Revelation 8:3-5; Golden Censer in Heaven

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Revelation 8:3-5. 3 And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. 4 And the smoke of the incense, which camewith the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand. 5 And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast itinto the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake. 

The earthly replica of the altar of incense also called the golden altar or the golden censer that God commanded Moses in Exodus 30:1-6 to construct is seen here in heaven. It is the next most sacred furniture in the earthly Tabernacle or Temple. The Ark of the Covenant is the most sacred of furniture in the Tabernacle. The Ark is symbolic of the very presence of God with His people. The Tabernacle was built to house the Ark so that God could dwell among His people.

And the next most sacred furniture to the Ark of the Covenant is the Altar of Incense. The priest is commanded to take a censer full of burning coals on his one hand from the brazen altar where sacrifices were made and on the other hand, specially prepared sweet incense was ignited by sprinkling it over the burning coals.

Leviticus 16:12-13 And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail: 13 And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not.

The thick cloud of smoke curled upwards filling the Tabernacle, symbolic of Israel’s prayers to God. And the priest, enveloped by the sweet fragrance of the cloudy incense enjoys the blessing of sweet communion with God. The Altar of Incense illustrates the utmost importance God places on our communion with Him in prayer.[1]

This is understood more fully here – The angel in the place of the earthly priest administers the incense (v3) in the true and eternal Temple, the Heavenly Temple.

The persecuted Tribulation saints’ plea for God to intervene and vindicate them is seen here literally received up by the smoke of the incense to the very throne of God – And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand (v4).

Exodus 30:6 And thou shalt put it before the vail that is by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with thee.

There is great significance in the placement of the altar before the veil in the earthly Tabernacle and Temple. It stood next to the veil in the centre of the holy place, which separated it from the holy of holies where God manifested His presence. And so, the closest the priests could come to God in daily worship was when they ministered at the altar of incense. 

This same principle holds for Christians. The closest we come to God is through prayer. May we realize the great privilege we have in Christ!

Hebrews 10:19-20 Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh.

The incense burned perpetually before the Lord through the years (Exodus 30:8, picturing believers offering prayers continually to God.

Exodus 30:8 And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations.

The incense, representative of prayer, was to be burned on it perpetually – in the morning and at twilight. Paul said to the Christians in Thessalonica, pray without ceasing (1 Thess. 5:17). We each must maintain our own altar of incense before the Lord, a continual attitude of prayer throughout the day as exemplified by the Lord (Heb. 7:25) and the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:26-27).[2]

The golden altar also represented the place of intercession before the Lord; thus, when blood from the sin offering was sprinkled on the horns of the altar, it symbolized a prayer for the pardon of sin before God. The blood, applied to the altar, gave the incense of prayer its value. So, it is with Christ’s blood, which gives value to our prayers before God (Heb. 9:14; 12:24) and opens the way for us to come before the throne of grace to find mercy and grace in time of need (Heb. 4:16). The priests interceded before the Lord on behalf of the people, giving a beautiful picture of the Lord’s intercession on behalf of believers. As we mentioned earlier in Heb. 7:25, He “ever liveth to make intercession for them”. In John 17, Jesus asked the Father for protection from the world (Jn. 17:11); from Satan (Jn. 17:15), sanctification through the Scripture (Jn. 17:17), spiritual unity within the body of Christ (Jn. 17:21-23) and the presence of believers with Him to behold His glory  (Jn. 17:24).[3]

The hymn “Sweet Hour of Prayer” was written by William Walford, a blind, obscure lay preacher who owned a novelty shop, whose life had seen many seasons of distress and grief. In the night of his physical darkness, God gave a son that has brought comfort to his heart. This hymn reminds us of how sweet and precious is our hour of communion with God in prayer. No matter how dark and difficult our days, our heavenly Father bids us to “cast on Him our every care” and know the blessings and “fruits of the sweet hour of prayer.” God inspired the composer to anticipate for everyone the day when faith will give way to sight. This great hymn also calls us to spend more than a few hurried minutes in prayer, so we can know the rich blessing that comes in spending time in the presence of God. It is the best investment we will ever make for our soul and total life.[4]

Prayer is the privilege of saints. No matter how dark the times, in communion at the throne of grace, saints through the ages find solace and comfort. Amen.

[1] David M. Levy, The Tabernacle: Shadows of the Messiah, The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, 1993, 17-18.

[2] http://rondaniel.com/library/02-Exodus/Exodus2801.html

[3] David M. Levy, The Tabernacle: Shadows of the Messiah, The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, 1993, 67.

[4]Henry Gariepy, Song in the Night, Eerdmans, 1996, 38-39.