Revelation 1:17-20

When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades. Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this. As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

Καὶ ὅτε εἶδον αὐτόν, ἔπεσα πρὸς τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ ὡς νεκρός· καὶ ἔθηκεν τὴν δεξιὰν αὐτοῦ ἐπ’ ἐμὲ λέγων· Μὴ φοβοῦ· ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ πρῶτος καὶ ὁ ἔσχατος, καὶ ὁ ζῶν— καὶ ἐγενόμην νεκρὸς καὶ ἰδοὺ ζῶν εἰμι εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων— καὶ ἔχω τὰς κλεῖς τοῦ θανάτου καὶ τοῦ ᾅδου. γράψον οὖν ἃ εἶδες καὶ ἃ εἰσὶν καὶ ἃ μέλλει γίνεσθαι μετὰ ταῦτα. τὸ μυστήριον τῶν ἑπτὰ ἀστέρων οὓς εἶδες ἐπὶ τῆς δεξιᾶς μου, καὶ τὰς ἑπτὰ λυχνίας τὰς χρυσᾶς· οἱ ἑπτὰ ἀστέρες ἄγγελοι τῶν ἑπτὰ ἐκκλησιῶν εἰσίν, καὶ αἱ λυχνίαι αἱ ἑπτὰ ἑπτὰ ἐκκλησίαι εἰσίν.

After seeing the awe-inspiring vision of the Son of Man, John fell at the feet of Jesus as though dead. This sort of reaction is quite in line with others in the OT who had the privilege of witnessing the glory and holiness of God. However, Jesus laid His “right hand” on John and said comforting words to lift up his spirit. Readers should recall that the right hand represents power and authority, and that Jesus was seen holding the seven stars (the seven angels) in His right hand just prior to this passage. Those who adhere to a strict literalist reading of Revelation would have to wonder if Jesus had to let go of the seven stars in order to place His right hand on John, or if He was able to hold onto the seven stars and laid His right hand on John at the same time. One would also have to wonder how big or small the Son of Man is in comparison with the seven stars and with John. As readers can see, a strict literalism runs into a number of interesting problems to consider.

In His usual manner, Jesus reassures John and tells him to “Fear not”, similar to the post-transfiguration scene in Matthew 17:7 when Peter, James, and John fell on their faces and were terrified after the Father spoke from heaven, and Jesus came and touched them, telling them to “Rise, and have no fear.”

Readers encounter another merism, “the first and the last”, emphasizing the timelessness of Christ. Jesus emphasizes here that He is the “living one”, and further specifies that He did in fact die, but now He is alive forevermore. How can someone, come back to life, and then claim that he will live forevermore? This is only possible if such a person has the keys of Death and Hades, meaning that He has control and authority even over Death and Hades.

Revelation 1:19 is considered to be a crucial verse in how to understand the book of Revelation. Some commentators interpret the phrase “the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this” as representing three distinct sections of Revelation that represent the past, present, and future. According to the Greek text, I believe a better translation is the following:

γράψον οὖν ἃ εἶδες καὶ ἃ εἰσὶν καὶ ἃ μέλλει γίνεσθαι μετὰ ταῦτα.

Write therefore the things you have seen, that is (the explicative καὶ), the things that are and the things that are about to take place after these.

Based on the above, we can see from the Greek that Jesus is telling John to write down the entire vision of Revelation (the things you have seen), which comprises of two kinds of events: the things that are [happening right now in John’s time] and the things that are about to happen [imminent in John’s time] after the things happening in the present. This interpretation is consistent with all that we have read earlier on in Revelation 1. The book of Revelation is primarily about things that are to be fulfilled in John’s time, and this can be evidenced all throughout chapter 1, which acts as an interpretative lens through which we interpret the rest of the vision.

The closing statement from Jesus in this introduction to Revelation reveals that the seven stars are the seven angels of the churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches. This is so comforting to John and to his readers/headers, such that Christ is in the midst of the churches and He is holding the seven angels of the churches in His right hand. He is sovereign over everything that is transpiring among the churches and He is in control, even over those who are persecuting the churches. The One who is in the midst of the churches has a word for each one of them, the common theme being a call to persevere and overcome, to be conquerors in Him over against His and their enemies.

Soli Deo gloria!