Lesson 7
The Throne of God
A Personal View of Heaven
Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.
Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness.
Come, let us bow down in worship , let us kneel before the LORD our Maker;
Exalt the LORD our God and worship at his footstool; he is holy.
Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.
Ex 34:14, Ps 29:2; 95:6; 99:5; 100:2
“He is worthy. And wise is the soul who finds in the scriptures the revelation
of such a God and who bows now in this day of grace in faith and worship
before the God whom he will serve in eternity.”
John Walvoord
Introduction: The third section of
Rev 1:19 Write, therefore, what you have seen (the 1st vision of the risen, glorified Christ), what is now (the state of the churches) and what will take place later
I. The Command to the writer Rev 4:1
A. “ a door standing open in heaven”
1 Kings 22:19 Micaiah continued, "Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne with all the host of heaven standing around him on his right and on his left.
Isa 6:1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple.
Ezek 1:1 In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God.
Dan 7:9 As I looked, thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat.
Acts 7:56 “Look," he said, "I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God."
B. The voice of command
And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, "Come up here,
and I will show you what must take place after this."
II. The Vision of the Throne Rev4:2-8
A. a throne in heaven (God’s sovereign rule and authority – fixed, permanent, unshakable)
B. a display of light and color
1. Jasper Rev 21:10-11
10b …. the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.
11 It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel,
like a jasper , clear as crystal.
We would probably compare to a diamond
2. Sardius (carnelian) ruby red
Jasper and Sardius were the first and last stones on the breastplate of the high priest Ex 28:17, 20
Jasper = Ruben – “behold, a son” (the 1st born)
Sardius = Benjamin – “son of my right hand” (the last born)
3. Emerald rainbow
Gen 9:13, 16-17
13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.
16 Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth."
17 So God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth."
C. The 24 Elders (“who are those guys?!” Butch Cassidy)
Rev 4:4 Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads.
1. Overcomers sit on thrones with Jesus
Rev 3:21 To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne,
just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.
2. Dressed in white
Rev 3:4-5
4 Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me,
dressed in white, for they are worthy.
5 He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white.
3. Crowns of gold on their heads
1 Cor 9:25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.
2 Tim 4:8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
James 1:12 Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
1 Peter 5:4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.
Rev 2:10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.
4. Worship – with an acknowledgment of the source of the crowns
Rev 4:10-11
10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:
11 "You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power,
5. Who would know the one worthy to open the scroll?
Rev 5:5 Then one of the elders said to me, "Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals."
6. Who prays?
Rev 5:8 the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
D. Lightning and Thunder (judgment) Rev 4:5 From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder.
Ex 19:16 On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled.
Ezek 1:13 The appearance of the living creatures was like burning coals of fire or like torches. Fire moved back and forth among the creatures; it was bright, and lightning flashed out of it.
Rev 8:5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.
E. The “Seven Spirits of God” Rev 4:5
Before the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God.
Isa 11:2
The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him —
the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of power,
the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD —
F. Crystal Sea Rev 4:6
Also before the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal.
Ex 24:9-10
9 Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel went up
10 and saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was something like a pavement made of sapphire, clear as the sky itself.
The great laver in Solomon's Temple. This immense bronze bowl was placed on twelve oxen and orientated toward the four points of the compass. It was a new feature of the sanctuary court (1 Kings 7:23-26). It took the place of the laver of the Tabernacle, was ornately decorated with flowers and high relief, and was for the purpose of ceremonial washings. (from The New Unger's Bible Dictionary. Moody Press of Chicago, Illinois. Copyright © 1988.)
G. The 4 Living Creatures Rev 4:6-8
6 In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back.
7 The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle.
8 Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come."
Lion - king of beasts - majesty and omnipotence Matthew King
Ox (calf) - chief of domestic animals - patience and continuous labor Mark Servant
Man - greatest of all creatures - intelligence and rational power Luke Son of Man
Eagle - greatest of birds - sovereignty and supremacy John Son of God
III. The Response of the elders Rev 4:9-11
Rev 4:9-11
9 Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever,
10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:
11 "You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things,
and by your will they were created and have their being."
