When John finishes writing the letters to the 7 churches, he’s immediately taken up to heaven:
“After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne” (Rev. 4:1-2, NKJV).
For the remainder of the chapter, John is describing the lively scene in heaven with words like “jasper and sardine stone,” “lightnings and thunderings,” and “a sea of glass like unto crystal.” It’s safe to say that in our mere finite language, we can’t even begin to describe something that’s infinite! He sees the 24 elders in verse 4 which I go into depth about here. To add to the surprises John is taking in, he also introduces us to “4 living creatures” or “beasts” in verse 6: “Before the throne there was a sea of glass, like crystal. And in the midst of the throne, and around the throne, were four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back.”
Not only are there 24 elders seated around the throne of God but 4 living creatures as well, described as having eyes all over their bodies. I can’t even begin to imagine something like that simply because we have nothing here on Earth to compare a creature like that to. It makes me wonder what other types of beings God has created?
He goes on to describe each of the 4 living creatures’ appearances:
“The first living creature was like a lion, the second living creature like a calf, the third living creature had a face like a man, and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not rest day or night, saying: ‘Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!'” (Rev. 4:7-8, NKJV).
Now we have a better description of them; each one is like an animal here on Earth (aside from one that has a man’s face), they each have 6 wings, and they all have eyes all over their bodies as we were told in verse 6 earlier. He also tells us what they do, which is cry “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.” When the living creatures praise God like this, it prompts the 24 elders to worship him in like manner (Rev. 4:9-11, NKJV).
In my article on the 24 elders, I go into length about how I believe the elders are used as symbolism to represent a much larger body of people – the Body of Christ, or the Church. However, I believe these 4 living creatures aren’t symbolic but are literal creatures. Part of why I believe this is that John goes through great lengths to describe their physical features which I don’t think is done without a reason.
Of course, there are other examples where physical descriptions are given, but only a symbolic meaning should be applied as in the case of the elders or Satan as the “serpent” or the beasts that appear later in Revelation. The main reason I believe this is that these “living creatures” appear in another part of the Bible as well and were given similar descriptions with new info.
Seraphim
Isaiah 6 talks about a type of heavenly being known as “seraphim.” “In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew” (Isa. 6:1-2, NKJV). This verse shows us that Isaiah is seeing seraphim and describes their features as beings with 6 wings. They use 2 wings to cover their faces, 2 to cover their feet, and the last 2 are used to fly. This mirrors what John sees in Revelation 4:8 but with more details.
In contrast, Isaiah here doesn’t mention the fact that they have eyes all over their bodies, but they most likely are the same beings. What seals the deal for me is what these seraphim are going around God’s throne. “And one cried to another and said: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory!'” (Isa. 6:3, NKJV). This is the same as the 4 living creatures in Revelation 4:8 that also proclaim, “Holy, Holy, Holy.”
Although not much is said about the Seraphim in the Bible beyond these verses, we get to see another role they may have. In the next couple of verses, we see a distraught Isaiah. He laments over the fact that, in the midst of the almighty God, he sees the true nature of his being.
So I said: “Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, The Lord of hosts.” Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth with it, and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; Your iniquity is taken away, And your sin purged” (Isa. 6:5-7, NKJV).
The seraphim, upon hearing Isaiah’s lamentation, touches a coal to his lips in what seems like an act of temporary purification, not only of his lips but of his entire sinful nature. These Seraphim aren’t explicitly given roles in the Bible, but from the passages we’ve examined, we know they worship God and they may have tasks that encompass purification.
If you enjoyed this study, you can find similar studies on the book of Revelation here including the 7 Churches of Revelation, the 24 Elders, the 4 Horseman, etc.
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This is an updated edition of a post originally published on himitstustudy.com
