“I, John, your brother and partner in the affliction, kingdom, and endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 I was in the Spirit, on the Lord’s day, and I heard a loud voice behind me like a trumpet 11 saying, “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.”
12 Then I turned to see whose voice it was that spoke to me. When I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and among the lampstands was one like the Son of Man,, dressed in a robe and with a golden sash wrapped around his chest. 14 The hair of his head was white as wool—white as snow—and his eyes like a fiery flame. 15 His feet were like fine bronze as it is fired in a furnace, and his voice like the sound of cascading waters. 16 He had seven stars in his right hand; a sharp double-edged sword came from his mouth, and his face was shining like the sun at full strength.
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead man. He laid his right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid. I am the First and the Last, 18 and the Living One. I was dead, but look—I am alive forever and ever, and I hold the keys of death and Hades. 19 Therefore write what you have seen, what is, and what will take place after this. 20 The mystery of the seven stars you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.”
-Revelation 1:9-20 (CSB)
As a pastor, I’ve had the opportunity to officiate a number of weddings throughout the years. Weddings can be stressful experiences with all of the planning, organizing, costs, and logistics that are often part of the process of getting married today. And yet, in spite of these challenges that so often accompany weddings, there is something timeless and truly remarkable about the joining of two lives into one as a couple takes their vows before the Lord.
One of the wedding-day traditions still observed by many couples is that the husband does not see his bride-to-be in her wedding dress until the doors open and she walks down the aisle during the ceremony. While some may see this tradition as unnecessary or archaic, I have always found it to be one of the most powerful and moving moments of the entire ceremony. As an officiating pastor, I am typically the closest person to the groom standing in front of the assembled guests and get the privilege of seeing his expression up close when he first glimpses his wife walking down the aisle. Through the years, I have seen the toughest and best composed of men completely melt into tears when they get their first glimpse of their beautiful bride-to-be walking down the aisle in magnificent splendor. The groom is crying. The bride is crying. And, often, a great many of the guests are crying. It is the scene every bride dreams of (and every father dreads…) as the daughter of one family is joined to the son of another. The emotion of the moment is beautiful, captivating, and absolutely unforgettable.
To an even greater degree, the moment when we as Christians first glimpse our Savior in all of His resurrected glory will also be a moment of tremendous beauty, overwhelming power, and unforgettable significance. It is no accident that one of the great metaphors employed to describe the church is the “bride of Christ” (Eph. 5:25-27; 2 Cor. 11:2; Rev. 21:2; John 3:39). While the ultimate joining of Christ, as the bridegroom, with the church, as his bride, is still ahead of us in the Revelation, in our present text, John has the captivating experience of getting to behold Jesus in His resurrected glory for the first time. And what he sees is magnificent and breathtaking.
The setting: the Island of Patmos (vv. 9-10).
In introducing his vision, John makes several important points. First, he was on the island of Patmos when he received the vision of the Revelation. Patmos is a small island, only about 60 square miles, in the Aegean Sea. [1] The Romans commonly used Patmos and similar locations as prisons for political exiles.[2] We know John received the present vision when he was at Patmos on account of Rev. 1:9. However, Eusebius, a historian and early church father, also recorded that John was sent to Patmos as a political prisoner in A.D. 95 by the Roman Emperor Domitian.[3] Thus, John was not only on the island of Patmos but was also a prisoner of Rome when he received this incredible vision.
Second, John calls himself a brother and a partner with the believers who are members of the churches addressed in chapters 1 and 2. While the letters to the churches in the next two chapters will contain both words of encouragement, as well as rebuke, John begins by recognizing that he is a fellow believer with them – another sinner saved by the grace of God and part of the family of God. He introduces himself as one who was a partner with them in affliction and difficulty, in the work of the Kingdom, and in the journey of faith, or “endurance,” in Jesus. The words of exhortation and rebuke to the individual churches that come in the following passages and chapters will not be transmitted by John as a self-righteous, arrogant, self-exalting “pharisee” but instead as an apostle and fellow servant of the Lord Jesus Christ who loved each of those churches and their members.
