Revelation 4: The Throne Room of the King – Pt.2

Revelation 4:1-5:7 Snug Gospel Chapel: November 15th, 2015

Turn with me once again in your Bibles to the book of Revelation. For those who haven’t been with us in recent

sermons, we’ve now reached chapters four and five. In my last sermon, I presented to you the apostle John’s first

glimpse of the throne room of Heaven. We looked at the manner in which the apostle had been caught up, its

parallels to the pre-tribulation rapture of the church, and the reality of everything that the apostle John saw. Today,

we’ll be stepping further into this heavenly vision, and looking at several of the elements in the throne room of the

King.

Before we continue any further, let’s come to the Lord in prayer.

Let’s pray.

Father, I want to thank you for this incredible book. I thank you that it was important to you that we should be

aware of the things that are about to take place on this earth, and in your heaven. I thank you that you are the God

that makes the end known from the beginning, the only One who writes history in advance – and that it pleases you

to do so for your children.

Lord, as we open your Word today, and look at the amazing passage that is before us, I pray that you would take

human words out of the equation. I pray that your Holy Spirit would have His way with us this morning, and that no

barrier would be placed before Him. Lord, in our hearts right now, we ask your forgiveness for those times that we

resist you and cling to our very human pride. Be glorified in us, Lord Jesus. Be glorified in this church, and in our

lives.

Let your Word reign supreme in our hearts, Father. Open our eyes to see Jesus Christ in every word, phrase and

chapter in this book – and, more than that, let us see the truth of these things today. Enable us to see that

however brilliant, however inspired, however dramatic this text may be, that it is nonetheless a true and living

reality - that just as this passage presents, that Jesus Christ is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and that this is His

book, His story, and His prophecy – and that through your Holy Spirit, these things would become an ever present

reality in our own lives.

Glorify yourself in your people, through your Word, and in the power of your Holy Spirit, Lord.

We ask all these things in and through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, our Messiah and our King, who reigns in

power and glory, forever and ever. Amen.

I feel like I’ve been saying this every time I preach, but we have a lot to cover this morning, so let’s get right in to

God’s Word. Have your Bibles open if you would, and we’ll be reading from Revelation chapter 4, beginning at verse

1. We’ll be continuing through into chapter 5 today, stopping at verse 7.

Revelation chapter 4 and verse 1.

After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a

trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.”

2 Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne. 3 And He who sat

there was like a jasper and a sardius stone in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance

like an emerald. 4 Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting,

clothed in white robes; and they had crowns of gold on their heads. 5 And from the throne proceeded lightnings,

thunderings, and voices. Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.

6 Before the throne there was a sea of glass, like crystal. And in the midst of the throne, and around the

throne, were four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back. 7 The first living creature was like a lion, the second

living creature like a calf, the third living creature had a face like a man, and the fourth living creature was like a

flying eagle. 8 The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not

rest day or night, saying:

“Holy, holy, holy,

Lord God Almighty,

Who was and is and is to come!”

9 Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and

ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and

ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying:

11 “You are worthy, O Lord,

To receive glory and honor and power;

For You created all things,

And by Your will they exist and were created.”

CHAPTER 5

And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven

seals. 2 Then I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to loose its

seals?” 3 And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll, or to look at it.

4 So I wept much, because no one was found worthy to open and read the scroll, or to look at it. 5 But one of the elders

said to me, “Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll

and to loose its seven seals.”

6 And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders,

stood a Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent

out into all the earth. 7 Then He came and took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne.

This morning, we’re going to be looking once again at the throne room of Heaven. Last time I preached, we looked

at the apostle John’s translation into this amazing location. Today, we’re going to be looking at the nature of the

throne room. What is it for, what function does it serve. I do want to stress, however, that not everything that we’ll

be seeing today is going to be explicable in purely earthly terms – and I think it is important that I elaborate a little

bit on that, because this concept will be relevant to us not only here, but also as we progress through the remaining

chapters of this book.

