Revelation

7:9-17

The messianic judgments, 6:1-19:21

1. The judgment of the seven seals, 6:1-8:1

v] Interlude # 2. The Lamb is the shepherd, 7:9-17

In this passage we read of John's vision of the "great multitude" in heaven. This assembly resides in peace and joy before the throne of God and is made up of all believers - the redeemed of the Lord who struggle through the sufferings of the present age. Whereas the 144,000 of v4 depicts completeness, the "great multitude" depicts universality - they are from every race and nation.

Chapter 7 serves as an interlude in the judgment of the seven seals. These represent seven plagues - the past, present and future state of the world. They describe the cycle of war and famine which is God's judgment upon evil. The breaking of each seal by Christ reveals this state of loss, but also the intrusion of a new factor, namely, the redeemed community - the persecuted but victorious fellowship of believers. Thus, in breaking the seals Christ is restoring the devastation wrought on the world and the heavenly realms through rebellion, and is doing this through his redeemed community, a community redeemed by his precious blood.

The interludes follow the sixth seal. The first four seals give a view of the earth, the next two of heaven and the seventh introduces the next set of seven, the judgment of the seven trumpets. There are also other short interludes throughout the book.

There are two interludes recorded in chapter 7. The first in v1-8 describes the community of the 144,000 gathered in the heavenlies. The crucial question concerns the identity of this group. Possibilities include, a literal number of Jewish believers, a spiritual number representing saved Jews (a spiritual Israel), all believers and thus, the same group as the "great multitude" in v9, or the actual number of believers (ref., Jehovah's Witnesses). The second describes the community of the "great multitude."

meta tauta "after this" - after these things. Indicating a new vision, not necessarily a sequential set of events. As already noted, commentators divide on whether the visions are substantially different, ie. is the "144,000" the same group as "the great multitude"? It does seem likely that this vision simply complements the first. John is describing the great company of believers, the redeemed of the Lord, who come through the tribulations of this age. As the gathering clouds of judgment overtake this present order of things, God's people will be preserved, none will be lost. The perfect number of Israel will be preserved (144,000) and this remnant of Israel will consist of a staggering number of people from every nation under heaven who have been washed in the blood of the Lamb.

o}n ..... auton "that " - This construction of a relative pronoun addressing a personal pronoun is Semitic in form and so both are read together.

ariqmhsai (ariqmew) inf. "[no one could] count" - [no one was being able] to number. The infinitive is complementary, completing the sense of the verb "was being able." The crowd was too large to count. Who are they? It is often argued that they are the martyrs of the church, but this is unlikely. They are the believers of the last generation that came through the great tribulation, but in John's mind this is probably his generation, and in reality, every generation up till the end of time.

ek "from [every nation, tribe, people and language]" - out of, from. Note that eqnouV "nation" is singular and is followed by three plurals. This is rather strange.

eJstwteV (iJsthmi) perf. part. "standing [before the throne]" - standing. The participle is adjectival, describing the "great multitude" "who were standing." To "stand before" often means to "attend upon" as if a servant.

peribeblhmenouV (periballw) acc. perf. part. "they were wearing [white robes]" - having been clothed with. Paralleling the adjectival participle "standing", "who were standing and [who] were wearing", both of which limit "crowd". The only problem is that it is accusative, rather than nominative. Usually treated as a solecism (a grammatical mistake).

krazousin (krazw) pres. "they cried out" - they call out. The present tense is probably to be treated as durative, "they keep on crying out."

legonteV (legw) pres. part. "-" - [they called out with a loud voice] saying. Attendant circumstance participle, redundant.

hJ swthria tw/ qew/ hJmwn "Salvation belongs to our God" - salvation to our God. There is no verb, but can be translated as a verbal phrase, "we are saved by our God." In the context, the salvation refers to coming safely through the tribulation. God has brought us through life's trials to stand safely before him. As well as a victory motif, John may intend "salvation from sin and death", Mounce, Caird. Note, the tribulation is properly Satan's last-ditched confrontation with Christ and his redeemed, but of course, the timing of this confrontation and its duration depends on how "realized" our eschatology is - is it now or not yet? Or both?.

oiJ aggeloi (oV) "[all] the angels" - The angelic host are prompted into praise again by the praise of "the great multitude". The image seems to be of the angels surrounding the throne, possibly above and behind.

twn presbuterwn (oV) "the elders" - "The twenty four elders" sit upon twenty four thrones in concentric circles around the throne of God. Debate rages as to whether they are human, ie. representing the resurrected saints of Israel, old and new, or angelic beings. Their function seems to be that of worship and administration. cf. 4:4, etc.

twn tessarwn zw/wn "the four living creatures" - These tessara "creatures" are "celestial beings of some sort", Osborne. They seem to surround the divine throne, possibly one in front, one behind, and one either side. cf. 5:6, etc.

epesan (piptw) ....... epi ta proswpa autwn "they fell down on their faces" - fell [before the throne] on the faces of them. They lay down and prostrated themselves; they lay down prostrated; they lay face down before the throne.

prosekunhsan (proskunew) aor. "worshiped" - did obeisance.

amhn "amen" - may it be so. The angels confirm the worship of the multitude and then go on to give their own tribute to God.

tw/ qew/ hJmwn eiV "be to our God" - to our God. There is again no verb in this sentence, but as a verbal phrase the verb to-be is added for meaning. The attributes are ascribed to God directly, "be to God", or better are confirmed, "belong to God."

