There are a
group of beings called the seven spirits that are around the throne. There are
also seven lampstands and seven stars. None of these things are hard to
understand. The unseen world is as real as the one we see. This first chapter
tells us about what is going on in the earth now. Who are the beings, beside
us?
Rev 1:4
From John to the seven churches in Asia. May grace and peace be yours from the
one who is, who was, and who is coming, from the seven spirits who are in front
of his throne, ISV
Jesus
salutes us with grace and peace, and adds that the salutation of grace and
peace is also from the seven spirits. Who? Why haven’t we heard about them? Why
don’t we hear about them? Someone somewhere mistakenly attributed these seven
spirits as aspects of the Holy Spirit. There are six attributes of the Holy
Spirit listed in Isaiah 11:2, it is a bit of a stretch to assume that the six
characteristics listed, plus the Spirit of the Lord, the Holy Spirit, are the
same seven spirits noted here. In context, Isaiah is mentioning that the Holy
Spirit will rest upon Jesus, and then includes six attributes of the Spirit of
the Lord resting upon the Messiah. Somehow we have the idea that heaven is an
empty place, that we are the only beings in all of creation and that everything
centers on our existence. Yet there are many other spiritual beings besides
humans and there was a story taking place before humanity was even created. The
reason we have this conundrum is that we can’t see into the realm of the spirit
very well by our five senses.
Let’s
explore these seven beings. The first thing we know about the seven spirits is
that they are in front of Jesus’ throne. Jesus is seated at the right hand of
the father. This salutation is to the assemblies of the called out in Asia and
it’s from Jesus and the seven spirits around his throne. What else can we find
out about these seven spirits?
Rev 3:1 “To
the messenger of the church in Sardis, write: ‘The one who has the seven
spirits of God and the seven stars says this: ‘I know what you’ve been doing.
You are known for being alive, but you are dead. ISV
Jesus
identifies himself as the one who has the seven spirits of God, literally he
holds them. There are two types of beings identified here. The spirits and the
stars are not the same. Rev 1:20 identifies the seven stars as seven angels
over the churches. Therefore the seven spirits are not angels.
Rev 4:5
Flashes of lightning, noises, and peals of thunder came from the throne.
Burning in front of the throne were seven flaming torches, which are the seven
spirits of God. ISV
Seven
burning and consuming torches or lights are the seven spirits of God. It is
safe to say they are like lights burning, but they are not inanimate objects,
they are beings that look like lights. They are in and of themselves a
non-consuming light, they don’t burn out, but that does not mean that they
don’t consume things. There is more.
Rev 5:6
Then I saw a lamb standing in the middle of the throne, the four living
creatures, and the elders. He looked like he had been slaughtered. He had seven
horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent into all the
earth. ISV
These
beings have seven eyes. Jesus the slaughtered lamb has seven horns and seven
eyes that are the seven spirits of God sent into all the earth. The prophet
Zechariah wrote about the stone that had seven eyes. If we remember that study
which was about Jesus’ name written in the Old Testament, we learned that
Jesus, not the high priest Joshua, was given the stone with the seven eyes.
Zech 3:10 For as for the
stone which I have set before the face of Jesus, on the one stone are seven
eyes: behold, I am digging a trench, saith the Lord Almighty, and I will search
out all the iniquity of that land in one day. Septuagint
In order for things to
come to pass on earth by Jesus in the future, they are mimicked or shadowed, as
well as prophesied by others at an earlier time. Think on Abraham sacrificing
Isaac, or the prophetic foretelling of Jesus on the cross in Psalms and Isaiah,
as well as the later context in Zechariah where people were told to do certain
things. The seven eyes were given to Joshua the Messiah and foretold here. When
the plumb line is dropped, it is the seven eyes that look upon all the earth
that are noted. They are observing, judging, and rejoicing.
