Introduction

The book of Revelation is probably written around the year 90 by the evangelist and apostle John. This book is addressed to seven churches in Asia (Rev 1:11) in the first place, but is also meant for the whole Christian church through the ages.

Revelation has its own, unique place among the twenty seven books and letters the New Testament contains. After the five historical books and the twenty one letters in which also prophetic portions appear, the book of Revelation is in its whole a strictly prophetic book (Rev 1:3). This last book of the Bible reveals our future and is in that way a nice counterpart of the first book of the Bible that declares our origin.

In the book of Revelation it is about the future of the Lord Jesus. And His future determines the future of the world, of Israel, of the church and of the devil and his henchmen. In this Bible book the Lord Jesus is in the center. It is about His Person, about His redemption work, His resurrection, His glorification and His return.

This book is the great terminus where all trains that have started to run in the Old Testament, reach their final destination. I haven’t checked, but someone has found, in the four hundred and four verses that make up this book, at least two hundred and seventy-eight verses that you can somehow connect to a verse or section in the Old Testament. That, of course, is not strange if you consider that Christ is also the subject of the prophecy of the Old Testament. In the Old Testament we are pointed ahead to Him as the One Who is coming. In the book of Revelation He has come and as the revealed Christ He is the Center of all events.

It is the book of contrasts. You will discover how the spiritual powers light and darkness and good and evil oppose each another. In the same way God and Christ and satan are opposites. Other opposites are people who are saved and people who are not saved, and also holy and unholy angels. All these persons are actors who are performing on the world stage. You will see how the stage changes and transforms from time to eternity and vice versa. The backdrop of the show is formed by heaven and earth and the abyss and the lake of fire.

Everything is supported by music and songs and other expressions of feelings. The song of the victory and the ‘woe’ cry of the defeated cause happiness and also sadness. But the outcome is that God triumphs and that the glories of the Lord Jesus in both the millennial kingdom of peace and in eternity shine in undimmed and immortal beauty and splendor.

There are various possibilities to subdivide this book. The simplest and clearest one is supplied in the book itself, in Revelation 1 (Rev 1:19). It is a subdivision in three parts:
1. the things which you have seen (Revelation 1:1-20),
2. the things which are (Revelation 2:1-3:22) and
3. the things which will take place after these things (Revelation 4:1-22:21).

Purpose of the Book

Rev 1:1. The first word of the book, “revelation”, indicates that something is about to be unveiled. There is something to be made known which formerly was hidden. It is therefore remarkable that to many Christians this book is incomprehensible and mysterious. I do not claim that everything is easy to explain, but I do say that the events in this book are not obscure, but are made clear. The veil over the future is taken away.

You shall indeed have to make efforts to figure out in which way the future is clarified here. Many symbols, for example, are used. But your attempts to also understand this part of God’s Word will be doubly rewarded if you continually remind yourself that God finds this the best way to communicate to you His thoughts about the future.

If you only read this first verse carefully and allow that to sink in, you will see that it is full of instructions for understanding the contents of this book. It says that it is the revelation “of Jesus Christ”. That means that Jesus Christ is the One, Who reveals or makes known (cf. Gal 1:12). He acts. At the same time it is of course also true that the revelation refers to Him, which means that He is the One Who is revealed. He is both the Center and the Executor of God’s counsels.

Then you read that “God gave Him” that revelation. That means that the Lord Jesus is seen here as Man, Who has taken a place of dependence. He receives everything out of the hands of God. He is so truly Man, that it is written of Him that He as Man does not know when the fulfillments of the things will take place (Mk 13:32). Here you stand before the inconceivable mystery of God and Man in one Person.

Then John writes about the purpose of the revelation and that is “to show His bond-servants, the things which must soon take place”. The bond-servants here are in the first place the prophets (Rev 10:7; Rev 11:18), but they also represent the believers in a general sense (Rev 7:3; Rev 19:5; Rev 22:3; Rom 6:19-22). To be able to see the future things and to take them in, you need the mind of a bond-servant. Conversely, knowing the things to come will make you a better slave. You will be serving with insight in accordance to the great plans of God, with a view to the church, professing Christianity, Israel and the world.

