Sunday School Notes: Revelation 1:16-17a

¹⁶ and having in his right hand seven stars, and coming out from his mouth a sharp, double-edged broadsword, and his appearance shining like the sun in its power. ¹⁷ And when I saw him I fell to his feet as dead…”

Last time, we read verse 16 but didn’t discuss it because we were nearly out of time and I didn’t want to rush though it. There are some interesting things going on in that verse, and I thought it deserved closer attention. To review the context, John is describing the vision he saw. It’s a “son of man,” so it’s someone humanoid in appearance (though this phrase is meant to recall Daniel 7 too), wearing a long robe like the priests would wear, and a golden belt or sash around his chest, possibly the way a soldier might wear for carrying a sword. His feet are bare, again like a priest, and they are like “burnished bronze,” that is, purified, reflecting the purity and holiness of the person.

The description continues into verse 16. This son of man–which we understand to be Christ–has “seven stars” in his right hand. Revelation 1:20 gives us a big clue as to what this means when it says that the seven stars are the seven angels of the church. Some speculate that the stars are meant to be actual stars, and perhaps represent one of the seven-star constellations (e.g., Ursa Major, or Pleiades), but we need to let Scripture interpret Scripture. The primary meaning of the stars must be that they are the angels of the seven churches. The fact they are in Christ’s “right hand,” which is a symbol of power and authority, indicates Christ’s sovereign rule over the church. It’s true that Christ is also Lord of the heavens, the moon and the stars, so the idea of him having the stars in his right hand wouldn’t be theologically improper. But that’s not the interpretation given to us by Scripture.

Daniel 12:1-3 gives us an interesting insight into this verse, since it describes the “wise and righteous” as those that will “shine like the stars forever.” This is in reference to the “true Israel”–that is, those who are wise and righteous, and therefore truly God’s people. Perhaps John is, again, drawing a link between those among Israel who really are of the Lord, and the church. But we noted that in Revelation 1:16, it’s the angels of the churches that are described as “stars,” not the churches themselves. This is where the concept of “corporate identity” comes in, where one person is understood to represent a body of people. In Romans, Paul speaks of Adam as our corporate representative, and there are other examples in Scripture where one person, or thing, is taken as the representative of others. In chapters 2 and 3, the letters to the churches are actually addressed to the angels of those churches. Clearly, these are meant to be heavenly embodiments of the churches for which they stand. The picture this presents to us of the church is really quite astounding. What we’re seeing here is the fact that the church on earth is represented in heaven. It’s a reminder of the heavenly reality behind what we see here, the church gathered for worship, for service, for edification–and this doesn’t end here.

But how can the lampstands represent the church and the angels of the churches represent the church? As we’ve seen, the seven lampstands correspond to the seven-branched Temple menorah. These are the churches on earth, just as the Temple was often seen by Jewish writers as an earthly representation of the Temple of God in heaven. So with the stars and the lampstands we see the church as God sees us, both here on earth and in heaven. One caution I issued was against viewing these angels as intermediaries, as if we approach God via these representative angels. According to Hebrews, we have direct access to the throne of God through Christ. We have no need of another going on our behalf. The angels simply show us the heavenly reality that the church isn’t just an earthly institution.

We noted how the angels are not representing us individually, but the church corporately. This reminds us that while our salvation is personal, and God does indeed have a personal relationship with each one of us through Christ, being a Christian is not simply about “me and Jesus, we’re okay.” We are identified with the church, and we are saved to serve our Lord within the context of the local church. Becoming a Christian is certainly about “me and Jesus,” but living the Christian life is about “me, Jesus, and my brethren in Christ–are we all okay?”