Third, John indicated that he was “in the spirit” on the Lord’s Day as he received this vision. The Revelation is not a fictional account dreamed up from the depths of a grand human imagination. Rather, the Revelation is exactly that: a revelation – an apocalypse or unveiling of truth – from the Lord to His people. It is also important to note that John’s being “in the spirit” conveys more than just a simple time of spiritual meditation. John is depicting a unique spiritual experience. In his commentary, Paige Patterson described the phrase in this way:
“The text declares that John became en pneumati, “in the Spirit.” The phrase seems to suggest something more than just a time of spiritual meditation. However, the usual Greek word employed to depict a trance (ekstasis) is not employed here. Efforts to find in this passage some equivalent to the popular practice of being “slain in the Spirit” will go begging. For one thing, there is no intermediary. The apostle’s experience involves only God and him. For another, the language is chaste and unspectacular. The image evoked is of a man seeking the face of God in profound meditation, meeting God in an unaccustomed fashion such that a consciousness of time and other objects is transcended; and God begins to reveal in a rapid succession of stimulating visions a message to be wafted to the churches.”[4]
The voice of instruction (vv. 10-11).
The fact that the Revelation came from God and not from John is further emphasized by the voice John described in verses 10 and 11. John heard a voice to which he ascribed several important characteristics. First, the voice was “great,” or “loud.” Both words are accurate translations of the Greek adjective μεγάλην (megalen) used in verse 10.[5] The intense volume of this voice, combined with its similarity to the call of a trumpet, conveys its overpowering and commanding nature.[6] While the experience of being in the Spirit occurs only between John and the Lord, the apostle is clearly commanded to write down what he would see so that the Revelation could be shared with other believers in the Lord Jesus. While the experience of the vision itself was appointed only for John, the message and truth communicated in the vision were given for the benefit of all of God’s people.
The Golden Lampstands & the Lord’s Appearance (vv. 12-16).
The seven lampstands are representative of the seven churches named in verse 11. While the context of verse 12, along with the later explanation of the Lord, points to this identity, the nature of lampstands as a source of light also aligns symbolically with believers in Jesus. Jesus instructed his followers that they are the light of the world (Matthew 5:14-16). The church, as the body of Christ, is commissioned to proclaim the Gospel, bringing light to a lost and dying world.
The identification of the lampstands as representative of the seven churches is also closely linked with the presence of the Lord in the midst of the lampstands. John wrote in verse 13, “among the lampstands was one like the Son of Man,, dressed in a robe and with a golden sash wrapped around his chest” (CSB). The Lord’s presence in the midst of the churches symbolized by the lampstands conveys his rightful position as both the Head of his church and the very focus of the church as His body. While the Lord calls certain believers to lead, teach, and serve His people as pastors who “under shepherd” the church, it is He alone who is its true and rightful head. This powerful symbol also reminds us that Jesus is always with us as His people, even in the midst of our greatest difficulties and deepest failures.
As John wrote of the Lord’s presence in the midst of the lampstands, he also provided several important and fascinating descriptors of Jesus as he beheld Him. In each of the physical characteristics recorded by John, there is a meaningful symbolic truth both identifying the One who appeared in the presence of the lampstands and reminding us of His nature, station, and power. This was not John writing down copious amounts of detail for the sake of detail, but rather recording truth as the God-called revelator of the vision.
