Revelation 2:8-11 comments: Smyrna

    2:8 ¶  And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive; 9  I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan. 10  Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. 11  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

Smyrna was another wealthy city in the Roman province of Asia, now the country of Turkey. The church, at this time, was poor in the context of the great wealth around it. Persecution against Christians was rampant. The reference to them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan has been used to refer to the strong Jewish population that fought the growth of Christianity there. Polycarp, student of John, and bishop of Smyrna was burnt to death there and supposedly the Jews’ fury was so great they violated the Sabbath to gather wood to burn him.(3)

However, there is another explanation that concerns we Christians directly. All throughout Christian history there have been major church organizations that have declared that all of the promises to the Jews have been transferred to them and that God is done with the Jews. This has been called by some Replacement Theology although others say that Replacement Theology just means the Law was fulfilled in Christ and that it has nothing to do with God being done with the Jews but Replacement Theology as God discarding the Jews has the Christian church populated with false Apostles, Nicolaitan priests, and churchmen declaring that the church is indeed the Israel of God of Galatians 6:16, but not in the affirmation of a label that confirms what makes us God’s people, as in Galatians, but in an institutional transfer that strips the Jews of any future redemption and grants the church organization with physical properties that go against other statements in the Bible. For instance, in order to transfer the status of God’s nation of Israel in the Old Testament to the New Testament church they must deny that the weapons of our warfare are not physical or carnal (2Corinthians 10:4) and they must deny that the Kingdom of God is invisible and within us (Luke 17:20,21) and deny that there is no Christian commonwealth or nation or kingdom on earth possessing the authority and blessings that God wanted to bestow on Israel. This is in spite of countries like England, Russia, Germany, and America in the past claiming they were now God’s Israel.

The reference to tribulation ten days could be a reference to the ten great persecutions of Christians or the references in history to ten great persecutions might be reading back into this verse ten of the persecutions against Christians. There were at least ten great persecutions and many more, localized ones before the church and state were united under the Emperor Constantine, at which point the institutional church became a persecutor itself, which is always the case with state-churches.

If they did not renounce their faith, they would receive a crown of life, which goes to the persecuted who die in their faith, never rejecting Christ, as many Christians in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa are faced with even today.

The second death is defined as;

Revelation 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

Revelation 20:14  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

Revelation 21:8  But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

When we are born again we can only die one time, in our flesh. When we reject Christ we will die a second time when we are cast into the lake of fire into which death and hell are thrown.

Christ commends these churches’ works, labor, patience, poverty, and rejection of evil.

(3)   Merrill F. Unger, Archaeology and the New Testament, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing, 1962), 281-2.

Revelation 2:1-7 comments: against Nicolaitanism

2:1 ¶  Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks; 2  I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: 3  And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted. 4  Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. 5  Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. 6  But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

John is told to write a letter to Ephesus and immediately their works, labor, and patience are commended. Also, though, it is acknowledged that they hate counterfeit apostles. Is there evidence of complaining about counterfeit apostles in the Bible?

2Peter 2:1 ¶  But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

2Corinthians 2:17  For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.

Philippians 3:18  (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19  Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)

Romans 16:17 ¶  Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. 18  For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches [sermons, maybe?] deceive the hearts of the simple.

Remember what Jesus said about these kinds.

Matthew 7:21 ¶  Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22  Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?23  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

The Ephesians are commendable but they have left their first love. It is important to read Ephesians to understand the dangers and pitfalls spiritually that the rich church of Ephesus faced, the things that Paul was clearly concerned about. Rather than post the entire letter here we need to read it as a letter to get the feel of what he was concerned about and clearly what happened. Also read about Paul’s experiences in Ephesus in Acts. Please stop and do this now.

This warning to Ephesus, and to us by extension is about getting back to first things, the foundation and fundamentals of our faith as charged by Christ through Paul.

Christ speaks of His hatred of Nicolaitanism, in Greek victory over the laity. In the Roman church it is the priest as the actual representation of Christ on earth rather than the individual Christian. The priest is a separate class of individual closer to God than the laity. In the Independent Baptist church, it is the preacher as the, ‘man o’ God,” who cannot be questioned and is often followed even if he is guilty of crimes to which he confesses. I listened to news interviews with the congregation of an Independent Fundamental Baptist (IFB) preacher in Virginia who had confessed to criminal behavior and they said they would follow him no matter what because he was the, “man o’ God.” In more modernistic churches it could be the educated clergy who has been to seminary and, well, he’s not going to argue with the likes of you because he has a degree, don’t ya know.

