Revelationchapter 15
8 verses · John, by tradition · AD 95 or 96 · Revelation
and they sang the song of God’s servant Moses and of the Lamb: “Great and wonderful are Your works, O Lord God Almighty! Just and true are Your ways, O King of the nations!
Introduction
John, by tradition, Revelation, Revelation Overview.
This is the shortest chapter of the book, and it stands at a doorway. John, exiled on Patmos, wrote it for churches that were told Caesar's power had no end. Before the last judgments fall, the chapter lets its hearers listen to worship. Listen for the echoes of Israel's own story, the sea, the song of deliverance, the tent of meeting and the cloud of glory. Listen also for who is praised as King of the nations. Read it as the pause in which heaven explains the judgments before they come.
Context
- Who
- Readers who knew the exodus story by heart
- What
- A vision of the victors over the beast singing beside a sea of glass, and of seven angels receiving seven golden bowls of wrath from the heavenly tabernacle.
- Where
- John saw it on the island of Patmos and wrote it to the seven churches of the Roman province of Asia.
- When
- About AD 95 under the emperor Domitian on the common dating, with an earlier date under Nero, about AD 68, held by others.
- Why
- To show that the last judgments are just and true before they are poured out, and that those who refused the beast have already won.
Historical context
This is the shortest chapter in the book and it functions as a doorway. Seven angels come out of the heavenly sanctuary with seven last plagues, and after these the wrath of God is finished.
Show the rest of the historical context, 4 more paragraphs
Standing on the sea of glass are those who have gotten the victory over the beast and his image and his number, and they sing "the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb." Moses' song was sung on the far shore of the Red Sea, after the water closed over the army that had been chasing them.
The whole chapter is deliberately built out of the exodus. A sea that the redeemed stand beside instead of drowning in. A tabernacle of testimony. Plagues about to be poured out on a power that will not let God's people go.
The angels come out in clean bright linen with golden sashes, priestly dress. Judgment here is handled as sacred service, not as rage let loose.
Then the sanctuary fills with smoke from the glory of God, and no one can enter until the seven plagues are finished. The same thing happened when the tabernacle was finished in Exodus and when Solomon's temple was dedicated: the glory filled it and the priests could not stand to minister.
Significance
For a persecuted church, framing the finale as a second exodus said the shape of the ending was already known. God had done this before, a stubborn empire, escalating plagues, a people brought out singing on the other side of the water.
Show the rest of the significance, 1 more paragraph
It also said the plagues were not endless. "In them is filled up the wrath of God" means there is a last one. That mattered to people who could not see a horizon.
The heads below are this chapter's scenes. The numbered points under each are its verses.
The Song of Moses and the Lamb by the Glassy Sea
the seven final plagues: This great and marvelous sign completes the two signs of chapter 12, the woman and the dragon. The plagues are final because with them the wrath of God is completed, the Greek teleo marking the series that ends what the seals opened.
Revelation 15:1
"And I saw another great and wonderful sign, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is completed the indignation of God." For the wrath of God always strikes the obstinate people with seven plagues, that is, perfectly, as it is said in Leviticus; and these shall be in the last time, when the Church shall have gone out of the midst.
Victorinus of Pettau · written before 304 · Commentary on the Apocalypse of the Blessed Johnpatristic
1 more voice on this verseWhat preachers and commentators have said about this verse, in their own words.
Revelation 15:1
“And I saw another sign in heaven - Another wonder or extraordinary symbol. The word “sign” here - σημεῖον sēmeion - is the same which in Rev 12:1, Rev 12:3; Rev 13:13, is rendered “wonder” and “wonders,” and in Rev 13:14; Rev 16:14; Rev 19:20, “miracles.” The word is not found elsewhere in the Book of Revelation, though it is of frequent occurrence in other parts of the New Testament. See it explained in the notes on Rev 12:1. Here it is used to denote something wonderful or marvelous.”
sea of glass mixed with fire: A sea of glass lay calm before the throne at 4:6, and now it is mixed with fire. Beside it stand those who had conquered the beast and its image, the overcoming, nikao, promised to every church in chapters 2 and 3.
Revelation 15:2
“A sea of glass - A spacious lucid plain around the throne, from which fiery coruscations were continually emitted: or, the reflection of the light upon this lucid plain produced the prismatic colors of the most vivid rainbow. Over the beast, and over his image - See the notes on Revelation 13:1-18 (note).”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Revelation 15:2
“The song was sung while the angels were coming out, with their plagues, who are therefore mentioned both before and after it, verses 1-6. chap. xv, 1-6, And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire - It was before "clear as crystal," chap. iv, 6, but now mingled with fire, which devours the adversaries.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Revelation 15:2
“It has a pregnant sense: "standing" implies rest, Greek "epi" with the accusative case implies motion "towards." Thus the meaning is, Having come TO the sea, and now standing AT it. In Mt 14:26, where Christ walks on the sea, the Greek oldest manuscripts have the genitive, not the accusative as here.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Revelation 15:3-4
the song of God’s servant Moses: They sang the song of God’s servant Moses and of the Lamb, joining Exodus 15, sung after the Red Sea, to the Lamb's redemption. Its lines echo Psalm 145 and Moses' song in Deuteronomy 32, and the Berean text follows the better reading, O King of the nations.
