REVELATION 1:2, PART 9
...there is no anonymous prophecy in Scripture
and He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond-servant John, 2who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, everything that he saw. (New American Standard Bible - NASB)
We’re still looking at 19th century commentaries:
“and be sent and signified {them} I.e., ‘the things which must come to pass shortly’…Perhaps the verb ‘signified’ may be taken absolutely. Except in Acts xi. 28 (cf. Acts xxv. 27), this prophetic use of the verb (semaino) is peculiar to St. John; see John xii. 33; xviii. 32; xxi. 19. The term denotes the figurative and symbolical character of what follows:—see on ch. xii.1.”
One of them, named Agabus, stood up and indicated by the Spirit that there would definitely be a severe famine all over the world. And this took place in the reign of Claudius. (Acts 11:28; NASB)
For it seems absurd to me in sending a prisoner, not to indicate the charges against him as well.” (Acts 25:27; NASB)
32And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to Myself. 33Now He was saying this to indicate what kind of death He was going to die. (John 12:32,33; NASB)
31So Pilate said to them, “Take Him yourselves, and judge Him according to your law.” The Jews said to him, “We are not permitted to put anyone to death.” 32This happened so that the word of Jesus which He said, indicating what kind of death He was going to die, would be fulfilled. (John 18:31,32; NASB)
Now He said this, indicating by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had said this, He said to him, “Follow Me!” (John 21:19; NASB)
A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars (Revelation 12:1; NASB)
We’ve already delved into the meaning of this word. The author admits that it did not denote “the figurative and symbolical character of what follows” when it was used in Acts. I’ve included the context for the John 12 and 18 verses; you can see that these uses of semaino aren’t at all symbolic, though could be figurative. For instance, in John 12, Jesus says “if I am lifted up from the earth” instead of “if I’m nailed to a tree.” In our day, when we hear “lifted up from the earth” we have a lot of options to think about…a helicopter, a huge bunch of balloons, paragliding, etc. For Jesus and His followers there weren’t a lot of options for this; and while His followers might have been able to avoid thinking about what Jesus was trying to convey, there truly weren’t many ways in which someone could be “lifted up from the earth”: crucifixion, a giant, God…any other ideas? Is this phrase figurative or literal? It’s not figurative in the sense of a simile or a metaphor, but it could qualify as an allusion…He was alluding to crucifixion.
Now look at John 18:31,32. “We are not permitted to put anyone to death” is not symbolic or figurative, rather it’s part of a logical sequence of events. Perhaps they were “alluding” to wanting to have Jesus crucified, but I think that’s stretching it. They wanted Jesus dead, and they were afraid of the people rising up against them if they did it; but I don’t think they cared how it was done. But back to the point, I don’t think John’s use of the word semaino always indicates something figurative or symbolic.
“by his angel,] Lit. ‘through his angel;’ cf. Ex. iv. 13. Hence, and from ch. xxii. 6, 16, the office of unveiling the different scenes of the Apocalypse seems to have been assigned to a particular Angel; cf. Dan. viii. 16; ix. 21; Zech. 1. 9; ii. 3:—even when the speaker is not defined, as in ch. xix. 9, the words which follow clearly point to the Angel who speaks in ch. xxii. 8,9.”
