Apocalypse Explained # 258
1. After these things I saw, and, behold, a door opened in heaven; and the first voice that I heard, as of a trumpet speaking with me, said, Come up hither, and I will show thee things that must come to pass hereafter.
2. And immediately I was in the spirit; and behold a throne was set in heaven, and upon the throne was One sitting.
3. And He that sat was in aspect like to a jasper stone and a sardius; and a rainbow was round about the throne, in aspect like an emerald.
4. And around the throne were four and twenty thrones, and upon the throne I saw four and twenty elders sitting, arrayed in white garments, and they had on their heads golden crowns.
5. And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunders and voices; and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which were the seven spirits of God;
6. And in sight of the throne a glassy sea like crystal. And in the midst of the throne and around the throne were four animals, full of eyes before and behind.
7. And the first animal was like a lion; and the second animal like a calf; and the third animal had a face like a man; and the fourth animal was like a flying eagle.
8. And the four animals, each by itself, had six wings around about; and they were full of eyes within; and they had no rest, day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was, and who is, and who is to come.
9. And when the animals gave the glory and the honor and the thanksgiving to Him that sitteth upon the throne, that liveth unto ages of ages,
10. The four and twenty elders fell down before Him that sitteth upon the throne, and worshiped Him that liveth unto ages of ages, and cast down their crowns before the throne, saying,
11. Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power, for Thou hast created all things, and by Thy will they are, and they were created.
EXPOSITION.
It was pointed out above (n. 5) that this prophetical book does not treat of the successive states of the Christian Church from its beginning to its end, as has been believed heretofore, but of the state of the church and of heaven in the last times, when there is to be a new heaven and a new earth, that is, when there is to be a new church in the heavens and on the earth, thus when there is to be a judgment. It is said a new church in the heavens, because the church is there as well as on the earth (See in the work on Heaven and Hell 221-227). As this is the subject of this book, the first chapter treats of the Lord who is the Judge; and the second and third chapters treat of those who are of the church and of those who are not of the church, thus of those in the former heaven which was to be done away with, and of those in the new heaven which was to be formed. That the seven churches treated of in the second and third chapters mean all who are in the church, and also all things of the church, see above (n. 256, 257). This fourth chapter now treats of the arrangement of all things, especially in the heavens, before the judgment; therefore a throne was now seen in heaven, and round about four and twenty thrones upon which were four and twenty elders; so also four animals were near the throne, which were cherubim. That these things described the arrangement of all things before the judgment and for judgment will be seen by the examination of this chapter. Be it known, that before any change takes place all things must be prearranged and prepared for the coming event; for all things are foreseen by the Lord, and disposed and provided for according to what is foreseen. A "throne," therefore, in the midst of heaven means judgment, and "He that sat upon it," the Lord; the "four and twenty thrones upon which were four and twenty elders," mean all truths in the complex, by which and according to which is judgment; "the four animals," which are the cherubim, mean the Lord's Divine Providence that the former heavens should not suffer injury through the notable change about to take place, and that all things should then be done according to order; that is, that those interiorly evil should be separated from those interiorly good, and the latter be raised up into heaven, but the former cast down into hell.
Genesis 1
1
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2
Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. God's Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.
3
God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.
4
God saw the light, and saw that it was good. God divided the light from the darkness.
5
God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." There was evening and there was morning, one day.
6
God said, "Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters."
7
God made the expanse, and divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so.
8
God called the expanse "sky." There was evening and there was morning, a second day.
9
God said, "Let the waters under the sky be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear;" and it was so.
10
God called the dry land "earth," and the gathering together of the waters he called "seas." God saw that it was good.
11
God said, "Let the earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit after their kind, with its seed in it, on the earth;" and it was so.
12
The earth brought forth grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with its seed in it, after their kind; and God saw that it was good.
13
There was evening and there was morning, a third day.
14
God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years;
15
and let them be for lights in the expanse of sky to give light on the earth;" and it was so.
16
God made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He also made the stars.
17
God set them in the expanse of sky to give light to the earth,
18
and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. God saw that it was good.
19
There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.
20
God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of sky."
21
God created the large sea creatures, and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind. God saw that it was good.
22
God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth."
23
There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.
24
God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind, livestock, creeping things, and animals of the earth after their kind;" and it was so.
25
God made the animals of the earth after their kind, and the livestock after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. God saw that it was good.
26
God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
27
God created man in his own image. In God's image he created him; male and female he created them.
28
God blessed them. God said to them, "Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."
29
God said, "Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food.
30
To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food;" and it was so.
31
God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. There was evening and there was morning, a sixth day.