The word “show” plays an important role in the book of Revelation. God continually ‘shows’ things to John, and John in his turn passes on what has been ‘shown’ to him. The aim of this book is to show that the judgment is coming. It must “soon” take place or ‘in a hurry’, which is rapidly, quickly.

You may say that it is not that soon, for it is nearly two thousand years ago that this has been written down and it still has not happened. But don’t be mistaken. This word remains in force, for time doesn’t count for God and for faith (Psa 90:4; 2Pet 3:8). And it “must” happen. You may say that there is mention here of a Divine must. God is not only the omniscient God Who tells what is going to happen, He is also the omnipotent God Who makes things happen the way He wants.

To make known His plans with the world and most of all to reveal His Son, He has used angels. Angels have been used more often by God as mediators (Acts 7:38; Gal 3:19). The fact that God uses angels indicates that there is a distance between Him and John to whom He gives His messages. This goes even more for those to whom John in his turn has to pass on those messages.

Formerly John received messages from the Lord while he was reclining on His bosom (Jn 13:23-26). That indicates confidentiality. However, John is not apostle here, but prophet. Prophets speak to God’s people when decay takes place. They warn for of the judgment that is imminent. John is the last one in the chain of five links through which the revelation of God reaches His bond-servants:
1. the revelation is from God;
2. comes of Jesus Christ;
3. by His angel;
4. to John;
5. to His bond-servants.

The revelation was “communicated” or “signified” (NKJV) to John. This expression “signified” is typical for this book. It is derived from the word ‘sign’. John often receives the messages on the things to come by the means of signs or symbols, through which he gets to see what must take place. Something like that we see in Matthew 13 where the Lord makes use of parables. He uses them to teach. He tells His disciples why He does that and says that through His explanation they will be able to understand the deeper meaning of these parables, while it will remain hidden for the mass of people (Mt 13:10-17; 34-35).

In this book you will see that the symbols which are used especially are borrowed from nature:
celestial bodies – the sun, the moon, the stars;
the natural phenomena, such as wind, lightning;
the world of plants, such as trees, grass;
the world of animals, such as lamb, the grasshopper;
the world of men, such as mother and child, harlot and bride;
the world of culture, such as musical instruments;
agricultural tools.
Also the many numbers used in this book are often symbolic: two, three, three and a half, four, five, six, seven, eight, ten, twelve, twenty-four, forty-two, one hundred and forty four, six hundred and sixty six, one thousand, twelve hundred and sixty, sixteen hundred.

Its explanation is not left to your imagination. The symbols are explained
1. by the book itself,
2. by the context of the book and
3. by the use of it in the Old Testament.

That does not mean that there is always one unambiguous explanation for each symbol. It also happens that certain matters or events are no symbols, but that they must be taken literally.

All in all, by opening this book to read it we stand at the beginning of an exciting discovery journey. Let us do that with the humble mind of people who are aware that the omnipotent God wants to share His plans with us. Let us at the same time pray that what He reveals to us will have the effect that we put our life at His disposal.

Now read Revelation 1:1 again.

Reflection: Thank the Lord that He wants to involve you in His future plans and ask Him to help you to live in accordance with them.

Recipients, Blessing and Praise

Rev 1:2. The revelation of which John is a witness and in which he involves you, is no fabrication of himself. It comes to you with all the authority of the Word spoken by God. What John testified about the coming events, comes from the mouth of God. As an extra emphasis it is added that what God has said is completely covered by “the testimony of Jesus Christ”. The Lord Jesus testifies to what God has spoken.

“All that he saw” is the contents of this whole book. Everything that John has seen and what he has written in this book is therefore the Word of God, while the testimony of Jesus Christ indicates the prophetic nature of it. After all, it is about the revelation, the becoming visible in the world, of Him.

Rev 1:3. There is a special blessing associated with reading or the reading aloud this book and the listening to its contents: you are “blessed”. No one can ‘read’ it and ‘hear’ it without being blessed. What you read and hear are messages about future events that are inspired word for word.