A vision of Paradise

What we see here in the throne room in Revelation 4 is paralleled in visions in the books of Isaiah, Ezekiel and

Daniel, and there is a distinct sense in each of these chapters, and in each of these books, that what is being seen

simply cannot be fully understood from our limited frame of reference. I believe the apostle Paul put this best in 1

Corinthians 13:12, where he states that “now we see in a mirror dimly, but then, face to face; now I know in part, but

then I will know fully, just as I also have been fully known.”

We can couple this verse with another written by the apostle John himself. In 1 John 3:2, John writes:

“Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He

is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.”

Understand what this means. Until Jesus Christ is revealed, until we receive the spiritual bodies promised to us at

the Rapture of the Church, we cannot see Him in His fullness. Our physical human nature is such that we are limited

in what we can perceive. As such, the apostle John is caught writing here, trying to express non-physical realities

with language not designed to reflect the spiritual world.

Let me back that up a little more. In 2 Corinthians 12, the apostle Paul states that he, “fourteen years ago – whether

in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows… was caught up to the third

heaven… and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.” – 2 Corinthians 12:2-4.

We see here that even the apostle Paul, despite having been privileged to see many of the same things that the

apostle John describes here in the book of Revelation, acknowledged his inability to express or even understand

everything that he had experienced. He, like John, had been “caught up” (and yes, that’s the same word used on

both occasions – ‘harpazo’ in the Greek, also translated as “rapture”), and also like John, he had seen inexpressible

things, and yet despite this, he was unable to confirm the nature of his bodily rapture into the heavenly realm. The

reason for this is simple: the events and visions described in Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel and Revelation, despite being very

real and very literal, are nonetheless so far outside of our own experience, so far outside of our own knowledge,

understanding and perception, that we simply cannot understand them fully.

I would suggest to you, in the light of these things, that there is only one reliable method of interpretation for such

visionary passages. Thankfully, most of you in this room are in possession of it already. You simply must use

Scripture – or, more specifically, take the time to compare Scripture with Scripture. So much of this book makes

reference to or depends upon the Old Testament that you cannot and will not understand it except in reference to

itself. …and this is why, among other reasons, this book comes with a promise. When you study Revelation, you

study all of Scripture. This book will take you everywhere in God’s Word, and back again – and you’ll be blessed by

it. …and as the Lord Himself said,

“Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in

it; for the time is near.” - Revelation 1:3

Let’s press on. We’re going to look this morning at the atmosphere, the function, and the people of the throne

room. The atmosphere, the function, and the people.

The Atmosphere of the Throne Room.

The first thing I want you to notice is the size and scope of everything we’re seeing here – and to do that, I need to

take you a little outside the scope of our reading this morning. Look with me at Revelation Chapter 5 and Verse 11.

“Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the

number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands.”

Understand what this means. The throne room of the King of Kings is immense. The Greek word translated

“thousands” here is “murias”. It is the word from which we get the English “myriad”, and can either mean a literal

thousand, or “a number beyond count”. You’ll find this translation of the word in Hebrews 12:22-24, wherein the

writer states that:

“you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company

of angels, 23 to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all,

to the spirits of just men made perfect, 24 to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling

that speaks better things than that of Abel.”

Note the overlap in terms of the content there. That’s no coincidence – there are links everywhere in Scripture, and

the Lord loves to use the same words in multiple places to draw your attention across books and verses to bring His

Word together. The point here, however, is that the throne room of heaven is large enough to contain – at least at

this point – all of the angels, all of the elders, and an innumerable host, with room to spare. You might remember

that in my last sermon I suggested to you that the book of Revelation is incredibly loud. This is one great example of

that. Look at verse 11 of Chapter 5.

“Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the

number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice,

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain

To receive power and riches and wisdom,

And strength and honour and glory and blessing!”.

Imagine entering in to this incredible scene. Turn back to chapter 4 and verse 2.

Immediately I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne. And He who sat there

was like a jasper and a sardius stone in appearance, and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like

an emerald. Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting,

clothed in white robes; and they had crowns of gold on their heads.

…and so there they are: the elders, the angels, the living creatures – all surrounding the throne singing in thunderous

worship of the King of Kings, lifted high in all His glory. Lightning flashes from the throne, radiating out from a

vibrant emerald halo of and reflected in a sea of crystal glass.

This is an incredible thing: all the glory and the majesty of the risen Christ, clothed in brilliant light, mighty and

powerful and holy, surrounded by an innumerable throng singing thunderous hymns in worship of the King.