Zech 4:10 For who has despised the small days? surely they shall
rejoice, and shall see the plummet of tin in the hand of Zorobabel: these are
the seven eyes that look upon all the earth. Septuagint
We know the seven eyes
which are the seven spirits of God were given to Jesus, remember that he was in
heaven before coming to earth. Whatever his position was before coming to
earth, he had the seven spirits to look and observe. Now fast forward to
Revelation, Jesus still has the seven spirits. They are sent out into the
earth, Rev 5:6. When Jesus walked on earth he had the Holy Spirit resting on
him after his baptism. Yet before he was on earth, and after he left earth, we
see these seven spirits reporting to him.
There is a
characteristic we may sometimes miss regarding the seven spirits. The seven
eyes are rejoicing over the plumb line, the plumb line was being used to rebuild
the temple and Zerubbabel was in charge of the first returning exiles. These
seven spirits are rejoicing seeing the time of rebuilding. They are watching
and reporting around the throne which takes us another step further in our
understanding. In Revelation 4:5 we see
lightning and thunder around the throne. Lightning is not necessarily flashing
light in the sky but glaring light. As lightning during a storm is somewhat
blinding, this is light so bright it is hard to see. Thunder is not just a
rumble of high voltage rending the air but a roar. Then there are voices. Some
Greek translations put the word voices
before the word thunder. The voices
were roaring. So imagine this; seven beings like pillars of glaring lights that
yell or scream like thunder around the throne. Let’s see something else.
Rev 10:3-4 he shouted
in a loud voice as a lion roars. When he shouted, the seven thunders spoke with
voices of their own. 4 When the seven thunders spoke, I was going to write, but
I heard a voice from heaven say, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said,
and don’t write it down.” ISV
When the angel with the
scroll comes and makes an announcement, the seven voices roar. There are seven
thundering voices around the throne and they are yelling something. There were
seven thundering voices around the throne in Revelation 4:5, and now there are
seven thundering voices again in Revelation 10:3-4. The thundering voices are
the seven spirits that have eyes or “see” and that roam the earth. Whatever the
seven thunders said in chapter 10, John was not allowed to record it. We have studied
that extensively and understand that whatever is being said, it seems to be
around the time that satan is cast out of heaven to the earth, and he is mad
because he knows his time is short.
It would seem that
while these seven spirit/eyes send salutations and rejoice, they also judge, so
therefore connecting them to the six characteristics of the Holy Spirit is
inaccurate. These seven spirits roam the earth, are bright individual beings
that have voices that roar. While they probably have the attributes of the Holy
Spirit they do not have the function of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit
indwells people; people are not flaming pillars around the throne. The Holy
Spirit is on the earth, but in a different function than these seven spirits.
In Job we see a heavenly
meeting. As we previously studied, this is a regularly scheduled gathering of
the sons of God. The sons of Elohim are not just angels; the title also
includes Cherubim, Seraphim, Ophanim, the seven spirits, and any other spirit
beings we have yet to identify. The satan comes to accuse Job at this meeting.
You may wonder why I do not capitalize satan, it is because satan is not a name
it is a noun, not a proper noun. In the Hebrew it is hassatan, the (ha) attacker (satan) or the accuser, enemy, or
opponent. This opponent of Elohim could be Lucifer, or another fallen spirit
being. We identify Lucifer as satan or hassatan, and thus make satan a name,
but it is not a proper name as much as a descriptive name not an individual’s
name. In the book of Job the accuser comes to accuse Job on a regularly scheduled
visit before the throne of judgment. This place of meeting, the day the sons of
God come to present themselves, is called the “sides of the north”, the mount
of the congregation, the very place where Lucifer wanted to put his throne so
that he could judge over the sons of God. Many have misunderstood these verses
and think that the accuser, satan, wanted to be like God; that he wanted to be
the leader of all of creation and sit in the worship temple of God. But Lucifer
already had sanctuaries, beings once worshiped him; he really wanted to be like
God in judgment.
Now let’s relate that
to the seven spirits who roam the earth. Why do the sons of God have to present
themselves and why are they judged? Because they have assignments on the earth.
