Featured Scripture
And from the throne proceeded lightning, thundering, and voices. Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God. Revelation 4:5
His Incomparable Majesty
In Revelation 4 John records images and descriptions that he sees and hears that depict the throne room of the only authentic site of the world’s power and authority, which is God in heaven. In our selected verse, what John writes, in the beginning, echoes the stories of Moses and the burning bush and the giving of the Law at Sinai. [Exodus 3; 19-24]
Whether in a vision or John being escorted into the heavens by an angel, he hears the voice of Christ who summons him into heaven to see the future. Yet, before visiting the things that will come about, John sees who holds the future, and who is worthy of bringing about the future, the Lord God Almighty, the eternal and holy One of Israel.
The powerful and beautiful image of God is centered in His created order, as He is surrounded in concentric circles by seven flaming torches, which are God’s seven Spirits. There before God Almighty are four living creatures and twenty-four elders who together, worship the One on the throne with songs of praise, Holy, Holy, Holy.
Such adoration is distinct from the Greek word hagios for Holy, which communicates reverence, worthy of veneration of God, on account of His incomparable Majesty!
The Beatitudes of Revelation
Very rarely does any student of the Scriptures refers to Revelation as a book of blessings due to its apocalyptic reputation. Yet seven blessings communicate the heart of its message of faithful discipleship to Jesus the Lamb in anticipation of His second advent. More appropriately, the “marriage supper of the Lamb and His bride,” the faithful church, in the New Jerusalem.
Consider the following:
Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of the prophecy, and blessed are those who hear and who keep what is written in it; for the time is near. (1:3)
“Write this: Blessed are the dead who from now on die in the Lord.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them.” (14:13)
See, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and is clothed, not going about naked and exposed to shame.” (16:15)
“Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are true words of God. (19:9)
Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. Over these, the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and Christ and reign with him for a thousand years. (20:6)
“See, I am coming soon! Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” (22:7)
Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the Tree of Life and may enter the city by the gates. (22:14) ]
Torah and the Gospel Message
Some Bible scholars interpret the portion of Scripture, from the throne proceeded lightning and thunderings, and voices,… to be the doctrines of the Gospel which come out of Zion, and out of Jerusalem, where He has His throne. The “lightning”, is indicative of both the light and knowledge they give and of the swiftness with which they were spread over the world, by the apostles of Christ, even up to this very moment in history.
The “thunderings”, for the awfulness, authority, and majesty of them, who faithfully proclaim the preaching and teaching of the Gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven upon the earth. God chosen prophets are called “the voices” of God, [Acts 13:27] thus the doctrines of the Gospel be called “voices”, as they are the voice of God, and of Christ, and of His ministers; and are voices of love, grace, mercy, peace, pardon, righteousness, and eternal life. [I too, agree that the Gospel message was the images that John saw and recorded]
As mentioned earlier, the beginning of this verse 5 is the allusion to the giving of the Law of Moses on Mount Sinai, when such things were seen and heard, or else the judgments of God, and the punishments inflicted upon His enemies, and the enemies of His church and people. [Psalm 18:13; Revelation 8:5]
The writer of the Letter of Hebrews warns the second generation of followers of Christ Jesus from slipping away from the faith. “For this reason, we pay much attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it.” Hebrew 2:1-2
Such a warning was a reminder of the ancient Israelites in Deut. 4:9, “Give heed to yourself and keep your soul diligently, so that you do not forget the things which your eyes have seen, and they do not depart from your heart all the days of your life.“
Here the writer is expressing that the Law of Moses and the message of the Gospel both are the very instruction of God which is required to be heard and obeyed if they, post-resurrection disciples, are to receive spiritual salvation.
After Christ’s ascension into the heavens, all living souls must treat the Gospel message as the Divine, authoritative instruction of God as the Torah. Failure to remain fixed in the Word of Life results in “drifting away” thus losing one’s way. There is a severe judgment for those who fall away from the Gospel message declared about Messiah and the salvation He provides.