Beside reading and hearing it is also important to “heed the things which are written in it”. “To heed” means that you treasure these things in your heart, so that they may have an influence in the practice of your life too. After all, from your heart your life is governed (Pro 4:23). The call to heed returns one more time at the end of the book (Rev 22:7). What is written in this book is therefore sandwiched between these two calls.

As a matter of fact, that it is “written”, means that it is of lasting value. It is always possible to be read in order to see what must yet take place and it can also be read to check on what is happening around you. You therefore have a perfect manual of the future in your hands. I would like to advise you to often consult it because “the time” when everything is brought to a decision “is near”. The Lord Jesus is about to appear and to judge.

Rev 1:4. John is the right person to write this book. The Lord Jesus said of him that he, concerning his ministry, would remain until He comes (Jn 21:22). That means that John also has a ministry regarding the future. He already achieves that ministry in a sense when he speaks in his first letter about the antichrist and the return of Christ and the decay that was already showing up. But the full achievement of it we find in this book of Revelation.

He writes the book “to the seven churches that are in Asia”. The mention of the number “seven” is not insignificant. The number seven represents perfection. The seven churches represent the whole church. It indeed are seven different churches. You will see it better when we will study chapters 2 and 3. That means that the whole church has been manifested on earth in different ways.

You must have noticed in the letters which Paul has written to various churches that local churches are different from each other. That variety is not only seen in the different local churches, but also in the various periods of the existence of the church on earth. You recognize that directly if you only think of how the church was at the beginning and how the church is today. In that way there are more differences in the development of the church.

All those different churches may learn a lot from one another and we also can learn a lot from it. That’s why it is so wonderful that in God’s Word we have this writing of John to them.

It is also beautiful to see that the blessing of “grace” and “peace”, which you can remember from the letters of Paul, is also wished by John here to the seven churches. “Grace” is the source of all blessing, it is the unmerited favor of God, which you receive just on the basis of Who He is. If you realize that God deals with you in grace, the result will be that you will go your way with “peace” in your heart, whatever the circumstances.

But there is a difference with the letters of Paul when it comes the question from Whom you get the blessing. In those letters the blessing comes from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Here it is “from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne”. That is fitting with this Bible book.

Here you see God as He is presented in the Old Testament: as Yahweh, the God of the covenant, the God of faithfulness to His covenant. Then what is said next is not first ‘Who was’, but “Who is”. That means that He is seen as the “I AM WHO I AM” (Exo 3:14). But He is also the One “Who was”. That is the God of the past, Who has always taken care of His people and the whole earth. He is also the One “Who is to come”, for He is also the God of the future.

Then in the blessing “the seven Spirits” are mentioned. This is the Holy Spirit, but as the Spirit of power through Whom God will execute the judgments from His throne. The number seven refers to the variety and the perfection with which the Lord Jesus will execute the judgments in the power of this Spirit at His return (cf. Isa 11:2). Therefore the attention is drawn to the “throne” of God, which emphasizes that it is about reigning and the exercise of power.

Rev 1:5. Finally grace and peace are wished “from Jesus Christ”. Just like with the seven Spirits, to Whom is added “Who are before His throne”, also something is added to the name of Jesus Christ. You can actually say that three titles of Him are mentioned which all are in relation with the earth.

He was “the faithful witness” to God in the past on earth (1Tim 6:13), from the manger to the cross (Jn 18:37). He has always been faithful. The church was also meant to be like that, but it failed and still fails to do so.

He is also “the firstborn of the dead”. This He is in the present time, since His death and resurrection (Acts 26:23; Col 1:18). ‘Firstborn’ means that He is the highest in the realm of the resurrection.

Third He is “the ruler of the kings of the earth”. This He is also now, but this He will be openly in the future, so He will be revealed (Psa 89:27).