The seven spirits, who see and speak loudly around the throne are watching and
reporting the events of earth. As we studied a while back, the Holy Spirit is
our defense attorney as well as a prosecuting attorney. The seven spirits seem
to also call out judgment in Revelation 10. They see it all and are with Jesus.
They seem to be higher ranking, as they are around the throne. Have you ever
heard this read in the church? It’s time to start teaching people regarding the
spirit realm.
So far we have
identified God the Father giving Jesus this revealed future, and he gave it to
an angel to make it known to John so that John could give it to the called out.
Now there are seven spirits that roam the earth. So far in the first four
verses of Revelation we have all of these things taking place on earth. The
called out are to know that there are seven spirits roaming the earth, which
also loudly speak before the throne. Verse 5 tells us Jesus is the prince or
first in rank over the kings of the earth. While kings on earth do not all
acknowledge Jesus or his authority, the kings or leaders on earth do have
someone over them who will judge them, Jesus the Messiah. Don’t think earthly
rulers are above Jesus, their deeds are recorded for judgment.
Rev 1:5-6 and from
Jesus the Messiah, the witness, the faithful one, the firstborn from the dead,
and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To the one who loves us and has
freed us from our sins by his blood 6 and has made us a kingdom, priests for
his God and Father, be glory and power forever and ever! Amen. ISV
Verse 5 also says that
Jesus washed us from our sins by His blood. Now we want to think that through.
Who has Jesus washed, or cleansed, or freed from sins? Those who receive him as
Messiah. Jesus has not cleansed those who reject him. It is not that he doesn’t
want to cleanse those who reject him, it is that those who reject him reject
his gift. If you reject the Messiah you have made the choice to keep your sins.
You have no atonement for your sins because there is no temple to make
sacrifice for your sins. Therefore you choose to stay in your sin. That is why
verse 6 is not written to those who reject the Messiah today. It is not written
for those who change their minds during the tribulation either. The only people
verse six is written to are those people who accept Jesus as Messiah before
verse 7.
Rev 1:7-8 Look! He is
coming in the clouds. Every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and
all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of him. So be it! Amen. 8 “I am
the Alpha and the Omega,” declares the Lord God, “the one who is, who was, and
who is coming, the Almighty.” ISV
Every eye sees him come
in the clouds. The first time he comes in the clouds, he calls his called out. The dead in Christ and the
living in Christ. This is why the ones who pierced Jesus will see him at the
time the dead rise, the others left in Hades will see Jesus come in the clouds
for the redeemed on the day of redemption. The second time he comes at the end
of the tribulation, he comes on the earth with his Bride to rescue Israel. When he will come in the clouds is a
secret, but it is no secret that he
comes to redeem as many as two billion living people. It will be hard to miss
two billion living humans leaving the earth. All the tribes will mourn, which
is why so many are then martyred during the beginning of the tribulation. They
saw him in the clouds, then many people were gone. A while back we looked at a
map of earth and noted the countries where the people being gathered would come
from; we noticed that there were certain places that would hardly be affected
by the gathering. Those are the places that Revelation speaks of later. This is
why the rest of the world is not mentioned and seems lost in obscurity in the
Bible. Every eye sees him, living and dead, and they mourn.
The called out are
called up and made a kingdom of priests. These are the things the called out
are supposed to be reading in the assemblies.
We have only looked at the first eight verses of Revelation and if we
only read this much in the assemblies today we would be much further ahead as
the body of Christ. Again we see the cyclical nature of the book of Revelation.
Jesus announces he is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first
and the last, just as it is recorded in Isaiah, and then reiterated again at
the end of the book of Revelation. The book is to be read and remain unsealed,
then the listeners, the Spirit, and the Bride, say come. If we only read Rev 1:1-8
and Rev 22:6-21 we would have a lot of material to teach the called out ones.
John is told to write what he sees and send it to the seven assemblies in Asia
Minor.