The Seven Spirits of God
And there were seven lamps of burning fire before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God; in the allusion to the seven lamps in the tabernacle and temple, which were trimmed by the priests, and always kept burning. Exodus 27:20-21
The lamps are expressive of the Spirit, and His gifts, and these being signified by the number “seven”, denote the fulness and perfection of them; and are said to be “before the throne”, showing that there is always a sufficiency of them for the supply of the churches in all ages.
The seven aspects of God’s Spirit are to fit and qualify proper persons to minister the word and administer ordinances, and these being called “lamps of burning fire”, the point at the light the Spirit of God in His gifts communicates to the churches.
One of the first mentions of the seven spirits of God is Isaiah 11:1-3.
Isaiah 11:1-3 is the prophecy of the coming rod and branch of the Davidic covenant of the King Messiah. The listing of His spiritual endowment is more than qualifies Him for His divine office. This shows that Christ’s kingdom is supernature and administered spiritually, at His baptism in the Jordan by John the Immerser.
Christ was filled with the Spirit from the womb, and He descended and rested upon Him at His baptism; He was anointed with Him to be Prophet, Priest, and King, and received His gifts and graces from Him without measure, which abide with Him, and are designed in the following words:
And a Branch shall grow out of his roots, The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding; The Spirit of Counsel and Might, The Spirit of knowledge, and the fear of the Lord.
John the apostle is in the very presence of Jehovah who acknowledges Christ. The images of the seven lamps are the very Spirit of God which consecrates and equips Jesus for His great work on the earth. “And the Spirit of Jehovah descends upon Him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and fear of Jehovah.”
“The Spirit of God is the Divine Spirit, which functions as the communicative vehicle of the whole creative fulness of divine powers. Then follow the six spirits, comprehended by the Spirit in three pairs.
The first relates to the intellectual life, the second to the practical life, and the third to the direct relation to God. For wisdom is the power of discerning the nature of things through their appearance. Understanding is the power of discerning the differences between things in their appearance.
Counsel is the gift of forming the right conclusions, and might is the ability to carry them out with energy. The knowledge of God is knowledge founded upon the fellowship of love; and the fear of the Lord Such fear is based upon reverence.
Spiritual Gifts: Unity in Diversity
The Apostle Paul records in 1 Corinthians 11:12 the diversities of gifts but by the same One Spirit of God, and Lord. In verse 7, “But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all, for one is give the word of wisdom, through the Spirit, to another, the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, and others gifts and healings, based upon the will of the Spirit and for the unity of the Body of Christ ” in her calling in the earth.
Just how is the Body of Christ to relate to God while manifesting this oneness before the materialistic and fleshly world? Paul writes in Galatians 5:22, aspects of what spiritual reformation looks like for a new creature of Christ and the Body of faithful followers. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.”
All Power Has Been Given To Me
Christ has spiritually delegated to His faithful followers, spiritual authority to continue His work on the earth until His second Advent return. His would-be disciples would obtain aspects of the power of the Spirit of God and the advancement of the Kingdom of God.
During His ascension, He boldly proclaimed these words, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20
The writers of the New Covenant recorded the Gospel account of the God of Israel’s victory in Jesus over the evil powers that destroy. We in this generation have the same power and authority to know, live, and proclaim the same Gospel message of the first-century believers of Messiah.
The essence of the life-giving quality of the Gospel is that it is the only ‘good news” about the God of Israel’s coming reign, which proclaims in the Messiah’s life, death, and resurrection, the victorious guarantee of God’s fidelity to the work of consummation. This work of completion is the expression of the fullness of mutual blessing as the outcome of God’s economy with Israel, the Nations, and all creation.
The image that the apostle John sees is the faithful missional, redeemer Lamb, who was once dead, but is now alive, reigning, and coming again to carry out the creator God’s final mission and create a faithful missional people of faith in this life. and the eternal life to come!
Grace and Peace
Brother Alonzo
Study and research material used in this blog:
Gill’s Expository of the Entire Bible [Seven Spirits of God]; Reading Revelation Responsibly, Michael J. Gorman, [Majesty and Beatitudes section]; Torah and the Gospel section, gleaned from The God of Israel and Christian Theology, R. Kendall Soulen
The Ryrie Study Bible, and The Complete Jewish Bible