In 2 the middle of the throne 3 and around the throne were four living creatures 4 full of eyes in front and in back.
7:11 And all the angels stood 19 there in a circle around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground 20 before the throne and worshiped God,
14:1 Then 21 I looked, and here was 22 the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with him were one hundred and forty-four thousand, who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.
1 tn This could refer to rock crystal, but it is possible this refers to ice (an older meaning). See BDAG 571 s.v. κρύσταλλος.
2 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
3 tn Perhaps, “in the middle of the throne area” (see L&N 83.10).
4 tn On the meaning of ζῴον (zwon) BDAG 431 s.v. 2 states, “Of the four peculiar beings at God’s throne, whose description Rv 4:6-9 reminds one of the ζῷα in Ezk 1:5ff, the cherubim. S. also Rv 5:6, 8, 11, 14; 6:1, 3, 5-7; 7:11; 14:3; 15:7; 19:4.”
5 tn Grk “the twenty-four elders fall down.” BDAG 815 s.v. πίπτω 1.b.α.ב. has “fall down, throw oneself to the ground as a sign of devotion or humility, before high-ranking persons or divine beings.”
6 sn See the note on the word crown in Rev 3:11.
7 tn The pronoun “his” is understood from the demonstrative force of the article τοῦ (tou) before θρόνου (qronou).
8 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.
9 tn Grk “from the rising of the sun.” BDAG 74 s.v. ἀνατολή 2.a takes this as a geographical direction: “ἀπὸ ἀ. ἡλίου…from the east Rv 7:2; 16:12…simply ἀπὸ ἀ. …21:13.”
10 tn Grk “having,” but v. 3 makes it clear that the angel’s purpose is to seal others with the seal he carries.
11 tn Or “signet” (L&N 6.54).
12 tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation. Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
13 tn The word “permission” is implied; Grk “to whom it was given to them to damage the earth.”
14 tn Grk “saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
15 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the introduction of new but related material.
16 tn Grk “who were sealed.”
17 tn Normally, “every,” but since 144,000 is the total number, “all” is clearer here.
18 tn Grk “the sons of Israel,” normally an idiom for the Israelites as an ethnic entity (L&N 11.58). However, many scholars understand the expression in this context to refer to Christians rather than ethnic Israelites.
19 tn The verb is pluperfect, but the force is simple past. See ExSyn 586.
20 tn Grk “they fell down on their faces.” BDAG 815 s.v. πίπτω 1.b.α.ב. has “fall down, throw oneself to the ground as a sign of devotion or humility, before high-ranking persons or divine beings.”
21 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
22 tn The phrase “and here was” expresses the sense of καὶ ἰδού (kai idou).
23 tn Or “mislead.”
24 sn The battle with Gog and Magog is described in the OT in Ezek 38:1-39:20.
25 tn Grk “of whom the number of them [is] like the sand of the sea” (an allusion to Isa 10:22).