The Lamb is King

Jesus is the Lamb, the King whose sovereignty is total, and the Messiah sent by God to redeem men from every nation.

Jesus is the Faithful Witness and the Ruler of the Kings of the Earth. These designations are inextricably linked. The first establishes how he obtained the second, namely, his sovereignty. Through his sacrificial death, Jesus redeemed his people, and because of his “obedience unto death,” God exalted Christ and made him Lord over all things.

In the Book of Revelation, Jesus is the King of Kings, the Faithful Witness, the Chief Prince of the kings of the earth, the Shepherd of the nations, and above all, the Lamb who was slain.

Throughout the Book, the nature of the Lamb’s reign is contrasted with the nature and reign of the Dragon and his agents, the Beast, the False Prophet, and Babylon, the Great Whore.

For example, Jesus “conquers” his enemies and redeems men from sin by dying for them. The Beast from the Sea, on the other hand, kills his opponents and uses economic control to compel men to swear allegiance to him – (Revelation 3:21, 11:7, 13:7, 13:17).

[Photo by Christi Marcheschi (Chicago) on Unsplash]

The sacrificial death of Jesus is a vital component of the portrayal of the Messiah, and his exaltation and reign cannot be separated from his act of redemption:

• “And from Jesus Christ, THE FAITHFUL WITNESS, THE FIRSTBORN OF THE DEAD, and THE RULER OF THE KINGS OF THE EARTH. Unto him who loves us and CLEANSED US FROM OUR SINS by his blood; and he made us A KINGDOM OF PRIESTS for his God and Father. To him be the glory and THE DOMINION FOREVER AND EVER. Amen” – (Revelation 1:5-6. Note the verbal allusions to Exodus 19:5-6, Leviticus 16:30, Psalm 89:27, 89:37, Daniel 7:27. Compare Colossians 1:18, 2 Peter 2:6-20).

• "For on that day, he will make atonement for you, to cleanse you from all your sins before the Lord, and you will be clean" - (Leviticus 16: 30).

• “These are they who come out of THE GREAT TRIBULATION, and they washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” – (Revelation 7:14. Note the allusion to Daniel 12:1).

Jesus of Nazareth fulfills the messianic promises of the Hebrew Bible. Through his death and resurrection, he became the king who rules the Cosmos. Moreover, he conquered his cosmic enemies, the Dragon, the Beast, the False Prophet, Babylon, and Death. Because his sacrifice cleansed us of the stain of sin, he sat down “on the right hand of God,” where he remains to this very hour – (Hebrews 1:1-3, Revelation 3:21, 11:15).

Christ is also the Shepherd who redeems men, women, nations, and kings and guides them to the Tree of Life in the Holy City, New Jerusalem - (Compare Revelation 2:7, 12:5, 19:15, 21:24-26, 22:1-2, 22:14).

The Dragon, on the other hand, deceives the “inhabitants of the Earth” so they render homage to the Beast’s image and take his number. Rather than life in New Jerusalem, the names of the men who belong to the Beast are excluded from the Lamb’s Book of Life. Therefore, they will experience the Second Death - (Revelation 12:9, 13:15-18, 14:9-11, 20:11-15 [“The deceiver of the whole habitable earth”]).

THE SLAIN LAMB

At the conclusion of his letters to the seven churches of Asia, Jesus promises Christians who remain faithful through the tribulation that they will reign with him, and they will do so “just as I overcame and took my seat on my Father’s Throne” - (Revelation 3:21).

Christ conquered his enemies by his faithful testimony and his obedience until his death. His victory was confirmed and sealed by God when he raised Jesus from the dead. Therefore, his sovereignty extends even over the realm of the dead:

• “Fear not! I AM THE FIRST AND THE LAST, and the Living one. And I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I HAVE THE KEY of death and of Hades” – (Revelation 1:17-19. Note the allusions to Isaiah 22:22, 48:12, 53:10-12. Compare 1 Corinthians 15:23, 15:53-54, and Philippians 2:9-11 [“He humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death”]).

