Revelation Study

Chapter 1

Right in the first chapter of this book is the purpose and focus: Jesus Christ. Here, Jesus is readying His churchbride for His second coming.
Here He mentions the 7 churches in Asia and 7 Spirits of God. This might be important to remember for later chapters.

Jesus Christ’s 3 title’s: Faithful Witness, 1st Begotten of the Dead, Prince of kings over the Earth.

He will come with clouds and every eye will see Him, even those that pierced Him. I think this verse is saying those of us who are persecuted because of His name. We are to suffer as He did, after all.

7 Churches and Their Meaning

1. Ephesus - Desireable.
2. Symrna - Myrrh
3. Pergamos - Married; United.
4. Thyatira - Sacrifice/Offering.
5. Sardis - Prince of Joy, Espacing, That which Remains.
6. Philadelphia - Brotherly Love.
7. Laodicea - People Ruling; Judgement

The Appearance of Jesus Christ
- 7 golden candlesticks and in their midst was Jesus Christ:
- He’s clothed in white garment down to His feet, and a golden sash wrapped around his chest.
- His head and hair is white like wool (texture) and white as snow. His eyes like a flame of fire. His feet were like brass as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice like many waters.
- In His right hand was 7 stars: out of His mouth went a sharp 2-edged sword; His countenance was like the sun shinning in His strength.

Jesus reveals right at the end of this chapter what the stars and candles represent - stars are His angels (messengers) and the candlesticks are the 7 churches.
White - Purity
Red - Blood, wrath, sacrifice, cleansing (by His blood)
Gold - Soft metal, heart of gold, Royalty,

I think all this is speaking about Jesus Christ’s Glory in appearance. That if we are to look upon Him we would die or fall to His feet. Reverance for God seems to be applied here as every fiber of our being is reverberated through this depiction upon seeing Him and how the world will react (those who are not saved).

Oh i pray u continue with this. Thank you so much!!!

Chapter 2

To the Church of Ephesus: Desirable.
- Jesus points out what they have done well in first: works, labour, patience and intolerance to evil.
- Then He points out what He has against them: they left their first love, which is Jesus.
- He tells them to remember where they have fallen: leaving their first love; Jesus. He tells them to do the first works (loving God with all your heart, soul and mind. Without loving Him, everything else is in vain).
- They hated the things of the Nicolaitanes, which I had to do a little research and apparently they were destroyers of people; subduing others within the church. This does indeed sound like Satan’s following.
I think the lesson here is if we don’t absolutely love the Lord, all our efforts and strives will be for nothing! What do you have if not love? Nothing. Jesus gives us some very hard lessons, but they are for our good. Isn’t it only difficult because of the world we’ve been brought up in? I for one have not been taught about Jesus, but shown and I never understood. However, I can say this, He called me for years and I tried following His voice. But that’s a long story of how I found God!

To the Church of Symyrna: Myrrh; Sacrifice
- Again, He begins to tell them what they’ve done well in.
- Jesus tells them that there is a coming persecution that they will suffer for 10 days. They that overcome this will not be hurt of the second death.
Obey God unto death, in this life we are just passing through. What God gives us is better than what this world offers, so don’t worry about the things of this world (possessions).

To the Church of Pergamos: Married; United
- They have held true to Christ’s name, even in the midst of Satan, but He has a few things against them: There are some that hold the Balaam doctrine - seducing the people with self-indulgence: food sacrificed to idols and sexual immorality. Check out Numbers 31:16
- They have some that also hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes.
- The white stone He talks about is in Isaiah 62:2. So He will give them a new name to wipe out the sin of their past - if they repent.
This one is kind of ironic because of their name that means “married or united”, they aren’t united as a church people due to the mixed doctrines.

To the Church of Thyratira: Sacrifice Offering
- They do works that He loves: charity, patience, faith, service and the last being more than the first.
- But He has very harsh things against them because of Jezebel.
- He will break them into pieces: Psalm 2:9

I think it’s super important that we check ourselves with the leading of the Holy Spirit so that we are always in right standing with God. He may have harsh things to say, but it’s all for our better so that we may spend eternity with God. He doesn’t want anyone to perish and that’s pretty clear as He parents the churches in this way.

