon that resembled the fourth beast in Daniel’s vision of world powers. In Daniel 7, the prophet had a dream and received a vision of four beasts that would come upon the earth to rule in succession. The fourth beast frightened Daniel because of its strength, iron teeth, and ten horns (Dan 7:7). During the reign of the fourth beast, Daniel saw the Ancient of Days take His throne and one like a son of man approached the Ancient of Days to receive authority and rule God’s kingdom (Dan 7:9-14). John saw a dragon with seven heads and ten horns standing in front of the woman, ready to devour her Son when He was born (Rev 12:3).

(2) In Rev 12:5, John saw the woman give birth to a Son whose rule resembled that of the King of Israel. In Psalm 2, the psalmist described the divine coronation of Israel’s King. Though the nations surrounding Israel conspired to thwart God’s King in Israel, the King was God’s Son, commissioned to rule for God on God’s holy mountain (Ps 2:1-6). The Lord proclaimed to His King in Zion that the King would break His opponents with a rod of iron and shatter them like earthenware (Ps 2:7-9). Both Israel’s King in Psalm 2 and the Son born to the woman in Rev 12:5 had power to rule with an iron scepter.

(3) In Rev 12:7, John saw a vision of spiritual warfare that paralleled visions of spiritual warfare in Daniel. In Daniel 10, for three weeks Daniel had been mourning Israel’s subjection to her enemies. Then, he received a vision, which showed him that during those three weeks there was a spiritual battle in heaven delaying the angelic messenger from coming to Daniel’s aid (Dan 10:1-13a). “Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me after I had been left there with the kings of Persia,” the angelic messenger told Daniel (Dan 10:13b). Michael watched over Daniel and all of Israel (Dan 10:21; 12:1). Daniel’s description of spiritual war in heaven, including the Archangel Michael’s authority in battle, provided the background for John’s vision in Revelation 12. After the birth of the woman’s Son, John saw an angelic war in heaven where Michael and his angels fought against the Devil and his demonic forces (Rev 12:7). Michael and his angels prevailed, and the Devil was thrown to the earth.

(4) In Rev 13:1-5, John’s vision of the beast from the sea resembled the beasts Daniel saw in his vision of world powers. Daniel learned that the beasts he saw were kings that would rule in succession (Dan 7:16-17). The first beast was like a lion, the second beast looked like a bear, the third beast was like a leopard, and the fourth beast spoke arrogantly (Dan 7:3-8). John saw a vision of a leopard-like beast coming out of the sea and its feet were like those of a bear, its mouth was like that of a lion, and it spoke with boasting and blasphemy (Rev 13:1-2, 5). The dragon introduced in Revelation 12 gave the beast his authority so that the whole earth worshipped the dragon and the beast (Rev 13:3-4).

(5) In Rev 13:10, John responded to the vision of the dragon and the beast by writing a proverb that reflected the Lord’s word to Jeremiah concerning His sentence against the people of Judah. Jeremiah cried out to God so that He would not reject His people, asking God to intervene for His own Name’s sake and the covenant He made with His people (Jer 14:17-22). The Lord replied to Jeremiah that even if Moses or Elijah should plead Judah’s case, His verdict against His people would not change, saying, “Those destined for death, to death; those destined for the sword, to the sword. Those destined for famine, to famine; those destined for captivity, to captivity” (Jer 15:2b). John wrote that what the people of Judah experienced because of their sin, his audience should expect because of the dragon and the beast’s war against the saints. Since everyone living on earth, everyone whose name was not written in the Lamb’s book of life, would worship the beast and the dragon, believers would be attacked on all sides, sent to captivity and killed by the sword (Rev 13:7-10a). John wrote, “Here is the endurance and the faith of the saints” (Rev 13:10b).

(6) In Rev 14:14, John saw One like the Son of Man resembling the figure that approached the Ancient of Days in Daniel’s vision. When the Ancient of Days appeared coming with the clouds in Daniel’s vision of the four beasts, Daniel saw a son of man figure approach the Ancient of Days and receive His kingdom, to rule over all nations with power and authority forever (Dan 7:13-14). John saw One like the Son of Man seated on the clouds, having a sickle of judgement in His hand and a gold crown on His head (Rev 14:14). John heard an angel proclaim to the Son of Man that He should swing His sickle and reap the earth’s harvest.

