Lesson 12: The Throne in Heaven

Revelation 4:1-4
1 After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.”
2 At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne.
3 And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald.
4 Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads.

In our previous lessons we have studied what was in the past as we read Jesus’ letters to the seven churches of Asia. As we read in lesson 4, the number of churches – 7 – tells us again that this is a completion of churches. This is also why we studied the churches in our present day for how these letters apply to us now, the present. Now, as we begin Chapter 4, we find the future – “what must take place after this.”

This future begins with John, the writer, being taken to heaven. He looked up and he saw an open door to Heaven – an open door is always a sign of welcome! He heard a trumpet-voice calling Him. In 1 Thessalonians 4:16 we read, “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God…”


Once again we remember that this book is a “revelation of Jesus Christ” – we see Him in this book as we have never seen Him before. He reveals Himself first in the glorious perfection we will see in Heaven. We see God seated on a throne. The fact that we see Him as diamond (jasper - clear) and ruby (carnelian - red) remind us of Jesus’ purity (no sin at all) and the blood He shed to redeem us. He sits on a throne surrounded by an emerald rainbow, reminding us that His throne is eternal as is our life in Him.

Verse four describes the scene before John; he was seeing God's throne and 24 other thrones around God. We are not told here who the 24 Elders are, but they can surely not be anyone other than the church because only the church has arrived in heaven at this point. Around God's throne we see displays of great power and the lightning and the thunder. Another indication that the people we see around the throne are the church is the description of seven burning torches which are the seven spirits of God. In previous chapters we saw that these spirits were the seven spirits of the church. This does not mean that there are seven Holy Spirits – it means there are seven facets to Him, seven specific ways He ministers to us. He is 1) God-in-us, 2) wisdom, 3) understanding, 4) counselor, 5) power, 6) knowledge, and 7) fear of the Lord (Isaiah 11:2).