Just the Bible
F a l s e t e a c h i n g s e x p o s e d
Commentary on the New Testament
The Revelation
"I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord GOD, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty”
Revelation 1,8
His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters
Revelation 1,15
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever"
Revelation 1,17 f.
Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches
Revelation 2,7
I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds
Revelation 2,23
These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David
Revelation 3,7
These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of GOD’s creation
Revelation 3,14
Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!” The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped
Revelation 5,13 f.
All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world
Revelation 13,8
They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings
Revelation 17,14
He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of GOD
Revelation 19,13
and GOD himself shall be with them, and be their GOD
Revelation 21,3
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! GOD's dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and GOD himself will be with them and be their GOD
Revelation 21,22 f.
The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the GOD who inspires the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place”
Revelation 22,6
Revelation 1,8
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord GOD, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Throughout Revelation, GOD (the Lord) and Jesus (the Lamb) are distinguished from one another. Only GOD is referred to as Almighty; never the lamb. Verses 4 + 8 say that GOD Almighty is coming (Old Greek: erchomai). Verse 7 says that Jesus is also coming (erchomai). In the Old Testament, GOD executed judgments on Israel through various nations. GOD is described as the one fighting, although in fact it was the enemy armies that GOD used to carry out His judgment. In the same way, GOD uses Jesus to carry out judgment on humanity. In other words: GOD saves and judges through Jesus. Jesus acts with the authority of the Father. Father and Son act as one (John 10,30). Jesus comes on behalf of the Father (Matthew 16,27 / Matthew 25,31). GOD comes by sending Jesus.
Rev 1,1 / Rev 1,4-6 / Rev 2,7 / Rev 3,1-3 / Rev 3,12 f. / Rev 3,14 / Rev 3,21 / Rev 5,7-10 / Rev 5,13 / Rev 7,9-12 / Rev 11,15 / Rev 12,10 f. / Rev 14,4 / Rev 9,4-7 / Rev 21,22 f. / Rev 22,1 + 3 / Rev 22,18 f.
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 1,15
15 His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters (…).
This verse, which refers to Jesus, is often linked to Ezekiel 43,2, which says that Yahweh's appearance is like the sound of great waters. The fact that some descriptions of Yahweh and the glorified Jesus have similarities does not prove that they are identical. In other places, both GOD's voice (Job 40,9 / Psalm 29,3) and the voice of the four heavenly beings (Revelation 6,1) are compared to thunder. In Revelation 14,2 and Revelation 19,6, John compares the voice of the great crowd to thunder and the rushing of waters. The rustling of the wings of the four heavenly beings is also described as the rushing of water (Ezekiel 1,24).
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 1,17 f.
14 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. 42 I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever!
In Revelation 19,10 and Revelation 22,9, John falls down to worship the angel who spoke with him and showed him the visions. The angel warns John not to do this but to worship GOD instead. The reason John falls at the feet of the resurrected Jesus is because he was so overwhelmed by his appearance. There is no indication that John had any intention of worshiping Jesus. In various places we read how people reacted similarly to John when they saw heavenly beings (Daniel 8,17 f. / Matthew 28,1-4). In 1st Corinthians 15,35-48, Paul explains that spiritual bodies look different than earthly bodies. Apparently, the resurrected Jesus, like the angels, is able to change his external appearance. After his resurrection, Jesus showed himself to his disciples in a different form than John describes in the book of Revelation, so that his disciples would recognize him and not be frightened by him, as was the case with John. It is possible that Jesus' body was only transformed upon his ascension.
The phrase the first and the last is a title that appears a total of seven times in Scripture. He is not a name or a synonym for GOD, as is often claimed. The fact that both GOD and Jesus have this title does not make Jesus GOD. Rather, it expresses the uniqueness of a person with regard to a situation. You can also say in English: "I am the first and the last to climb this mountain". In other words, "there is no one but me who has climbed this mountain". In five of seven verses there is an addition to the sentence that describes the meaning of the title in more detail or specifies in which respect GOD and Jesus are unique.
