Revelation 5:1-5 - The Seven-Sealed Scroll

Revelation 5:1-5 And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals.  Then I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to loose its seals?” And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll, or to look at it.  So I wept much, because no one was found worthy to open and read the scroll, or to look at it. 5 But one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.”[i] John had just seen all of heaven worshiping the God of Creation in Chapter 4. But the focus of attention now shifts to a seven-sealed scroll in the hand of God. The scroll could not be read because it was rolled up and sealed with seven seals. To the readers in John’s day this would have looked like a Roman will.  John could see writing on both sides of the scroll, which meant that nothing more could be added. What was written was completed and final. Most Bible teachers believe that the scroll represents Christ’s “title deed” to all that the Father promised Him because of His sacrifice on the cross. “Ask of Me, and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for Your possession. (Psalm 2:8) Jesus Christ is God’s appointed “Heir of all things” (Hebrews 1:2). I believe that God originally gave the title deed to the earth to Adam in the Garden of Eden when he gave him dominion over all things (Genesis 1:26-30). But when he disobeyed God and sinned, it was as if he handed to the title deed to Satan. Remember when Satan tempted Jesus, he promised that he would give Him all the kingdoms of the earth if He would bow down and worship him. (Matthew 4:8-9). Jesus is our beloved “Kinsman-Redeemer” who was willing to give His life to set us free from bondage and to restore our lost inheritance. This picture of Jesus is given in the following passages in the Old Testament: Leviticus 25:23–46, the Book of Ruth, and in Jeremiah 32:6–15. We will study this in more detail later. In Revelation 6, Jesus the Lamb of God, begins to remove the seals and as He does various dramatic events take place. The seventh seal introduced the seven trumpet judgments (Rev. 8:1–2). Then, when the seventh trumpet had blown, the great day of God’s wrath was announced, ushering in the “vial or bowl judgments” that brought to a climax the wrath of God (Revelation 11 through 16). Some teachers believe that it is possible that the trumpet judgments were written on one side of the scroll and the bowl judgments on the other. A title deed or will can be opened only by the appointed heir, and this is Jesus Christ. No one in all the universe could be found worthy enough to break the seals. No wonder John wept, for he realized that God’s glorious redemption plan for mankind could never be completed until the scroll was opened. The redeemer had to be near of kin, willing to redeem, and able to redeem. Jesus Christ meets all of the qualifications. He became flesh, so He is our Kinsman. He loves us and is willing to redeem; and He paid the price, so He is able to redeem. Philippians 2:5-11 best describes how Jesus became our Kinsman-Redeemer and qualified to take the scroll and open it.  Now we are able to enter into the worship experience described in the remainder of Revelation 5. And we’ll discover four compelling reasons why we worship Jesus Christ. God bless!