Revelation 1:17-20

Himitsu Ministries Podcast

At Himitsu Ministries, our mission is to help you cultivate a deeper understanding of God’s Word primarily through bible prophecy and apologetics.

Revelation 1:17-20

byAyo Shosanya

A study of verses 17 to 20 of Revelation 1. In this study I look into what Jesus means by the ”keys of Hades and of Death” and what having these ”keys” signified in the Greco-Roman world. I then end Chapter 1 by looking at the interpretation of the seven stars and seven golden lampstands.

Show Notes: ⁠https://himitsustudy.com/revelation-1-verses-17-20/

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Episode Summary: A study of verses 17 to 20 of Revelation 1. In this study I look into what Jesus means by the “keys of Hades and of Death” and what having these “keys” signified in the Greco-Roman world. I then end Chapter 1 by looking at the interpretation of the seven stars and seven golden lampstands.

Scriptural References

1. The First Plague: Waters Become Blood (Exodus 7:14-25) 
2. The Second Plague: Frogs (Exodus 8:1-15) 
3. The Fourth Plague: Flies (Exodus 8:20-32) 
4. The Fifth Plague: Livestock Diseased (Exodus 9:1-7)
5. The Sixth Plague: Boils (Exodus 9:8-12)
6. The Seventh Plague: Hail (Exodus 9:13-35)
7. The Eighth Plague: Locusts (Exodus 10:1-20)
8. The Ninth Plague: Darkness (Exodus 10:21-29)
9. The Tenth Plague: Death of the Firstborn (Exodus 12:29-30)

Notes on Revelation Quotations

1. “These stars symbolized the angels or messengers of the seven churches (v. 20; cf. 2:1; 3:1). These appear to be literal angels or messengers since ‘it would be unlikely to interpret one symbol by using another.’ Another view is that these stars represent true believers who shine in a dark world. Some regard these stars as representing the ministers of these churches”¹
2. “The seven stars’ represented ’the angels [lit. messengers] of the seven churches.’ These may have been their angelic guardians. Some interpreters have taken these angels as meaning the expressions of the prevailing spirit that characterized each church. Others take them as the ideal of each church. Still others understand them to be the churches themselves. …Others view them as the human representatives, the leading elders (pastors or ministers) of these churches, although “angel” (Gr. aggelos) is a strange term to describe an elder. I think that these messengers were probably men such as Epaphroditus, Tychicus, and Onesimus, who went to Rome in order to visit Paul in prison and carried messages from him to the churches (Phil. 4:18; Col. 4:7-9). Such representatives may have come to Patmos to visit John, and they could have carried the Revelation scrolls back with them to their respective congregations. The Greek word aggeloi (“angels”) frequently refers to human messengers (e.g., Matt. 11:10; Luke 7:24; 9:52; 2 Cor. 8:23; James 2:25)”²
3. “The view encounters serious difficulties, however. The complexity of the communication process is one thing that raises problems with it. It presumes that Christ is sending a message to heavenly beings through John, an earthly agent, so that it may reach earthly churches through angelic representatives (Beckwith).”³

The Revelation of Jesus Christ

1. “It is significant as indicated in this verse that the revelation embodied in this book, though often in symbols, is designed to reveal truth, not to hide it. Though all the symbols are not explained, in the great majority of cases the symbols are interpreted in one way or another in the Word of God.”⁴

The Old Testament in Revelation Quotations

1. “The phrase ‘I have the keys to Death and Hades’ refers to the cosmic sovereignty to which Jesus has attained following the act of God raising him from the dead. All three elements are featured in the brief description of the Lamb in Rev. 5:6, which was ‘standing as though slain, with seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth’ (5:6). Here ‘standing’ refers to the fact that he is now living, despite the fact that he was slain, and the seven eyes understood as “the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth” is another symbolic way of emphasizing the sovereignty of Jesus Christ.”⁵
2. “The point not to be missed is that the risen Christ has conquered Death and Hades…He is now Lord of the living and the dead. Jesus holds the power of life and death, something Revelation will make clear in judgment scenes later that involve the second death.”⁶
3. “Jewish, Roman, and Greek writers wanted to present their gods as the one who holds the keys to the underworld.”⁷
4. “…The underworld was presented as protected by strong and impenetrable gates that required keys to enter. Therefore, we have numerous angels, gods, and goddesses who are said to possess the keys to these gates…Another predominant figure in the ancient Greco-Roman world who is said in multiple places to have the keys of the underworld is the goddess Hekate (also known as Persephone, Artemis, and Diana). In fact, Aune argues that Jesus holding the keys to Death and Hades is a polemic against the Hellenistic conceptions of the goddess Hekate. Hekate was the primary figure in the ancient Greco-Roman world to be associated with having the keys to Hades…”⁸

Referenced Materials

1. Notes on Revelation by Dr. Thomas L. Constable ↩︎
2. Ibid ↩︎
3. Ibid ↩︎
4. The Revelation of Jesus Christ by John F. Walvoord ↩︎
5. The Old Testament in Revelation by Dr. Michael Heiser, pg 67 ↩︎
6. Ibid, pg 74 ↩︎
7. Ibid, pgs 71-72 ↩︎
8. Ibid, pg 72 ↩︎

The Gospel

We’ve all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Psalm 51:5, Romans 3:23). Because God is Holy he must judge sin. The penalty of this sin is death and ultimately the Lake of fire (Romans 6:23, Revelation 20:11-15). There’s nothing we can do to save ourselves (Isaiah 64:6).

But God, in his love has provided a way to escape his wrath through Christ (John 3:16-18, John 14:6). Jesus paid for our sin penalty by taking God’s wrath in our stead on the cross (Romans 5:8). He died for our sins, was buried, and rose again 3 days later (1 Corinthians 15:1-5).

You can accept this free gift of salvation by believing in Christ (Acts 16:30-31, Romans 6:23, Ephesians 2:8-9). Make sure you’ve made the right decision about Jesus today (2 Corinthians 6:2)! It will be the most important decision of your life, for eternal life.