THE JUDGE OF ALL THE EARTH ON HIS THRONE Revelation 4v2-3.
"One sat on the throne. And He that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow roundabout the throne in sight like unto an emerald."
The repetition of the word "like" reminds us that these are mere symbols, but the reality is far greater than we could ever imagine, and so it is put in terms we can understand. The first thing to notice is His authority. The judge only sits on the throne when the court is in session; the king only sits on the throne when sovereign business is pressing. Thus we see God here in executive mode. Heaven's throne is in session. The One who sits on the throne is beyond any human description and there is an air of wonder when in verses 8,9 & 10, those who occupy the throne room proclaim the wonder of the God who controls everything. The next thing we are to focus on is His appearance. The appearance is one of beauty. Pure gemstones are used to describe Him and when we consider the fact that He dwells in "light unapproachable" the irradiation of that light through the gemstones must have been awesome to behold. The jasper represents clear crystal, the sardine stone that of fiery red, and the emerald being a soft green. Each of these gemstones appear upon the breastplate of the high priest (Exodus 28v17-20). The significance of this is amazing because these stones represented the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel. The high priest, the one who represented the people in the presence of God, was to wear the breastplate while he was in exercise, and this represents the heart of God keeping His people close to Him. Therefore on this awesome throne of judgment we have the symbols of the eternal love of God for His people. The mention of the jasper and the sardine stone is so significant because they are the first and the last stones in place upon the breastplate. These stones represent the covenant promises of God to His people and because the first and last stones are mentioned, He means to encompass all the twelve tribes. Thus the first appearance of the judge of all the earth is of the God, who despite the failures of His people, has kept them close to His heart and will keep His covenant with His earthly people. The mention of the twelve tribes in Revelation chapters 7 and 14 underpin this interpretation. Each of them will be sealed and God will honour His promises to His covenant people. This is especially important in light of the divine wrath which is about to descend on a godless world. Through it all His people will be preserved.
The second thing we see is the rainbow, but with a difference. Not now a half arc rainbow, as we see today, but a fully continuous rainbow surrounding the throne, representing the eternal nature of God's promises. Additionally the colour is emerald and not the sevenfold colour of the rainbow. If the jasper and sardine stones represent God's covenant with His people Israel, the rainbow represents God's covenant to Noah, not to destroy the earth (Genesis chapter 9). Thus in the earthly convulsions that are about to take place, the divine promise to Noah will stand; He will not utterly destroy the earth as He did in the days of Noah. These two things are linked because for God to maintain His covenant promise to Abraham He must also keep His covenant promise with Noah. The promised seed need a land on which to live. So what John saw were the symbols of the covenant keeping God in connection with His people and the earth. Normally a rainbow appears in the sky after the storm. This rainbow appears before the storm of chapters 6 - 19 occurs. The colour of the rainbow being emerald green takes us back to the second of the stones on the breastplate of Aaron, and this represents the tribe of Judah, which is the tribe of sovereign rule of the people of Israel. Thus we are presented with the fact that God will preserve both the earth and His people and set them as head of the nations after all the conflagration that is about to envelop the earth.
The repetition of the word "like" reminds us that these are mere symbols, but the reality is far greater than we could ever imagine, and so it is put in terms we can understand. The first thing to notice is His authority. The judge only sits on the throne when the court is in session; the king only sits on the throne when sovereign business is pressing. Thus we see God here in executive mode. Heaven's throne is in session. The One who sits on the throne is beyond any human description and there is an air of wonder when in verses 8,9 & 10, those who occupy the throne room proclaim the wonder of the God who controls everything. The next thing we are to focus on is His appearance. The appearance is one of beauty. Pure gemstones are used to describe Him and when we consider the fact that He dwells in "light unapproachable" the irradiation of that light through the gemstones must have been awesome to behold. The jasper represents clear crystal, the sardine stone that of fiery red, and the emerald being a soft green. Each of these gemstones appear upon the breastplate of the high priest (Exodus 28v17-20). The significance of this is amazing because these stones represented the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel. The high priest, the one who represented the people in the presence of God, was to wear the breastplate while he was in exercise, and this represents the heart of God keeping His people close to Him. Therefore on this awesome throne of judgment we have the symbols of the eternal love of God for His people. The mention of the jasper and the sardine stone is so significant because they are the first and the last stones in place upon the breastplate. These stones represent the covenant promises of God to His people and because the first and last stones are mentioned, He means to encompass all the twelve tribes. Thus the first appearance of the judge of all the earth is of the God, who despite the failures of His people, has kept them close to His heart and will keep His covenant with His earthly people. The mention of the twelve tribes in Revelation chapters 7 and 14 underpin this interpretation. Each of them will be sealed and God will honour His promises to His covenant people. This is especially important in light of the divine wrath which is about to descend on a godless world. Through it all His people will be preserved.
The second thing we see is the rainbow, but with a difference. Not now a half arc rainbow, as we see today, but a fully continuous rainbow surrounding the throne, representing the eternal nature of God's promises. Additionally the colour is emerald and not the sevenfold colour of the rainbow. If the jasper and sardine stones represent God's covenant with His people Israel, the rainbow represents God's covenant to Noah, not to destroy the earth (Genesis chapter 9). Thus in the earthly convulsions that are about to take place, the divine promise to Noah will stand; He will not utterly destroy the earth as He did in the days of Noah. These two things are linked because for God to maintain His covenant promise to Abraham He must also keep His covenant promise with Noah. The promised seed need a land on which to live. So what John saw were the symbols of the covenant keeping God in connection with His people and the earth. Normally a rainbow appears in the sky after the storm. This rainbow appears before the storm of chapters 6 - 19 occurs. The colour of the rainbow being emerald green takes us back to the second of the stones on the breastplate of Aaron, and this represents the tribe of Judah, which is the tribe of sovereign rule of the people of Israel. Thus we are presented with the fact that God will preserve both the earth and His people and set them as head of the nations after all the conflagration that is about to envelop the earth.
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