CHAPTER 1 - verses 1-9
Obedience is the key to being blessed by God. The book of Revelation teaches us how to be obedient – especially in light of the last days. It reveals the events that will take place and helps us to prepare for the judgement that is to come. If we are wise we will prepare for the last days. Israel was unprepared for what God wanted to do at Mt Sinai. They rebelled, chose a man above
God, and missed out on the opportunity of participating with God in His plans. The church needs to “watch” (Matthew 25v13), to be “awake” (Romans 13v11-12), so that we will not be unprepared for what God will do as He establishes His Kingdom. This book teaches us how to position ourselves, in the place that God wants us to be, doing what He wants us to do, so that
we can be found faithful.
VERSE 1: “The Revelation of Messiah Yeshua, which God gave to Him (Jesus) to show His servants (those who have made Him Lord) what will be quick. Which He made known when He sent, in the hand of His messenger, His servant John.”
This revelation was given by G-d (the Father) so that we can understand the identity, the work, and the judgement of Messiah. [We need to have a proper, Biblical, view of Messiah Yeshua – Jesus Christ of Nazareth. All judgement has been given to Him (John 5v22). Even for the believer, there is a judgement of deeds (2 Corinthians 5v10). The prophets revealed that, before
the Kingdom is established, a time of judgement is coming.] There are two ways to understand this concept of happening quickly:
1. The nature of God’s timing. (Matthew 23v39 – The Jewish nation will only be ready to say this after a time of great trouble. God is ready to come at any time, but He has made it dependent on this utterance – although He knows when that will be spoken)
2. When “the Day of the Lord” comes, it will happen very quickly. If someone is not prepared, there will be no time to prepare (Matthew 25v1-13) Prophecy is the key to preparedness. It reveals truth, concerning the last days, so that we might know what
is about to take place and be praying/responding correctly. (Matthew 26v41). In Hebrew, the name for John is “Yohanan”. This name means that “God is gracious”. It can also mean “one who supplicates (asks for grace from) God”. John was saved by grace (Ephesians 2v8). He, like believers today, still needed to ask God for grace, though. Grace teaches us to say
“NO!” to ungodliness. It teaches us to obey God by living self-controlled, upright and Godly lives (Titus 2v11-14)
VERSE 2: “who testified of the Word of God and the testimony of Messiah Yeshua and of all things that he saw.”
There is an inherent relationship between the Word of God (Scripture) and the testimony of Yeshua (“… so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said…” – e.g. John 19v28) The more we are able to understand the Word of God the more we will be able to understand the person and work (deeds, testimony) of Messiah.
VERSE 3: “Blessed is the one who reads and blessed is the one who hears (obeys) the words of prophecy, and who keeps what is written. For the time is near.”
Material blessings (daily needs) come from seeking God’s Kingdom first (Matthew 6v33), but
there are another two blessings found here:
1. Reading the book of Revelation.
2. Obeying it.
Reading Revelation positions us in the will of God, helping to Biblically prepare us for what is still to come.
VERSE 4: “John (writes this), to the seven congregations which are in Asia: Grace to you, and peace, from the One who is, and was and will be; and from the seven Spirits which are before His throne.”
The number “seven” (here, and throughout this Book) speaks of holiness, perfection, or sanctification. These congregations are outside of Israel – they are in exile. Exile demands a change, one that is in line with the will and the purposes of God.
Whatever situation we find ourselves in, there is a need for ‘grace’ to live lives that are pleasing to God. (again Titus 2v11-14).
‘Peace’ is only experienced when we are living in the will of God. It guards our hearts and minds (Philippians 4v7). ‘From the One who is, and was and will be’ – this is an idiom meaning ‘transcendent God’. He is over and above all things, not limited or bound. In difficult times, a revelation of this aspect of God, realizing that we have supernatural help, will enable us to walk with Him and live out the lives that He has called us to live. With Him on our side, we can overcome and be victorious. ‘Seven Spirits’ is a reference to the perfect Holy Spirit. God the Father, Messiah Yeshua and the Holy Spirit are One God, revealed as Three, who are in perfect unity. Tri unity.
VERSE 5: “And from Yeshua the Messiah; the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, over all the kings of the earth (supreme ruler). To Him who loved us and, in His blood, has washed us from our sins.”
Yeshua, as a ‘faithful witness’, was an example, to us, of how we are to live. He taught us how to rely on God, with the help of the Holy Spirit, in order to be faithful to Him. ‘Firstborn’ implies a superiority – Yeshua accomplished G-d’s will perfectly. We are the “dead” that He has brought from death to life. (Leviticus 23v9-11 and 1 Corinthians 15v20-26; the festival of first fruits can also be called the festival of the resurrection, because it was on that day that Messiah rose from the dead.) On the cross Yeshua purchased our salvation – but the resurrection was G-d the Father’s testimony. Jesus had the power to lay down His life and take it up again (John 10v18), but He submitted to death and the Father raised Him to life – this was God’s stamp of approval. God
found what Yeshua did completely acceptable. Yeshua purchased, from the dead, this victory.