(7) In Rev 14:20, John saw the blood of those suffering the wrath of God flowing on the ground outside of the city, echoing Isaiah’s prediction that blood would cover the ground on the day of God’s wrath. Isaiah proclaimed that on the day of the Lord’s vengeance against His enemies, He alone would conquer them, pouring out their blood on the ground (Isa 63:1-6). In John’s vision, the blood spilling from the winepress of the wrath of God flowed for 180 miles as deep as a horse’s bridle (Rev 14:20).

When the risen Lord Jesus appeared to John on the island of Patmos, He commissioned John to write prophetic visions to the churches (Revelation 1-3). The messages to the churches encouraged them to remain steadfast and endure their Christian difficulties so that they could partake in the reward of eternal life. Just as Jesus endured the cross according to God’s will—and was rewarded (Revelation 4-5)—so too John’s audience could be assured that their endurance would grant them participation in His reign and eternal life in His presence. The seal and trumpet judgements that followed were meant to encourage John’s audience to persevere in their testimony to Christ. John’s use of Old Testament imagery and figures in Revelation 9-11 confirmed for John’s audience that he was recording the fulfillment of God’s plan to redeem His people and dwell with them forever.

(1) In Rev 9:7-8, at the sounding of the fifth trumpet, John saw a vision of destructive locusts, echoing the eighth plague of the exodus and the prophecy of Joel. In the eighth plague, the Lord sent locusts over the land of Egypt to consume all the vegetation that was not destroyed by the hail thrown to the earth in the seventh plague (Exod 10:12-15). John saw locusts coming out of the Abyss to torment those that did not have God’s seal upon them. The locusts looked like horses having gold crowns, the faces of men, and teeth like lions’ teeth (Rev 9:7-8). The appearance of the locusts resembled Joel’s description of the army invading Israel in Joel 1:6; 2:4.

(2) In Rev 9:20, John used Old Testament imagery of idolatry to describe the idols of those who escaped the plagues. In Exod 32:1-6, Israel constructed a golden calf and worshipped what they had made. In his final message to Israel, Moses chastised Israel for sacrificing to gods they had not known (Deut 32:17). Isaiah confronted Israel for worshipping the work of their own hands and prophesied that on the day of judgement those idols would be worthless, thrown to moles and bats (Isa 2:8, 20). Jeremiah reminded Israel that idols are the work of men’s hands; even if gold was carved or cast, the idol it produced had no life in it (Jer 10:14-15). At the conclusion of the sixth trumpet, those who had not been killed by the preceding plagues continued to worship demons and idols of gold and silver, the work of human hands (Rev 9:20).

(3) In Rev 10:9-10, John was given a scroll to eat, recalling Ezek 2:8-3:3. When the Lord called Ezekiel to prophetic ministry, the Lord told him to receive and eat a scroll the Lord prepared for him. The Lord unrolled the scroll and Ezekiel saw words of dread and mourning. Written on the scroll was the judgement God had planned against His people and the nations, words sweet to Ezekiel’s taste. In John’s vision of the angel standing on the land and the sea, John was told to take the small scroll from the mighty angel and eat it. John said that it was sweet as honey to the taste but bitter in his stomach. John was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages, and kings” (Rev 10:11).

(4) In Rev 11:1, John was given a measuring reed and told to measure God’s sanctuary and the altar, just as Ezekiel saw an angel measuring the sanctuary in his vision of the new temple. After describing the destruction the Lord would bring upon the nations, Ezekiel prophesied of Israel’s restoration to God and the temple they would dwell in with God. Ezekiel watched as an angel measured the temple (Ezek 40:3, 5; 42:15-19). John was given a measuring reed and told to measure all but the courtyard because it would be trampled by the nations for a time (Rev 11:2).

