When saints first appear in heaven, they are beneath the altar (Revelation 6:9-11). The great multitude that is caught up to heaven “stands” around the throne (7:11). They have moved up, from a place beneath the altar to a place before the throne.
But that is not the end of their progression. They stand before teh throne as priests, but they are destined not only to be priests but to be kings. That’s why Jesus died (1:6), and that is the promise to the victors who come through the great tribulation (2:26-27; 3:21). In the end, they will be seated in heavenly places (20:4), taking the crowns that the elders have left behind.
One thread of the story of Revelation is this: Saints made heavenly priests by suffering in faithfulness; then the priestly saints grown up to be kings.
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