Sometimes this evil manifests itself in a celebrity preacher’s opinions becoming dogma that must be true simply because he said it. There are a small number of such preachers in the IFB church in America who literally can say whatever pops into their head and it is as if God Himself spoke it. This is the essence of Nicolaitanism, which Christ hates. A preacher is held to the same standard or tougher than everyone else. He is not God walking in the flesh and if what he says does not line up with Scripture in context you should discard it. In every sermon, remember to chew up the meat and spit out the bones. You can learn from almost anyone and almost anyone will have some error in what they say. God does not dictate letters to preachers as if they were His secretaries. He gives them wisdom and understanding to preach His word. It is an old lie of  the Puritans in the Massachusetts Bay Colony that God only speaks through the preacher on Sunday morning and does not speak to the individual Christian’s heart as he or she reads or listens to the Bible prayerfully. It is a lie and a heresy for any Independent Baptist to say that we must only look to what, “God has laid on the preacher’s heart,” to hear from God.

God’s inspiration opens up every man’s understanding.

Job 32:8  But there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.

And prompted even reluctant Old Testament prophets like Jeremiah and Amos to speak and write His words.

2Peter 1:21  For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

Giving even Paul, in the New Testament, wisdom to write what God wanted written.

2Peter 3:15  And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;

Beware of Nicolaitanism. It can destroy a congregation and render it spiritually powerless.

What does it mean to overcome or to endure to the end?

1John 5:4  For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. 5  Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?

We now know where the tree of life is. It is in paradise which is now in heaven.

See and contrast Luke 23:43 and 1Peter 3:19 with 2Corinthians 12:4.

Revelation 1:9-20 comments: what happened one Sunday in the late first-century AD

1:9 ¶  I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.

John was on the island of Patmos. The Bible does not say that he was a prisoner but that he was there for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. It is certain Christian traditions that say he was there as a prisoner. The Harper’s Bible dictionary says the following, which is misquoted in Wikipedia as of this writing;

Early Christian tradition says that John was banished to Patmos by the Roman authorities. This tradition is credible because banishment was a common punishment used during the Imperial period for a variety of offenses. Among such offenses were the practices of magic and astrology. Prophecy was viewed by the Romans as belonging to the same category, whether pagan, Jewish, or Christian. Prophecy with political implications, like that expressed by John in the book of Revelation, would have been perceived as a threat to Roman political power and order. [The writer goes on to refer to Pliny’s Natural History and Tacitus’ Annals as references to the series of islands where Patmos was located as being used for used for such purposes.] (2)

(2) Adela Y. Collins, “Patmos,” Harper Bible Dictionary, Paul J. Achtemeier, gen. ed., (San Francisco: Harper & Row Publishers, 1985), 755.

This sets the writing and events in a specific period of time in history, probably, according to many historians in the AD90’s, fully decades after the temple of Herod at Jerusalem had been destroyed by the Romans.

1:10  I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, 11  Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea. 12  And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; 13  And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. 14  His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; 15  And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters. 16  And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. 17  And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: 18  I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. 19  Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter; 20  The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.

I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day…, is an interesting phrase. First, it reinforces that Christians worshipped on a special day called the Lord’s day.  Other evidence of a special day that particular worship was held can be found at;

Acts 20:7  And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.

1Corinthians 16:2  Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.

What does it mean to be in the Spirit?  Note the uppercase S.

The believer is indwelt by the Spirit of Christ, who is God.

Romans 8:9  But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

The context of the following shows that as the believer is indwelt by the Spirit of God his sanctification is not accomplished by carnal, fleshy things such as ordinances and commandments but by the change brought about by the Spirit on his or her life.

Galatians 3:3  Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?

The believer who walks in the Spirit does not seek to fulfill the lust of the flesh. If we live in the Spirit it must be evidenced by our walk.

… 5:16  This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh…25  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Being in the Spirit has to do with being detached from the world and focused on and controlled by God.

Ephesians 6:18  Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Colossians 1:8  Who also declared unto us your love in the Spirit.

1Timothy 3:16  And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

John was so deeply given to prayer and so focused on God that the Spirit of God controlled him and was willing to show him things we cannot see because even when we pray we are still firmly planted in this world. Few have prayed hard enough or for a long enough time or in a focused manner that would allow their complete surrender to God.  Usually we want something or we don’t want something but our prayers are not focused on our position in God; our submission to Him or His authority over us. We either mumble a hurried prayer, recite a formula, or preach a sermon to others. What John experienced here was much, much more. Of course, I am assuming John was praying although this could have been similar to Peter’s trance in Acts 10.

John heard a voice behind him and before he turned around the voice, which sounded powerful and loud like a trumpet and identified Christ as the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and ending, again, named the specific seven churches in the Roman province of Asia. They do not still exist and the Roman province of Asia is now a predominantly Muslim country named Turkey after the Turks who conquered the Eastern Roman Empire in 1453, whose capital was at Constantinople, which the Turks renamed Istanbul.