When He is thus presented, the church spontaneously responds. That will be your response too. The heart of each who loves Him agrees to it that He “loves us”. He has loved us and still loves us. Isn’t it great that He, Who is emphatically presented in this book as Judge, is the One Who loves you? His love has been especially expressed in the way that He “released us from our sins by His blood”. This meant to Him that He had to go into death, for only His blood could redeem you from your sins. To you it means that all future judgments will pass you by completely, for He has redeemed you once and for all. Isn’t that a reason to praise Him?

Rev 1:6. But He has done much more than He did regarding the past, which was necessary to deliver you from judgment. He has taken away your sins to make you to something together with all believers, namely, “[to be] a kingdom, priests to His God and Father”. What you have become is what He has made you to be. There is absolutely no achievement from your side. You owe everything to Him. It is nothing more than great grace that you may partake of His government. As a redeemed person you receive, together with all believers, royal dignity together with Christ, “the ruler of the kings of the earth” (Rev 1:5), so that you also are exalted above the kings of the earth (1Pet 2:9; cf. Exo 19:6).

In addition to this, you are also made a priest before His God and Father. Everything that the Lord Jesus did He did with a view to the honor of His God and Father. You are made someone who may praise and worship in God’s presence (Rev 4:10; Rev 5:9; Heb 13:15; 1Pet 2:5). You can do that now already. When the Lord Jesus will take His royal majesty upon Himself, you may be a means of blessing to those who are enduring hardships on earth and who go to God with their suffering. You then may bring “the prayers of saints” before God (Rev 5:8).

To Him be the glory for everything He has done for you. Everything you have become reflects His glory. While man always did all things to his own glory and in his own strength, the Lord Jesus did everything to the glory of God from Whom He drew all power as a Man. As a Man He lived from all the words that came from the mouth of God (Mt 4:4). What characterized Him as Man and what He has achieved, will be seen and rejoiced in forever. There is nothing more left for you to do than to wholeheartedly agree with the “amen” with which this praise ends.

Now read Revelation 1:2-6 again.

Reflection: What do you learn here about the Word of God and about the Lord Jesus?

John on Patmos

Rev 1:7. With a “behold” John draws the attention to Him Who will appear in person. This is the great event toward which the whole book is working. It is said in a way that it should not be looked forward to only later, but already now. You may call it the ‘prophetic present tense’. It indicates how real and close the events are, not only for John in those days, but also for you today.

The Lord Jesus will appear “with the clouds of heaven” (Dan 7:13) and also “on the clouds of the sky” (Mt 24:30) which, as it were, form His throne. So it is not about His coming to take up the church, which you may call His first coming, for that will take place “in the clouds”, and will not be visible for everyone (1Thes 4:17; cf. Acts 1:9; Lk 21:27). That will surely be the case at His second coming. Everyone will come face to face with Him, no man excepted.

Of all those people John mentions a certain category, namely, “those who pierced Him”. This primarily refers to the Jews (Zec 12:10), but it also refers to the Gentiles, for a Roman soldier pierced Him (Jn 19:34). They who committed this deed of contempt will be full of fear when they behold Him. It will cause an enormous mourning among the Jews (Zec 12:10-14), which will be the beginning of their conversion. This is the way it will happen, “so it is to be. Amen”. ‘So it is to be’ or ‘yes’ is the Greek confirmation and ‘amen’ the Hebrew version of it, indicating for Gentiles and Jews that God’s Word is established.

Rev 1:8. Then He, Who is coming, makes Himself heard. He says Who He is: “I am the Alpha and the Omega.” The alpha and the omega are the first and the last letter of the Greek alphabet. In these two letters all the other letters are embedded. In this name you also see that He is ‘the Word of God’. What He has started as the Alpha He will accomplish as the Omega. He Who shall come and is speaking here is the Lord Jesus. He is ‘the first and the last’ (Rev 1:17; Rev 2:8; Rev 22:13). That is also what Yahweh, LORD, the name of God in the Old Testament, says of Himself (Isa 41:4; Isa 44:6; Isa 48:12), which is again another proof that the Lord Jesus is Yahweh.

