Commentary by Ron Beckham
Verse 1. “Then I saw
another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels who had
seven plagues, which are the last, because in them the wrath of God is
finished.”
You might wonder, WHY is the “wrath
of God” going to be “finished”
at this particular point in time? It is because His people will be
COMPLETE at that moment. All who are going to place their faith in
Him will have done so. Everyone who has consistently spurned the Lord
will NEVER turn to Him, because they love personal sovereignty more
than they love the true freedom which is only found in the Lord Jesus
Christ.
There is some question as to whether the events
in the Book of Revelation are concurrent (happening at the same time)
or consecutive (occurring one after the other). There may indeed be
overlap and some portions reach back in history, such as the advent of
Jesus portrayed in Chapter 12. But these verses occur “last”
(subsequent to other events), suggesting that the events in this
section will happen AFTER the incidents of the preceding chapters.
Verse 2. “And I saw
something like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who had been
victorious over the beast and his image and the number of his name,
standing on the sea of glass, holding harps of God.”
This “sea of glass”
is the “crystal sea” of Revelation
4:6, and it is in front of the throne of God. The phrase “glass
mixed with fire” is a figure of purity and judgment, and this “sea”
was prefigured long ago in Solomon’s temple as the “Brazen
Sea” where the priests washed their hands and feet prior to
ministering in the temple (1 Kings 7:23-26, 2 Chronicles 4:2-5).
Eternity will be a beautiful, shockingly lovely place, filled with the
unexpected, like this “sea of glass mixed
with fire.”
Here on earth, which has contained a God-given
beauty of its own, life is becoming increasingly ugly, as the place is
ravished and polluted for base motives. It’s much like our human
relationships – So much promise, but also there is great heartache.
In eternity, the place will not only be beautiful, but also the people
will treat one another with great love, as things always should have
been. Music will fill eternity, as represented by the “harps
of God” in this verse. We will sing our praise to Him.
Verse 3. “And they sang
the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb,
saying, ‘Great and marvelous are Your works, O Lord God, the Almighty;
Righteous and true are Your ways, King of the nations!’”
The “song of Moses…
and the song of the Lamb” is a direct
reference to the passage to freedom of the people Israel through the
Red Sea (Exodus 15), and they sang a song at that time which resembles
this and the next verse. Moses is called the “servant
of God” in places like Exodus 14:31. “The
Lamb” (Jesus Christ) delivered us through the destruction of
His own body, out of slavery and into freedom from sin.
“The song of Moses”
might indicate that the singers are Jewish, and that may be the case.
It can also mean that all Christ’s people of all time are one people,
with a common ground of salvation – The gift to us of grace, in the
Person of the Lamb of God. The song of Moses, in Exodus and in
Revelation, is a song of praise. Moses (and “those
who had been victorious” in Revelation 15:2) praise God for
what HE has done. And so should we all praise the Lord.
Verse 4. “Who will not
fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy; for all
the nations will come and worship before You, for Your righteous acts
have been revealed.”
This is the ground of the “FEAR”
of God, as seen in Scripture: “For You ALONE
are holy.” The usual word for God’s holiness in the New
Testament is the Greek “hagios,”
which is literally “separated” –
Separated from sin. In this verse, “holy”
is “hosios,” which is “righteousness”
as opposed to that which is unrighteous or polluted. In the Greek “Septuagint”
translation of the Old Testament, “hosios”
frequently was used for the Hebrew word “chasid,”
which meant not only “holy,” but it
was also used for “gracious” and “merciful.”
We may THINK we already understand the “righteous
acts” of God, but we really have no idea, and we will be
staggered; we will WORSHIP before the holy One of God, when we finally
perceive what He has done. At last we will comprehend it all when we
have “met” Him, face-to-face. He is pure, without any flaw. He does
not have any mixed motives or base thoughts. He is HOLY. It is time
for us NOW to worship Him and glorify His Holy Name.
Verse 5. “After these
things I looked, and the temple of the tabernacle of testimony in
heaven was opened,”
The “tabernacle of
testimony” is glimpsed in Exodus 25:16, 21, and it is the “Holy
of Holies,” the most holy place that contained the Ark of the Covenant
(testimony). The Holy of Holies is where God met Moses and through
the centuries, it is where He met the various high priests of Israel.
