Eight Depictions of the Resurrection in Revelation
Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen!
He is risen! He is risen indeed!
Happy Easter—Resurrection Day—to all.
On this glorious day of remembrance, I pray you all experience the joy of the Risen Jesus in your hearts and lives.
This Resurrection Day, I want to look at what Revelation says about the resurrection.
Why eight depictions? Jesus’s resurrection happened on the eighth day! Yes it was the first day of the week, but also the eighth, so eight depictions.
If Revelation is the Gospel of the Exalted Jesus, one would naturally expect (I think) that the resurrection of Jesus would be prominent.
And that is the case, but always with a view to the entire event of Jesus’s passion and death and resurrection rolled into each image.
Except for the first one which I have already covered, each of these seven will show up again as we make our way through this astounding book.
1. He place his right hand on me saying, “Do not fear, I am the First and the Last, and the Living One, and I was dead, and look! I am alive forever, and I have the keys of death and of hades” Revelation 1:17–18.
I have already covered this image several posts ago, but want to highlight that the entire gospel message is right here in these words.
Jesus died for us, freed us from death and its consequences, and is the firstborn from the dead, alive forever and ever!
2. And I saw in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures and in the midst of the elders a Lamb Standing as Slaughtered having seven horns and seven eyes which are the seven spirits of God sent into all the earth, and He came and took [the scroll] from the right hand of the One Sitting on the Throne … and they sang a new song saying: Worthy are You to take the scroll and to open its seals for you were slaughtered and you redeemed for God by your blood from every tribe and tongue and people and nation and made them a kingdom and priests for our God and they shall reign upon the earth. Revelation 5:6–10.
Hallelujah!
Jesus the one slain upon the cross stands alive in the midst of the throne of God.
Once again the image itself contains the entire gospel of Jesus’s death and resurrection and exaltation.
And in addition this passage tells us the outcome of the Lamb’s death and resurrection: our redemption by his blood, our priesthood, and our reign in the Kingdom of God on earth as we worship Him.
(continued)
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3. And when the testimony of the [two witnesses] was finished, the beast coming up from the abyss made war with them and conquered them and killed them. And their bodies were on the street of the great city, which is spiritually called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified. And those from the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations were watching their bodies three and a half days and they did not allow their bodies to be put into a tomb. And the inhabitants of the earth rejoiced and were sending gifts to one another because the two prophets tormented those living on the earth. And after three and a half days, the Spirit of life from God entered into them and they stood on their feet. And great fear fell on the people. And they heard a great voice from heaven saying to them “Come up here!” And they went up to heaven in a cloud and their enemies beheld them. Revelation 11:7-12.
Okay, this is a long passage and it doesn’t have to do with Jesus specifically.
Instead it has to do with the followers of Jesus.
We’ll definitely spend time on this passage in the future, but the bottom line is that just as God raised Jesus from the dead, he will also raise those who follow him—in spite of persecution and even death.
The two witnesses are the people of God, including the prophets before and the Church after, who no matter what the world throws at it, keeps coming back to life.
The world rejoices when the people of God seem to be dead and done for—the gift giving are the multiple “high-fives” of those in the world who can finally lead their wicked lives without those pesky people who live a different existence in the truth as priests to God and thus highlight the lies of the world by their very lives.
The world loves its lies and wants nothing to change.
The world loves its drama and will do anything to keep it.
But God is not mocked.
He always has a remnant faithful to him—they always return.
They are always resurrected.
4. And she gave birth to a male son, who is about to shepherd the nations with an iron scepter. And her child was snatched to heaven to God and to his throne. Revelation 12:5.
I have already looked at this passage in some depth in my post A Cosmic Christmas, but it is worth noting again that this one verse contains the entire gospel message from the Incarnation to the Ascension, thus includes the death and resurrection of Jesus.
5. And I looked, and behold! the Lamb standing on Mount Zion and with him 144,000 having his name and the name of his Father written on their foreheads. Revelation 14:1.
This passage goes on in more detail, but in this verse we see the “Lamb standing” on Mount Zion—the place of Kingship in Psalm 2 (“I have set my King on Zion, my holy mountain”). The standing Lamb is the same “Lamb standing as slaughtered” of Revelation 5, but now with the complete number of his followers (12 tribes—from every people—times 12,000)—all risen and reigning victoriously with the Lamb.
6. And I saw heaven opened, and look! a white horse and the One seated upon it called Faithful and True and with justice he discerns and makes war. Further, his eyes like a flame of fire and upon his head many royal crowns, having a name written that no one knows except him, and clothed with a robe dipped in blood—and his name was called the Word of God. Revelation 19:11-13.
These few verses in Revelation 19 are surrounded by passages with the resurrected saints, but I will focus on the One seated on the white horse.
In these verses, John describes Jesus as victorious conquerer in heaven—the one riding on a white horse.
Unlike the first white horse of the first seal in Revelation six, Jesus does not conquer to bring death and destruction in his train (as the horses that follow in seals two, three, and four), but he has conquered to bring truth, and light, and glory.
How did Jesus replace the other conqueror (i.e. Satan and the Beast)?
Jesus did it on the cross, symbolized in this passage by the robe he is wearing—a robe dipped in blood.
His name is called Ho Logos Tou Theou—the Word of God.
John identifies Jesus with the eternal Logos of John 1:1-2.
The Logos existed from eternity past, entered humanity, accomplished his work of redemption on the cross, and is now raised and exalted as the conqueror of death and sin and Satan, and He rules over all creation.
Along with the saints in Revelation 19:1 and 3 and 6, we can loudly and joyously shout “Hallelujah!”
(cont.)
7. And I saw thrones and they sat upon them, and judgment was handed to them, specifically those beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the Word of God and who did not worship the beast nor his image nor took the mark upon the their forehead and upon their hand. And they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not live until the thousand years ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one having a part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over these, but they will be priests of God and of Messiah, and they will reign with him the thousand years. Revelation 20:4-6.
There are so many questions to answer about this passage, not the least of which regards the thousand years. Those questions are for another day.
What we see in this passage for today is resurrection.
Those who have lived and died with and for Christ are raised to reign with Christ.
What is more, they have nothing to fear for the future.
Even more, judgment is handed to them—no arbitrary judgment, but their very witness to Jesus as the Word of God is the measure for the judgment.
Those who rejected Messiah Jesus and persecuted his followers in actuality judge themselves, but those set on the thrones are themselves the witness to that rejection.
Nonetheless these saints are raised—they are resurrected!—because Jesus preceded them.
8. And I saw the new heaven and the new earth … and the holy city, the new Jerusalem—I saw coming down from heaven from God. Revelation 21:1, 2.
The eighth image encompasses all of Revelation 21–22, John’s vision of heaven joining to earth for the eternal reign of God among humans. I encourage you to read it all, but in sum, these chapters are a picture of Paradise as God intended from the beginning, but marred by our sin, had to be redeemed.
The vision is spectacular in the best sense and envisioned what resurrected life will be (and if understood and embodied can be lived an experienced now in part.)
In the center of the city is God and the Lamb, the Exalted Jesus, sitting on the throne and enlightening all those who give their worship to Him alone.
The physical resurrection of Jesus that first day of the week just shy of two thousand years ago, was only a preview of the glory to come for us all.
Again, hallelujah! Praise the Lord.
Χριστός Ανέστη Christ is Risen!
Αληθώς Ανέστη He is risen, indeed (literally, truly he is risen)!
Thanks for reading.
I will take up the seven churches of Revelation 2–3 next.
See you then.
This has been so helpful as I led my group through Revelation. This is our last meeting and I am excited to share this info with them. Thank you!