Praise the Lamb

In one of his many provocative asides during his lectures on Revelation, James Jordan suggests that the sevenfold praise of the Lamb (5:12) matches the sevenfold description of Jesus in the first vision (1:14-16). Jordan doesn’t elaborate, so let’s see how this works out. As usual, some are more obvious than others. We could also link this sequence with the days of creation and the feasts of Israel.

1. Power = head and hair like white wool. That connection makes sense, since the white hair links Jesus with the Ancient of Days, who presides in the heavenly court of Daniel 7.

2. Riches =eyes like a flame of fire. Eyes are organs of judgment and evaluation. Jesus’ eyes assess the value of all riches?

3. Wisdom = feet like burnished bronze, as bronze glows in a furnace. The Greek word for “burnished bronze” contains the word for incense ( libano ), which is a symbol of prayer (cf. Revelation 8:1-3). Offering prayer at the feet of Jesus is a source of wisdom.

4. Might = voice. Jesus’ voice is like the voice of many waters, a voice like thunder, a voice that displays the might of Yahweh incarnate (cf. Psalm 29). Jesus’ voice is the instrument of His mighty rule.

5. Honor = right hand holds seven stars. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches. Jesus has honor because he is the ruler of the seven churches, the high Angel over the angels that administer His empire.

6. Glory = mouth-sword. Jesus gains glory by the victory He wins with His mouth-sword.

7. Blessing = like sun shining in its strength. The sun blesses the earth with fertility and light; to be before the face of God, to be in the presence of the glowing face of Jesus, is to be in a state of blessing, life, glory.

As I say, some work better than others. I know that some readers will be able to make better connections that I have. Go to it.