Hello everybody and welcome in to episode #338 of the Bible 2021 podcast. We are reading Revelation 4 today and our focus is on What Color is God? Who Are The Seven Spirits of God?  We are a daily 10ish minute podcast, where we will dig in to the truth of the Word of God by reading one Bible chapter a day and discussing it. Welcome to new listeners in   Our goal is to encourage DAILY Bible reading, so you can jump in at any time and join with us. We want to invite as many people as possible to join us in daily Bible reading, so help spread the word and share the podcast! Don’t forget about our web-page, Bible2021.com – contact page, show notes, transcript and more– Click here for our Bible 2021 reading plan\

Today’s first question is a very strange one, but it does appear that our passage gives us something of an answer to the question: What color is God – or, more accurately, in what color does God appear? The answers seems to be in vs. 3
3 The one seated there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian stone. A rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald surrounded the throne. Revelation 4:3
Probably most people don’t know what a jasper or carnelian stone looks like, but they each look very similar to each other, interestingly. I’ve included a picture as the cover-art for the pod, so your player should show you what a jasper looks like. Does this mean that God is red or reddish in color? Well, God is Spirit, and as such, it may be that color is somewhat irrelevant to His appearance, but it is pretty undeniable that His appearance in Revelation 4 is at least somewhat red/crimsonesque.

As John continues to describe what He sees in Heaven, we get to a very mysterious passage:

5 Flashes of lightning and rumblings and peals of thunder came from the throne. Seven fiery torches were burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God. 6 Something like a sea of glass, similar to crystal, was also before the throne Revelation 4:5-6
Probably most of us have never heard a sermon or message on the Seven Spirits of God, or maybe we haven’t even heard about the Seven Spirits of God. What does this mean? Obviously a complete answer to this question is beyond our ability, but you might be surprised that Revelation 4 isn’t the only time the Seven Spirits of God are mentioned. We also have:
4 John: To the seven churches in Asia. Grace and peace to you from the one who is, who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth. Revelation 1:4 
3 “Write to the angel of the church in Sardis: Thus says the one who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars: I know your works; you have a reputation for being alive, but you are dead. Revelation 3:1 
6 Then I saw one like a slaughtered lamb standing in the midst of the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent into all the earth. Revelation 5:6 

Very interesting passages, no doubt. The Revelation 1:4 passage seems very trinitarian – as the grace and peace come from “The One Who is and Who is to Come” (God the Father) from Jesus Christ (the Son) and from “the Seven Spirits” before His throne – which appears to be a reference to the Holy Spirit. Further cementing that appearance is the parallel between our passage today – the seven burning torches/lamps before the throne, and what we read in Zechariah 4:

Then the angel who was speaking with me returned and roused me, as a man who is awakened from his sleep. 2 He said to me, “What do you see?” And I said, “I see, and behold, a lampstand all of gold with its bowl on the top of it, and its seven lamps on it with seven spouts belonging to each of the lamps which are on the top of it; 3 also two olive trees by it, one on the right side of the bowl and the other on its left side.” 4 Then I said to the angel who was speaking with me saying, “What are these, my lord?” 5 So the angel who was speaking with me answered and said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” And I said, “No, my lord.” 6 Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel saying, ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the Lord of hosts. Zechariah 4:1-6
It appears that the Lord identifies the seven lamps as being the Spirit of the Lord in this passage.
Finally, we see Jesus, the slaughtered Lamb, sending out the Seven Spirits of God into the earth in Revelation 5:6, which also comports with John 16:7
7 Nevertheless, I am telling you the truth. It is for your benefit that I go away, because if I don’t go away the Counselor will not come to you. If I go, I will send him to you. John 16:7 
So, with all of these parallels, it certainly seems like the “Seven Spirits of God” is perhaps a different way to refer to the Holy Spirit. Why seven? Two reasons, I believe. First, the number 7 seems to often represent perfection and completion in the Bible. Naaman, with leprosy, was told to bathe seven times to be purified. Jericho was encircled seven days, then seven times on the seventh before its walls fell as seven priests blew their horns. Seven clean animal pairs went on the ark. Seven bowls of wrath and seals of judgment to be poured out on the Earth, and Jesus writes seven letters to seven churches. And, there are hundreds more conspicuous uses of the number 7 in the Bible- not all of them associated with the Holy Spirit, but many of them associated with God and His commands and His bringing of perfection. As well, we have the prophecy in Isaiah 11 of the coming Messiah:
Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse,
And a branch from his roots will bear fruit.
2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him,
The spirit of wisdom and understanding,
The spirit of counsel and strength,
The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. Isaiah 11:1-2 
We count the seven-fold Spirit of God here resting on Jesus: The Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of wisdom. The Spirit of understanding. The Spirit of counsel. The Spirit of strength. The Spirit of knowledge and the Spirit of the fear of the Lord. So, by all appearances and inferences, the Seven-Spirits of God, or the sevenfold Spirit of God appears to be another name/title/way of referring to God’s Holy Spirit.  Let’s read our passage.

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Bible Memory passage for the month of December: Revelation 5:12, “They said with a loud voice: Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing!”

The Bible 2021 Podcast Is a ministry of Valley Baptist Church A Baptist Church in Salinas, California.

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