He Who is speaking is ‘Yahweh Elohim’ or “the Lord God”, which is the Lord Jesus. He is the One “who is”, the Eternal One. He “was” and will always be. He is also the One “who is to come”. He is the Almighty Who will realize all His promises and plans. He Who was pierced, when He as the weakness of God was hanging on the cross, is Yahweh Himself, “the Almighty”, Who has all power in the universe and Who is about to reveal that power. This is a comfort for His people, because He carries and supports them with His omnipotence. At the same time it is a threat for His enemies, because He will judge them and render to every man according to his works.

Rev 1:9. No one else than John addresses his readers. He doesn’t present himself as an apostle, but as a “brother” among the brethren. In his Gospel he calls himself “the disciple” (Jn 21:24), and in his letters “the elder” (2Jn 1:1; 3Jn 1:1). He also calls himself “fellow partaker in the tribulation” from which we derive that he shares the same fate as his fellow believers who also had to endure suffering under the emperor of Rome. Tribulation goes together with faith. It is the path along which you must enter the kingdom of God (Acts 14:22).

The time to reign has not come yet. You still have to persevere, right through all kinds of tribulations and tests, till the moment comes to reign. When the Lord Jesus returns, that is when it will be. You may remember that the Lord Jesus is also still waiting for the establishment of the kingdom.

John speaks about “Jesus” here, which is the Name of His humiliation and a reminder of His sojourn on earth. When He was on earth He also showed that perseverance. When Pilate asks Him if He is the King of the Jews, He testifies that He is, but adds : “But as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm” (Jn 18:36). Pay attention to the words ‘but as it is’. It shows that during His presence on earth He did not established His kingdom. That establishment is future even now.

John testified from God’s Word of that kingdom. This was not to the liking of the Roman ruler who saw in it a threat to his own kingdom and position (cf. Acts 17:7) and therefore expelled him to “the island called Patmos”. John did not speak what men loved to hear, otherwise he would not have been a captive now. He was ‘uneducated’ (Acts 4:13), but he spoke the Word of God with power and authority. In his preaching he testified to Jesus, Who is the center of all God’s thoughts and plans.

Rev 1:10. There John was sitting, isolated and lonesome on an island. He is not voluntarily there, to have a break, but as a captive. He was exiled to that place, without any prospect of release. It doesn’t look like that he could expect a visit from time to time. But it doesn’t mean that the Lord was not with him and that the Spirit could not use him. On the day of the Lord, literally: the day pertaining to the Lord, the first day of the week (cf. 1Cor 11:20) he felt into a trance through the power of the Holy Spirit (cf. Acts 10:10; Acts 22:17). The day of the Lord, the first day of the week, is the day of His resurrection (Jn 20:1; 19, Acts 20:7; 1Cor 16:2). On this day John receives all information and visions that are written in this book.

But before he sees something, he hears something behind him. It is as if he is standing with his back to the churches, while he is looking at the kingdom in the expectation that it will come. But the Lord has not finished yet with His church on earth. He has to deal with it first. He calls John to look, so that he has to turn and must pay attention to what the Lord is paying attention to.

What he hears is “a loud voice like [the sound] of a trumpet”. It is not the voice of the good Shepherd, Who calls His sheep by name. He heard that voice when he walked with the Lord Jesus through Israel (Jn 10:11; 14). But now he hears the voice of an ominous Judge, of Someone Who pronounces and executes judgment.

Rev 1:11. The voice of the Judge commands John to write in a book what he sees. That implies that he must sharply observe and take in. All his observations must then be documented in writings so that they will be preserved for later generations. However, the book is not only meaningful for later generations, but also for the seven named churches in Asia Minor, in the western part of present-day Turkey.

There were more churches in Asia Minor. But the Holy Spirit of God has chosen these seven because they are, as a matter of fact, a reflection of the church in its whole through the ages. That’s why it says “the” seven churches. It is these seven particular churches to which this book should be sent. That there are seven, shows that it is about something complete. It is about the complete history of the church on earth.

Also the order is not random, but of certain importance. You will see that when we will take a closer look at these seven churches in the next two chapters. At the same time, each church is also mentioned separately, which you can derive from the word “to” that is before the name of each church.