Is it any wonder that the angels cry “holy, holy holy” before the Lord! I tell you what, if you ever sing that song with

less than full voice after reading these verses, then I haven’t done my job, or you haven’t understood how great this

God is, or both. The same King that sits enthroned in this radiant vision stretched out the heavens and calls the stars

by name; He rules enthroned in thunder and lightning, crowned with light and glorified by angels. That’s my King.

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created that are in

heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All

things were created through Him and for Him. 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. 18 And He is

the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have

the preeminence.”

Is it any wonder, is it any surprise that the apostle John lacks the language to put this into words? This is God,

enthroned on high! Heaven and earth cannot contain Him! Every star, every galaxy, every distant nebula, every

dimension, everything seen and unseen is His – and here, in this place, at this throne, in His presence, your only role,

your only responsibility is to fall on your knees and cry out,

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,

To receive power and riches and wisdom

And strength and honor and glory and blessing.”

This passage, this throne room, is a reflection of the power of our King. He’s immense. He’s glorious, and He alone

is worthy. Everything is under His feet, everything is laid bare before Him, everything is put in subjection to Him,

that He might have the preeminence, that He might have the supremacy, that He might be declared worthy – that

every knee should bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Amen.

The Function of the Throne Room

So, this passage says a lot about the size and the glory of this throne room and its King, but it also gives us detail as

to the nature and function of that room. You may remember last week that we saw the Lord represented by the

sardius and jasper stones, the first and last of the precious gems woven into the ‘breastplate of judgment’ worn by

the High Priest in the Aaronic priesthood, so we know that this throne is not just a throne of Kingship, but also a seat

of judgment. This symbolism doesn’t stop with the breastplate, however. Look at verse 5.

“And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings and voices.”

This is the first time in the book of Revelation that we’ve seen these “lightnings, thunderings and voices”, though it

certainly won’t be the last. On each and every occasion, it is associated with judgment upon the sinful world. This is

not, however, a unique description in Scripture, and God’s Word is very consistent about how this particular image is

used.

Turn with me to psalm 18. Psalm 18, and verse 6.

In my distress I called upon the Lord,

And cried out to my God;

He heard my voice from His temple,

And my cry came before Him, even to His ears.

7 Then the earth shook and trembled;

The foundations of the hills also quaked and were shaken,

Because He was angry.

8 Smoke went up from His nostrils,

And devouring fire from His mouth;

Coals were kindled by it.

9 He bowed the heavens also, and came down

With darkness under His feet.

10 And He rode upon a cherub, and flew;

He flew upon the wings of the wind.

11 He made darkness His secret place;

His canopy around Him was dark waters

And thick clouds of the skies.

12 From the brightness before Him,

His thick clouds passed with hailstones and coals of fire.

13 The Lord thundered from heaven,

And the Most High uttered His voice,

Hailstones and coals of fire.

14 He sent out His arrows and scattered the foe,

Lightnings in abundance, and He vanquished them.

You can see the parallels in this imagery, can’t you. Listening flashes, thunder roars, and the consistent presence of

light and fire attest both to the purity and the righteous judgment of the King. This is who we’re dealing with now,

and this is who is depicted here – Jesus Christ, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, the righteous judge of all the earth.

It’s often helpful when we find such things in Scripture to ask ourselves “why is this image being presented here?

Why here, as opposed to anywhere else?”. What the Holy Spirit is doing here, what He is reinforcing in this passage

is the nature of the King. He is setting the scene for the things that are about to occur in chapters 5, 6 and beyond,

where the Lord’s just vengeance will be poured out upon the earth.

There are other elements that attest to this throne room being a place of judgment, however -

Turn to Revelation 4, and verse 3.

“…there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald.”

Now, many of us will know what the rainbow represents. The Lord placed the rainbow in the sky after the flood of

Noah as a sign that he would never again flood the earth in judgment. In this sense, the rainbow attests to the

mercy of God – and it does so here, too. Our God is a just God – and His judgment is never found without mercy.