First, John noted that Jesus was clothed with a long robe extending down to His feet (v. 13), denoting His unique station. The robe was the garment of prophets (Zechariah 3:4), priests (Exodus 28:4; 39:29; Leviticus 16:4), and kings (1 Samuel 24:5, 12). In His appearance and station, Jesus is the perfect embodiment of each of these stations and roles in all their fullness: fully proclaiming the Word of God (Prophet), fully bringing His people into the presence of God and making complete atonement for their sins to make them acceptable unto God (Priest), and fully ruling and reigning over all creation and, thereby, working all things to the good of those who love Him (King). The gold sash further unscored Jesus’s royal and priestly station, while the hair white as snow conveys Jesus as the Ancient of Days, the eternal Lord of all creation (Daniel 7:9).[7]
Further, Jesus is described as having eyes that were like the flame of fire (v. 14), symbolizing his piercing, penetrating, and all-knowing nature. His feet like “fine bronze as it is fired in a furnace” symbolize strength and perseverance, while His voice like the “sound of cascading waters” denotes His unparalleled authority. Patterson observed, “Anyone who has ever stood near to a great cataract such as Iguaçu Falls or Victoria Falls has been impressed not only with the scenic grandeur but also with the roar of the falls, which drowns out every other sound. The resonance of the voice of the Son of Man is like one of these torrential falls.”[8]
The remaining descriptions of the risen Lord are equally captivating. Jesus is described as having “seven stars in his right hand.” Related to, but distinct from, the seven lampstands representing the churches, the seven stars represent the angelic messengers of the Lord conveying the letters which follow to the seven churches. The opening of His mouth reveals a sword which is sharp and double-edged (v. 16). The sword symbolizes the nature of every word spoken by the glorious Son of Man. His word is “piercing, cutting, separating, revealing (Heb 4:12), and absolutely irresistible.”[9] The glory of the Lord is then summarized in crowning fashion with the description of the radiance of His face: “shining like the sun at full strength” (v. 16). Beholding Jesus in His glory is an overwhelming and captivating experienced as if gazing into the radiance of the sun at its brightest extent at midday. “Heavenly Sunlight,” indeed!
The Lord’s Instruction and Explanation to John (vv. 17-20).
Given the captivating nature of Jesus as John described Him, it is not surprising to see in verse 17 that John is completely overwhelmed by the experience: “When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead man” (CSB). Before he went on to glory, a friend and mentor of mine in the ministry loved to quip to fellow preachers, “People tend to give you about five minutes on the program for any special event. A Baptist pastor can’t tell you their name in less than 10 minutes…” It is true that preachers are rarely at a loss for words. And yet, I think any mere mortal, pastor or not, would find themselves in the same position as the Apostle John given what He experienced in the preceding verses. John fell in awe before the feet of this magnificent figure who was his risen Lord. Such a reaction reminds us of how we today should rightly orient ourselves toward the Lord in worship. We are not marching into the presence of a mere buddy, spiritual guru, or contemporary celebrity. When Christians gather for worship, they gather in the presence of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!
Perhaps the sweetest phrase in all that is given throughout this remarkable passage comes in verse 17, as well. John is instructed by the Lord, “Don’t be afraid.” Jesus was not appearing to John in judgment of him, but rather in love and care of him and of His people. He then declared His unparalleled authority with three resounding announcements: “I am the First and the Last,” “the Living One” who was dead but is now “alive forever and ever,” and “I hold the keys of death and Hades.” These claims are only appropriate for Christ Himself as the Son, the second Person of the Trinity, and convey His divine and eternal essence, his resurrected and victorious state, and his absolute authority over all things.