Rev 1:12. When John heard the voice and what it has said, he turns. He wants to see the voice that was speaking with him. Of course you cannot see a voice, but the voice is of a person. That Person is the Lord Jesus. He is the Word. When John turns he first sees “seven golden lampstands” and then only he sees the Son of Man. Isn’t it like how it happens today, that we first see the believers and then only, as it were through them, the Lord Jesus?

John notices that the lampstands are of gold. Gold represents the glory of God. A lampstand is meant to spread light. Therefore, the fact that the churches are compared with golden lampstands means that the purpose of local churches is to spread Divine light.

Each local church ought to display in its environment Who God is. It can only do that by taking His Word into consideration. By listening to the truth of God’s Word and obeying it, the light will be spread in the darkness. Darkness rules everywhere in the world and it covers more and more places in professing Christianity. You will see how it happened that the light of the lampstand is getting weaker and weaker and that even a situation can arise that a lampstand is taken away.

Now read Revelation 1:7-12 again.

Reflection: What is the reason for John being on Patmos?

In the Middle of the Lampstands

Rev 1:13. After having seen the golden lampstands, John sees Someone standing in the middle of them. John recognizes Him as no one else than the “Son of Man”, that is the Lord Jesus (cf. Dan 7:9-13). He is standing here – figuratively – in the middle of the churches, in order to judge them. That can be derived from the characteristics that are then observed by John. You find these characteristics also in Daniel 7, but there as characteristics of the Ancient of days, that is God Himself. That proves once more that the Lord Jesus is God. The wearied Man sitting by the well at Sychar (Jn 4:6) and the Creator Who ”does not become weary or tired” (Isa 40:28) is the same Person.

The first characteristic of the Son of Man is that He is “clothed in a robe reaching to the feet”. He is not the Servant here Who lays aside His garments to serve His disciples as a humble Servant (Jn 13:4; cf. Lk 12:35). It is the garment of the Judge. The Lord Jesus judges the church in connection with the responsibility it has as a testimony on earth (cf. 1Pet 4:17).

The second characteristic is that He is “girded across His chest with a golden sash”. His “chest” speaks of love. ‘Gold’ speaks of Divine glory. The “sash” speaks of serving. From this you can derive that He also as a Judge serves in love.

Rev 1:14. He carries out His service as Judge reverently and with wisdom and in accordance with the purity of heaven. That is what the next characteristic refers to: “His head and His hair were white like white wool” (Pro 16:31; Pro 20:29).

The following characteristic, “His eyes were like a flame of fire”, indicates that He sees through everything and tests everything that is not in accordance with His holiness. Nothing can remain hidden from this flame of fire. This is how He tests the entire professing Christianity of which the seven churches are a picture.

Rev 1:15. That “His feet [were] like burnished bronze” means that the standard of His judgment is His own walk. What He should expect of the spiritual condition of the church is that it responds to what He has shown in His walk on earth in dedication to God. “Bronze” is a picture of a righteousness that can stand the fire of God’s judgment (Num 16:37-39), because there is nothing that has to be consumed by the fire. Everything is in accordance with God.

While He shows Himself in this way, “His voice [was] like the sound of many waters” (Eze 43:2; Psa 93:4). This expresses the power of His words with which He will pronounce the judgment. The power of His voice will prevent any possible reply. No one will dare to dispute His verdict.

Rev 1:16. He also has “in His right hand … seven stars”. What the seven stars mean is explained in Rev 1:20. They are the seven angels, that is, the responsible ones in each of the seven churches. The Lord Jesus has them in His right hand, which is the hand of His power. That indicates that He has the control over them.

The “sharp two-edged sword” that came “out of His mouth” (Isa 11:4; Rev 2:12; 16; Rev 19:15; 21), is a picture of the Word of God (Heb 4:12; Eph 6:17). Christ judges the churches by this Word, which they have known, but neglected in so many ways. The Divine, revealed Word is the standard according to which everyone will be judged (Jn 12:48). It will have to be acknowledged by everyone.