The Father will also raise us, who are in Messiah, to life (1 Corinthians 6v14). Resurrection is synonymous with Kingdom victory.
Christ is going to rule over all things (1 Corinthians 15v27) If we are going to submit to His rulership, it is reassuring to know that He loves us. (Love gives – John 3v16) There is no redemption without the shedding of blood (Hebrews 9v22). Messiah gave of His very self to redeem us. Why? To birth that redemptive change in our lives, whereby we are set free from the bondage of sin and become His purchased possession.
Verses 6-9
VERSE 6: “Who has made us kings and priests to G-d His Father – all the honour and power to Him for ever and ever. Amen.”
The Holy Spirit led John to take well known passages, from the Tanakh (The Hebrew Bible), and weave them together to shed new light on what was already written in the Word. The new revelation was not in conflict to what the Old Covenant said, but was a fulfillment of it. ‘Made us kings and priests’ comes from Exodus 19v6. G-d had just brought His people out of
bondage and they were at Mt Sinai. He wanted to bring a supernatural change into their lives. An identity change – to that of a royal (kingly) priesthood. We have a calling to rule and reign with Him in the Kingdom (2 Timothy 2v12). The degree of ruler ship, we have then, is dependent on how we live right now (faithfulness, obedience, and submission – Luke 19v12-26)
‘All the honour and power to Him’ tells us that what G-d is doing is rooted in His power. He wants to make us recipients of it so that we are able to rule in His name, carrying out His purposes and plans.
VERSE 7: “Behold! He is coming in the clouds and every eye shall see Him, and those who pierced Him. They are going to mourn Him, all the families of the earth. Thus, it shall be. Amen.” ‘Behold!’
We need to pay attention, to what follows this word, so that we can understand it and act, with faith, upon it. ‘He is coming in the clouds’: This is a citation from Daniel 7v13-14. In this original context, it doesn’t speak of Messiah coming, in the clouds, from the heavens to earth. It is speaking of Messiah going, from the clouds, into the presence of the Ancient of Days. (G-d the Father) He
presented Himself, before the Father, and there He inherited all honour, glory and power – to the extent that all people on earth will worship Him. G-d turns over everything that belongs to Him, to His Son. (John 3v35) ‘Every eye shall see Him’ comes from Isaiah 52v8. In this verse, we see watchmen who are looking for G-d to fulfil His prophetic promises. (Kingdom establishment). They shout for joy because of G-d’s faithfulness. The verse preceding this one (Isaiah 58v7) sets it in the context
of the proclamation of the gospel (the good news of how we can be in the Kingdom – i.e. the cross of Messiah and justification)
‘And those who pierced Him. They are going to mourn Him.’: Zechariah 12v10. In the midst of their great trouble, Messiah will return to Israel – and they will recognize Him. ‘All the families of the earth’ first appears in Genesis 12v3. The Abrahamic covenant is rooted in the Seed of Abraham. (i.e. Messiah Yeshua – Gal 3v16) – the ultimate blessing of this covenant is the establishment of the Kingdom.
VERSE 8: “For I am the Beginning (Alpha) and the End (Omega), the First and the Last. The One who is, and was and will be, the Almighty God”.
‘The First and the Last’ comes from Isaiah 44v6 – In its original context, this verse speaks about God as the Redeemer. When John uses these verses, he is alluding to the fact that G-d has begun the process of redemption, in individuals and within the church, and He will complete it. (Philippians 1v6) The barrier (sin) between man and G-d is removed by the blood of Messiah.
We have been justified and are able to now enjoy fellowship with G-d. (In Judaism, another name for Redeemer is ‘Messiah’).
‘Almighty G-d’ speaks of El Shaddai. The G-d who is all sufficient. Part of the redemptive process (not our justification, but for our purification) is to go through persecution, hardships, trials, and affliction (James 1v2-4)
VERSE 9: “I, John, your brother, your fellow partaker in affliction, and in the Kingdom, and in patience. On account of Messiah Yeshua I was on the island, which is known by the name of ‘Patmos’, because of the Word of G-d and on account of the testimony of Messiah Yeshua.”
‘Brother’ – We are all part of the same body/family and under the same authority (Galatians 3v26-28) – servants of Messiah Yeshua. ‘Fellow partaker in affliction…kingdom…patience’: There is going to be persecution. There is going to be a kingdom. We are ALL called to persevere. John was in exile, on Patmos, because the Roman government didn’t want the Word of G-d, as it related to the testimony of Messiah Yeshua, spoken about to the people. This foreshadows
what is going to happen at the end. The world (like the Roman Empire) will not want the truth of God realized among the people. Those who speak out for truth will be dealt with harshly. For the second time (1v2 and now here) John ties The Word of G-d and the testimony of Messiah together. When things are repeated, it shows emphasis.
– Dr. Baruch Korman