Revelation 15:3
“AT THE OUTSET, let us remark the carefulness of the Holy Spirit in guarding the honor of our blessed Lord. This verse is often quoted as if it runs thus—“They sang the song of Moses and the Lamb.” This mistake has led many weak minds to wonder at the expression, for they have imagined that it divided the honor of the song of heaven between Moses and the Redeemer. The clause—“the servant of God”—is doubtless inserted by the Holy Spirit to prevent any error upon this point, and therefore it should be carefully included in the quotation.”
3 more voices on this verse
Revelation 15:3
“And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God,.... Not that in Deu 32:1 but that in Exo 15:1 and the sense is, either that they observed the law of Moses, which he as a servant in the Lord's house faithfully delivered, and kept it distinct from the Gospel, and did not blend them together, as in the times before; or rather, that they sung a song like that of Moses, and on a like occasion.”
Revelation 15:3
“The point at issue in the Lord's controversy with the earth is, whether He, or Satan's minion, the beast, is "the King of the nations"; here at the eve of the judgments descending on the kingdom of the beast, the transfigured saints hail Him as "the King of the nations" (Eze 21:27).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Revelation 15:3
“Accordingly in Psalm cxxxvi, 1-26., that clause, "For his mercy endureth forever," is subjoined to the thanksgiving for his works of vengeance as well as for his delivering the righteous. For all the nations shall come and worship before thee - They shall serve thee as their king with joyful reverence. This is a glorious testimony of the future conversion of all the heathens.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
For You alone are holy: The song asks a question that expects one answer, since no one can refuse to fear the only holy Lord. Oecumenius ties the worship of the nations to Isaiah 11:10, the root of Jesse who rises to rule the nations.
Revelation 15:4
“The present preaching of the Gospel is gathering out the elect remnant; meanwhile "the mystery of iniquity" is at work, and will at last come to its crisis; then shall judgment descend on the apostates at the harvest-end of this age (Greek, Mt 13:39, 40) when the tares shall be cleared out of the earth, which thenceforward becomes Messiah's kingdom.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Seven Golden Bowls and a Temple Filled With Smoke
Revelation 15:5-6
The title the tabernacle of the Testimony recalls Exodus 38:21, the tent that housed the law in the ark. The angels wear priestly linen and golden sashes, as the Son of Man did at 1:13, so the plagues come out of the sanctuary.
Revelation 15:5
“And after that I looked - After I had seen in vision the redeemed thus referred to, celebrating the praises of God, I saw the preparation made for the execution of these purposes of judgment. And behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony - Not the whole temple, but only that part to which this name was given. The word “tabernacle” - σκηνή skēnē - means properly a booth, hut, tent, and was the name commonly given to the tent or tabernacle that was erected in the wilderness for the service of God.”
1 more voice on this verse
Revelation 15:5
“So Re 11:19; compare Re 16:17. "The tabernacle of the testimony" appropriately here comes to view, where God's faithfulness in avenging His people with judgments on their foes is about to be set forth. We need to get a glimpse within the Holy place to "understand" the secret spring and the end of God's righteous dealings. behold--omitted by A, B, C, Syriac, and ANDREAS.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
dressed in clean and bright linen: Some manuscripts read stone for linen, the Greek words differing by one letter, and Jamieson, Fausset and Brown take the harder reading as likely original. The Berean text keeps the linen, the dress of priestly service.
Revelation 15:6
“The seven angels came out of the temple - To show that they were sent from God himself. Clothed in pure and white linen - Habited as priests. For these habits see Exo 28:6, Exo 28:8; and see the note on Rev 1:13.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Revelation 15:6
“God himself was now preaching to the church and to all the world, by terrible things in righteousness; but, when this work was done, then the churches would have rest, the temple would be opened, and the solemn assemblies gathered, edified, and multiplied. The greatest deliverances of the church are brought about by awful and astonishing steps of Providence.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Revelation 15:6
“But A, C, and Vulgate, "a stone." On the principle that the harder reading is the one least likely to be an interpolation, we should read, "a stone pure ('and' is omitted in A, B, C, and ANDREAS), brilliant" (so the Greek): probably the diamond.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Revelation 15:7-8
seven golden bowls: The bowls, phialas, are broad and shallow. The temple is filled with smoke from the glory of God, as at Solomon's temple in 1 Kings 8:10-11 and in Isaiah 6:4. Until the plagues were completed, no one could enter the temple.