In Revelation 1,8 and Revelation 2,8 the title refers to the resurrection of Jesus. It states that Jesus is the only person who was dead and was raised (by GOD) to immortal life and that he alone was given the authority (by GOD) to raise the rest of the dead. In Revelation 1,8 and Revelation 21,6 f. the title refers to GOD the Father, as is clear from the context of the verse. It expresses that GOD is the only one who is omnipotent. In some Bibles the same statement is repeated in verse 10. Alpha and Omega as well as beginning and end are probably intended to underline GOD's authority as all-powerful creator and supreme ruler, but can also be understood as an affirmation of the uniqueness of the one who bears the title. In Isaiah 44,6 the title shows that GOD is the only GOD and there is no other GOD but Him. Isaiah 48,12, on the other hand, makes it clear that GOD is the only Creator and that everything was created through Him alone.
In Revelation 22,12/13 there is a change of speaker from Jesus to GOD. Such sudden changes occur in several places in Revelation, which cannot always be clearly assigned; e.g. in Revelation 1,7/8 + 22,7/8 + 11/12 + 12/13 + 15/16. The context provides information about who the statement refers to.
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 2,7
3 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
The Greek word for spirit is pneuma and can be translated as spirit, wind and breath. It can refer to, among other things, GOD, angels, demons and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Since his resurrection, Jesus has been called the Spirit. This is one of several names Jesus goes by in the book of Revelation; including Lion of Judah, Root of David or Lamb of GOD. 1st Corinthians 15,45 says that through his resurrection Jesus became a quickening spirit because he was raised with a new, spiritual body. For this reason the Bible calls him the Spirit. This does not make Jesus GOD. Nor does it mean that Jesus is the Holy Spirit; especially since, according to the Trinitarian creed, the Son and the Holy Spirit are not the same person. The New Testament explains that believers will also one day be resurrected with a spiritual body of glory (1st Corinthians 15,45), like the angels (Matthew 22,30) and like the Son of GOD (Philippians 3,20 f.).
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 2,23
23 I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds.
In Jeremiah 17,9 f., GOD says that He is able to search the hearts of people. The fact that the glorified Jesus also has this supernatural gift does not mean that he is GOD. In Matthew 28,20, Jesus explains that all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to him. This power also apparently includes almost unlimited knowledge. Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit to become omniscient like GOD. Because they exalted themselves by violating GOD's commandment, they fell. Jesus, on the other hand, remained obedient to the Father throughout his earthly life. As a reward for this, GOD exalted Jesus above all measure and gave him power over all creatures (Philippians 2,9 / Revelation 3,7). The ability to look into people's hearts comes - like every gift - from GOD. Even before his resurrection, GOD revealed everything important about people in advance to his son by letting Jesus look into people's hearts. This is how Jesus was able to see through the true motives of his enemies. Now this gift helps him in his office as GOD'S judge to examine people in order to be able to pass a fair judgment on each individual.
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 3,7
7 These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David.
In some places in the Bible, GOD is called the Holy One (1st Samuel 2,2 / Isaiah 30,15) and the True One (Romans 3,4 / 1st John 5,20). But the two terms holy (Old Greek: hagios) and true (Old Greek: alēthinos) do not exclusively refer to GOD. Believers should also be holy (1st Peter 1,15 f.) and true (Ephesians 4,15), although only GOD is holy in the absolute sense. Living holy means following GOD's commandments and avoiding sin. Being true means telling the truth while resisting lies and hypocrisy (Psalm 15,2 f.). Jesus proved to be both holy and blameless and truthful and without guile (1st Peter 2,22). Unlike many scribes, Jesus always taught people GOD'S Word and His will according to the truth. Jesus did not favor anyone (Mark 12,14). This makes Jesus the ideal judge before GOD. In this respect, this is the appropriate honorary title for the Son of GOD.
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 3,14
1 These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of GOD’s creation.
This verse neither proves that Jesus is Creator nor that He preexisted. This is about Jesus' rank or position in relation to all other creatures. In Colossians 1,18, Jesus is called the beginning (Old Greek: archē) and "the firstborn from the dead". Jesus is the first and so far only person whom GOD raised from the dead to immortal life (Revelation 2,8). In addition, Jesus has been exalted by GOD above all men and angels, so that he has priority in everything. Just like Jesus, all believers are called the firstfruits of GOD's creation (1st Corinthians 15,20 + 23 / James 1,18). This expression refers to the new creation that began with Jesus and the first Christians.