There is an unusual statement made here, though, and it should cause us to think twice about what we’re reading. I

mentioned to you last week that wherever you find an unusual detail in Scripture, it’s a sign to “dig here” – because

there are discoveries to be made. Well, this is one of those instances. Read verse 3 again. “There was a rainbow

around the throne, in appearance like an emerald.”

Tell me, how many rainbows have you seen that are of a single colour?

I’ll answer my own question. I’ve been alive 34 years, and every rainbow I’ve ever seen has had at least six

discernible colours in it, and usually seven. Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet.

This rainbow has one – and it’s emerald green. Why?

I’ve suggested to you throughout this series that nothing in Scripture is accidental. The Holy Spirit is a brilliant

author, and every word, every sentence, every phrase has meaning and intent. That is certainly true here.

The last time we opened this book, we looked briefly at the Breastplate of Judgment worn by the High Priest. That

breastplate was made primarily of wool, with precious stones inlaid in four rows, and three columns: one stone for

each of the 12 tribes of Israel. In my last sermon, we looked at the Sardius and Jasper, which represented two of the

tribes of Israel: Reuben and Benjamin, respectively. These gems, and their associated names, revealed to us

something about the character of the King. The names Reuben and Benjamin translate together as: “Behold, the Son

at my Right Hand”. Thus these two gems, and the names of the tribes associated with them, reveal that Jesus Christ

is indeed the Son of God.

The emerald in this passage has a similar story; one that will lead us in to the people of the throne room.

The People of the Throne Room

On the breastplate of the High Priest, the emerald corresponds to the tribe of Levi. Now, there are two important

ways in which Levi ties in with the people of the throne room of God, and we’ll look very briefly at both this morning.

First, let’s look at the meaning of the name. Turn with me to Genesis 29 and verse 34.

“She (that is, Leah) conceived again and bore a son, and said ‘Now this time my husband will become attached to me,

because I have borne him three sons.’ Therefore his name was called Levi.”

This reveals to us that the person of Jesus Christ, enthroned as He is in radiant emerald light, has become attached

to His people. And who are His people? The Church!

This is what the apostle Paul spoke of in Ephesians 5, where he stated:

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, 26 that He might sanctify and

cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, 27 that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not

having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish…

32 This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church.

This is why, in Revelation 4, we see the elders arrayed in white, with crowns upon their heads. They are sanctified,

they are cleansed, and they are united with Christ, without spot, without wrinkle… holy and without blemish.

That’s what is being pictured here in this passage. Here, in the throne room of the King, is Jesus Christ, united with

the bride that He has redeemed. It’s hinted at in the emerald of the rainbow, reinforced by the image of the Elders

and the songs that they sing, and verified by the character of Jesus Christ Himself.

…but there is another point here that ties in with Levi. There is just one place in Scripture where the number 24

appears. In 1 Chronicles chapter 24, David broke down the tribe of Levi into 24 ‘courses’; groups of priests

responsible for the administration of the temple on a rotating basis.

…and what do we find in Revelation 5?

“You have made us to be a kingdom and priests to our God.”

Make no mistake: the 24 elders in this passage are indeed the body and bride of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Now,

there is some degree of contention on this among good scholars, so allow me to justify this a little more for you.

We know that these Elders are a people who have been reconciled to God through Jesus Christ by His blood, bought

out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, have been made kings and priests to our God; but in this, they

are not alone. This same description is used of the Tribulation Saints, while Israel itself certainly had a priesthood,

and David was granted an eternal throne! So if kingship and priesthood does not make the Elders unique, what

does?

Well, there are two defining attributes. The first is that the elders are given the responsibility of judging the world,

and the angels.

Turn with me to Daniel chapter 7, and verse 9.

“I watched till thrones were put in place,

And the Ancient of Days was seated;

His garment was white as snow,

And the hair of His head was like pure wool.

His throne was a fiery flame,

Its wheels a burning fire;

10 A fiery stream issued

And came forth from before Him.

A thousand thousands ministered to Him;

Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him.

The court[b] was seated,

And the books were opened.

Take note of the first and last verses here. “I watched ‘till thrones were put in place”. “The court was seated, and

the books were opened.” This is the same scene, the same location that we’ve seen here in Revelation 4; although

what Daniel saw does not take place until Revelation chapter 20.