It was always a “copy” of something much more, the true tabernacle
which is in the place of God (Hebrews 8:2, 5). And our High Priest is
no longer here on this earth, but He is seated at the right hand of
God the Father (Hebrews 8:1-2).
Through the blood of Jesus Christ, this “tabernacle
of testimony” is open to us right now. We have access to God
through Him. Previously, as to the copy on earth of this heavenly
tabernacle, if anyone even touched it without the direct instruction
of God, they were killed. And here it was, opened before John the
Apostle’s very eyes, and it is now seen by you, as recorded in these
verses. Do you hunger to know, to understand? Trust in Jesus and He
will show you – Everything!
Verse 6. “and the seven
angels who had the seven plagues came out of the temple, clothed in
linen, clean and bright, and girded around their chests with golden
sashes.”
The “seven angels who
had the seven plagues” were previously seen by John in Verse 1,
and he recognizes them from that first encounter. In eternity, we
(humans or angels) will be INDIVIDUALS, recognizable to those we
encounter. Sin will be done away and we will be enabled to be full of
love; preoccupied with others and not with ourselves; and yet it is
clear we will NOT be like “drops of water” that merge into nothingness
(as the Buddhists say). We will be individuals, but also one people,
saved from selfishness and sin by the Power and Blood of God the Son.
When we have gone to be with the Lord, we will be
CLEAN inside, which is the basis of the “linen,
clean and bright” in this verse – These angels are unsoiled in
His sight, uncontaminated in heart. This is further reflected in the
“golden sashes” “girded
around their chests” – We on earth are to “take
up the whole armor of God” in THIS life, as we see in Ephesians
6:13 & context. Ephesians 6:14, urges: Gird “your
waist with truth” and “put on the
breastplate of righteousness.” We are to be clean and bright,
just like these angels.
Verse 7. “Then one of
the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls
full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever.”
This “living creature”
is a “cherub,” as we saw in Revelation
4:6, in conjunction with Ezekiel Chapters 1 and 10. This is one of
the four beings continually before the throne of God, who has “eyes
all around” and is like nothing seen on this earth. Paintings
and poetry have depicted “cherubim” as
babies with wings, but that is not the case. These are mighty
creatures that see – everything!
There is a theory that “wrath”
(anger) is a “lower” feeling, and the higher the being, the less anger
will be present. Yet here is God who lives “forever
and ever,” and is infinitely more than we are (we are finite;
less than Him), and yet He is “full of
“wrath.” What is often forgotten is that it is mature to be
against those who would harm others. “Sinners” are SELFISH by nature,
using people for their own ends. God is AGAINST sinners and is FOR
the ones injured by them. To the extent we persist in selfishness,
God’s wrath is upon us.
Verse 8. “And the
temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power;
and no one was able to enter the temple until the seven plagues of the
seven angels were finished.”
This “smoke” is
the “Shekinah” (which means “dwelling
of God”) as seen in places like Exodus 16:10 and 24:16, where
Israel followed the “pillar of smoke”
in the wilderness. Moses called it “the
cloud” in Exodus 14:19. It is a visible symbol of God’s
presence, a sign that God is active in the lives of men and women, and
it speaks of His judgment upon humankind. When the temple was
completed and Solomon had finished praying, “the
glory of the Lord filled the temple, and the priests could not enter…
because the glory of the Lord had filled the
Lord’s house” (2 Chronicles 7:1-2).
God is good, He is glorious, and He has exhibited
incredible patience in staying His hand of judgment upon this planet.
Yet there will come a time when men want ONLY their own way, and then
“NO ONE” will be able to stop the “plagues”
presented through these angels until all is finished. God searches
for faith, for a willingness to trust in Him, in His Son. There will
come a time when all people will refuse Him, and God’s final wrath
will occur. We were created for faith, and when the last drop of
faith has been squeezed from humanity, the end will come.
Ron Beckham, Pastor
Friday Study Ministries
P.O. Box 92131
Long Beach, CA
90809-2131 USA
www.fridaystudy.org
Ron@fridaystudy.org
