The vision
The book of Revelation begins with a bang. John has a vision of an amazing figure walking among lampstands with starter in hand. While it is clear that this vision somehow defines the scope of the book, you may wonder what the message really is.
Overview
John (most likely the apostle) is introduced as the one who is living the consequences of a radical lifestyle following Jesus, but he has a vision of Jesus that is divided into three parts
- The vision itself (verses 12–16),
- His reaction (verse 17a),
- and the interpretation (verses 17b through 20).
The vision
There are certain elements reflected in the vision that we will look at briefly:
- The lampstands: The first thing, John sees are seven lampstands. They are most likely used from Zechariah. (If you are not familiar with that book, here is a brief summary). In this chapter of Zechariah, there are seven lamps that represent the Holy Spirit. Their identity is still unclear and is only given in the interpretation.
- The Son of Man: In the midst of them was one like the Son of Man. This is a well-known image from Daniel that Jesus applied to Himself. Since Jesus also has the role of a priest, it is His responsibility to take care of the lampstands (in the temple).
- Robe with golden sash: The robe with the golden sash that Jesus is wearing could be a priestly robe as well as a royal robe, which may be intentionally ambiguous since Jesus is presented both a priest and a king.
- White hair: The white hair reflects the vision of Daniel 7.
- Eyes like blazing fire, legs like furnished bronze, loud voice: These are all characteristics of Daniel 10, where John is prepared for the final vision and the vision is given by a figure who is an angelic warrior.
Here the Son of Man is combined with the “Ancient of Days (God)” from Daniel 7.
The response
John collapses similar to the visions of Daniel.
The interpretation
Jesus confirms all the statements we saw at the beginning of the chapter.
Finally, the mystery of the lampstands and stars is solved. They are represent a different descriptions of the church. So what does it mean?
The church is described by two different images, which also have two main things in common:
- They are both sources of light: the stars as orientation in creation and the lampstand as the only source of light in the temple.
- They both need Jesus: the stars cannot shine if they are not in the hand of Jesus, the lamp only stands if the oil is there (Holy Spirit).
The point of the church is to be light for the world, for the world to be saved. That is the point of the book, and that is what the church is tested on: Is the church a witness that convinces the nations?