Again I say thank you, so very much.

Chapter 3

To the Church of Sardis - Prince of Joy, Escaping, That which Remains.
- 7 Spirits of God; Isaiah 11:2-3
- They have a nominational or known by name only in the world.
- They live and yet are dead in the sight of God.
- Their works are not perfect before God. Jesus tells then this:
1. Be Watchful
2. Strengthen what remains to be ready to die

- If they do not watch themselves (their heart) then they will experience the sorrow of when the hour is when He comes.
Even here Jesus is trying to get them ready for His return, so that none may perish - and yet they are given a choice (much like the rest of us) to either follow Him or go their own way. He wants us to be ready always and every day, even to the hour of His return. His ways are certainly higher than ours and I can see here Jesus is being strict so that they don’t go astray.

To the Church of Philadelphia - Brotherly Love.
- This church has held onto God’s teachings and have not denied Him.
- He then tells them about the those that call themselves Jews (but are liars; Synagogue of Satan), that He will cause them to worship at their feet. A sign for the church to know that God has loved them.
- Because of their keeping His Word He will not have them go through temptation as the world will.
Here, God has compassion for those who obey His commandments and will protect His people even from temptation! How awesome is that!?

To the Church of Laodicea - People Ruling; Judgement
- Also known for their lukewarm heart and God made it known to them through their own water pipes. They built underground water pipes to keep water cold which God used against them as a message to them by making it lukewarm.
- The church had increased in goods (market) and are rich/wealthy and don’t need anything - which then became an idol.
- Jesus says some hard sayings but this is what a parent does to punish a child that is misbehaving - to the point of their own destruction. What loving parent watches their child go down a path of destruction? They go through an intervention. Here, Jesus tells them to buy things from Him instead of being full of themselves and judging others; being a hard people.
- This church was known for their eye salve and God also used that against them as a warning to buy His eye salve that they be no longer blind to their own pride.

Overall, God is not just strict but He has compassion, mercy and judges rightly over them (us). There are many facets to His character, like how a diamond sparkles from many angles.

For a few days now the church of Sardis has been heavily on my heart. I think God was telling me there is more that I need to know and understand about this specific church or type of Christianity that "lives" on today. It's actually a very scary notion and I've seen this in action before but didn't understand it until now. I've been in a dead church before and I knew something wasn't right and I got out of there, but I didn't understand why. Now I do. I pray I don't make this same mistake as a Christian.

I came upon this article:

http://www.spwickstrom.com/sardis/


It's a long read, so have your cup of coffee/tea ready!

Right in the first verse there is a mention of the "open door". I actually missed this because I was not reading Revelation chapter after chapter, leaving it for a while and coming back to it again. This wasn't pointed out to me until I heard a sermon on this chapter.
This open door is from chapter 3 and it's Philadelphia. They were the "open door and the key of David" Revelation 3:7 and Isaiah actually refers to this in the OT: Isaiah 22:22


So, John was taken up in spirit (as no flesh and blood can enter heaven: 1 Corinthians 15:50)
John then sees in verse 3, 3 things: Jasper, sardius and a rainbow that resembles an emerald around the throne.

These were also stones in the Breast Plate of Judgement: Exodus 28:6-14
1. Jasper is commonly known as a red stone, but has other colours as well. This stone was in the last row and in the last slot. (The fist shall become last and the last shall become first: Matthew 20:16)

2. Sardius/Carnelian is also known to be red, but also more known as a yellow stone. This was in the first row and first slot.

3. Emerald was in the second row and first slot.

I don't think the places of stones matter concerning this part of Revelation, but I could be wrong. I just wanted to put that out there.
Also, the rainbow around the throne is actually His glory: Ezekiel 1:28

Verse 4
Around God's glory are the seated 24 elders dressed in white. These white robes signify also God's glory and how we need to reflect in His sight. Make sure to repent, even of a smallest ill thought! Let's keep wearing those white robes.
The golden crowns on their head, I believe, represent God's own golden heart and thus in return how we are tested: 1 Peter 1:7
We are crowned with the crown of life after testing: James 1:12 and Revelation 2:10

Verse 5
This is in reference to Zechariah 4:2

Verse 6
This is a very similar picture of a vision that Ezekiel 1:5-7 had. I know they mean different things, but still prophecy nonetheless. I just find it very interesting that they are so similar.