(5) In Rev 11:6, John saw two witnesses who had powers like Elijah and Moses. During the reign of King Ahab, Elijah confronted Israel’s idolatry and prophesied that it would not rain (1 Kgs 17:1). It did not rain in Israel until after the Lord showed His greatness over Baal on Mount Carmel (1 Kgs 18:40-46). The first plague the Lord empowered Moses to perform before bringing Israel out of Egypt was the Nile turning to blood when Aaron’s rod struck the waters (Exod 7:17-21). John said that the two figures testifying of God to the nations would have power to stop rain from falling and the ability to turn water to blood (Rev 11:6).

In Revelation 1-5 John addressed the seven churches of Asia Minor according to their contemporary situation (chs. 2-3) and presented them with the encouraging vision of Christ’s endurance and reward (chs. 4-5). The climax of that vision occurred when Christ approached the One seated on the throne and took the scroll that had God’s plan for the unfolding of the age written on both sides. John said that the scroll was sealed with seven seals (Rev 5:1).

John described the breaking of those seals in Revelation 6-8. He described the Lamb, Jesus Christ, as One unrolling the scroll, progressively revealing the judgments that would ensue. That Jesus was unfolding the scroll—and the scroll described judgement in accord with expectations established in the Old Testament—showed Jesus’ supremacy in the overarching narrative of Scripture.

(1) In Rev 6:1-8 John described four horsemen issuing judgement upon the earth, echoing Zech 6:1-8. One night during the reign of Darius, king of Persia, the Lord gave Zechariah a series of eight visions describing the day He would judge Israel’s enemies and save Jerusalem (Zech 1:7-6:15). In the final vision, Zechariah saw four chariots begin pulled by red, black, white, and spotted horses. These horses represented four spirits that went out to present themselves to the Lord (Zech 6:1-8). In John’s vision, as the scroll was unrolled and the seals were broken, horses went out carrying figures that would execute judgement on earth. The horses in John’s vision were first, the white horse of a conqueror, second, the red hose of the one taking peace from the earth, third, the black horse of the one harming agriculture, and fourth, the pale green horse of the one causing death upon the earth.

(2) In Rev 6:10, John heard the cries of the martyred saints, echoing the Angel of the Lord’s cry for justice in Zech 1:12. During Zechariah’s first vision the Angel of the Lord cried out, saying, “How long, LORD of Hosts, will You withhold mercy from Jerusalem and the cities of Judah that You have been angry with these 70 years?” (Zech 1:12). The Lord said that He was angry with Israel’s enemies and promised that he would restore Jerusalem’s fortunes (Zech 1:14-17). At the opening of the fifth seal, John heard the cry of the martyrs that asked God how long until He would avenge their blood (Rev 6:10). A white robe was given to each of them and they were told that God would show His wrath upon their enemies once the full number of their fellow martyrs had finished testifying of Jesus (Rev 6:11).

(3) In Rev 6:12-14, John described the judgements of the sixth seal in language the prophets also used to portray judgement. In Isaiah 13, the prophet announced the Lord’s judgement upon Babylon. Isaiah said that the stars would cease to give their light and the sun would be darkened (Isa 13:10). The earth would quake and the heavens would tremble at the time of God’s wrath against His enemies (Isa 13:13). Isaiah said that when the Lord judges the nations, the stars would dissolve, and the skies would be rolled up (Isa 34:4). Ezekiel prophesied that on the day the Lord judged Pharaoh, the heavens would be darkened, hiding the sun and the moon (Ezek 32:7-9). Joel announced that on the Day of the Lord, the sun, moon, and stars would be darkened (Joel 2:10-11). When John saw the Lamb open the sixth seal, there was a violent earthquake, the sun was darkened, stars fell to the earth, the sky was rolled up, and the earth shook (Rev 6:12-14).

(4) In Rev 6:15, John saw people hiding in caves to escape God’s judgement just as Isaiah prophesied would happen in the last days. Isaiah proclaimed that on the Day of the Lord, people should hide in the rocks to escape the wrath of God (Isa 2:10, 19-21). When cataclysm erupted at the breaking of the sixth seal, John saw people hiding in rocks and caves to escape the wrath of God and of the Lamb because no one was able to stand Their judgement.