Worship
A. The Perversion of Mankind Isaiah 44:12-20 Romans 1:18-32
B. True Worship
John 4:23-24
23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.
24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
SERAPHIM
Nature. An order of celestial beings, whom Isaiah beheld in vision standing above Jehovah as He sat upon His throne (Isa 6:2,6). They are described as each of them having three pairs of wings; with one they covered their faces (a token of humility), with the second they covered their feet (a token of respect), while with the third they flew. They seem to have borne a general resemblance to the human figure, for they are represented as having face, voice, feet, and hands (v. 2).
Occupation. The seraphim that Isaiah saw hovered above on both sides of Him that sat upon the throne, forming two opposite choirs and presenting antiphonal worship. Their occupation was twofold-to celebrate the praises of Jehovah's holiness and power (v. 3) and to act as the medium of communication between heaven and earth (v. 6). They are beings expressive of the divine holiness and demand that the saint shall be cleansed before serving (Isa 6:6-8). From their antiphonal chant ("one called out to another") we may conceive them to have been ranged in opposite rows on each side of the throne. See Cherubim.
E. J. Young, The Book of Isaiah (1965), 1:234-53.
CHERUBIM
Mention in Scripture. Cherubim are mentioned at the expulsion of our first parents from Eden (Gen 3:24), when their office was "to guard the way to the tree of life," i.e., to render it impossible for man to return to paradise and eat of the tree of life. In this account there is no mention of their nature or form.
We next read of them in connection with the furnishing of the Tabernacle (Ex 25:18-20), where directions are given to place two golden cherubim upon the top of the Ark of the Covenant. They were to be of "hammered work," i.e., beaten with the hammer and rounded, and not solid. They were fastened to the Mercy Seat (lid of the Ark) and, facing each other, stretched out their wings so as to form a screen over the Mercy Seat. They were called the "cherubim of glory" (Heb 9:5). Cherubim were also woven into or embroidered upon the inward curtain of the Tabernacle (Ex 26:1; 36:8) and the veil (26:31).
The two cherubim placed by Solomon in the Holy of Holies (1 Kings 6:23-28; 8:7; 2 Chron 3:7-14) were made of olive wood, overlaid with gold. They had bodies ten cubits high, and stood upon their feet, like men. The length of their wings was five cubits. They stood "facing the main room," i.e., the Holy Place, the outward wing of each cherub touching the wall and the tip of the other wings touching each other.
Other references are as follows: "He rode on a cherub and flew" (2 Sam. 2 Chron 22:11; Ps 18:10); the vision of four cherubim (NASB, "living beings"; NIV, "living creatures") seen by Ezekiel (Ezek 1:5-14; 10), and that of the "four living creatures" in Rev 4:6-9.
The cherubim from their position at the gate of Eden, upon the cover of the Ark of the Covenant, and in Rev 4 are evidently connected with vindicating the holiness of God against the presumptuous pride of fallen man, who despite his sin, would "stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life" (Gen 3:22). Upon the Ark of the Covenant they looked down upon the sprinkled blood that symbolizes the perfect maintenance of God's righteousness by the sacrifice of Christ (Ex 25:17-20; Rom 3:24-26). The cherubim seem to be actual beings of the angelic order. They do not seem to be identical with the seraphim (Isa 6:2). The cherubim apparently have to do with the holiness of God as violated by sin; the seraphim with uncleanness in the people of God.
W. F. Albright, Biblical Archaeologist Reader 1 (1961): 95-97; R. de Vaux, Ancient Israel: Its Life and Institutions (1961), pp. 295-304, 319-20; J. B. Payne, Theology of the Older Testament (1962), pp. 289-95.
TNBS Study Questions preparation for lesson 8
Read Revelation Chapters 4 & 5 together
1. From 4 - 5, trace the concentric circles of praise starting with the throne and ending with every creature.
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2. John is shown a sealed scroll. Based on what you know comes later, what do you suppose that is (or represents) ?
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3. Why is there only one, and no one else, qualified to unroll it? (need help? - try John 5:19-27)
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