Now these beasts has eyes all around them. This actually terrified me that such creatures would be in heaven, but then I was taking it literally a long time ago. I can't remember who brought this to my attention, but someone said that it's because God sees all and knows all. This clicked and I began to see the vision for what it truly is. It's exactly as Revelation states: a revealing of Jesus Christ.

Verse 7
Ezekiel 1:10
The 4 Beasts:

1. Lion
2. Calf/Ox
3. Face of a man
4. Eagle

Now I was watching and learning from Pastor Doug (a SDA) and he brought some really inspiring things about this part. For me, it's really hard to forget 'cause I have read the 4 Gospels SO many times and still re-reading them. This is what his wisdom from God was:

1. Matthew = Jesus bold as a lion, the Lion of Judah
2. John = Jesus the Saviour and Holy Sacrifice for all sin.
3. Luke = Jesus the physician in His healing ministry
4. Mark = A bird's eye view of all Jesus had done, a summery of His work.

I really feel the need to share this because I find it essential that we dig into who God is. It's going to be very crucial for what is coming and we're already seeing more and more persecution everyday.

Verses 8 -11
Isaiah 6:2-3
Eyes are inside of them as well. This to me speaks about God knowing the heart of mankind and also the indwelling of His people. I believe the part where it says "Holy, Holy, Holy..." and they don't have rest day or night is because they do not need it. With God there will only be day and no night: Revelation 21:23 and Revelation 22:5

I see this in another light as well, that this is what our spirit looks like in prayer: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Likewise with what the 24 elders do are we to do already on the earth. I believe this vision as a whole is a reflection of how we are to be awaiting His coming. This is how we will be without blemish on that day.

With what the elders have said in that last line, this speaks about Jesus as the Emmanuel, God with us. He is God. There are already tons of references in the Bible regarding this - even what Jesus Himself says in the Gospels to the Jews. The Trinity and yet Oneness; He is One with the Father as we are one with Jesus Christ.

May God use this study to bless others in Jesus Christ. <3

This is a short chapter, so I'm not going to post verse by verse this time. It seems very to the point anyway.
The theme of this chapter is of course about Jesus Christ Who is the only Worthy Lamb, Lion, and Root to open the book/scroll of 7 Seals. The Father is also depicted here Who sits on the throne.

Right in the beginning verse there is a reference to the OT: Ezekiel 2:9

Verse 10 references Exodus 19:6 about the priests and kings. And verse 11 references Daniel 7:10

That is very interesting to me as the Book of Daniel was sealed about 500-600 years before it was ever opened (after Christ's first coming). Then the Book of Daniel was then opened probably after Revelation was written by John on the island of Patmos (Not sure if I spelled that right...) since both books go hand in hand in their prophecies. Revelation seems to be an extension to Daniel to be better understood.​

I was stuck on the first passage about the white horse and who’s on it. I didn’t want to just believe what everyone else was saying and I wanted clear Biblical references that coincide, and by God’s help I was able to find it!

Mirror:
Revelation 6:1-8 & Revelation 9:14-15

Ok, so as for the white horse depicted in that first passage which coincides with the above mirror, I have reason to believe that this is the Antichrist.

Why I believe this is because scripture tells us:
- 2 Corinthians 11:14
- “A crown was given him” This is a sign of authority which God will temporarily give Satan for that short period of time during Tribulation: Daniel 9 & Revelation 13. Satan positions himself as an angel of light for about half way in Tribulation and then relinquishes this peace for war against the saints for the rest of Tribulation.

In contrast this is the True Christ on the white horse:
Revelation 19:11-16


Seal #2
A red horse, this seems to signify war. That the inhabitants of the earth will kill each other. Like the crown was given, a large sword has been given to this one.

Seal #3
The black horse signifies famine.

Seal #4
This pale green horse and the rider called death with Hades following after him… this makes me believe this is the Antichrist in his final form, showing his true self of darkness.

If what I said in the beginning is true of these 4 horsemen where the Antichrist begins with peace and ends with destruction, this seems to show a timeline of Tribulation. Or these are all characteristics of the Antichrist in phases of said timeline.


