What Does It Mean That Jesus Is the “Faithful Witness” in Revelation?

Several months ago, I began preparing to teach through Revelation to my congregation, believing that the message of Revelation, written over two thousand years ago, contained an essential, relevant message for the contemporary church in twenty-first century America. But I can honestly say that I was not prepared for the vivid, timely message which would soon emerge in my study and preparation. As I prayerfully read through Jesus’ message to the ancient churches in Asia Minor, a triumphant, contemporary message surfaced that I had never fully considered before now.

The question that I am seeking to answer in this short article relates to John’s reference to Jesus as the “faithful witness” (Revelation 1:5). In almost all commentaries and scholarly resources that seek to shed light on this phrase, the majority simply deal with the trustworthiness of Jesus. Those who would give any attention at all to this subtle designation to Jesus as the “faithful witness” seldom see it meaning anything more than that he is true to his word and is to be trusted.

To be absolutely clear, I certainly believe this to be true of Jesus. He is trustworthy in every sense. Truth is at the very center of God’s nature and character, and he cannot lie (Titus 1:2). Since Jesus is the perfect representation and “image of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15), then it only stands to reason that truth is at the core of Jesus’ nature as well. Dare we forget Christ’s own claim, “I am the way, the truth, and the life…” (John 14:6). That Jesus can be trusted is not in dispute here, but the all-important question is, was this John’s intended meaning when he spoke of Jesus as the “faithful witness?”

Understand the Context First

When seeking to interpret any portion of Scripture faithfully, there are some critical questions that we must ask as we evaluate the text:

1) Who was the author and what did he intend to communicate to his audience?

2) What was the historical context and how would the original recipients have understood the message?

Until we can answer these questions to the best of our ability, we should not expect that we will truly understand any passage of Scripture. Time and space do not allow for an exhaustive exploration of these questions, but it is critical that the context and author’s intent be our starting place in understanding Jesus as “the faithful witness.”

We know that the Book of Revelation is the record of John’s “out of this world” vision which he had while on the island of Patmos (Rev. 1:9-11). As instructed by our Lord, John records for the church what he witnessed with his own eyes. It is crucial that you understand that John is writing with an ancient audience in mind. There is a particular people facing a particular circumstance being addressed here. John is not writing to you. He is writing for you. Simply put, John does not have twenty-first century America on his mind as he pens these words. This principle is, of course, true of all Scripture, but it is especially needful to remember as we approach such an unusual text as Revelation.

John’s audience is a first-century, Greco-Roman culture living in the shadow of Roman imperialism and false religion mysticism. The Roman empire was saturated with cultic symbols and images that sought to shape how its citizens related to one another and especially to the many gods that needed to be appeased. It is into this deeply superstitious and mystic world that a new community has begun to emerge around a man who claimed to be “the Alpha and Omega. . . the Almighty” (Rev. 1:8). The Roman culture made room for new gods and beliefs that could coexist alongside of emperor worship and the many other faith claims, but it did not tolerate a rival sovereign or those whose allegiance was offered to that God alone.

At the heart of Revelation’s message stands the undeniable fact that the Roman system of belief stood in stark contrast and opposition to the message of the gospel. Christians were not able to ride the proverbial fence which distinguished between these two worldviews. By choosing to walk in obedience to “the ruler of the kings of the earth” (1:5), Christ’s followers were opposing the emperor’s assertion that he was the supreme god. Consequently, such a stance came with a price. At the time of John’s writing, the birth pangs of persecution were already being felt across the empire, though not in every place and certainly not to the degree as that which was to come. But for the Bride of Christ the day of reckoning had come.

Understanding This Verse by Going Back to the Beginning

Because John has seen in his vision the coming of a black storm of turmoil for the church, he understands that his most urgent priority in writing is to resolutely establish the identity of Jesus and firmly ground the church’s own purpose and hope in Jesus’ power and goodness. When John refers to Jesus as the “the faithful witness,” John is preparing the church to “be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58) in the face of impending affliction. The question before us now is how would the designation of Jesus as the “faithful witness” strengthen our ancient brothers and fortify our own faith in a world now hostile to the gospel?

