Wrestling with Revelation 4:1-5:14

Wrestling with Revelation

Round Four: Revelation 4:1-5:14

“Revelation is not to be likened to an ‘apricot with a hard core’ but more to an ‘onion’ consisting of layers and layers of meaning.”

Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza

First Impressions

1. Pray.
2. Read Revelation 4:1-5:14 twice slowly, using different translations and noting significant variations.
3. Initial questions:

·         What do these two chapters record?

·         Who receives praise (worship) in this passage?

·         How would you subtitle this section of Revelation?

·         As the passage was read, which phrase(s) or verse(s) caused you to pause or stop? Paraphrase this phrase or verse.

Dwelling in the Text

1. Why do you think you paused or stopped where you did?
2. In general, what does a throne symbolize? In the first-century Roman Empire, who would it have called to mind? How might this person have responded to literature that presents God as “one seated on [a] throne” (4:2)?
3. Is there anything in this passage that points toward a doctrine of the Trinity? 
4. The word worship is derived from the Old English word worthship. John hears a heavenly chorus sing, “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power” (4:11a). According to this song, what makes God worth praise? Who is offering the praise? To which contemporary concern is this relevant?
5. What contrasting images—both representing Jesus—are juxtaposed in 5:5-6? What does the image in verse 5 convey about what Jesus has done? What does the image in verse 6 convey about how he has done this?
6. What does the “new song” of 5:9 say about the death of Jesus and the kingdom of God?

The Text in Context

1. Wrestling with Revelation 4:3:

·         Read Genesis 9:8-17 and put it in conversation with Revelation 4:3.

·         Describe the characteristics of the covenant symbolized by the rainbow.

2. Wrestling with Revelation 4:4:

·         Read Revelation 21:12-14 and put it in conversation with Revelation 4:4.

·         What does the number twenty-four suggest about the relationship between Judaism and Christianity?

3. Wrestling with Revelation 4:6a:

·         Read Genesis 1:1-2 and put it in conversation with Revelation 4:6a.

·         How is the sea of heaven different from the waters of the original creation? What is Revelation here saying about God?