In Chapter 5 we see a scroll with 7 seals on it. The person
with the authority to write on the scroll kept its contents sealed until the
person with the authority to open it came. Though Jesus was with the Father
from the beginning of time, His authority to open the scroll did not come from
Who He is: it came from what He did. The person who would open the seals had to
have fulfilled God’s purposes on the earth first. Only Jesus, who came down
from heaven and did God’s will on the earth, could open the seals of the
scroll.
When an angel speaks to John about the worthiness of Jesus, he called Him “The Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David” (Rev 5:5). The Lion references Jesus’ inherent authority from heaven. The Root of David refers to the legality of His earthly lineage. But there was a battle to win also. Therefore the angel concludes with the remaining requirement: Jesus “has triumphed.” He became the unspotted sacrifice for Man’s sins, having overcome the world, sin, and his enemy, satan.
Jesus is seen as a lamb that was slain, having 7 eyes and 7 horns. We saw the 7 eyes earlier in Revelation and they refer to the 7 spirits of God which roam through the earth (Zech 4:10; Rev 5:6). Horns represent strength, and so we have the paradox of a slain sacrificial lamb and the strength of One Who triumphs over death. Horns also represent “speaking forth”, and so Jesus’ ministry was one of speaking what He heard the Father speak. Seven is the number symbolizing perfection, or completion, and therefore is fitting: Jesus’ sacrifice was not only was perfect, fulfilling the requirements of the Law of Moses, but it also completed forever the Old Covenant. When Jesus cried “It is finished” (Jn 19:30) the purpose of book of the Law was fulfilled and the New Covenant, which was exceeding more excellent, began.
Jesus’ faithfulness as His Father’s servant was also seen in the eternal work He began on the earth: establishing the Church. The new song sung by the 4 Living Creatures and the Elders tells us that Jesus’ blood purchased men for God, and that He made them to be “a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.” (Rev 5:9-10). God’s will went beyond fulfilling the requirements of the Law: He wanted a people who would be His priests in the Kingdom He was establishing. God was taking Man from the requirements of the Law, a behavior-based relationship, to the priesthood of the believers, a fellowship-based relationship.
One of the roles of priests is to pray and intercede. We see the elders holding the prayers of the saints., which shows us the place our prayers have around the throne of God, and who attends to them. The prayers are described as incense because the personal sacrifice of the saints carries the sweet aroma of Christ to heaven (2 Cor 2:14-15; Eph 5:2). We are received on the basis of His sacrifice, which cleanses us. Later we will read how those who overcome are cleansed in the blood of the Lamb (Rev 7:14).
The Lamb not only receives the authority to open the seals on the scroll, but we hear the angels sing that He is worthy “to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!” (vs 12). Though we believe that Jesus was part of the God head from the beginning of time, He gave up His powers while on earth. “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross! There God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow . . . “ (Phil 2:6-10a). We see the fulfillment of this scripture in Revelation 5. To rule and reign with His saints on the earth Jesus needed to be received and validated in heaven, and restored to all He had before becoming the Son of Man.
When an angel speaks to John about the worthiness of Jesus, he called Him “The Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David” (Rev 5:5). The Lion references Jesus’ inherent authority from heaven. The Root of David refers to the legality of His earthly lineage. But there was a battle to win also. Therefore the angel concludes with the remaining requirement: Jesus “has triumphed.” He became the unspotted sacrifice for Man’s sins, having overcome the world, sin, and his enemy, satan.
Jesus is seen as a lamb that was slain, having 7 eyes and 7 horns. We saw the 7 eyes earlier in Revelation and they refer to the 7 spirits of God which roam through the earth (Zech 4:10; Rev 5:6). Horns represent strength, and so we have the paradox of a slain sacrificial lamb and the strength of One Who triumphs over death. Horns also represent “speaking forth”, and so Jesus’ ministry was one of speaking what He heard the Father speak. Seven is the number symbolizing perfection, or completion, and therefore is fitting: Jesus’ sacrifice was not only was perfect, fulfilling the requirements of the Law of Moses, but it also completed forever the Old Covenant. When Jesus cried “It is finished” (Jn 19:30) the purpose of book of the Law was fulfilled and the New Covenant, which was exceeding more excellent, began.
Jesus’ faithfulness as His Father’s servant was also seen in the eternal work He began on the earth: establishing the Church. The new song sung by the 4 Living Creatures and the Elders tells us that Jesus’ blood purchased men for God, and that He made them to be “a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.” (Rev 5:9-10). God’s will went beyond fulfilling the requirements of the Law: He wanted a people who would be His priests in the Kingdom He was establishing. God was taking Man from the requirements of the Law, a behavior-based relationship, to the priesthood of the believers, a fellowship-based relationship.
One of the roles of priests is to pray and intercede. We see the elders holding the prayers of the saints., which shows us the place our prayers have around the throne of God, and who attends to them. The prayers are described as incense because the personal sacrifice of the saints carries the sweet aroma of Christ to heaven (2 Cor 2:14-15; Eph 5:2). We are received on the basis of His sacrifice, which cleanses us. Later we will read how those who overcome are cleansed in the blood of the Lamb (Rev 7:14).
The Lamb not only receives the authority to open the seals on the scroll, but we hear the angels sing that He is worthy “to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!” (vs 12). Though we believe that Jesus was part of the God head from the beginning of time, He gave up His powers while on earth. “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross! There God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow . . . “ (Phil 2:6-10a). We see the fulfillment of this scripture in Revelation 5. To rule and reign with His saints on the earth Jesus needed to be received and validated in heaven, and restored to all He had before becoming the Son of Man.
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