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 5,13 f.
13 Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!” 14 The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped.
The ancient Greek word proskuneō is used both for the worship of GOD and in the sense of a royal reverence or homage to people. The use of proskuneō in connection with Jesus is therefore not proof that the Messiah is GOD. Revelation 4 first speaks of a throne on which someone sits. Verse 8 identifies this person as GOD, the Lord Almighty, who is worshiped (proskuneō ) by the four heavenly beings and the 24 elders. Verse 11 explains that He is the One who created all things and that He deserves the praise for that. It is not until Revelation 5 that Jesus (the Lamb) appears to break the seven seals. GOD, who sits on the throne, and the Lamb are therefore two different beings.
Unlike GOD, who is continually worshiped (Revelation 4,8), the four beings and the 24 elders only fall down before the Lamb at the moment when he receives the book with the seven seals from GOD. This symbolic act expresses that the power and honor of the Lamb were given to him by GOD. In Revelation 3,21, Jesus says that he has sat on the Father's throne because he has overcome (the world). So he wasn't always sitting on it. In Revelation 2,26-28, Jesus says that he has received power from the Father. He didn't have this power before. In Revelation 5,9 we find the reason why the Lamb received this extraordinary honor from GOD, namely because of his work of redemption. Revelation 5,10 says that Jesus bought people from all nations for GOD. The content of the praise of the Lamb is different than that of GOD, the Creator. Here too, Jesus and GOD are distinguished from each other. At no point in Revelation is Jesus addressed or worshiped as GOD. Likewise, only GOD (who sits on the throne) is described as the Creator. In Revelation 7,11 f. and Revelation 11,15-18 it is again GOD who is worshiped; not Jesus.
In 1st Chronicles 29,20 David calls on the church of Israel to praise GOD. It is then said that the church bowed down before the LORD as well as the king (Septuagint: proskuneō ). Honor is given here to both GOD (Yahweh) and David. It is clear that the people did not worship David as GOD. It is similar in Revelation 5. It says that the elders bowed down (Old Greek: piptō petō) and worshiped (proskuneō ). The one whom the elders worshiped as before in Revelation 4 before the Lamb was added is the Lord GOD. They basically continue their worship. There is no mention of them worshiping the Lamb. But even then, this would not be the same as worshiping GOD. Psalm 110,1 and 1st Corinthians 15,24-28 say that GOD has subjected everything to His Messiah. Paul adds that the word everything (Old Greek: pas) is to be understood in a relative sense. Accordingly, GOD is excluded because, as Creator, He stands above everything and therefore also above Jesus. That's why GOD would never submit Himself to anyone. In all other places in the book of Revelation only GOD, the Lord, who sits on the throne, is expressly worshiped; but never Jesus, the Lamb (Revelation 7,9-12 / Revelation 11,16-18 / Revelation 14,7 / Revelation 19,4-7).
In Revelation 5,13, GOD and Jesus receive praise, honor, praise and power forever and ever. This verse also does not equate Jesus and GOD. GOD deserves the highest honor of all. But because Jesus is GOD's representative, GOD has exalted him to His right hand. This means that Jesus has the second highest position in the entire universe, right after the Father. Therefore, it is appropriate to honor Jesus with similar words. It is GOD's express and sovereign will that Jesus - even though he is human - receives this honor. Because no other person has ever shown such loyalty and devotion to GOD as Jesus. Appreciating and honoring Jesus as Lord also honors GOD, the Father, who exalted Jesus and made him what he is today (Philippians 2,11).
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 13,8
2 All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.
The so-called Book of Life is mentioned in several places in both the Old (Psalm 69,29) and the New Testament (Revelation 20,12). In this book are the names of GOD'S chosen ones. The works of unsaved people are also recorded there. In verse 8 it is called the Book of the Lamb. This is not a reference to the pre-existence of Jesus, but rather expresses that Jesus is the judge appointed and empowered by the Father, to whom GOD has given the power to decide on a person's life and salvation as well as death and damnation (John 5,22 / Acts 17,31).