But he said, “Please, Lord, now send the message by whomever You will.” (Exodus 4:13; NASB)
6and he said to me, “These words are faithful and true”; and the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent His angel to show His bond-servants the things which must soon take place…16“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you of these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.” (Revelation 22:6,16; NASB)And I heard the voice of a man between the banks of Ulai, and he called out and said, “Gabriel, explain the vision to this man.” (Daniel 8: 16; NASB)
while I was still speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision previously, came to me in my extreme weariness about the time of the evening offering. (Daniel 9:21; NASB)
Then I said, “What are these, my lord?” And the angel who was speaking with me said to me, “I will show you what these are.” (Zechariah 1:9; NASB)
And behold, the angel who had been speaking with me was going out, and another angel was going out to meet him. (Zechariah 2:3; NASB)
Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.’” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” (Revelation 19:9; NASB)
8I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed me these things. 9And he said to me, “Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and of your brothers the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God!” (Revelation 22:8,9; NASB)
Maybe I’m wrong, but a) I don’t think that it’s Gabriel that talked to John, and b) I don’t think it’s the same angel (or even just angels) throughout Revelation that talked to John. John does make general statements about ‘the angel’ of Jesus, but we will see that:
In Revelation 4:1 John hears “the first voice” which sounds like a trumpet and invites him to “Come up here;”
In 4:8 John hears the 4 living creatures saying, without cease, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come;”
In 4:10,11 John hears the 24 elders praising God;
In 5:5 John is spoken to by one of the 24 elders;
In 6:1,3,5,7 each one of the 4 living creatures calls out to one of the 4 horses of the Apocalypse in turn;
In 6:6 a voice from the 4 living creatures makes the statement about the cost of food;
In 7:2,3 an angel ascending from the rising sun calls out to the 4 angels who were to harm the earth;
In 7:4 John “hears” the number of those who were sealed;
In 7:13 John converses with one of the elders about the saints under the altar;
In 9:3-5 an angel descends like a star, opens the abyss, and John hears how the locusts are instructed;
In 9:13,14 John hears a voice from the four horns of the golden altar instructing the sixth angel to release the 4 angels bound at the Euphrates;
In 9:16 he hears the number of the armies of horsemen (200 million);
In 10:3 John hears a “strong angel” and the seven peals of thunder;
In 10:4 he hears a voice tell him not to write what the seven peals of thunder said;
In 10:6,7 he hears the “strong angel” swear that there will be no further delay “but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then the mystery of God is finished;”
In 10:8 John hears a voice from heaven telling him to take the scroll;
In 10:9 the “strong angel” tells John to eat the scroll and also how it will affect him;
In 10:11 “they” speak to John and tell him to prophesy after eating the scroll;
In 11:1 “someone” gives John instruction on measuring the temple of God and about the 2 witnesses;
In 11:12 John hears the 2 witnesses being called up to heaven;
In 11:15-18 John hears “loud voices in heaven” announcing the kingdom “of our Lord and of His Christ,” and the judgment of those “who destroy the earth;”
In 12:10-12 John hears a “loud voice in heaven” announcing the authority of Christ, the rejoicing for the ‘overcomers,’ and the casting down of Satan;
In 13:4 John hears the whole earth saying “Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?;”
In 14:2,3 John hears a “voice from heaven,” singing “a new song before the throne;”
In 14:7 he hears an angel who is flying “in midheaven” announcing the “hour of judgment” and telling all to worship God;
In 14:8 John hears “another angel” announcing the fall of “Babylon the great;”
In 14:9-11 Johns hears a third angel declaring that anyone who worships the beast or takes his mark will receive the wrath of God;
In 14:13 John hears a “voice from heaven” telling him what to write, and then he hears “the Spirit” telling him why;
In 14:15 “another angel” comes out of the temple and John hears him call out to “one like the son of man” and tells Him that “the harvest of the earth is ripe,” and ready for the sickle;
In 14:18 “another angel” with a sickle came out of the temple and John heard yet “another angel, the one who has power over fire” call to the angel with the sickle to instruct him in the harvest;
In 15:3,4 John hears “those who were victorious over the beast” singing the “song of Moses;”
In 16:1 he hears “a loud voice from the temple” telling the 7 angels to pour out the 7 bowls of wrath on the earth;”
In 16:5,6 John hears “the angel of the waters” proclaiming God’s righteousness and stating that those of the earth deserve their judgment;
In 16:7 John hears “the altar” respond to “the angel of the waters,” agreeing with him;
In 16:17 John hears the seventh angel proclaim “It is done” after the seventh bowl has been poured out on the earth;
In 17:1 “one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls” spoke to John about the judgment of “the great prostitute who sits on many waters;” this same angel then carried John away “in Spirit” into a wilderness where he sees “the woman clothed in purple and scarlet;”
In 17:7-18 the same angel asked John why he wondered, and explains about the woman, the seven mountains, the seven kings, the ten horns, the beast, and the waters;
In 18:1-3 John sees “another angel coming down from heaven” who has great authority, and he proclaims the fall of “Babylon the Great;”
In 18:4-20 John hears “another voice from heaven” calling “my people” out of Babylon and proclaiming the sins of the city and her judgment;
In 19:1-3 John hears “something like a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven” proclaiming the righteousness of God’s judgments;
In 19:4 John hears the 24 elders and the 4 living creatures proclaiming “Amen. Hallelujah!”;
In 19:5 he hears “a voice from the throne” telling all God’s bond-servants to give praise to God;
In 19:6,7 he hears “something like the voice of a great multitude and like the sound of many waters, and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder” announcing the reign of “the Lord our God” and the wedding feast of the Lamb;
In 19:9,10 an unidentified “he,” presumably the owner of the mighty voice heard in verses 6 and 7, tells John what to write, and that “These are the true words of God,” John falls at “his” feet to worship him, and “he” rebukes John, declaring himself a “fellow servant;”
In 19:17,18 John hears an angel who is “standing in the sun” calling the birds to the feast of flesh;
In 21:3,4 John hears “a loud voice from the throne” proclaiming that God will dwell among His people and “wipe away every tear;”
In 21:5-8 John hears “He who sits on the throne” declare the making of “all things new,” that He is the “Alpha and Omega,” the reward of those who overcome, and the judgment of the unbelieving;
In 21:9 “one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls” tells John to come see the Lamb’s wife;
In 22:6 the angel assures John that “these words are faithful and true;”
In 22:6,7 “the Lord, the God of the spirits of prophets, sent His angel to show His bond-servants the things which must soon take place. And behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”
In 22:8 John again falls down to worship the “angel who showed me these things,” and is rebuked for trying to worship a “fellow servant of God;”
In 22:10,11 this angel tells John not to seal the book because “the time is near;”
In 22:12,16 Jesus appears to speak to John, declaring that He is the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, and that He has sent His angel to testify to John about these things for the churches;
In 22:17 “the Spirit and the bride” are heard by John to say “Come;”
In 22:20 John says “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming quickly.’”