(5) In Rev 7:9, John saw a great multitude from all nations gathered to praise God, echoing Old Testament expectations that many nations would know the Lord. In Gen 12:1-3, the Lord promised to make Abraham into a great nation and through him to bless all peoples of the earth. The Lord chose Israel out of all nations so that through His covenant with them, all nations would know of the Lord’s greatness (Exod 19:5-6; Deut 4:1-8). The psalmists cried out for the nations to seek the Lord (Pss 67:1-5; 96:10, 13; 98:2). In Daniel’s vision of the four beasts and the Ancient of Days, he saw one like a son of man ruling over all nations (Dan 7:14). Between the sixth and seventh seals, John saw a vast multitude of all nations gathered to worship and proclaim, “Salvation belongs to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!” (Rev 7:10).

(6) In Rev 7:17, one of the elders told John that the Lamb would shepherd those who remained faithful unto death, echoing shepherd imagery of the Old Testament. After the Lord told Moses that he would not be allowed to lead Israel into the Promised Land, Moses asked the Lord to appoint a leader over His people so that they would not be like sheep without a shepherd (Num 27:15-17; Matt 9:36//Mark 6:34). David described the Lord as his Shepherd in Psalm 23. When David was anointed king over Israel, the people proclaimed that the Lord had established David as their shepherd (2 Sam 5:2). Ezekiel expressed God’s anger with Israel’s shepherds for not feeding and caring for His people, stating that God would shepherd them Himself (Ezekiel 34). The elder speaking to John stated that the martyrs would no longer hunger or be harmed by the sun because the Lamb would shepherd them to springs of living water (Rev 7:17).

(7) In Rev 8:7-8, when the first and second angels blew their trumpets, John saw cataclysm on earth that reflected the plagues upon Egypt prior to the exodus. In the first plague, Moses struck the Nile River with his rod and the water became blood (Exod 7:17, 19). In the seventh plague, the Lord sent hail and a great storm upon the earth such that the hail destroyed both man and beast in the fields of Egypt (Exod 9:23-34). At the first trumpet blast, John saw hail and fire, mixed with blood, hurled to the earth (Rev 8:7), and when the second angel blew its trumpet, a fiery mountain was thrown to the earth and a third of the sea became blood (Rev 8:8).

John’s purpose in Revelation was to exhort the seven churches of Asia Minor, addressed in Revelation 2-3, to persevere in their witness so that they could inherit what had been promised. The purpose of Revelation 4-5 was to recall the churches to Christ’s endurance and reward—so that they would follow suit.

The literary flow of Revelation 4-5 parallels Dan 7:9-27. In Dan 7:1-8, the prophet recorded the vision of the four beasts, representing the coming world powers. Daniel learned that after these completed their appointed times of authority, the Ancient of Days would show His dominion and give all nations to one like a son of man who would rule forever. Daniel noted, “A river of fire was flowing, coming out from His presence. Thousands upon thousands served Him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court was convened, and the books were opened” (Dan 7:10). Daniel saw One like a son of man approach the Ancient of Days, and “He was given authority to rule, and glory, and a kingdom; so that those of every people, nation, and language should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will not be destroyed” (Dan 7:14). The prophet was distressed by the terrifying militaristic and judicial themes of the visions (Dan 7:15) and asked for an interpretation of what he had seen. The angel told Daniel that despite the horrific scenes, God would vindicate His people. They would receive the kingdom and possess it forever and ever (Dan 7:18). Daniel saw the Ancient of Days come to the aid of God’s people and give them possession of the kingdom (Dan 7:21-22). The forces opposing God’s people would be taken away. Daniel was told, “The kingdom, dominion, and greatness of the kingdoms under all of heaven will be given to the people, the holy ones of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will serve and obey Him” (Dan 7:27).

John’s visions in Revelation 4-5 reflect Daniel’s vision in Daniel 7:9-14. In addition to the shared language with Daniel 7, John’s description of the heavenly throne room in Revelation 4-5 includes imagery from Exodus, Isaiah, and Ezekiel. John saw these Old Testament passages telling a story of judgement and salvation that was fulfilled in Jesus’ death and resurrection.