Someone also observed the militaristic tone to the vision of the son of man, and how we might see the relationship between Christ, the angels, and the church, as one of a Commander-in-Chief, his generals, and the troops under their command. We are engaged in spiritual warfare, so it’s not inconceivable to think that there are angels assigned to churches in this way. This is somewhat speculative, and we shouldn’t push our interpretation further than the Word permits. However, there are at least hints in Scripture that certain places have assigned angels (e.g., Daniel 10 and the references to Michael and the “prince of Persia”, and also Deuteronomy 32:8, which in the Greek translation refers to God establishing the borders of the nations “according to the number of the angels of God”), so the idea of churches in a geographic area having an angel that superintends them is not, perhaps, outside Scriptural parameters.

We should note, also, that the number “7” in all these instances has both a literal meaning (John was writing to seven actual churches), and a broader, symbolic meaning (what is intended for these churches applies to all churches).

The next part of the vision is for me the strangest. Christ is pictured with a sword coming out of his mouth. We know for certain this is a vision and not meant to be taken literally since there is no way Christ could have spoken clearly to John with a sword in his mouth! Given that it’s symbolic, what does it mean? First, I noted that the type of sword is a broadsword, the kind a Roman soldier might have used in battle (Greek: romphaia). It is double-edged, and it is sharp, so it would be quite suitable for striking down one’s enemies. In 2:16 and 19:15, Christ uses this mouth-sword to strike down in judgment. 2:16 is a judgment against the church, 19:15 is a judgment against the nations. So the nature of the sword is as a tool for exercising divine justice (echoes of Romans 13 here, perhaps, where the ruling authorities have “the sword” for this purpose). But why in the mouth? Isaiah 11:4 speaks of the shoot of Jesse striking the earth with the rod of his mouth. The Greek translation speaks of the logos of his mouth–the word of his mouth. Isaiah 49:2 says that God made the mouth of His servant as a sharp sword in the context of restoring Israel and vindicating Himself. I think the picture we get, therefore, is one of Christ coming as judge, and his swift, sharp judgment will come through his mouth in the form of words. Hebrews 4:12 reminds us the God’s word is sharper than any two-edged sword, and is able to judge our hearts and intentions.

Finally, John describes Christ’s appearance (some translations say “face,” but the Greek opsis is not so specific) as that of the sun shining in its power, or its fullness. This immediately reminded me of two incidents: the Transfiguration, where Christ’s glory was unveiled momentarily before Peter, James, and John (Matthew 17), and Moses coming down from Mount Sinai in Exodus 34. With the Moses incident, his face reflected the glory of God such that people couldn’t stand to look at him. This depiction of God’s glory as a bright light is common, and perhaps conveys His absolute purity and holiness, before which we can’t stand without our sin and impurity becoming evident. The man of Daniel’s vision in Daniel 10:6 had an appearance “like lightening,” and those who love the Lord are said, in Judges 5:31, to be like the sun rising in its power, or fullness. But what John sees here is not simply the reflected glory of God from an angel (e.g., at the empty tomb in Matthew 28:3-4), or from a person (e.g., Moses in Exodus 34:30), but the unreflected glory of God emanating from Christ himself.

The beginning of verse 17 records John’s reaction: he falls down at Christ’s feet as dead. This is quite a dramatic reaction and one we can, perhaps, understand. In similar circumstances I’m sure we would do the same. Was this an act of worship? Maybe in part, but the fact that Christ tells him not to be afraid points to fear as the primary emotion. John was scared to death. Daniel had a similar reaction to his vision in 8:18 and 10:9, where he fell on his face as if in a deep sleep. The angel appearing at Jesus’ tomb in Matthew 28:4 caused the soldiers to shake and become “as dead”–again, this was the result of seeing God’s glory reflected off an angel. One can only imagine how much more intense it was for John. The idea of being “as dead” makes us think of debilitating fear. Some suggest John might have just fallen into some kind of catatonic trance, which is how he is able to have the vision. I don’t think that’s the case, firstly because John’s vision began before he saw Christ. What he sees in verse 16 is part of what he saw and heard starting back in verse 10. Secondly, the intense nature of what he has experience leading him to become so afraid he is “as dead” is hardly the same as a catatonic trance that might induce a visionary state.

We’ll finish off verse 17 and the rest of the chapter next time.