The Lamb Worthy to Open the Scroll: Part 4 of 7 (series: Lessons on Revelation)

by John Lowe
(Woodruff, S.C.)

“AND IN THE MIDST OF THE ELDERS STOOD A LAMB AS IT HAD BEEN SLAIN, HAVING SEVEN HORNS AND SEVEN EYES, WHICH ARE THE SEVEN SPIRITS OF GOD SENT FORTH INTO ALL THE EARTH” Here is the supreme moment of this vision. The lamb is one of the great distinctive ideas of the Revelation, where Jesus Christ is called the “LAMB” no fewer than twenty-nine times. The word he uses for Lamb is not used for Jesus Christ anywhere else in the New Testament. John the Baptist pointed to Him, and declared Him to be the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world—“The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. . . And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God” (John 1:29, 36)! Peter speaks of the precious blood of Christ, comparing it to a lamb without blemish and without spot—“But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Peter 1:19).

In Isaiah 53, a chapter very dear to Jesus and to the early Church, Jesus is compared to a lamb brought to the slaughter—“He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.” But in this case, the word is amnos, whereas the word that the Revelation uses is arnion. This is the word that Jeremiah uses, when he says: “I was like a gentle lamb that is led to the slaughter” (Jeremiah 11:19). By using arnion and using it so often, John wishes us to see that this is a new concept which he is bringing to men. There several things which are worthy of note, concerning this new idea:

The Lamb still bears the marks of having been slain— consequently, we have the picture of the sacrifice of Christ, still visible in the heavenly places—and when we enter Heaven those marks will be a constant reminder that even in the heavenly places, Jesus Christ is the one who loves us and gave himself for us.

There is another side to this. This same Lamb, with the marks of sacrifice still on it, is the Lamb with the seven horns and the seven eyes. The seven horns stand for omnipotence. In the Old Testament, the horns stand for two things.

It stands for sheer power. In the blessing of Moses the horns of Joseph are like the horns of a wild ox and with them, he will push the people together to the ends of the earth (Deuteronomy 33:17). Zedekiah, the prophet, made iron horns as a sign of promised triumph over the Assyrians (1 Kings 22:11). The wicked is warned not to lift up his horn (Psalm 75:4).

It stands for honor. The good man’s horn shall be exalted with honour (Psalm 112:9). God exalts the horn of His people (Psalm 148:14).

Here is the great paradox; the Lamb bears the sacrificial wounds upon it; but at the same time, it is clothed with the very might of God which can now shatter its enemies. The Lamb has seven horns; the number seven stands for perfection; the power of the Lamb is perfect, beyond withstanding.

The Lamb has seven eyes, and the eyes are the Spirits which are dispatched into all the earth. The picture comes from Zechariah. There the prophet sees the seven lamps which are “the eyes of the Lord, which range through the whole earth” (Zechariah 4:10). It is an eerie picture; but quite clearly it stands for the omniscience of God. In an almost crude way, it says that there is no place on earth which is not under the eye of God.

“Here is a tremendous picture of Christ. He is the fulfillment of all the hopes and dreams of Israel, for He is the Lion of Judea and the Root of David. He is the one whose sacrifice benefited man, and who still bears the marks of it in the heavenly places. But the tragedy has turned to victory and the shame to glory; and He is the One whose all-conquering might none can withstand and whose all-seeing eye none can escape.

7 And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.

Christ stepped forward and took (“hath taken” is better) the scroll from His Father, who was seated on the throne. It is very important to see the movement taking place here. The Lord Jesus moves to the throne through the Tribulation. He judges the world in righteousness before He reigns in righteousness. He is no longer the intercessor of the church, for the church is now with Him. He is beginning to act as Judge.

Christ was worthy to take the scroll because of His sacrifice on the cross, by which salvation was won for all who believe. In this vision, the time had come for God to unleash the final acts of history before setting up His kingdom. Christ would open the scroll and begin the process that would bring about the end of this fallen world.

Suppose the question had been asked Him, “What is the basis of Your claim to the title deed of earth?” His reply could have been threefold. He could have said, “That world is mine by right of creation, for I made it; it is Mine by right of Calvary, for I redeemed it and bought it with My blood; it is Mine by right of conquest—since the only language the unregenerate heart of man understands is the language of power—I’m going back to wage war and to claim that world.” The world is His, and His writes are not questioned at all. As He steps into the spotlight, His right is instantly conceded. And noticed this: from the moment the Lamb is put into the picture, John cannot take his eyes off Him. He mentions Him again and again—four times within the space of the rest of this chapter alone (5:6, 8, 12, 13).

The End of verse 7 is the high point of John’s vision—Christ readily and gladly took the scroll into His hand—for He delights to make known the will of His father. This means that the plan of God is ready to be carried out, and Jesus Christ is the One who will implement the plan. All power in heaven and on earth has been given to Him (Matthew 28:18). He may take the book and break the seven seals of judgment and thereby execute the purposes of the sovereign, Creator God. At His enthronement, the heavens rejoice (5:8-14; 12:5-12), for He truly is worthy and the people of God now have their reigning Savior.

8 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.

When the Lamb with the death wounds in His body stood up, turned to the throne of Him who held the book in His right hand, and took the book, every redeemed person—millions of them—burst into a song that never had been sung before. This act of the Lion-Lamb guaranteed the subjection of this wicked earth including Babylon, Antichrist, the dragon, and the host of others who spurned the love of God as it was shown in the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The picture of the “ELDERS” is interesting. They have “HARPS,” or possibly small lyres, which are often used with worship in Revelation. The harp was the traditional instrument to which the Psalms were sung. “Praise the Lord with harp,” says the Psalmist (Psalm 33:2). “Sing praises to the Lord with the harp; the harp, and the sound of melody” (Psalm 98:5). “Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; make melody to our God upon the harp” (Psalm 147:7). The harp stands for the music of praise as the Jews knew it.