One of the keys to fully understanding John’s message and faithfully interpreting the Book of Revelation is to comprehend the author’s use of the Old Testament. Though there are no explicit Old Testament references to be found in the Revelation, John alludes to the Old Testament more times than all other New Testament writers combined. To ignore this feature of the book renders one incapable of fully grasping the author’s intended meaning, and it is a significant factor in discerning the true description of Jesus as the “faithful witness.”

In Genesis we are told that God created Adam and planted him in a garden where he was to grow and flourish like a tree planted by a river (Genesis 2:15). Adam’s role in the garden paradise was not without purpose, however. As the “image” of God (Genesis 1:26), Adam was tasked with “working” and “keeping” the garden temple, which points to Adam’s role as a cultivator and guardian of the garden. But Adam was much more than a groundskeeper. As one made in God’s “image,” Adam and his descendants were to faithfully represent their Creator and carry his kingdom agenda to the corners of the world.

Adam’s progeny was never intended to remain within the confines of the Eden, but rather they were to venture out to transform all of creation into an “Eden-shaped” world. Mankind’s “dominion” (Gen. 1:26) was to extend far beyond the borders of the garden to the whole earth (Gen. 1:28) with the intended goal that one day “the earth would be filled with the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14).

Despite God’s design, however, Adam fails to be the faithful witness that he was created to be. Rather than ruling over God’s ever-expanding house, he and his descendants become subjects to the chaotic powers of creation and remained hopelessly on the outside of the garden looking in. Instead of reflecting the Creator’s glory and character, man soon seeks to make a name for himself (Genesis 11:4) and rather than “filling” the earth with God’s presence and glory, God’s image bearers “fill” it with only “violence” (Genesis 6:11,13).

Jesus Steps in as the Faithful Witness

After Adam’s attempted mutiny, the creational mandate, which is rejected by Adam, is transferred to Noah (Genesis 9:1,7-8), Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3), and finally to Israel (Isaiah 42:6-8; 43:10-12). And one by one, each generation of image bearers chose their way over the Creator’s. To be clear, to say that the patriarchs and eventually, Israel, failed to faithfully represent God and his covenant mission does not imply that these were failed attempts to restore on God’s part. It’s not as though he began with “plan A” and worked down from there until he found success. Instead, we need to realize that Adam, Noah, Abraham, the prophets, kings and the nation of Israel always only foreshadowed the coming of the true Image (Hebrews 1:3) who would one day reopen the way to the garden and God’s presence (Matthew 27:51; Hebrews 9:11-12).

The glorious reality is that despite Adam’s failure to guard God’s dwelling and reflect the Maker’s radiance, Jesus, the true Israel, conquered death to restore and redeem God’s world and God’s people. “For in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:22; Romans 5:12-16).

When John seeks to identify Jesus as the true author of the Revelation vision, he likely is alluding to Psalm 89 when he refers to Jesus as the “faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth” (Rev. 1:5). It should not surprise us at all to see that Psalm 89 concludes with a question that echoes through the ages, “Where are Your former lovingkindnesses, O Lord which You swore to David in Your faithfulness?” (Psalm 89:49). This question gets answered in the Revelation when John identifies Jesus as the “faithful witness.”

There are dark days looming on the horizon for John’s audience. From their perspective, it must seem as though Rome’s emperor and Rome’s gods are supreme and reigning on the world’s throne. But things are not always as they may appear then or now. In times of darkness and utter moral decay, the greatest hope and encouragement God’s people can have is knowing that the second Adam has faithfully kept the covenant that we never could, and cleared the way for us back into the presence of our King. Because of the covenant fidelity of our “faithful witness,” in Christ, we also can faithfully reflect the King’s majesty in a world ruled by tyrants. 

Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Tinnakorn Jorruang

Dr. Rick Kirby, along with his wife and children, lives in Anderson, South Carolina. Rick serves as a corporate chaplain in the upstate of South Carolina, in addition to shepherding micro-church movements, which he does in partnership with the Evangelical Free Church in America and the Creo Collective. Rick has written as a freelance writer for organizations such as The INJOY Group, InTouch Ministries, and Walk Through the Bible. Rick holds a Master of Divinity and Doctor of Ministry degree from Erskine Theological Seminary. Through the years, Rick’s family has been deeply engaged in discipling efforts globally in India, Romania, Brazil, Ecuador and most recently in Puerto Rico. Among the many things Rick enjoys are woodworking in his woodshop and roasting (and drinking) coffee. You can find other works by Kirby at www.rickkirby.org.