A discussion now takes place between John and one of the elders that serves to explain the identity of the great multitude.

apekriqh (apokrinomai) .... legwn (legw) aor. .... part. "then ..... asked" - answered ...... saying. Typical Greek form for a direct statement: the aorist of the verb to "say/answer" + participle "saying" = spoke and said, asked, turned and asked, turned and said ......

oi peribeblhmenoi (peribally) perf. part. "[these] in [white robes]" - [these] the ones having been clothed with [the robes white]. The participle functions as a substantive.

eirhka (airw) autw/ perf. "I answered" - I have said to him.

kurie mou "sir" - lord of me. A respectful address to an important person.

su oidaV (ouda) "[sir] you know" - The "you" is emphatic, "it is you who know", Morris. The purpose of the question in v13 is to show that John does not have the answer to the vision and therefore needs divine interpretation. Therefore, the TEV carries the sense well with "'I don't know, sir, You do,' I answered."

oiJ ercomenoi pres. part. "they who have come" - the ones coming. The participle functions as a substantive. The tense of a participle does not always express aspect, but the durative nature of the present tense may be at work here, such that the "comers" have come, are coming and will come, are in the process of coming. Note that an aorist (punctiliar) is used in the question "where did they come from?", v13.

thV qliyewV thV megalhV "the great tribulation" - Referring to the eschatological troubles of the last days. As noted above, commentators are divided on whether it refers to a final catastrophic point in history prior to the return of Christ, or the ongoing troubles of the last days, or both.

eplunan (eplunw) aor. "they have washed" - they washed. The tense is controlled by the main verb "are [the ones coming]", translated "have come." The main verb is translated as past tense since the verb is taken as one of past reference. This serves to counter the wrong impression that the ones who have come through the tribulation are limited to believers from the present and future. John is now told how it is that the redeemed are victorious. They have personally identified with the sacrifice of Jesus and have been purified by it.

en tw/ aJmarti "in the blood" - in/with/by the blood. Here the preposition takes an instrumental sense, en + dat. The blood, meaning the sacrifice of Jesus, is the instrument by which the cleansing takes place. The blood of Christ makes the great multitude spiritually pure, ie. their robes are white.

The blessings of the victorious redeemed are now listed, v15-17.

enwpion tou qronou "before the throne" - This first blessing describes ease of access to God.

latreuousin (latreuw) pres. "serve" - Present tense for durative action - continuous priestly service, "night and day", ie. without a break. Thankfully the NIV properly translates this word as "serve", as do many other translations, eg. TEV, RSV, NEB ("minister"), but sadly the NRSV opts for "worship" (shame on them). It is annoying when the word "worship", meaning adoration, is confused with the word serve/minister. We are privileged to serve the Lord eternally.

tw/ naw/ (oV) "[in his] temple" - temple, palace. There is no temple in the eternal kingdom, 21:22, but there is the realm of God's eternal habitation, call it temple if you wish!

skhnwsei (sknhow) fut. "will spread his tent [over them]" - will tent, tabernacle [upon/over them]. God's first provision for his people. He will cover, or even dwell over them, and therefore "will shelter them with his presence", possibly even "will live with them and protect them."

ou peinasousin (peinaw) eti oude diyhsousin (diyaw) eti "never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst" - they will not hunger anymore nor thirst anymore. God's second provision for his people. This image reflects our daily struggle for survival, and harks back to Israel's wilderness journey. The ancients would easily identify with the image, but what of we affluent children of the West? Where lays our struggle?

mh pesh/ (piptw) aor. subj. "[the sun] will not beat [upon them]" - [neither] not may fall [the sun]. Subjunctive of emphatic negation. God's third provision for his people. The image of the cooling of the desert-sun's scorching heat, is similarly not that powerful for someone who can afford an air conditioner. For us it is the end of traffic jams, cues, 9 to 5, aircraft holding patterns, crowds, real estate agents, lawyers, high-rise units, .......

oJti "for" - Here expressing cause/reason. Explaining how God will provide for his people.

ana "at" - This preposition, when identifying position, tends toward the sense of "at the middle", "in the midst", "among". The phrase in 5:6 uses the preposition en, "in". The image of the Lamb in/at the middle of the throne is difficult to imagine. Possibly, the throne is at the middle/center, surrounded by concentric circles of living creatures, elders, and the redeemed, with the Lamb either at/beside/on the throne.

poimanei (poimainw) fut. "he will shepherd" - shepherd/guide as a lead animal. This is a common sight for an agricultural people. "He will patiently care for His sheep, guarding them from any further torments such as plagued their earthly sojourn", Thomas.

zwhV phgaV uJdatwn "springs of living water" - spring/fountain/well of living water. "Living" can range in meaning from "fresh", as against stagnant, to "life-giving". If "life-giving" is implied, in the sense of the description given by Ezekiel of the stream that flow's from the temple, then "enriching" is intended. If "fresh" is implied, in the sense of "pure fresh water", then "refreshing" is intended.

exaleiyei (exaleifw) fut. "will wipe away" - In the sense of remove all that causes pain and sorrow, cf. Rev.21:3. "God, himself, will gently wipe away every tear from their eyes", Junkins.

Revelation Introduction

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