After all this, I think it’s pretty clear that John interacts and receives instruction from far more than one angel. It may, indeed, be one angel who enables John to go where he goes and see what he sees and hear what he hears (kind of behind the scenes as it were). But if that’s the case, I don’t think we are introduced to that angel.
“When St. John describes at some length what he had previously seen in spirit, the Angel, as in ch. iv. 1, accompanies him, and explains the mystery of what has been revealed.”
After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with me, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.” (Revelation 4:1; NASB)
It’s not said whose voice this was. Based on other Bible verses, the voice like the “sound of a trumpet” could be Jesus or could be an archangel; but truthfully, it could be a number of heavenly entities. This author’s statement that it was an “Angel,” and that this angel accompanied John, explaining things, just does not fit with what John wrote.
“The description is thus rendered highly dramatic, when the voice of the Angelus interpres is unexpectedly interposed, as in ch. x. 4,8, 11; xiv. 13; xix. 9; xxi. 5 (where note the change of verbs and tenses). Others take the word Angel generically, as implying different angels who act as spokesmen throughout. The first express mention of an Angel imparting a Vision is in ch. xvii.1. Cf. ch. xvii.7; xxi. 9.”
“Angelus interpres” is “an entity who helps a prophet or other mortal experiencing a revelation to make sense of it.” (from ejmmm2007.blogspot.com/2007/02/angelus-interpres-in-jewish-tradition.html ) While the name isn’t Jewish obviously, the concept is. So, the helping angels in Daniel, Ezekiel, et. al. are all entities known as “Angelus interpres.”
But notice that the author admits of “generic” use of the term angel. I hope someone makes it clear to me why these commentators think it’s Gabriel. And again, I know that in Chapter 22 Jesus refers to “His angel” that “He sent,” but the account does not identify one specific angel as interacting with John, so I have to conclude (so far) that either Jesus was speaking in general terms, or that particular angel was “behind the scenes.”
Below are the Bible passages referred to in the last passage:
4Around the throne were twenty-four thrones; and upon the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white garments, and golden crowns on their heads…8And the four living creatures each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they do not cease to say, “HOLY, HOLY, HOLY IS THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, who was and who is and who is to come”…11”Worthy are You, our Lord and our god, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.” (Revelation 10:4,8,11; NASB)
And I heard a voice from heaven, saying, “Write: ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on!’” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “so that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow with them.” (Revelation 14:13; NASB)
Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.’” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” (Revelation 19:9; NASB)
And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.” (Revelation 21:5; NASB)
1Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who sits on many waters…7And the angel said to me, “Why do you wonder? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns. (Revelation 17:1,7; NASB)
Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls, full of the seven last plagues, came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” (Revelation 21:9; NASB)
“unto his servant John;] The title ‘servant’ designates the prophetic office: Isai. xlix. 5; Amos iii. 7; cf. Rev xix. 10; xxii. 9. The proper name ‘John’ (cf. verses 4,9; xxii. 8), after the prophetic manner, —for there is no anonymous prophecy in Scripture, —accredits the writer, see Dan. viii.1; ix. 2: ‘History had its security in the joint knowledge of contemporaries; but in prophecy, personality is of the greatest moment’ (Hengst.)…”
A very interesting observation about prophecy.