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 17,14
14 They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings.
There are several names used in the Bible for both GOD and His Son Jesus. Since GOD saves (Jude 1,25) and judges (Romans 2,16) through Jesus, both become saviors (Hosea 13,4 / 2nd Peter 3,18) and judge (Hebrews 12,23 / 2nd Timothy 4,1 / Acts 17,31). GOD is light. Jesus is the light of the world. Jesus also calls his disciples this way (Matthew 5,14 / John 8,12 / 1st John 1,5). These titles are to be understood in the absolute or ultimate sense for GOD and in the relative or subordinate sense for Jesus.
In 1st Timothy 6,15 the title King of kings and Lord of lords refers to GOD the Father. In Revelation 17,4 and Revelation 19,16 the same title is used for Jesus the Lamb. It expresses that a person has great authority that sets him apart from others. GOD, the Father, is the absolute highest authority. This means that there is no one who is above GOD or has greater power than Him. GOD, the Highest, made His human son Jesus His highest representative (1st Corinthians 15,27 f. / Philippians 2,9-11) and gave him all power (Matthew 28,18 / John 3,35). Jesus stands above all people and, since his resurrection, even above the angels of GOD (Hebrews 2,7). The fact that GOD and Jesus have this title does not mean that Jesus is GOD. This is also proven by the fact that this title is not used exclusively for GOD in the Holy Scriptures, but also for people; such as Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon (Ezekiel 26,7 / Daniel 2,37) and the Medo-Persian king Artaxerxes (Ezra 7,12). In the case of Nebuchadnezzar, it was even GOD Himself who gave him this title.
It should also be noted that there are different authors who attribute these titles to GOD (Paul) and to Jesus (John). The context of 1st Timothy 6,15 f. also makes it clear that no one has ever seen GOD. Jesus, on the other hand, was seen by many people. In Revelation 19,16, Jesus, the rider on the white horse, is distinguished from GOD Almighty. Jesus is the one who carries out GOD's judgment on the ungodly. He is not GOD himself. Furthermore, only the father of all gods is called GOD (Deuteronomy 10,17).
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 19,13
13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of GOD.
The name Word of GOD that Jesus bears is a title given to Jesus by GOD. It means that Jesus, as Judge, carries out the will of the Father (verse 11). The word stands for GOD'S truth. GOD has chosen the Messiah, who has shown absolute loyalty to him, to execute judgment on the ungodly (verse 15). Word of GOD is not a synonym for Jesus and not a description for a pre-existent Son. It is similar with the title King of Kings (Revelation 19,16). Furthermore, there is no direct connection to John 1, where the word does not refer to Jesus, but to GOD's plan/purpose that He accomplished in Messiah.
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 21,3
3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! GOD's dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and GOD himself will be with them and be their GOD. (…).
This verse has nothing to do with the prophetic name of Jesus, which is Immanuel and translated means GOD with us. This is about the fact that GOD will be closer to the people on the new earth than ever before.
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 22,6
6 The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the GOD who inspires the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”
Revelation 22,16 says that Jesus sent his angel to show John what was to happen in the future. In verse 6 we read that the Lord, the GOD of the prophets, has sent His angel. This statement refers to GOD, the Father and not Jesus. GOD the Lord and Jesus the Lamb are distinguished throughout the book of Revelation. At no point is Jesus referred to as GOD. All angels belong to GOD the Father. But GOD placed the Messiah above His angels after he was raised from the dead. Now the Son commands the heavenly hosts of GOD. GOD'S angels obey Jesus' instructions (1st Peter 3,22). In this respect, they are both GOD's and Jesus' angels. In other words, GOD sends His angels through Jesus.
_____________________________________________________
Revelation 21,22 f.
22 I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. 23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of GOD gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.
This passage has nothing to do with worshiping Jesus. The terms temple and lamp are to be understood in a figurative sense. The former Temple in Jerusalem was not the object of worship, but the place where GOD'S name dwelt. People went to the temple to offer sacrifices and seek fellowship with GOD. On the new earth, believers will have direct fellowship with and full access to GOD and Jesus. The glory of the Father is reflected in Jesus (2nd Corinthians 4,6). He is the perfect human image of the invisible GOD and therefore a role model or guide (lamp) for all saints, now and for all eternity.