8 Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me once more: “Go, take the scroll that lies open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.”
This is the same voice that told him not to write down what the thunders said.
9 So I went to the angel and asked him to give me the little scroll. He said to me, “Take it and eat it. It will turn your stomach sour, but ‘in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.’” 10 I took the little scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. It tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour. 11 Then I was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages and kings.”
First, you’ve got to be willing to follow the voice of God anywhere to be able to approach an angel so large that it is robed in a cloud, has one foot on land and one on the sea, has a face like the sun, and has pillars of fire for legs, and ask for his little scroll. That takes guts and faith.
This is reminiscent of Ezekiel. In Ezekiel 2:9 through 3:15, there is the story of Ezekiel being given a little scroll to eat and of him being sent to his people.
Ezekiel 2:9 – 3:15:
9 Then I looked, and I saw a hand stretched out to me. In it was a scroll,10 which he unrolled before me. On both sides of it were written words of lament and mourning and woe.
1 And He said to me, “Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the people of Israel.” 2 So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat.
3 Then He said to me, “Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it.” So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth.
4 He then said to me: “Son of man, go now to the people of Israel and speak my words to them. 5 You are not being sent to a people of obscure speech and strange language, but to the people of Israel— 6 not to many peoples of obscure speech and strange language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely if I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you. 7 But the people of Israel are not willing to listen to you because they are not willing to listen to Me, for all the Israelites are hardened and obstinate. 8 But I will make you as unyielding and hardened as they are. 9 I will make your forehead like the hardest stone, harder than flint. Do not be afraid of them or terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people.”
…
12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a loud rumbling sound as the glory of the Lord rose from the place where it was standing. 13 It was the sound of the wings of the living creatures brushing against each other and the sound of the wheels beside them, a loud rumbling sound. 14 The Spirit then lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of the Lord on me.
Notice that the scroll to both is sweet as honey when eaten.
Psalms 119:103 - How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!
Psalms 19:9-11 - The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them Your servant is warned, and in keeping them there is great reward.
While physical food keeps us alive, God's Word sustains us spiritually, which is why it tastes so good:
Psalms 34:8 - Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!
Jeremiah 15:16 - Your words were found, and I ate them, and Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; for I am called by Your name, O LORD God of hosts.
Deuteronomy 8:3 - So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the LORD.
It is interesting that the "bread" God provided for Israel in the wilderness tasted like wafers made with honey:
Exodus 16:31 - And the house of Israel called its name Manna. And it was like white coriander seed, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.
But, the Words are also bitter. Upon being bitter, John is told to prophesy to the “peoples, nations, languages, and kings”. John uses a similar description to all people on the earth five different times in his writing in Revelation. At other places, he uses the word tongues for languages and the word tribes for kings. (5:9-10, 7:9-10, 11:9-10, 14:6-7)
It is a bitter pill to swallow for John or Ezekiel or any prophet when they know the Words of God and they have to speak to their own people those Words of judgment. They are pained and sorrowed to have to accept that judgment is coming on their people and God is giving them responsibility to warn their brethren that judgment was coming, even though they will reject the message. They will be scorned and rejected for telling their own people the Words of the Living God, and it is bitter to them.
We face similar bitter trials. There are times when we must decide to not do something or to do something that causes us to possibly lose friends. There are times when we must hold a friend or family member accountable and they will reject us and may never talk to us again. It is a bitter thing at times to stand in complete faith on the Word of God. But that Word is sweet to our soul and it is the only truth that lives.
We enjoy the sweetness of the Words of Jesus when they ensure a life with God and He with us, that we can walk together forever. But we cringe at the bitterness of those Words when they affect our daily living, when we get convicted to change away from those things we want so we can walk as He is guiding us to walk.
Many people are interested in prophesy as contained in Revelation, but when they realize it might create demands on them personally, they lose interest. A Prussian minister, Dr. Gaebelein said, “a great many of the saints are more interested in Antichrist than they are in Christ”. We must stay focused on Christ in these words of Revelation and they are sweet to taste, but bitter to know the fullness thereof as it relates to these judgments and our call to change our life as He commands.
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