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Revelation 10

1

And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:

2

And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth,

3

And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.

4

And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.

5

And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven,

1
6

And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer:

1
7

But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.

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8

And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth.

9

And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.

10

And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

11

And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.

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Revelation 10

A mighty angel descends from heaven with a little scroll open in his hand, clothed in a cloud with a rainbow over his head, his face like the sun, and his legs like pillars of fire—imagery drawing together Ezekiel's throne vision with divine authority and judgment. The angel cries out with a loud voice like a roaring lion, and seven thunders sound in response, but when John attempts to write what the thunders say, a voice commands him not to seal up what the thunders have said—some divine secrets remain undisclosed. The angel swears by him who lives forever and ever that there will be no more delay: the mystery of God will be fulfilled just as he announced to his servants the prophets, and the seventh trumpet will sound at the appointed time. John is commanded to take the little scroll from the angel's hand and eat it; it is sweet in his mouth like honey but becomes bitter in his stomach—the bittersweet nature of prophecy that speaks God's judgment upon the world. The completion of John's eating the scroll leads to the command: you must prophesy again about many peoples and nations and languages and kings, establishing his role as messenger of the apocalyptic vision to the churches.

Revelation 10:11

Then they said to me, 'You must again prophesy about many peoples and nations and languages and kings' — the commission (dei, it is necessary) reiterates John's role as prophet to the world (compare 1:3). The universal scope (peoples, nations, languages, kings) establishes that the remaining prophecy addresses all humanity; all powers come under Christ's judgment.

Revelation 10:8

Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me again, saying, 'Go, take the scroll that is open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and the land' — John receives a new command: take the little scroll from the angel's hand. The scroll represents the message of the second half of Revelation (chapters 11-22), the final judgments and consummation.

Revelation 10:9

So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll; and he said to me, 'Take it, and eat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey' — the angel grants the scroll with a paradoxical promise: sweet in the mouth (glukus, delightful taste) but bitter in the belly (pikros, causing nausea). This mirrors Ezekiel 2:10, 3:3, where the prophet eats the scroll; the sweetness-and-bitterness reflects the dual nature of God's word: comfort to the faithful, judgment to the wicked.

Revelation 10:10

So I took the little scroll from the angel's hand and ate it; it was sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it, my stomach was made bitter — John's action fulfills the angel's word; the sensory experience confirms the paradox. The bitterness in the belly (koilia) suggests that prophecy regarding judgment produces internal anguish even as the word itself is precious.

Revelation 10:5

Then the angel who I had seen standing on the sea and the land raised his right hand to heaven — the angel's raising his hand invokes a solemn oath-gesture (Deuteronomy 32:40), establishing what follows as binding and sworn.

Revelation 10:6

And swore by him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and what is in it, and the earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it: 'There will be no more delay' — the oath is sworn by God (the one living unto the ages of ages, eis tous aiōnas tōn aiōnōn), Creator of all realms. The proclamation 'There will be no more delay' (chronos ouketi estai, time will not be any longer) signals that the final age is imminent; the eschaton's arrival is assured.

Revelation 10:7

But in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God will be fulfilled, as he announced to his servants the prophets — the delay's end coincides with the seventh trumpet's sounding (chapter 11); at that moment, the mystery of God (mystērion theou) will be completed (teleō). This mystery was announced (euangelizomai) by the prophets, linking the prophetic heritage to the apocalyptic fulfillment.

Revelation 10:1

And I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, with a rainbow over his head; his face was like the sun, and his legs like pillars of fire — the mighty angel (angelos ischyros) descending from heaven combines attributes of theophany: cloud (divine presence, Exodus 16:10), rainbow (covenant promise, Genesis 9:16), sun-bright face (divine glory, Matthew 17:2), pillars of fire (Exodus 13:21, divine guidance and protection). The figure is majestic and speaks with divine authority.

Revelation 10:2

He held a little scroll open in his hand — and set his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land — the angel holds an open scroll (biblion mikron), different from the sealed scroll (chapter 5); this scroll's contents are readable. The angel's stance—feet on sea and land—claims dominion over all creation, transcending the boundary between heaven and earth.

Revelation 10:3

And he cried out with a loud voice, like a lion roaring; and when he cried out, the seven thunders sounded — the angel's voice (phone megale) is lion-like (like a roaring lion, Amos 3:8), apocalyptic in its authority. His cry triggers the seven thunders (brontē), voices from the divine throne. The thunders represent God's response, affirming the angel's authority.

Revelation 10:4

And when the seven thunders had sounded, I was about to write, but I heard a voice from heaven saying, 'Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and do not write it down' — John is commanded (akouo) to seal (sphragizō) the thunders' utterances, forbidding their revelation. This mystery withheld emphasizes that God's full purposes remain hidden; not all revelation is for human understanding.