Seal #5
The Alter of Souls
The martyrs actually quote from Zechariah 1:12 (and also Enoch for those who have an interest in that book).

Verse 11 With God telling them to “wait a little while” for the rest of His followers to be killed the same way they were seems paint a picture of the harvest Jesus talks about in the Gospel. This also reminds me of: Matthew 10:39
Also, Luke 21:24



Seal #6
Mirrors:
Verse 12 & Joel 2:31
Verse 13 & Isaiah 34:4
Verse 16 & Hosea 10:8
Verse 17 & Psalm 76:7; Joel 2:11

Jesus Christ says He holds the keys to Death and Hades: Revelation 1:18
In the OT, God says He will send his 4 horsemen to Jerusalem: Ezekiel 14:21

God already tells us that those sealed are the 12 tribes of Israel, 12,000 each. There's no mystery here as many are confused about when it comes to this. The Great Crowd in white robes are the ones who were killed during the Great Tribulation for their faith in Christ. These 2 groups are about to become united, I believe what this is depicting, but before that happens God is going through the motions to save all of Israel. Sealing them so they are not hurt or damaged (I think during the Great Tribulation as God has not come down yet to pour His wrath).

There's a lot of scriptural reflections as well, God has said the same thing in the OT only to say them again in the NT. This is proof that God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow (past, present and future).

Here are some mirrors:
Verse 1 & Jeremiah 49:36, Zechariah 6:5
Verse 3 & Ezekiel 9:4
Verse 9 & Leviticus 23:40
Verse 16 & Psalm 121:6, Isaiah 49:10
Verse 17 & Ezekiel 34:23

You mentioned the 4 creatures being the authors of the four gospels. In a sense that is true because they are included in the redeemed saints. However if you take another look you will notice that these 4 creatures sing a song along with the 24 elders and they tell us who they are. They state that they are from every nation, tribe, tongue and people and have been redeemed by the blood of Christ. Therefore the number 4 and the number 24 are only symbolic of a vast number of individual saints. There are more than 24 nations and tongues, etc.., and not just Jews represented here in both the 4 creatures and 24 elders. If they tell us who they are why do we not believe them and go about trying to guess which 4 or which 24 individuals they might be? It is because we have missed the important details in the words of their song.
"And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints. 9And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; 10And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
I know that right about now your mind is expanding and you are saying "how did I ever miss that before now?" It is because we often read the word with filters in our minds from previous teachings and preachers we have listened to. You wonder why anyone would try to guess which 24 these represent when they say they are representative of all people who are redeemed by the blood. So why 24? Because in 2 Chron 23-24 you read about the priesthood how the entire body of priests served by course not all at once and were governed by 24 elders and so this vision of the 24 is to represent the entire priesthood (heavenly priesthood) of which all redeemed saints become a part of. Also the 4 faced creatures are representative of another aspect of the inheritance of the redeemed saints as it relates to dominion over the creation and principalities and powers. How do I know these 4 creatures and 24 elders are representative of all redeemed saints and not just 4 special Jewish saints or 24 special Jewish saints? Because they tell us who they are! We should not call them liars by ignoring what they sing.

^ To go along with what Scribe has posted, consider also the following:


See also 1 Chronicles 25:1,6,7-31 [note the words "harps [H3658]" (note the "harps" in Rev), "psalteries [earthen jars; or, stringed instruments - H5035]," and "cymbals [H4700]"... as well as the word for "the skilled/workmen/workmanship [H4399]"], and see the following commentary excerpt:

[quoting]

"The Twenty-Four Divisions [Courses] of Musicians" - 1 Chronicles 25

"As we have seen before, Asaph [means "gatherer"], Jeduthun (Ethan) [means "praising"] and Heman [means "faithful"] were the master leaders in song and music; their service was eminently spiritual, for we read “they should prophesy.” Heman especially is called the king’s seer in the words of God. This is a significant expression. How much there is in what is termed “worship”, which has nothing whatever of the words of God in it. In most of the songs used in our times there is little of the words of God and many contain unscriptural and sentimental phrases. Israel’s worship in song and music was to be spiritual, prophesying and in the words of God. Christian worship is not less. It is to be in spirit and in truth. “Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord” (Colossians 3:16). Asaph had four sons, Jeduthun six, and Heman fourteen, equal to twenty-four. They were divided into twenty-four courses of twelve men each, equal to 288, who served a week in turn. The names of six of the sons of Heman form, in the Hebrew, a complete sentence. Giddalti, Romamti-ezer, joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir and Mahazioth (verse 4) may be rendered in English:

"I have magnified and I have raised up help;
Sitting in trouble, I have spoken oracles plentiful.