Each of these cities has an intriguing background and the archaeology surrounding them is very interesting. But, it is what God says about them in the Bible that matters the most to us here, not the suppositions and theories of historians and archaeologists, although I am not discounting them or rejecting what they say. One book I recommend is Merrill F. Unger’s landmark work entitled Archaeology and the New Testament.

As they do not exist now, their presence in the Bible must mean something else to us, if we believe that the Holy Spirit gave the Bible to the writers of it by inspiration and that He was an active agent throughout the history of its preservation. We assume that all of the obscure names given in the Old Testament, for instance, have some type of significance and importance to us even though we do not know yet what it is.

There are many theories about what the seven churches mean. Some have said they are seven ages of church history. Some that they are simply seven types of churches throughout history. John turned then to see who was speaking to him and here we get an important point about translating. The translators use the word candlesticks, something which modernists despise. This does not mean that John is referring to candles of wax although candles were used at that time and there is plenty of evidence that candles were used from the middle of the millennium before Christ.

The word, lampstand, is not found in English lexicons and dictionaries before 1800. If you find it let me know.  As the British use the word torch for what we call a flashlight hearkening back to earlier technology the King James Bible translators used candlestick for the apparatus on which a lamp was set.

Zechariah 4:2  And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof:

Referencing;

Exodus 25:31 ¶  And thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold: of beaten work shall the candlestick be made: his shaft, and his branches, his bowls, his knops, and his flowers, shall be of the same. 32  And six branches shall come out of the sides of it; three branches of the candlestick out of the one side, and three branches of the candlestick out of the other side: 33  Three bowls made like unto almonds, with a knop and a flower in one branch; and three bowls made like almonds in the other branch, with a knop and a flower: so in the six branches that come out of the candlestick. 34  And in the candlestick shall be four bowls made like unto almonds, with their knops and their flowers. 35  And there shall be a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, according to the six branches that proceed out of the candlestick. 36  Their knops and their branches shall be of the same: all it shall be one beaten work of pure gold. 37  And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof: and they shall light the lamps thereof, that they may give light over against it. 38  And the tongs thereof, and the snuffdishes thereof, shall be of pure gold. 39  Of a talent of pure gold shall he make it, with all these vessels. 40  And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount.

Think of other places where the translators used words that the reader would understand rather than transliterating a Greek word. Think of furlong for the Greek stadion in Luke 24:13. Think of penny in place of denarion in Matthew 20:2.

In verse 13 paps are nipples, so this garment is cinched at breast height.

Luke 11:27  And it came to pass, as he spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked.

(Oh my! Why isn’t He wearing a suit and tie!?? I’m so offended. Just joking, fundamentalists.)

The appearance of Christ here, the image, the likeness we see in this passage is different from what the disciples saw when He was walking the earth. He is glorified and in the world of spirit. His head and his hair are white like wool. His eyes glowed like fire. His feet were like brass in a furnace and His voice sounded like many waters. What’s that sound like? Imagine the waves of a storm pounding on the beach or assaulting a ship at sea.

Psalm 93:4  The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea.

We can picture in our head the sound of a waterfall or the rapids on a great river but the Bible definition is the mighty waves of the sea.

He is holding seven stars in His right hand and a sharp two-edge sword is coming out of His mouth. The stars are defined as the appearance or angels of the seven churches, and that would be before God as they existed on earth at the time while the seven candlesticks were the actual churches. Churches should be a light, shouldn’t they?

The two-edged sword is the Bible, the word of God.

Hebrews 4:12  For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

In this verse in Hebrews word of God is the same word as Word used for Jesus in creation, logos. Then, would the Bible be Christ in written form?

Christ’s face glowed like the sun shining in its power. Notice the verses regarding Moses;

Exodus 34:29  And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses’ hand, when he came down from the mount, that Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him. 30  And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come nigh him. …33  And till Moses had done speaking with them, he put a vail on his face…35  And the children of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face shone: and Moses put the vail upon his face again, until he went in to speak with him.

2Corinthians 3:7  But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away:

Now, Christ at His transfiguration;

Matthew 17:1 ¶  And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, 2  And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.

Verse 17 says;  And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:

(Peter, James, and John were taken with Christ to see His transfiguration clearly because they will write significant portions of the end-times letters; 1^st and 2^nd Peter, 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd John, James, and Revelation.)

Note from Ezekiel…

Ezekiel 1:26 ¶  And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it. 27  And I saw as the colour of amber, as the appearance of fire round about within it, from the appearance of his loins even upward, and from the appearance of his loins even downward, I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and it had brightness round about. 28  As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake.

In verse 18 Christ said that He had the keys of Hell and of death. Death and Hell have a close relationship in the Bible.

