2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?” 3 But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it.
A loud voice from a mighty angel, one that is heard everywhere. It is heard in heaven by all who are there, the elders, the four magnificent living creatures, and on earth by everyone who is there, and under the earth by all who are with the Satan. Who is worthy! Satan, as powerful as we think he is did not step up and answer that call. No person, as powerful as some seem to be or think that they are, stepped up to answer that call. An elder? Nope. The four creatures? Nope. There is no answer. All mankind and all of Creation are eagerly yearning and hoping for restoration and there is no answer.
4 I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. 5 Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”
John weeps. In fact, the translation could be said that he was wailing. This dramatic scene has overcome him. All of mankind is hanging there with no one to implement God’s plan. There is no hope! All of the pain and suffering of the people and there is no one to rescue them. If you have ever lost hope in your life, it is a terrible place to be. Once hope is lost you can no longer put others first. My own experience is you do what satisfies you and become your own god. Since there is no hope for something different, you better make the best of it while you are alive. This type of thinking and mindset is dominant in our culture today and it is because people have no hope. They believe they must live for today and make any change necessary so they can be happy today if possible while in complete denial that inside they are longing for something much more and no matter what they do today they will only be satisfied, if they even are, for a very short time.
But an elder comes to John and says look up, stop weeping, there is One who has victory! He is able! What a glorious event. In the face of there being nothing, there is One who stands at the throne.
6 Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirit of God sent out into all the earth. 7 He went and took the scroll from the right hand of Him who sat on the throne.
John the Baptist declared “Behold, the Lamb of God!” (Jn 1:29) Here is the sacrificial Lamb of God. In the days of the second Temple, flocks could only be shepherded in the wilderness. The only exception to this was those that were to be used as the sacrifice. These needed to be kept somewhat close to the Holy City and the Temple. There was only one area near the Holy City where these sacrificial lambs could be shepherded that had hills and valleys conducive for raising sheep and that was Bethlehem. The Lamb of God was born where the sacrificial lambs were born and He was offered up in the Temple in Jerusalem. His entire purpose was to give Himself up as a sacrificial Lamb out of sacrificial love for us, even from the moment of His birth. And now, He stands at the throne of God and only He is worthy to take the scroll from God.
He stands as having been slain and He is at the center of the throne. Everyone and thing there stands around Him. He has seven horns which represents that He has perfect power. He has seven eyes which is explained that He has the perfect Spirit of God upon Him.
“It is finished!” He declared as He died on the cross. And as He takes the scroll, it is finished! The penalty of our unbearable sin is over and God’s plan for man and Creation can be restored.
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