Revelation 15:7
“And one of the four living creatures gave the seven angels - After they were come out of the temple. Seven golden phials - Or bowls. The Greek word signifies vessels broader at the top than at the bottom.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Revelation 15:7
“And one of the four beasts - See the notes on Rev 4:6-7. Which one of the four is not mentioned. From the explanation given of the design of the representation of the “four beasts,” or living creatures, in the notes on Rev 4:6-7, it would seem that the meaning here is, that the great principles of that divine government would be illustrated in the events which are now to occur.”
no one could enter the temple: The same cloud once filled the tabernacle when Moses set it up, as Adam Clarke notes from Exodus 40:34 and 35. John Wesley adds that the glory also appeared at the rebellion of Korah, when the earth swallowed the rebels. The sign of God's presence carries both favor and judgment.
Revelation 15:8
“It was a sign of protection at erecting the tabernacle and at the dedication of the temple. But in the judgment of Korah the glory of the Lord appeared, when he and his companions were swallowed up by the earth. So proper is the emblem of smoke from the glory of God, or from the cloud of glory, to express the execution of judgment, as well as to be a sign of favour.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Revelation 15:8
“The temple was filled with smoke - So was the tabernacle when consecrated by Moses, Exo 40:34, Exo 40:35, and the temple when consecrated by Solomon, 1Ki 8:10, 1Ki 8:11; 2Ch 5:14. See Isa 6:4. This account seems at least partly copied from those above.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
How this psalm is built
The form: A hymn set inside a vision of preparation, sung while the seven angels come out with their plagues, as Wesley classes it.
The patterns in this chapter
| Device | What it does | Where to see it |
|---|---|---|
| The angels named before and after the song | The seven angels with the seven plagues are named at verse 1 and come out of the temple at verse 6, and the song of the victors stands between. John Wesley reads the frame as timing, the song sung while the angels were coming out, which is why they are named both before and after it.John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament, 1755, on Revelation 15:2. | Revelation 15:1, Revelation 15:6 |
| Works and ways | The song pairs its lines, great and wonderful works with just and true ways, Lord God Almighty with King of the nations. John Gill reads it as a song like that of Moses in Exodus 15, sung on a like occasion, a deliverance from a tyrant through judgment on him.John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748), on Revelation 15:3. | Revelation 15:3, Revelation 15:4 |
| The sea of glass, then and now | The sea before the throne was clear as crystal at 4:6, and here it is mixed with fire. John Wesley reads the change as the fire that devours the adversaries, so the same object marks the turn from worship to judgment.John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament, 1755, on Revelation 15:2. | Revelation 15:2 |
Where the pictures come from
9 more paragraphs on the patterns
John Gill places the song of Moses at Exodus 15, the song at the sea, and sets aside Deuteronomy 32 (Exposition of the New Testament, on 15:3). Adam Clarke reads the angels' linen as priestly dress from Exodus 28, and the smoke as the cloud that filled the tabernacle in Exodus 40:34 and 35 and the temple in 1 Kings 8:10 and 11, with Isaiah 6:4 beside them (Commentary on the Bible, on 15:6 and 15:8). John Wesley adds the glory that appeared at the rebellion of Korah, when the earth swallowed the rebels (Explanatory Notes, on 15:8).
Where it sits in the book
Albert Barnes marks that the word for sign at verse 1 is the word used of the woman and the dragon at 12:1 and 12:3, so this is the third great sign in heaven (Notes, on 15:1). Jamieson, Fausset and Brown tie the opened temple of verse 5 to 11:19, where the ark appeared, and to 16:17, where the last bowl is poured (Commentary Critical and Explanatory, on 15:5). The chapter introduces the bowls, and chapter 16 pours them.
The debated concept: the nations who come to worship
Verse 4 says all nations will come and worship. John Wesley reads it as a testimony to the future conversion of all the nations (Explanatory Notes, on 15:3). Jamieson, Fausset and Brown read it after the judgment of the end of the age, when the tares are cleared and the earth becomes Messiah's kingdom (on 15:4). Oecumenius ties it to the root of Jesse who rises to rule the nations in Isaiah 11:10 (Commentary on Revelation, on 15:4). The site holds the second reading, the nations worshiping in Christ's reign after His return, and it names Wesley's hope of a gospel age as the other position.
King of the nations
The Berean reads King of the nations at verse 3. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown read the title as the point at issue, whether God or the beast is King of the nations, and cite Ezekiel 21:27 (on 15:3).
Where the New Testament touches it
The song of the Lamb continues the new song of 5:9. Charles Spurgeon marks the words the servant of God as a guard on the honor of Christ, so the song gives Moses no share of the Lamb's honor (The New Park Street Pulpit, Sermon No. 136, on 15:3).
Keep studying
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Sources for this chapter
The summary
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament and Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary.
The form and classifications
Andreas of Caesarea, COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 15:3-4, 614; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament, 1755, on Revelation 15:2 and Victorinus of Pettau, Commentary on the Apocalypse of the Blessed John, 304, on Revelation 15:1.
The exposition
Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the New Testament; Andreas of Caesarea, COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 15:8; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Oecumenius, Commentary on Revelation.