In chapters 4 and 5, John sees the Divine Throne at the center of the universe, and the one who sits on it is holding a scroll sealed with seven seals (Revelation 5:1-4). A search is made for someone worthy enough to open the scroll. However, no one worthy is found, and so John begins to lament. However, one of the twenty-four Elders commands John to cease weeping:

• “Weep not! Behold, the LION OF THE TRIBE OF JUDAH, THE ROOT OF DAVID, has overcome to open the scroll and its seven seals. And I saw in the middle of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the middle of the elders, a Lamb standing, as though slain. <…> AND HE CAME AND TOOK THE SCROLL out of the right hand of him who sat on the throne” – (Revelation 5:5-7. Note the allusions to Genesis 49:9, Isaiah 11:1, 10, and Daniel 7:13).

John heard ‘lion of Judah’, but when he looked, he saw the slain Lamb. What he saw interprets what John first heard. Jesus is the messianic lion, but he fulfills this role as the Lamb who sacrificed his life for his people. And because of this, the entire creation declares that the Lamb is worthy of all power and sovereignty:

• “And they SANG A NEW SONG, saying, You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and you purchased for God with your blood men from every tribe and TONGUE AND PEOPLE AND NATION, and you made them A KINGDOM AND PRIESTS for our God. And they are reigning upon the earth. <…> Worthy is the Lamb that has been slain to receive the power, and riches, and wisdom, and might, and honour, and glory, and blessing!” – (Revelation 5:9-12. Note the allusions to Isaiah 42:10, Daniel 4:1, 7:13-14).

The Greek word translated as “overcome” in Revelation 5:5 means ‘to conquer’. It is the same verb used in Revelation 3:21, where Jesus exhorted his followers “to conquer” as he did. By doing so, they qualify to reign with him. Likewise, in Revelation 5:10, the saints purchased by the Lamb’s death reign with him on the earth.

Jesus is called ‘Lamb’ for the first time in Revelation 5:5-6. The name ‘Jesus’ occurs fourteen times in Revelation, ‘Christ’ seven times, and ‘Son of Man’ twice. However, from this point, ‘Lamb’ is the primary designation for him, a total of twenty-eight times.

Thus, Jesus of Nazareth overcame his enemies and qualified to rule from the throne of God by choosing to sacrifice his life to redeem humanity. In contrast, the Dragon imposes his sovereignty by deception, economic manipulation, and killing the saints of God.

THE LAMB BEGINS TO REIGN

Upon his arrival at the Throne, the Lamb took the Scroll and began to break open its seven seals, revealing the contents of the scroll. The reign of Christ began because of his death and resurrection. It is the sacrificial Lamb who rules over the Cosmos, not the predatory lion. It is the Lamb who breaks each of the seven seals of the Scroll in chapters 6 through 8 – (Revelation 6:1, “And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals…”).

In Chapter 7, the servants of God are sealed, twelve thousand males from each of the tribes of Israel. This is the number that John heard, but when he looked, he saw a multitude so vast that no man could number them. As before, what John sees interprets what he hears. And so, the image of the tribes of Israel is transformed into the innumerable multitude of men redeemed by Jesus - (Revelation 7:1-8).

• “These are they who come out of THE GREAT TRIBULATION, and they washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. For this cause, they are before the throne of God, and they are rendering divine service to him, day and night in his sanctuary. And he who sits upon the throne WILL SPREAD HIS TENT OVER THEM. THEY WILL HUNGER NO MORE, NEITHER THIRST ANY LONGER, neither will the sun fall upon them, NOR ANY BURNING HEAT. Because the Lamb that is in the middle of the throne WILL SHEPHERD THEM, and HE WILL LEAD THEM TO FOUNTAINS OF LIVING WATERS; and God will WIPE AWAY EVERY TEAR FROM THEIR EYES” - (Revelation 7:14-17. Note the verbal allusions to Daniel 12:1, Isaiah 4:5-6, 25:8, 40:11, 49:10).