Consider how much
faster we can type this, rather than writing it all by hand; this was no small
undertaking for John. Writing what he saw was important because of the law of
shadows and prophecies as I spoke about earlier. The law of shadows means that
sometimes people on earth must do things that will be mimicked later by someone
else. We noted the comparison of Abraham sacrificing Isaac, to Jesus being
sacrificed. Another one is the comparison of the angels telling Lot they cannot
do anything to Sodom and Gomorrah until the righteous, Lot and his family,
leave. The comparison in this case is to the righteous redeemed; the tribulation
cannot start, nor the antichrist come to power while the called out are on
earth. As John tells us, greater is the Holy Spirit residing in the redeemed than
anyone (including the antichrist leader) in the world. Then there are laws of
prophetic announcements where writers have penned foretelling’s that someone
later fulfills. John is to write these things, and as we know that synagogues
all over the region were equipped with scrolls copied by scribes, the people
would have understood Jesus’ declaration being the first and the last. They
would have recognized that Isaiah identified the first and the last, and they
would have understood Jesus’ words in verse 8 and 22:13. People of the time
period would have also recognized that Jesus calling himself “which was and is
and is to come” from verse 1:4, 1:8, and 4:8 would have also identified Jesus
as the Alpha and Omega, the Alph Tav, and Lamb of God who was slain, but notice
that description in 4:8.
Rev 4:8 Each of the four living creatures had
six wings and were full of eyes inside and out. Without stopping day or night
they were saying, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, who is,
and who is coming.” ISV
If we only look at that
phrase “who was, who is, and who is coming” from verses 1:4 and 1:8, we could
say that this “coming” is the gathering of the called out. However, when it is
used in 4:8 it is used after the called out are called up and no longer present
on earth. Therefore this is not a reference only to the gathering but also to
his coming to earth with his army, and then to rule and reign. The
understanding of the Alph Tav, was that they were to look for the strong man on
the cross, it was a sign or marker for those who studied the Old Testament
writings to relate those teachings to Jesus, the Alpha Omega who comes to earth
to rule and reign. If people have hardened their hearts to this teaching, when
every eye will see Jesus in the clouds, it will make sense to them and their
hearts will change. Those who remain on earth will then be able to put this
understanding together when they see the gathering of the called out. Then they
will confess Jesus as Messiah. That is why so many are martyred during the
tribulation.
Another verse we should
look at is Revelation 11:17. The TR and the NA27 vary on the Greek words used
here. The NA27 and corresponding translations omit the words “is to come”. But
the TR has the Greek words included “is to come”. For perspective, this is
Jesus’ coronation ceremony, when he will be crowned king. Once crowned he will
give rewards to his servants, the prophets and the saints. Then the wrath of
God starts on earth. The first three and one half years was the wrath of the
Lamb, the second three and one half years is called the wrath of God. At the
end of the wrath of God, Jesus comes back with his armies, his bride.
Rev 11:16-18 Then the
twenty-four elders who were sitting on their thrones in God’s presence fell on
their faces and worshipped God. 17 They said, “We give thanks to you, Lord God
Almighty, who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have
begun to rule.18 The nations were angry, but the time for your wrath has come. It
is time for the dead to be judged— to reward your servants, the prophets, the
saints, and all who fear your name, both unimportant and important, and to
destroy those who destroy the earth.” ISV
Rev 11:16-18 And the
four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their
faces, and worshipped God,17 Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty,
which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great
power, and hast reigned.18 And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come,
and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest
give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that
fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the
earth. KJV
It is unclear whether
the phrase “is to come” is included or omitted, from one perspective, the
phrase is not needed as these are the events that precede his coming. In other
words Jesus is now King. From another perspective, the phrase included reminds
us that there is a short period, about 3 ½ years before he comes to earth, so
he is coming. Either way, this event is foretold in Daniel 7:13 and following.
Jesus first must be crowned as King before the war takes place for the kingdom
rule on earth. At our point in time, Jesus was, is, and is to come.
Moving onto verse 12,
John sees seven lampstands and the Son of Man in the midst of them.