And now says the LORD, who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant, To bring Jacob back to Him, so that Israel might be gathered to Him (For I am honored in the sight of the LORD, and My God is My strength) (Isaiah 49:5; NASB)
Certainly the Lord God does nothing Unless He reveals His secret plan To His servants the prophets. (Amos 3:7; NASB)
Then I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and your brothers and sisters who hold the testimony of Jesus; worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” (Revelation 19:10; NASB)
4they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads…8I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed me these things. 9And he said to me, “Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and of your brothers the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God!” (Revelation 22:4,8,9; NASB)
In the third year of the reign of Belshazzar the king, a vision appeared to me, Daniel, subsequent to the one which appeared to me previously. (Daniel 8:1; NASB)
in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, observed in the books the number of the years which was revealed as the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet for the completion of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years. (Daniel 9:2; NASB)
“On this verse seems to be founded the modern term ‘Apokalyptik,’ denoting a class of writings in which the Divine impartation of mysteries is more prominent that the human activity of the person chosen to communicate them; e.g., in the Old Test., the Book of Daniel…”
Apocalyptic writing is far more than a “Divine impartation of mysteries.” I’ve had my arguments with this form of literature in past posts…I don’t think that Revelation is actually an example of Apocalyptic literature. But I don’t deny that Apocalyptic literature is a thing: a very structured and specific thing. The mention here is much too minimal to give any idea of the genre, and would have been better off left out.
“2. who bare witness] Ebrard (Krit. d. Ev. Gesch, s. 858) insisting upon the aorists in this passage, especially on ‘he saw’ at the end of the verse, refers these words to the fourth Gospel, of which, he considers, they establish the earlier date. In illustration, he takes Rev. xxii. 17 to be an allusion to the previous statement of John vii. 37. The expressions ‘the word of God,’ and ‘he saw,’ he also refers to 1 John i. 1; the author of the Apocalypse thus announcing himself as also the author of the Gospel and the First Epistle…The majority of commentators, however, understand here ‘the epistolary artist,’ — cf. Rom. xvi. 22; Philem. 19; Thucyd. i. 1; the present Book alone being meant. The verb is characteristic of St. John; e.g. John i. 7; iii. 11; v. 31; xxi. 24; 1 John 1. 2; etc.”
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires, take the water of life without cost. (Revelation 22:17; NASB)
Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. (John 7:37; NASB)
What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life (1 John 1:1; NASB)
I, Tertius, who have written this letter, greet you in the Lord. (Romans 16:22; NASB)
I, Paul, have written this with my own hand, I will repay it (not to mention to you that you owe to me even you own self as well). (Philemon 19; NASB)
He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. (John 1:7; NASB)
Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you people do not accept our testimony. (John 3:11; NASB)
“If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true. (John 5:31; NASB)
This is the disciple who is testifying about these things and wrote these things, and we know that his testimony is true. (John 21.24; NASB)
and the life was revealed, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was revealed to us (1 John 1:2; NASB)
I agree with the author that these cross references strengthen the case for John being the Apostle John; and I agree that they indicate the Gospel of John being written first. What’s interesting me here is that John seems to have been the only New Testament writer to really jump on the concept of Jesus as “Living Water.” From John’s reportage it seems that this was seen by Jesus as a major part of His teachings, and yet it’s not mentioned in the other Gospels. There are two other interesting references to water found in the New Testament:
20who once were disobedient when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water. 21Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you — not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience — through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 3:20,21; NASB)
25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, 26so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word (Ephesians 5:25,26; NASB)
Both these passages refer obliquely to the Living Water, but in terms of cleansing not of sustaining or quenching. John’s understanding of the concept of Living Water seems to have been much deeper than those of his contemporaries. Perhaps this understanding of John’s is part of what made him the Beloved Disciple, and the one who received the Revelation.
“This idea (of martyria), writes Haupt (l.c., p. 296), ‘appears at the beginning, and recurs at the end of all the three greater documents which we have received from St. John.’ He begins ‘with the vindication of his trustworthiness. It is a matter of indifference whether the verb here refers to the Apocalypse which he is beginning, or to the earlier written Gospel. The drift of the Apostle is to introduce a guarantee of this veracity by the statement that he was an eye-witness (osa eiden).”
As a reminder: martyria means “testimony;” osa eiden means “what he saw.”
“of the word of God,] The greater number of writers explain, not the Personal Word (cf. ch. xix. 13), but, in common with the rest of the verse, the prophetic contents of this Book (cf. Ezek. i. 2, LXX.), which from first to last proceeds from God; see ch. xxii. 6 (where, however, we have the plural — ‘words’).
