Indeed, angels in Revelation reject worship on multiple occasions (Rev. If the seven spirits were merely angels, it would be unusual for John to include them as recipients of worship and as givers of divine blessing, especially considering Revelation’s hyper-awareness of the difference between true and false worship. Doxologies in the New Testament always include various formulations of the three persons of the Trinity, and these doxologies are recognized as both a phrase of worship and/or a divine blessing to the recipients. In his opening doxology, the Father, Jesus, and the seven spirits jointly offer grace and peace. Last, but perhaps most notably, John includes these seven spirits in several important worship contexts. Instead, we see the way John pulls together other biblical texts to highlight the Holy Spirit’s divine work in the world. In just a few passages listed here, we see how John ties the seven spirits into the being, identity, or activity of YHWH and/or his Spirit, showing that the seven spirits cannot merely be angels or an impersonal force.
The number seven as a sign of the Spirit’s divine fullness might also allude to the LXX translation of Isaiah 11:2–3, with its sevenfold description of the gifts and activities of the Lord’s Spirit: wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, godliness, and the fear of God. 3:12 11:1) and which finds its eschatological culmination in the New Jerusalem (21:3, 16, 22). 4:6), which John also describes as God building his temple through the Spirit (Rev.
28:18–20 John 14:26), paired with Zechariah’s description of the power of the Spirit rebuilding the temple (Zech. In the context of other New Testament writings, John may be thinking of Jesus sending the Spirit to fulfill the Great Commission (Matt. Part of John’s literary genius is his use of the Old Testament and continuity with the New as he describes his visions. This language of God’s eyes having an all-encompassing gaze can also be compared to passages such as Proverbs 15:3: “The eyes of the LORD are everywhere, observing the wicked and the good” (CSB). In a clear allusion to Zechariah 4:10, John equates the “eyes of the LORD” in the Zechariah passage with the seven spirits in Revelation 1:4 and those in 5:6, where the “sevens spirits of God” are sent to be his eyes on earth. Zechariah 4:1–14 is one of many key texts for John’s understanding of the Spirit’s role, especially the language of Zechariah 4:6 about the Spirit establishing God’s rule on earth. It could be argued that John alludes to the Old Testament in almost every verse, but we’ll mention only a few here. He then creatively uses the visions to show how God is bringing a new creation through Christ and the Spirit. Given his constant quoting of the prophets and the book’s sense of fulfillment of God’s promises, he clearly sees himself in some sense as a prophet who points to God’s final promises coming true. And yet, taking into account John’s use of seven and its importance in Scripture, it’s safe to say “seven” likely refers to more than a mere number of spirits. We shouldn’t exaggerate this point and assume that Revelation is merely a riddle to decode, stripping it of its historical context and theological richness. Revelation’s vivid imagery, illustrations, analogies, and use of the Old Testament make interpreting it a tricky endeavor. Revelation is an apocalyptic book, which means we should be careful of being too ‘literal,’ especially when it comes to numbers and analogies. Throughout Revelation, John uses the number often-seven spirits, seven churches, seven stars, seven lamps, seven angels, seven cycles of judgment, and so on. It’s often viewed as the number of completion or perfection, most notably when seven is associated with the completion of God’s “very good” creation (Gen. The number seven is well attested in the Bible, being used in some form more than 800 times. Revelation is an apocalyptic book, which means we should be careful of being too “literal,” especially when it comes to numbers and analogies.
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