The first chapter of the apocalypse is concluded with Jesus’s command to John to write “what you have seen, what is, and what will take place after this” and His explanation of symbols of the lampstands and the stars. The Lord’s command for John to write what he has “seen,” “what is,” and “what will take place after this” reminds us of both the importance of all that is revealed to John in the vision and that what is being revealed involves multiple points in time. John is instructed to write what he has seen up to the present point, leaving none of the Revelation of the Lord neglected in his record. Second, he is instructed to write of “what is now” in reference to Jesus’s letters to the seven churches that will begin in the following chapter. While the principles, lessons, and warnings contained in the coming letters are beneficial for the instruction of congregations throughout church history, these letters were specific to the named churches and to the point in time in which they were given. “What will take place later” foreshadows the coming future-focused content of the apocalyptic vision that be unveiled from chapter 4 onward.[10]
The Lord concludes by explaining the symbolic nature of the lampstands and the angels in a straightforward manner. “The mystery of the seven stars you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lampstands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches” (v. 20 CSB). Scholars debate the specific identity of the angels symbolized by the seven stars. The Greek term translated “angels,” ἄγγελοι (aggeloi)[11], can mean either heavenly, spiritual beings or human messengers sent on behalf of another.[12] Accordingly, these angels to the seven churches could be angels in the typical sense we would think of or messengers called by the Lord to deliver and read the letters given, such as each church’s pastor or another human messenger dispatched to each church.[13] In either case, the stars are the “angels” or “messengers” to the churches who will deliver the letters of the risen Lord to His congregations.
The identification of the churches with the lampstands is a particularly important and powerful image. The church, as a lamp, is a beacon giving light in the darkness. However, as scholars have observed in relation to this metaphor, the lamp is helpless without the oil which fuels it. Oil, while not mentioned explicitly in this text, is clearly in view in the descriptions of the Lord Jesus as prophet, priest, and king. Prophets, priests, and kings were all anointed with holy oil to symbolize their empowering by the Holy Spirit for the respective offices to which they were called. Accordingly, Jesus, as the ultimate Prophet, Priest, and King described in this breathtaking account, and the Holy Spirit symbolized through the accompanying oil of anointing, are fundamentally connected with the church as the people of God symbolized in the seven lampstands. The Father is the Creator of the church and of all things. Jesus, as Prophet, Priest, and King, is the head of the church. The indwelling Holy Spirit is the source of the church’s power and strength. As Patterson summarized, “When the church is filled with the Spirit of God, then she is able to give light to the world. Minus such presence and anointing, despite outer appearances, a church has no real possibility of fulfilling her Great Commission mandate.”[14]
“Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, ‘These are the true words of God.’” -Revelation 19:7-9 (ESV).
Let the wedding bells ring. Amen.
[1] Chad Brand et al., eds., “Patmos,” Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2003), 1252.
[2] Walter A. Elwell and Barry J. Beitzel, “Patmos,” Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1988), 1620.
[3] Chad Brand et al., eds., “Patmos,” Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2003), 1252.
[4] Paige Patterson, Revelation, ed. E. Ray Clendenen, vol. 39, The New American Commentary (Nashville, TN: B&H, 2012), 66.
[5] Barbara Aland et al., eds., The Greek New Testament, Fifth Revised Edition. (Stuttgart, Germany: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 2014), Re 1:10.
[6] Ian Paul, Revelation: An Introduction and Commentary, ed. Eckhard J. Schnabel, vol. 20, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries (London: Inter-Varsity Press, 2018), 69.
[7] Paige Patterson, Revelation, ed. E. Ray Clendenen, vol. 39, The New American Commentary (Nashville, TN: B&H, 2012), 73.
[8] Paige Patterson, Revelation, ed. E. Ray Clendenen, vol. 39, The New American Commentary (Nashville, TN: B&H, 2012), 68–69.
[9] Paige Patterson, Revelation, ed. E. Ray Clendenen, vol. 39, The New American Commentary (Nashville, TN: B&H, 2012), 69.
[10] Paige Patterson, Revelation, ed. E. Ray Clendenen, vol. 39, The New American Commentary (Nashville, TN: B&H, 2012), 70.
[11] Barbara Aland et al., eds., The Greek New Testament, Fifth Revised Edition. (Stuttgart, Germany: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 2014), Re 1:20.
[12] William Arndt et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 8.
[13] Paige Patterson, Revelation, ed. E. Ray Clendenen, vol. 39, The New American Commentary (Nashville, TN: B&H, 2012), 72.
[14] Paige Patterson, Revelation, ed. E. Ray Clendenen, vol. 39, The New American Commentary (Nashville, TN: B&H, 2012), 73.
Preacher Talk 