Revelation 1:20; Mystery of the Seven Stars

Revelation 1:20 The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.

The word “mystery” denotes “the inner meaning of a symbolical vision”. It speaks of something secret or hidden or is used here in a derived sense of something that contains a hidden or symbolical meaning and something that can be interpreted. [Beckwith]

This word was first used in the New Testament by our Lord Jesus in Matthew 13:11 (cf. Mark 4:11; Luke 8:10) when He answered why He spoke in parables, “Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.” When Jesus gave a parable, He will also explain its meaning to His disciples.

In the Epistles, it was first used in Romans 11:25 to speak about the mystery of Israel’s blindness in not receiving Jesus as their Messiah for till the last Gentile is saved, “For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.”

And culminates in Romans 16:25-27, “Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: To God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen. Written to the Romans from Corinthus, and sent by Phebe servant of the church at Cenchrea.”

This word “mystery” is well explained by the Apostle Paul as God’s hidden wisdom revealed to us in 1 Corinthians 2:7 “But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory.” And in Ephesians 1:9 “Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself.”

The mystery of the seven stars is revealed to John as the angels of the seven churches. Robert L. Thomas said well deducing that the angels are representatives of the churches but are men without a unique leadership function, “Christ’s explanation of the stars informed John that they stood for seven visitors to Patmos, either already present or soon to arrive, men who come to help John but will return home with a specific mission to the churches that sent them. They will be bearers of a message to their own city as part of the larger package of the whole contents of the Apocalypse. As Jesus continued His explanation, He noted that the lampstands stood for the churches in the seven cities. The controller of the messages to the churches stood symbolically in the middle of the churches and was about to commence dictating a particular message to each church.”

A search of the word “stars” gives Genesis 37:9 “And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.” The symbolism of stars was used in the Old Testament of Joseph’s dream that was with reference to his eleven brothers. The precedent of a human reference.

The word “angels” finds a reference to the two angels whom God sent to destroy the city of Sodom to first meet with Lot, Abraham’s nephew, to warn him of God’s judgment to come upon the city of Sodom in Genesis 19:1 “And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground.” The warning was given and instructions for him to flee together with his family in Genesis 19:12-13 And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it. Genesis 19:24-25 “Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.”

May the Lord help us take heed to His Word of loving caution. Amen.