(1) In Rev 4:6, John saw four living creatures around God’s throne, echoing Ezek 1:5-28. The Lord gave Ezekiel a vision of four living creatures that had human and non-human features. Above these creatures, Ezekiel saw a throne with a human form seated on it. He wrote, “This was the appearance of the form of the LORD’s glory” (Ezek 1:28). In his vision, John saw living creatures around the heavenly throne, resembling the figures Ezekiel saw in his vision. The creatures in John’s vision were covered with eyes and never stopped speaking praises to the One seated on the throne.

(2) In Rev 4:8, John heard angelic figures proclaim praises to God using the language of Isa 6:3. Isaiah’s call experience recorded in Isaiah 6 began with the Lord revealing Himself to the prophet through a vision. In the year King Uzziah of Judah died, Isaiah saw the Lord high and exalted in heaven and the train of the Lord’s robe filled the temple with glory (Isa 6:1). Six-winged angels flew above the Lord’s throne and called out to one another, saying, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of Hosts; His glory fills the whole earth” (Isa 6:3). The four living creatures in John’s vision also had six wings and they never stopped proclaiming “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God, the Almighty, who was, who is, and who is coming” (Rev 4:8).

(3) In Rev 5:1, John saw a scroll in the right hand of God, echoing Ezek 2:9-10. When the Lord called Ezekiel to be a prophet, He gave Ezekiel a scroll written on both sides and told the prophet to eat the words of lamentation, mourning, and woe recorded in the scroll. John saw in the hand of the One seated on the throne a scroll written on both sides, sealed with seven seals. The drama of Revelation 5 escalated when no one was found worthy to answer the angel’s request that someone open the scroll and break its seals so that the words could be read and understood (Rev 5:2). No one was found worthy to approach God and take the scroll; and John wept (Rev 5:3-4).

(4) In Rev 5:5, John described Jesus as a descendant of David, from the tribe of Judah, recalling Isa 11:1, 10. Isaiah prophesied that from Jesse, David’s father, a Spirit-anointed Ruler would arise and reign with wisdom and might (Isa 11:1). Jesse’s descendant would establish righteousness and protect God’s people—even the nations would seek Him (Isa 11:10). While John was weeping, because no one was found worthy to come and take the scroll from the hand of the One seated on the throne, one of the elders around the throne interrupted John’s crying. He said, “Look! The Lion from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has been victorious so that He may open the scroll and its seven seals” (Rev 5:5).

(5) In Rev 5:6, 9, John observed Jesus as one like a slaughtered lamb, reflecting Old Testament imagery of sacrifice and redemption. Moses instituted the Passover, commanding the Israelites to select an unblemished sheep or goat to be slaughtered and its blood put on the doorposts and lintel of the house where it was eaten (Exod 12:1-11). The Lord told His people, “The blood on the houses where you are staying will be a distinguishing mark for you; when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No plague will be among you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt” (Exod 12:13). Isaiah described the Lord’s servant as a slaughtered lamb who was pierced for the transgression of His people (Isa 53:5, 7). After the elder told John that the Lion from the tribe of Judah had overcome so as to take the scroll from the hand of the One seated on the throne, John turned and saw one like a slaughtered lamb (Rev 5:6). The elders and living creatures around the throne sang of Jesus, “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals; because You were slaughtered, and You redeemed people for God by Your blood from every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev 5:9).

The Revelation of John is a prophetic book that explains God’s judgement against the nations and salvation of His people through Christ. Writing from a thoroughgoing Old Testament framework, John detailed the ways in which God has set limits for evil and provided strength for His people. The rhetorical force of the book is that in light of God’s justice and glory, His saints should endure persecution and resist compromise with the world as they await the day of their vindication and reward.

(1) In Rev 1:7, 13 John cited prophecies from Zechariah and Daniel to portray the Lord’s return to judge the nations. In Daniel 7, the Lord gave Daniel a vision of the nations that would rule on earth. The vision concluded with the arrival of a divine figure who also resembled a man and was given authority to rule all nations forever (Dan 7:13-14). One like a son of man came with the clouds and approached God to receive His kingdom. John said that Jesus would come with the clouds and be seen by all (Rev 1:7). The voice John heard speaking to him when he was on the Island of Patmos, in exile, was the voice of Jesus and He resembled the ruler Daniel described (Rev 1:13). John wrote that when Jesus returned, the nations that pierced Him would mourn over Him just as Zechariah prophesied that the inhabitants of Jerusalem would mourn over their sin for rejecting God and piercing Him (Zech 12:10).