Now listen to these verses from 1 Corinthians 6:

Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unrighteous, and not before the saints? 2 Do

you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge

the smallest matters? 3 Do you not know that we shall judge angels?

This is a privilege not granted to the Tribulation saints, nor to any other group of believers. The 12 apostles have

their own responsibilities: they are granted the right to judge Israel in the Millennial Kingdom (you can find this in

Matthew 19:28-30), and while the Tribulation saints are indeed present at this judgment, their role is distinctly

different.

So, this is the first unique attribute of the elders: they are called to a judicial role in the Kingdom of the King.

The second unique attribute is one that we’ve discussed before, and it’s in verses 9 and 10 of chapter 4:

“Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and

ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever,

and case their crowns before the throne, saying:

“You are worthy, O Lord,

To receive glory and honour and power;

For you created all things,

And by your will they exist and were created.””

Now, we know that the elders are Kings and priests – we’ve had that defined for us on several occasions already –

but here in verse 10 we see them casting their crowns down before the throne. How is this a point of distinction?

Well, the crowns described here in this verse are translated from the Greek “stephanos”. This is important because

the ‘stephanos’ is not the crown of a King, but the crown of a victor.

The apostle Paul comes to our rescue again, explaining this for us in 1 Corinthians 9:24-26:

“Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize?

Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now,

they do it to obtain a perishable crown (‘stephanos’!), but we for an imperishable crown.”

These are the crowns being cast before the King – not the crowns of Kings, but the crowns of the victors; those who

have overcome in the name of Jesus Christ and the power of His blood.

There are in fact five of these crowns – and although I don’t have the time to go into detail on them today, I will

mention each of them for you. These are the rewards for those who trust in Jesus Christ:

- The Crown of Life: a reward for those who are “faithful, even until death” (Revelation 2:10);

- The Incorruptible Crown: a reward for those who press on toward Jesus Christ, leaving behind the things of

this world (1 Corinthians 9:24-26);

- The Crown of Rejoicing: a crown for those who share the gospel and lead unbelievers to Christ (1

Thessalonians 2:17-20);

- The Crown of Glory: a crown for those who minister among God’s people (1 Peter 5:2-4); and

- The Crown of Righteousness: the reward for those who have “loved His appearing”, and waited patiently for

the Lord’s return (1 Timothy 4:8).

There are two points here in this passage that I want you to take home with you today – but before that, a reminder:

remember that this is “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants – things which must

shortly take place.” (Revelation 1:1).

The first point here is that if you are in Jesus Christ today, if you are trusting in Him for your salvation, if you have

been washed in the blood of the Lamb – this is your destiny in Him. This is such a humbling thing! In Christ, we will

stand before the throne of a King unparalleled, clothed in light and radiant in His glory, and we will cast our crowns

before His throne, surrounded by innumerable angels singing praises to the Lamb.

The second point is that this glimpse into the throne room, however glorious, however beautiful, does not come

without consequence. The throne of Jesus Christ is not just a throne of Kingship, but of judgment. The day is

coming, and is even now at the door, when as Daniel said, the court will be seated, the books will be opened, and all

flesh will give account.

Now, I said this to you last week, but I’ll say it again.

These things are no mere vision. They are a reality. The apostle John saw these things as one caught up out of time

and space, transported to the throne room of the King.

The day is coming where you, too, will stand before that King: a righteous judge crowned upon a throne crackling

with lightning, thunder and voices; surrounded by men and angels and asked to give account. Are you ready? None

of us are promised tomorrow – and indeed, the time is coming and is even now at the door that the trumpet sounds,

the dead in Christ shall rise, and those who are alive and remain that are in Christ shall be caught up to meet

together with the Lord in the air. That’s the promise for the believer, but for those who reject this almighty King, all

the judgments we’re about to see in this amazing, horrific book are yours, and that is no less sure a promise than

anything we’ve seen today. Judgment is coming, and it will be swift, sure, and terrible.

Are you ready?

If you haven’t given your life to Jesus Christ, if you haven’t been washed in the blood of the Lamb, if you haven’t

knelt before the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and prayed, “Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner”… please… do that

today. Time is short… and the King is coming.

Let’s pray.