"This fact has aroused the suspicion of the critics regarding the genuineness of this entire list of names. “Now this sentence,” saith a critic, “is either an obscure and ancient prayer which hath been mistaken for a list of names by the compiler, or else the compiler has purposely strung together those significant names in such order as to form a sentence” (W.R. Harvey-Jellic). But it is not the mistake of the compiler or an invention. We read that God gave to Heman these sons and the pious Israelite named his sons so as to produce this meaning. There are many such messages in names throughout the Bible. (See annotations on Genesis 5.)"

--Arno C Gaebelein, on 1 Chronicles 25 (Commentary; source: Bible Hub)

[end quoting; bold, underline, and brackets mine; parenthesis original]

^ I had forgotten that I had also wanted to add a brief quote by William Kelly (on 1Chron25 also):

[quoting]

"In 1 Chronicles 25 we have the service of song. "Moreover, David and the captains of the host separated to the service of the sons of Asaph, and of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who should prophesy with harps, with psalteries, and with cymbals." It is called "prophesying" because it so directly brought in God, which is the emphatic meaning of prophesying. "And the number of the workmen according to their service was" - so and so. There were twenty-four courses of the singers. Now, this was another remarkable change. In the tabernacle, song was not the characteristic feature, but sacrifice; but in the temple in the day of glory, the song of triumph is the new and suitable feature."

--William Kelly, 1 Chronicles 25, Commentary (source: Bible Hub)

[end quoting; bold and underline mine]

I have no idea who is calling who a liar here and who is ignoring who? This is just a study I am doing. Granted, I am not going to understand absolutely everything right away - and you are certainly not reaching me with this kind of tone (if you are implying I'm the one calling them a liar and ignoring them). It's as the title states, this is a Study of Revelation and I'm trying to understand (not of my own strength either) what God is saying in all these chapters. I'm not a scholar and I don't research very well, but I try my best. Most of the time God is the one directing me to some verses that aren't mentioned.

Maybe have a little more patience with some.

Now what IS interesting is that you mentioned a chapter which fits somehow with Revelation 8. So, I will be doing a little more reading before posting.

This is VERY interesting. I know that God uses names as a means of communication, but I didn't know that He could use them as a complete sentence! God certainly does give meaning to everyone He names. I know this throughout the Bible, it's always fun to look them up for deeper study!

I do thank you both for giving me some insight as I am just one piece of the body of Christ. I do NOT claim to know all there is to know. I'm just a mere human trying to understand her Father, King, Friend, and God. I still do not quite understand the "fullness" of these 24 Elders or the 4 Living Creatures, but I am trying and will take what was given into consideration.

Hello Swan7! And congrats on your study of Revelation.

The word "apokalupsis" translated as "Revelation" is defined as "something being revealed because previously hidden." The Jesus is certainly the main focus of Revelation, the purpose of the book of Revelation is made clear in the first verse as follows:

"This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants what must soon come to pass. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John, who testifies to everything he saw." - Rev.1:1

The book of Revelation, is the revealing of the events which are going to take place, namely, God's wrath via the seals, trumpets and bowl judgments, leading up to the Lord's return to the earth to end the age.