He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. (Revelation 19:13; NASB)
On the fifth of the month in the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s exile (Ezekiel 1:2; NASB)
And he said to me, “These words are faithful and true”; and the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent His angel to show His bond-servants the things which must soon take place. (Revelation 22:6; NASB)
The Ezekiel reference is puzzling; the author was referring to the Septuagint (LXX), but I can’t believe that the quote in the Septuagint would be that far off of today’s translations.
Otherwise, good points were made.
“and of the testimony of Jesus Christ,] I.e., subjectively, the witness borne by Jesus who (ver. 5; ch. iii. 14) is ‘the faithful witness,’ and who attests the contents of the Book in ch. xxii. 20. The phrase may also be taken as parallel to ‘the word of God;’ and thus objectively, also expresses the witness ‘concerning’ Jesus, combining both senses as in ch. xix. 10. Some (e.g. Cocceius) who take ‘the word of God’ to mean the Fourth Gospel, refer these words to St. John’s Epistles.
and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood (Revelation 1:5; NASB)
“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Origin of the creation of God, says this: (Revelation 3:14; NASB)
He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming quickly.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. (Revelation 22:20; NASB)
Then I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and your brothers and sisters who hold the testimony of Jesus; worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” (Revelation 19:10; NASB)
I don’t agree that “the word of God” refers to the fourth Gospel; I’m not sure why it even needed to be mentioned.
“[even] of all things that he saw.] (Omit ‘and.’ —see vv. 11.). These words are in apposition to the previous clauses. The verb here, so constantly used in this Book for the ‘seeing’ a Vision, denotes that immediate intuition whereby the prophet is said ‘to see’ what God communicates, e.g. Isai. i. 1; Ezek. xxxvii. 8; Mic. i.1; Hab. i. 1; — on the title ‘Seer,’ 1 Sam. ix. 9…
saying, “Write on a scroll what you see, and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.” (Revelation1:11; NASB)
The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz concerning Judah and Jerusalem, which he saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. (Isaiah 1:1; NASB)
And I looked, and behold, tendons were on them, and flesh grew and skin covered them; but there was no breath in them. (Ezekiel 37:8; NASB)
The word of the LORD which came to Micah of Moresheth in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and which he saw regarding Samaria and Jerusalem. (Micah 1:1; NASB)
The pronouncement which Habakkuk the prophet saw: (Habakkuk 1:1; NASB)
(Previously in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, he used to say, “Come, and let’s go to the seer”; for he who is called a prophet now was previously called a seer. (1 Samuel 9:9; NASB)
”This use of the word proves that the ‘perspective’ character of prophecy, according to which events distant in time are presented in juxtaposition to the eye of the Seer, belongs to the Apocalypse. Thus what is ‘signified’ to St. John had been ‘seen’ by him, —seen in ‘Vision,’ ch. ix. 17; or at times, is also ‘heard,’ cf. ver. 12; ch. xxii. 8; see also 1 John i. 1.
12The first woe has passed; behold, two woes art still coming after these things…17And this is how I saw in my vision the horses and those who sat on them: the riders had breastplates the color of fire, of hyacinth, and of brimstone; and the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths came fire and smoke and brimstone. (Revelation 9:12,17; NASB)
I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw him, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed me these things. (Revelation 22:8; NASB)
What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life (1 John 1:1; NASB)
“Vitringa refers the previous part of this verse to the Fourth Gospel; and these words to the Apocalypse itself, ‘seen’ in ecstatic vision. The true reading, however, which omits ‘and,’ excludes this sense. The sense accordingly is, —God has given the Revelation to His Son ‘to shew unto His servants’; the Son, through His Angel, by images and Visions, has ‘signified’ it to St. John; and St. John here bears record to that ‘word of God, and that testimony of Jesus Christ,’ as all has been seen by him.” [from THE HOLY BIBLE ACCORDING TO THE AUTHORIZED VERSION, VOL 4, by F. C. Cook, 1881]
An adequate wrap-up. ‘Seen’ being in quotes like that is annoyingly ‘intellectual’ (intentional quotation marks); as if we must maintain an air of doubt regarding how John received the information.
We ran over today, so we have to leave it here. We’ve probably got two more posts in the 19th century to get through before we can move into the 20th century, so onward in the 19th century next time.
This is a wonderful article. No reader could find a better study of your subject, nor should have any confusion in any area of your study or conclusions.