Proverbs 5:5  Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.

Proverbs 7:27  Her house is the way to hell, going down to the chambers of death.

Isaiah 28:15  Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves…18  And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.

Habakkuk 2:5  Yea also, because he transgresseth by wine, he is a proud man, neither keepeth at home, who enlargeth his desire as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth unto him all people:

Revelation 6:8  And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.

Revelation 20:13  And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 14  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

John is then instructed to write about the past, the present, and the future; what he has seen, what he sees, and what he will see. Then, Christ explains that the seven stars are the angels or appearances of the seven churches while the seven candlesticks are the seven churches. The difference between an angel or appearance, a presence, from the physical thing in our space-time should be clear by now.

Notice that the vision John is having is literal but that images in the vision are representational of things. I think this makes it clear that things existing in the spiritual world for things in the physical world do not necessarily copy those things in appearance but represent them.

Revelation 1:7-8 comments: the beginning and the end; having been, existing now, and in the future to come

1:7  Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. 8  I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

Daniel 7:13  I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.

Matthew 24:30  And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

And;

Zechariah 12:10  And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

John 19:37  And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.

Psalm 22:16  For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.

Here is Jesus Christ in verse 8 declaring Himself to be Almighty God.

I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

This will be expressed several times in Revelation (1:11; 4:8; 11:17; 22:13 as examples). See also in Isaiah;

Isaiah 43:10  Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me.

Isaiah 44:6  Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.

Isaiah 48:12  Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I am he; I am the first, I also am the last.

Isaiah 9:6  For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Remember, as well, that Jesus told Philip that to have seen Him was to have seen God the Father (John 14:7-9; also see John 8:58).

Revelation 1:6 comments: kings and priests unto God and his Father

1:6  And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Note that this verse refers to God, who is the Lord Jesus Christ, AND His Father, God the Father, in  a clear statement of Christ's deity. Please note the status of followers of Christ in;

1Peter 2:9  But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

2Timothy 2:12  If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:

Revelation 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

The king of an ancient city was also the high priest, who offered up sacrifices, and was the highest religious authority. This is evident in a number of ancient writers such as Aristotle, Euripides, and Demosthenes and related in De Coulanges’ work The Ancient City (1). God will make His people kings and priests.

(1)Numa Denis Fustel De Coulanges, The Ancient City: A Study of the Religion, Laws, and Institutions of Greece and Rome (1864, repr. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 2006), 173.

“…glory and dominion for ever and ever…”

Similar sentiments are expressed by Peter;

1Peter 5:10 ¶  But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

11  To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

And as part of the prayer given by Jesus to His disciples;

Matthew 6:13  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

Alluding to;

1Chronicles 29:11  Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all.

God’s authority and power is limitless and unending. There is nothing before Him and nothing after Him. There is also nothing besides Him to compete with Him.

Revelation 1:5 comments: in his own blood

1:5  And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,

And Jesus Christ, who was shown to be the visible image of God and the Word by which all things were created is the faithful witness reporting what is about to be told in the form of an angel. He rose from the dead never to die again so that we can rise from the dead, showing us by example what would happen to us. Enoch and Elijah did not die when they were translated but were taken out of the world bodily and alive and anyone else before Christ who died and was revived had to die again. He is also God as the first verses of John’s gospel tells us and constant, eternal as Paul said in Hebrews.

John 8:58  Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.

John 14:7  If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him…9  Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?

Hebrews 13:8  Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.

He is the first begotten of the dead as He is the beginning of creation and holds it together.

Colossians 1:15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: 16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by

him, and for him: 17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

He is above the kings of the earth as the prince to whom they have not but will be forced to submit.

Psalm 89:27 Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.

Christ washed us from our sins against God in His own blood.

Colossians 1:14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

As even usually unites two things that are the same, the forgiveness of sins is found through the redemption of Christ’s blood shed for us.

Romans 3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

Romans 5:9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

Ephesians 1:7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

Acts 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

Revelation 1:4: seven Spirits before the throne of God

1:4  John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;

John is speaking to seven literal churches in the Roman province of Asia, which we know as Asia Minor or the country of Turkey, existing at the same time which are types of all churches throughout history. It is difficult to say that each church represents an historic age of the church but they could typify the dominant church forms of each age.

God is Him which is, and which was, and which is to come. He is the great I AM.

Exodus 3:13  And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? 14  And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.

The seven Spirits, uppercase S, which are before God’s throne are the Spirits of the seven churches, the angels of the Seven Churches, as angels are spirits.

Psalm 104:4  Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire:

Hebrews 1:7  And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.

They have spread the gospel over the entire earth and for all of the warnings that Christ is about to give them He has used them for His purpose.

Revelation 4:5  And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.

Revelation 5:6  And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.