The on-going controversy, is when will these end-time events take place. Regarding this, the key to understanding the chronological order of Revelation is found in Rev.1:19 when Jesus told John to write:

What you have seen = Everything written from Rev.1:1 thru 1:19

What is now = Represented by the seven letters to the churches, which also represents the entire church period

What will take place later = Everything that takes place after the "what is now," i.e. what will take place after the church period

In Rev. 4:1-2, John hears a voice that sound like a trumpet, which is synonymous with the "trumpet of God" mentioned in 1 Thess. 4:13-18 when the Lord appears and the church is gathered. Here in Rev.4:1-2, John hears that voice that sounds like a trumpet which says, "come up here," said voice like a trumpet, was revealed to be Jesus in Rev. 1:10 and which is a prophetic allusion to the church being gathered. This is supported by the fact that throughout chapters 1 thru 3 the word "Church" is used 18 times. After the end of chapter 3, the word "church" never appears again within the narrative of God's wrath. The next time the church is mentioned is as the bride in Rev.19:6-8 receiving her fine linen, white and clean.

The verse above (Rev.1:7) is synonymous with the event of Matt.24:30-31 and Rev.19:11-21, which are all referring to the second coming, i.e. the Lord's return to the earth to end the age at the completion of God's wrath. When studying eschatology (end-time events), in order to come to a right conclusion it is paramount to understand that the Lord's appearing to gather His church as being a separate event in opposition to the Lord's return to the earth to end the age.

The main reason that the church cannot be here when the Lord returns to the earth to end the age, is because God's wrath via the seals, trumpets and bowl judgment must take place prior to Christ's return. Since scripture makes clear that the believers in Christ are not appointed to suffer God's coming wrath, then the Lord's appearing to gather His church must take place prior to on-set of God's wrath.

"I think this verse is saying those of us who are persecuted because of His name. We are to suffer as He did, after all."

Regarding the study of eschatology, it is also paramount to understand that there is a difference between the trials and tribulations that Jesus said believers would have vs. God's unprecedented wrath which will be coming upon the earth. Since the beginning of the church until now, believers have been persecuted and suffered death keeping their testimony of Jesus and the word of God. However, what will soon be coming upon the earth will be the wrath of God, also known as "the day of the Lord, the vengeance of our God and the hour of trial." It is this coming wrath of God that believers are not appointed to suffer, because it will be God directly pouring out His wrath upon a Christ rejecting world. It will not be until after the seventh bowl has been poured out that Jesus will return. Remember, God does not punish the righteous with the wicked.

The word "aggelos" which simply means "messenger." In this case, the word is most likely referring to the overseer of each church, i.e. the pastor, opposed to a holy angel as a messenger. As an example of this referring to human messengers, Mk. 1:2 quoting Isaiah and Malachi says, "As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way.” The word messenger above is the word "aggelos," which is speaking of John the Baptist and therefore is speaking about a human messenger.


I also have a blog that I did some time ago with information regarding the four living beings. You can find it at the following link:

The four living beings: https://christianchat.com/blogs/revelation-4-6-11-the-four-living-creatures.176324/

When I said "We should not call them liars by ignoring what they sing. " I was not referring to any person I was speaking generally or universally I was quoting from Joseph A. Siess the author of "Apocalypse Lectures in Revelation" who used this type of speech. I guess I should have left that out since it was misunderstood and taken personally.

Greetings Scribe!

The four living beings are only accompanying the twenty four elders in the song. However, the four living beings themselves have not been redeemed, as they are another class of holy angelic beings, referred to as Cherubim (ker-oob) and in Ezekiel and as Seraphs in Isaiah.

"When He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp, and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song:

“Worthy are You to take the scroll and open its seals, because You were slain, and by Your blood You purchased for God those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.

Right in the scripture we are told that by the Lord's blood He purchased saints from every nation, tribe language and people. The four living beings are not included as being from every nation, tribe, language and people, as they are simply accompanying the twenty four elders in the song. It is the twenty four elders who are representing humanity. The four living beings are a class of holy angelic beings who are in no need of redemption. These are the same beings that Ezekiel saw in his vision and gave great detail on.

You might want to go back to Ezekiel chapters 1 and 10 and read up on them. They are not any beings that have come from any nation, tribe, people or language, as they are not human. They are a special class of created angelic beings, which need no redemption.

Regarding the twenty four elders, my studies have led me to believe that they are representing twelve from Israel and twelve from the church. In support of this, in the detailed description of the New Jerusalem, the names of the twelve tribes of Israel are written on its twelve gates, representing Israel. Likewise, the names of the twelve apostles (representing the church) are written on foundations of the wall of the city, ergo, twenty four elders.