The description of His Person is concluded with a description of “His face”. That is “like the sun shining in its strength” (Mt 17:2; Acts 26:13; Mal 4:2). The sun places everything in the light, nothing remains hidden. His countenance is the same countenance at which people have been spitting (Mt 26:67).

Rev 1:17. When John has seen Him in His full majesty, he fells “at His feet like a dead man”. The sight is so terrifying that he almost dies. When the Lord was on earth John knew the confidential intercourse with Him and was reclining on His bosom (Jn 13:23-25). But now he sees the Lord as he has never seen Him before.

Then the Lord “placed His right hand” on him. That expression doesn’t only mean that the Lord touches him and in that way comforts and encourages him. The touch of the hand has life giving power. To John it is a remembrance that this Judge is His Redeemer. To you it implies the encouragement that you have nothing to fear of Him, Who will judge Christianity, if you know Him and love Him.

That is also said by the Lord. The words “do not be afraid” from His mouth have been a great comfort and encouragement for the believers through all ages. He points to Himself as “the first and the last”. As “the first” He is before everything and above everything and the origin of all things; everything comes from Him. As “the last” He will have the last word. Why should you fear? He is the rock of strength for the wearied feet and for the heaviest burdens of life.

Rev 1:18. He is also “the living One”. This is the great distinction between the true God and all false gods. He has life in Himself. He is able to give it to others too (Jn 5:21; 24-26). To be able to do that He has been in death. Therefore John did not need to become like a dead. Death could not hold Him, for in His death He took away everything through which death had power.

Death has lost its power and right and will never ever be able to have any control over Him. He is “alive forevermore”. The victory is complete and eternal. Through His victory He also has full power over “death and … Hades”, which is demonstrated in the possession of “the keys”. The Lord Jesus can dispose of death and Hades as He sees fit (Heb 2:14; Rev 20:14).

He had not been left in the grave and His body was not allowed to undergo decay (Acts 2:27-28). The glory of the Father has raised Him out of it (Rom 6:4) because the Father was glorified by Christ and His work and in that way all God’s holy demands were fulfilled. On this basis, death and Hades also no longer have authority over anyone who believes (Mt 16:18).

Rev 1:19. After the encouraging words of the Lord, John receives the order to write some things. It is an order in three parts. In these three parts you also have the basic division of the book. He had to write “the things which you has seen” and “the things which are” and “the things which will take place after these things”.

1. “The things which you have seen” you already read in the previous verses: the Lord Jesus as a Judge in the middle of the seven lampstands.

2. “The things which are” refer to chapters 2 and 3. There the situation is described of the seven churches in Asia Minor mentioned in Rev 1:11. That was the present time for John. In the broader sense it is the entire time period of the church on earth, which began at Pentecost in Acts 2 and will end at the rapture of the believers.

3. “The things which will take place after these things” start with chapter 4 (Rev 4:1) and ends with the last verse of the book. This third part totally lies in the future. Those are things that take place after the things that we still experience in the present dispensation.

Rev 1:20. Before the Lord Jesus addresses the seven churches He first gives an explanation of “the seven stars” and of “the seven golden lampstands”. This is necessary, for it about a “mystery”. A ‘mystery’ is something that is a secret and is hidden until it is revealed. The mystery is now revealed by the Lord Jesus.

The stars are in His right hand here, as they are in Rev 1:16. He supports them with His power and shows them as it were in their public relationship with Him. Stars shine in the night. They are a symbol for the angels of the seven churches. The word ‘angel’ literally means ‘messenger’ or ‘representative’. It can also be used in a broader sense for people. The angels are not cherubs or other spiritual creatures here, but people who are representatives of the churches.

Just like stars lampstands are also meant to spread light in the darkness. The lampstands are a symbol of the whole of each local church, while stars are more a symbol of the individual, out of which the churches exist. You also see that both the individual and the whole are held responsible for spreading the light. In the next two chapters you will see how the Lord Jesus judges the way this responsibility is met.

Now read Revelation 1:13-20 again.

Reflection: What impression does the description of the Lord Jesus make on you?