The Son of Man

Introduction

We are still walking through the prelude to this book. I hope that is not tedious for you because it is by design. As we mentioned before. No other book in the NT holds its readers back from the main body of material that it presents for as long as Revelation does. This is not due to a desire for flowery language, but an intent to impress us with the majestic nature of what is happening. The opening is filled with detailed and suspenseful language. We spoke before that it is like a series of chambers being opened up to us section by section until finally we are brought into the presence of the Son of Man.

The commissioning of this writer and His writing of this book began in verse 9.

Revelation 1:9 KJV 1900

I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.

Remember that He is not writing under the impressive authority of apostleship, but as a companion. Companion in trouble, in the kingdom, and in the endurance.

Revelation 1:10 KJV 1900

I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet,

He then becomes in the Spirit and hears this commission

Revelation 1:11 KJV 1900

Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.

He is told to write what he sees in the book and then he turns and we will get to look at what He sees. verse 12.

Revelation 1:12 KJV 1900

And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;

From this point on we have a description of what John heard and what He saw. What He is going to see would have been astonishing to the first readers of this book. It astonishes us still. We rarely picture Jesus Christ the way that He is described here. But I can say emphatically that this is the description of how He is .

The Son of man looks like this. It is regal and astounding. It is awe inspiring and fearful.

Revelation 1:12–14 KJV 1900

And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;

Revelation 1:15–17 KJV 1900

And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters. And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:

John sees this, and was so stunned by such the appearance that He fell down as dead.

Now we need to remember as we go through this that it is revelatory. That is, it is revealing, it is not hyperbole. This is true. This is the description of the one called “The Son of Man”

We will probably spend two lessons on this.

Who is the Son of Man.

The first thing we need to talk about is who this is. And you will say, David, I know who this is. I hope you do, but surely you have been exposed to or experienced yourself the way in which this title for Christ is demeaned by non-believing people.

This title is used by unbelievers as ammunition to prove that Jesus never claimed deity, but only humanity.

This was, by dramatic proportions, Jesus’ favorite way to describe Himself. And the background to this title was given to us six centuries before the writing of Revelation.

The background for the title “Son of Man” is found in Daniel 7.

Daniel 7 tells us that this was revealed to Daniel in the first year of Belshazzar, king of Babylon. This is 553 BC. Daniel is 67 years old. Belshazzar is the son of Nebuchadnezzar. It is during this time that Daniel sees a troubling vision about four beasts:

A lion with Eagle’s wings

then one like a bear

then one like a leopard

Then a fourth that had no parallel. Dreadful and terrible, with great iron teeth

In verse 9 Daniel sees a vision in the heavens and heavenly beings. Now this Vision was something incredible, but thankfully God has included the interpretation of this in our Scripture. You see this in verse 17 of Daniel 7.

Daniel 7:17 KJV 1900

These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.

Now as you go on, you see that these creatures represent four successive gentile kingdoms. When the Babylonian captivity began, you began a period of time in the Bible that is called the time of the gentiles. Up to that point, history was given in terms of the nation of Israel. At the destruction of the Kingdom of Israel in 586 B.C. history is described through the gentile kingdoms. The first was Babylon, then Medo-Persia, then Greece and the fourth beast is the time we will be living as we approach the end of the age. What comes after that is described in verse 9ff which is what we are most keenly interesting in as it relates to Revelation 1.

Daniel 7:9–14 KJV 1900

I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened. I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame. As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time. I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.

So here the Son of Man is described as the one who comes after all the other thrones (kingdoms) are cast down.

And His kingdom/dominion is such that it is everlasting. It will never be destroyed.

There is an earthly kingdom going to be set up that is universal and eternal. And the one who is going to rule this kingdom is described how? He is like the “Son of man” that title clearly is communicating humanity. But at the same time it is communicating dissimilarity. What kind of being is “like the Son of Man,” but at the same time universal and eternal in his dominion?

So.... Who is this Son of Man? And how were people suppose to recognize Him if He revealed Himself.

Something that is still a problem of Jews today. Is the question of how you could have someone who is like a human, but is able to approach the Ancient of Days and receive from Him this universal dominion. The answer to this, and the rejection of the Jews to the answer, is in the gospels

Matt 26:64 is a key reference to understanding the person that is in Dan 7.

Mat 26 is 5 centuries later. And now there is a Man walking the earth who is preaching every where that He goes that the Kingdom of Heaven has drawn near. Everywhere He went He talked about this, and what it meant for God to draw near to men. And He was constantly was doing good. But because of what He said about Himself, He was arraigned and put on trial by the religious leadership of Israel.

And He ends up being questioned by the highest authority of that religious leadership, the High Priest. And when He is questioned, this is what happens.

Matthew 26:63 KJV 1900

But Jesus held his peace. And the high priest answered and said unto him, I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God.

Matthew 26:64 KJV 1900

Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.

