Revelation 1
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CHAPTER 1
Prologue (1:1-8)
1-3 The revelation described in this book is the revelation of Jesus Christ. Jesus gave this revelation to John to show Christians what must soon take place (verse 1). Up until now, most of the events described in this revelation have not yet taken place; however, the time is near (verse 3). And now that almost two thousand years have passed since John wrote these things, the time is even nearer! (see 2 Peter 3:8-9 and comment).
John calls this revelation a PROPHECY (verse 3), and says that those who read it or hear it and then take (it) to heart will be blessed. The same can be said for all of God’s written word, the Bible.
4-6 John wrote this book of Revelation for seven churches in particular, which were located in the Roman province of Asia, now modern Turkey (see verse 11). These churches were in the major cities of that province. In this way, John’s book could easily be passed on to all the other churches in the province. But we must remember that this book was written not just for the churches of Asia; it was written for every church in every generation—including ours.
GRACE and PEACE to you from him (God), who is, and who was, and who is to come (verse 4). God has no beginning or ending. And indeed, He is to come again. Therefore, when the final tribulations come at the end of the world, let Christians remember that all events are ultimately under the control of God. God is the Lord of every circumstance and situation.
Grace and peace also come from the seven spirits. Who these seven spirits are is not certain, but many believe that they represent seven aspects or virtues of the Holy Spirit.
Grace and peace also come from Jesus Christ (verse 5), who is the faithful witness. One of Jesus’ works was to be God’s witness (see John 3:31-34; 18:37). Jesus here is also called the firstborn from the dead (see Psalm 89:27; 1 Corinthians 15:20; Colossians 1:18 and comments). There will be a resurrection of the bodies of all believers in heaven, but Jesus’ resurrection has come before all the others; therefore, He is the “firstborn” (1 Corinthians 15:23). Jesus is also the ruler of the kings of the earth. He is the King of kings (Revelation 17:14). He is the supreme Lord of the universe (Philippians 2:9-11). Satan had offered Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor (Matthew 4:8-10). But now, through His obedience and death, Jesus has obtained not only all these kingdoms but also final victory over Satan.
Christ is our Savior. He has freed us from our sins by his blood (see Hebrews 9:14; 10:10 and comments). He has made us to be a kingdom and priests (verse 6). The Jewish nation was called a kingdom of priests (Exodus 19:6). Now the church of Christ has been called to be a kingdom of priests (see 1 Peter 2:5,9 and comment).
7 Christ will come with the clouds (Daniel 7:13; Mark 13:26; 14:62). All men, both believers and unbelievers, will see Him and know that He is the Son of God. Even those Roman soldiers who pierced Jesus while He was hanging on the cross will see Him (Zechariah 12:10; John 19:37). Not only that, those who today have given up their faith—who have betrayed Jesus and in effect put Him on the cross again—they too will see Jesus when they come before Him to receive judgment (Hebrews 6:4-6). On that day all the (unbelieving) peoples of the earth will mourn because of the judgment that Christ will bring upon them (see Matthew 24:30).
8 I am the alpha and omega. “Alpha” is the first word of the Greek alphabet, and “omega” is the last word. God is saying here that He is both the beginning and the end, that He lasts from beginning to end. God is the beginning of everything and the end of everything. But God Himself has no beginning and no end; He always was, and always will be (verse 4).
Vision of the Son of Man (1:9-20)
9 John was a companion, or sharer, in the suffering that is part of the Christian’s life in Jesus. He was also a fellow inheritor of the kingdom of Jesus (Romans 8:17). All those who belong to the kingdom of Jesus will face tribulation in this world (John 16:33; Acts 14:22). Because John was a faithful witness of Christ, he had been imprisoned on the island of Patmos.2
10-11 John received this revelation on the Lord’s Day—that is, Sunday.3 When John received the revelation, he was in the Spirit (verse 10); that is, he was in a state of special spiritual awareness, which made it possible for him to receive such a revelation (see Acts 10:10; 22:17; 2 Corinthians 12:1-4).
12-15 The seven golden lampstands (verse 12) represent the seven churches, to which this book of Revelation was sent (see verse 20). The one like the son of man (verse 13) is Jesus Christ Himself (Daniel 7:13). The Old Testament prophet Daniel had seen a similar vision of the glorified Christ (Daniel 7:9; 10:5-6).
16 In the vision, Christ was holding seven stars in His right hand; these stars represent the spirits of the seven churches (verse 20). From His mouth came a sharp double-edged sword, which represents His word (Ephesians 6:17), especially His word of judgment (see Hebrews 4:12; Revelation 2:16; 19:15,21).
Christ’s face was like the sun. John had once before seen the glorified Christ; at that time also Christ’s face had shone like the sun (Matthew 17:2).
17-18 When John saw this vision of Christ, he fell at Christ’s feet. Then Christ said to him, “Do not be afraid” (see Daniel 10:10-12; Matthew 17:6-7).
Christ then said that He was the First and the Last (the Alpha and Omega), which is the name that God gave to Himself in verse 8 (Isaiah 44:6). Christ said that He held the keys of death and Hades;4 that is, He had complete authority over death.
19-20 Then Christ commanded John to write down everything he had seen and was about to see. As we study this book of Revelation, we must not forget that what we are reading is an exact account of the revelation which Christ Himself gave to John. Some parts of this revelation may be hard to understand, but regardless of that, let us remember that this revelation has come from Christ Himself, and has been written down for our benefit.
The seven stars are the ANGELS of the seven churches (verse 20). Here the word angels can mean the angel of each church, or it can mean a special spiritual spokesman of each church. Through such an angel or spokesman, Christ speaks to each of His churches.
The seven churches are called the seven lampstands. They are called lampstands because the main work of every church is to be like a lampstand showing forth the light of Christ to all the world. Christ is the lamp or light of the world (John 8:12); and we are the “lampstand” for His light (see Matthew 5:14-16 and comment).