(2) In Rev 1:17, Jesus told John that He is the First and the Last, echoing Isaiah’s descriptions of the Lord. In Isaiah 41, the prophet compared the gods of the nations with Israel’s God, the Lord. Isaiah described God as the Creator, the First and the Last, the One outside of time and eternally existent (Isa 41:4). Isaiah repeatedly stated that the Lord’s eternal nature distinguishes Him from the gods called upon by the nations in vain (Isa 44:6; 48:12). Jesus told John that His resurrection validated His deity, that He is the First and the Last (Rev 1:17). Jesus restated His eternal nature to John at the conclusion of Revelation (Rev 22:13).

(3) In Rev 2:14, John confronted the church in Pergamum for allowing idolatrous and immoral teachings like those Balaam offered to Balak king of Moab. Balak was frightened when the powerful Israelites approached Moab and sent an envoy to hire Balaam to prophesy against Israel (Num 22:1-19). Balaam spoke only what the Lord would say to him and he blessed Israel four times (Numbers 23-24). But after Balaam and Balak parted ways, Israel committed idolatry and immorality with the Moabites and the Lord sent a plague among the people (Num 25:1-15). In Num 31:16, Moses wrote that Balaam had set Israel up for failure by advising Balak to trap Israel with sexual immorality and idolatry. John viewed Numbers 22-25 as a unit and connected Israel’s pagan behavior to Balaam’s interaction with Balak and the idolatrous Moabite people. John’s use of Numbers 22-25 served to warn the believers at Pergamum that actions speak just as loudly as words. Teaching that allowed for idolatry and immorality would have to be confronted lest the Lord execute wrath on the church just as he did on the Israelites.

(4) In Rev 2:20, John rebuked the Thyatirans for tolerating the teaching of Jezebel who was the wife of Israel’s king Ahab. Jezebel was from the Sidonian people and worshipped Baal. She influenced Ahab and Israel to commit idolatry, and “Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel than all the kings of Israel who were before him” (1 Kgs 16:33). Jezebel commanded Ahab’s servants to kill Naboth so that Ahab could have Naboth’s vineyard (1 Kgs 21:1-16). Elijah prophesied that Jezebel would suffer the judgement of being eaten by dogs (1 Kgs 21:23-24), and it came to pass just as Elijah said (2 Kgs 9:30-37). To say that the Thyatirans permitted the idolatrous teaching of Jezebel was no small rebuke. The church needed to remove those who taught in accord with Jezebel and hold to the word of Christ.

(5) In Rev 2:27, John wrote to the church in Thyatira that those who endure will enjoy authority over the nations when Jesus judges the nations in accord with Ps 2:9. In Psalm 2, the psalmist recounted the Lord’s proclamation concerning the king of Israel whom the Lord installed in Jerusalem to rule the nations. The Lord called the King His Son and promised to give Him the nations as His inheritance (Ps 2:7-8). The Lord told the King that He would break the nations with a rod of iron and shatter them like a piece of earthenware. John saw in Ps 2:9 a word of encouragement for the faithful in Thyatira. As they endured with God’s word and remained steadfast during their trial, they would rule with Jesus as He fulfilled Ps 2:9 by reigning over the nations.

(6) In Rev 3:7, John wrote to the church at Philadelphia that God held the key of David and would keep open the door of their witness. The author of 1 Chronicles wrote that the residents of Jerusalem taunted David because their city was securely shut, and he could not enter (1 Chron 11:5a). However, “David did capture the stronghold of Zion (that is, the city of David)” (1 Chron 11:5b). John told the Philadelphians that God had opened the door for their testimony and no one would be able to shut it. As God had the power to open a city that its inhabitants thought securely shut (as David understood), God also had the power to embolden the church in Philadelphia despite their limited strength. God’s power displayed for David was available for the church in Philadelphia.