Revelation 19:4 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who was seated on the throne, saying, "Amen. Hallelujah!"

NIV: The twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God, who was seated on the throne. And they cried: "Amen, Hallelujah!"

NASB: And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne, saying, 'Amen. Hallelujah!'

CSB: Then the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God, who is seated on the throne, saying, Amen! Hallelujah!

NLT: Then the twenty-four elders and the four living beings fell down and worshiped God, who was sitting on the throne. They cried out, 'Amen! Praise the Lord!'

KJV: And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia.

NKJV: And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, “Amen! Alleluia!”

This verse refers to twenty-four elders and four living creatures, who were first described in Revelation 4. Here they are seen falling down and worshiping the One who occupies the throne of heaven. This is a reference to God as the Sovereign Lord. Nothing shakes His throne, and those who oppose Him do so to their regret. This was exemplified by the fall of Babylon (Revelation 17—18), which defied God and ended up as a smoking ash heap. The elders and four living creatures agree with the heavenly multitude's declaration of God's faithful judgment of Babylon. They say, "Amen. Hallelujah!" which literally translates to "So be it. Praise the Lord!"

Scholars speculate on who, exactly, these twenty-four elders are. Some suggest they are the twelve patriarchs of Israel (Revelation 7:5–8) and the twelve apostles (Matthew 10:2–4; Acts 1:24–26), or they may represent all believers of the Old and New Testaments.

The four living creatures are described in Revelation 4:7 as having, respectively, features resembling a lion, an ox, a man, and an eagle. They each have six wings, multiple eyes, and they never cease to proclaim God's holiness, omnipotence, and eternality (Revelation 4:8).

Revelation 19:1–5 records praise which rises to God from a great multitude in heaven. The praise follows the fall of Babylon recorded in chapters 17 and 18. Similar praise is reported in Revelation 4:10–11; 5:9–10, 12–13; 7:11–12, and 11:16–18. The praise precedes the marriage supper of the Lamb, as well as the second coming of Christ in glory and the judgment of the nations.

Revelation 19 begins with a multitude in heaven singing a doxology to God. He is praised for judging religious Babylon and avenging the martyrs. They are joined by the twenty-four elders (Revelation 4). Voices cry out joyfully that the Lord reigns and the marriage supper of the Lamb is ready. Then, John sees heaven open and observes Jesus—now coming as the glorious and invincible King of kings and Lord of lords—as He descends from heaven to execute judgment. The armies of earth gather to battle the Lord. The battle concludes with the Antichrist and False Prophet being thrown into the lake of fire and the graphic slaughter of their followers.

This chapter describes the victorious second coming of Christ, His victory over the Antichrist and the False Prophet after the fall of Babylon (Revelation 17—18). Christ's first arrival on earth was to redeem (Matthew 2; Luke 2:1–21; John 1:1–14; Galatians 4:1–5). The purpose of His second coming is judgment and the establishment of His reign on earth (Psalm 2). This is separate from the rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:13–17), the event in which Jesus returns in the air to take Christians from earth to be with Him. Jesus' second coming begins the millennial kingdom, leading up to the final judgments and the appearance of the New Jerusalem.

The word ''revelation'' means ''an unveiling or disclosure.'' This writing unveils future events such as the rapture, three series of judgments that will fall on the earth during the tribulation, the emergence of the Antichrist, the persecution of Israel and her amazing revival, as well as Jesus' second coming with His saints to the earth, the judgment of Satan and his followers, and finally, the eternal state. This content, combined with the original Greek term apokalypsis, is why we now refer to an end-of-the-world scenario as ''an apocalypse.''