Rev
1:12-16 Then I turned to see who was talking to me, and when I turned I saw
seven gold lamp stands. 13 Among the lamp stands there was someone like the Son
of Man. He was wearing a long robe with a gold sash around his chest. 14 His
head and his hair were white like wool, in fact, as white as snow. His eyes
were like flames of fire, 15 his feet were like glowing bronze refined in a
furnace, and his voice was like the sound of raging waters. 16 In his right
hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp, two-edged sword.
His face was like the sun when it shines with full force. ISV
When
Jesus was on earth he didn’t have white hair like wool or snow. This tells us a
couple of things. One, if his head was like wool, it would be thick like a
sheep before shearing. Not thin or straight. Two, his hair was white like snow,
meaning his hair changed color. The reason we know this is that someone would have
pointed out that at 30 years old Jesus resembled a vision Daniel had of the
Ancient of Days, with white hair, Daniel 7. His eyes like flames similar to
Daniel 10:6, as well as bronzed feet like Daniel’s vision. Our mindset of what
heavenly beings look like should change to what the Bible tells us. The Messiah
as well as other angelic beings, seems to be glowing polished bronze, not pasty
white skinned, blue eyes and blond hair. This is what Jesus looked like at that
time of John’s vision. John wrote what he saw. Now John points out the seven
stars are in Jesus’ hand, and his mouth like a two edged sword, which Jesus
himself reiterates in Chapter 2:12.
Rev
1:17-20 When I saw him, I fell down at his feet like a dead man. But he placed
his right hand on me and said, “Stop being afraid! I am the first and the last,
18 the living one. I was dead—but look!—I am alive forever and ever! I have the
keys of Death and Hades. 19 Therefore, write down what you have seen, what is,
and what is going to happen after this. 20 The secret meaning of the seven
stars that you saw in my right hand and the seven gold lamp stands is this: the
seven stars are the messengers of the seven churches, and the seven lamp stands
are the seven churches.” ISV
Jesus
amazes us with his words. He says he is the first and the last, the living one.
Verse 5 said he was the first born from the dead. Jesus said he was dead but
now he is alive forever and he has the keys to Death and Hades. I know I harp
on that a lot, but what good would having the keys to Death and Hades be if
Jesus wasn’t opening the doors to segregate the righteous from the unrighteous
dead. Jesus says the seven stars are the messengers of the seven called out
assemblies, and the seven lamp stands are the seven called out assemblies.
Once
again, we have seven angels who are messengers to the seven called out
assemblies on earth. We (human beings) haven’t moved on to heaven yet. We have
called out people in seven different areas of Asia Minor on earth. There are
heavenly messengers assigned to the called out on earth. There are seven
spirits roaming the earth. The seven spirits, as well as the angelic messengers,
also reside in heaven but they also frequent earth. We then have all the dead
as well as all the living tribes of the earth seeing Jesus come in the clouds,
and then those that are left behind start mourning. Jesus also has control over
Death and Hades. This is the first chapter of the Book of Revelation. We can
see a lot of correlation to Old Testament prophecies already, in only 20
verses. So far there is no mystery as to what we have read. The next two
chapters Jesus is specifically writing to the called out. Remember layers; 1) for
that day and time; 2) for our historical timeline; 3) for our day and time. The
beauty of an eternal Messiah is that he can write to people for a two thousand
year time frame and it is always applicable. As we have already studied the book
of Revelation, I will include our previous studies of the seven churches.
I don’t
think we have an excuse before God for not reading the Book of Revelation in
the assemblies. If we don’t read it, we are liable for those who never heard
and are lost. If we do read this book to the called out we will strengthen the
body of Christ. Our mission on earth will be clear and we will gather more
people into the sheepfold, the body of our Messiah. If we would only start
reading this book.
Insight
into the Congregation and the Sheepfold, the Seven Churches of Revelation, Part
1
Wolves in the Sheepfold, Ephesus, the Seven Churches
Building UP the Sheepfold; Smyrna, Pergamos, and the
Second Death
Thyatira: Serving and Protecting the Sheepfold
Sardis, Measuring Up in the Sheepfold, the Book of Life
Philadelphia; Evangelizing into the Sheepfold
Laodicea, Educating the Sheepfold