This group is found again in Chapter 14, where they “stand with the Lamb on Mount Zion” and sing a “new song before the Throne.” No one else can learn the song except those men who have been redeemed by the Lamb. They sing the same ‘new song’ as those who declared the Lamb worthy in Revelation 5:9-10, which identifies the 144,000 men on Mount Zion with the men who were declared redeemed by the blood of the Lamb in Revelation 5:9-10 - (See Revelation 14:1-5).

The group of 144,000 saints standing on Mount Zion is seen again in Revelation 15:1-3, where they “sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb,” while standing upon the sea of glass, having overcome the Beast, his image and “the number of his name.”

Satan is expelled from heaven in Chapter 12, which was accomplished when the messianic Son was seized and taken to the Throne. This represents the same reality as that of the slain Lamb who began to reign from the Throne in Chapter 5, and it portrays the same reign described by Jesus in Revelation 3:21, the victorious Son who now rules with his Father on his throne – (Revelation 12:1-11).

Because Jesus conquered the Dragon through his death, his saints share in the same victory. Moreover, they overcome the Devil in the same manner as the Lamb – Through faithful testimony even when it results in their martyrdom:

• “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and because they loved not their life unto death” – (Revelation 12:11).

Everlasting life is obtained through the Lamb, and in no other way. Only men whose names are written in “the book of life of the lamb that has been slain” will inherit everlasting life and escape the Second Death – (Revelation 13:8).

The ten kings allied with the Beast attempted to make war with the Lamb, but the Lamb overcame them, because it is the sacrificial Lamb who is “the Lord of lords, and King of kings.” He is the “ruler of the kings of the earth,” and this has been so since his death, resurrection, and exaltation to the throne of God - (Revelation 1:5-6, 17:14).

Finally, the Lamb is the heart of the Holy City, New Jerusalem. The city is the bride of the Lamb, and New Jerusalem is built on twelve foundation stones that bear the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. There is no temple in the city, for the Lamb is the sanctuary. There is no need for outside illumination, because the Lamb is the lamp of the city. The city is inhabited by everyone whose name is “written in the Lamb’s Book of Life” – (Revelation 21:9-27).

Living waters cascade from the Throne and from the Lamb. The curse caused by Adam’s sin is no more, and the “throne of God and the Lamb” is at the center of the city – (Revelation 22:1-3).

Thus, the term ‘Lamb’ occurs seven times in the vision of the Holy City. Jesus does not cease to be the slain Lamb, even after the Great Judgment and the arrival of the New Heavens and the New Earth.

By transforming the traditional image of the Davidic Messiah into that of the slain Lamb, the Book of Revelation undermines every concept of Jesus as a militaristic conqueror who slaughters his enemies. Instead, he is the Shepherd of the nations who redeems men and women from every nation by means of his own death.

• “Jesus Christ, the same yesterday and today and forever” – (Hebrews 13:8).

• “And if you call on him as Father, who without respect of persons judges according to each man's work, pass the time of your sojourn in fear, knowing that you were redeemed, not with corruptible things, with silver or gold, from your vain manner of life handed down from your fathers, but with precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without spot” – (1 Peter 1:17-19).

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[Citations of Old Testament passages in this article are based on the ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the Septuagint (see the links here and here). Text printed in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS represents quotations and verbal allusions from the Old Testament. The Septuagint is represented by the Roman numeral for ‘seventy’ or LXX based on the Latin name of the translation, ‘Interpretatio septuaginta virorum’]

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SEE ALSO:

• Son, Priest and Sacrifice - (Jesus is the glorious Son of Man, the High Priest of his people, and the Lamb who redeemed us by his blood – Revelation 1:9-20)

• I Come Speedily! - (Jesus will arrive at the end of the present age to deliver and reward his saints, and to judge and punish his enemies)

• Worthy is the Lamb! - (Jesus is the Lamb and the true Messiah of Israel. He was sent by God to redeem men from every nation by his sacrificial death)

• L'Agneau est Roi! - (Le Livre de l'Apocalypse applique les promesses messianiques de l'Ancien Testament au règne actuel et au statut exalté de Jésus-Christ)