If you have read your gospels, you know that “the Son of Man” was Jesus’ favorite designation for Himself

Jesus refers to Himself as the Son of Man over 80 times.

Luke 9:58 KJV 1900

And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.

Matthew 9:6 KJV 1900

But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house.

Matthew 12:40 KJV 1900

For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

Wait, you are telling me that the person we see in Daniel 7 is going to be buried in the earth?

The person we see in Daniel 7 is identified as no one other than Jesus of Nazareth in the gospels.

So when we get to Revelation and John sees one who is like the Son of Man, He is seeing the same one he leaned against at the last supper, but He looks much much different than He did on that day.

Every believer is keenly interested in this. We all want to know what the Lord looks like. And any imagination of Him is vain, because this is what He looks like. This is what He looks like right now.

Now lets go back at our chapter and see the setting.

Revelation 1:13 KJV 1900

And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.

John sees these seven golden candlesticks. And it is in the middle of those that He sees the one “like unto the Son of man.” Why is it that we see Him here?

What were the candlesticks? What were the candles? We see that interpretation given clearly at the end of this chapter in verse 20

Revelation 1:20 KJV 1900

The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.

The setting of the Son of Man

So what is the significance of this:

In the ancient world you would have these clay pots filled with oil. In the middle you would have a wick that would provide a little bit of light around it. They did with their lights, the same thing we do with ours. No one puts a lamp under a chair.... What do you do with it? you elevate them. Our light bulbs aren’t just up in lamps, we put them in the ceiling.

The would put them on poles. These were the candle sticks. The churches here, from divine viewpoint, is like something that elevates light so that it can get a wider radiance.

And in every culture you come across, this imagery is comprehended.

No matter where you go, truth and knowledge are viewed as light that dispels darkness.

Jesus tells people to let their light shine before men in mat 5:14. That’s to individual believers. What happens when 100s of these lights together in one place. Well, you ought to have a large radius of influence. And that ought to be the church.

The Son of Man is walking in the midst of His churches.

The Lord is walking in the midst of these 7 churches in Asia minor. And every one of them is an elevator of light so that it can be extended as far as possible. To the world. And if you are part of such an assembly you are in a privileged position. It makes you a part of that extension of light.

The candlesticks are described as gold. That was the most precious metal known to the ancient world and that also give you the divine viewpoint on the church. When God looks at His churches, they are gold. Is that the world’s viewpoint?

When the world looked at those 7 churches, they just saw a group of poor, inept, and non-influential people gathering together under something that made absolutely no sense. How much has that changed? The knock on Christian church in the ancient world was that it was largely made up of women and children. And Paul says… you know what Paul says: That’s true.

1 Corinthians 1:26 KJV 1900

For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:

That is scripture proof that the church is made up of those that the world describes as weak and scoffs at. Those poor, weak, ignorant christian people. But here is the thing. And this is absolutely essential for us to understand, especially right now. Nothing could be further from the truth. And if you attach yourself to one of those assemblies, that is the only place on the entire planet where there is light. There is not light anywhere else. That’s it. The entire world is lying in a squalor of darkness and the men born of the world spend their entire lives groping around in darkness.

You think about the music, the testimonies, and the preaching we will be exposed to today. That’s light. Then we go home and turn on the TV, or listen to the radio. Whatever is coming through those speakers or that screen that does not match up with Scripture is darkness. And it is like pulling the shades down in your mind.

Eternity will demonstrate this. You are part of one of the places where the light is shining.

His revealed appearance is in relation to those candlesticks and those lights. That’s how it is staged. What is He doing there.

Look at the first letter

Revelation 2:1 KJV 1900

Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;

He walks in their midst. He is doing that to all the churches. And what is He doing as He walks in the midst of those churches? You have read these passages before, what is He doing. He is giving commendation, I know your suffering, I know what you have been doing. and condemnation. conviction. Comfort

The imagery here is that He is tending the ministry of those churches. The churches give light, and He is tending to that. Much like the priests would go around in the temple tending the temple

Where two or three are gathered....

We take great comfort from this passage. Especially when we are small in number. But the context of that passage is church discipline.

Look even if you just bring 2 or three, I am in the midst of you.

The Son of Man is in the midst of these churches tending to their ministry.

He is in the middle. He is writing them letters. And He tends to the light of their assembly. This is not just hyperbole. Those things He says are for their edification and for them to correct. So that there light will brighten. And if they don’t, what is He going to do? He is going to come and remove their candlestick. Is He doing anything different now? What does He say at the end of those letters? He that hath and ear, let him hear what He says to the churches. We dress differently and live on the other side of the ocean, we are 20 centuries later, but the Lord’s ministry us does not differ in one piece of this.

Revelation 1:13 KJV 1900

And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.

How is the Son of Man dressed

The last thing we look at is His garment, His clothing

It was down to the foot, and around the paps, we would say the chest, with a golden girdle.

This would have been a robe with a Sash that would be warn to mark some dignity. There is certainly more going on here.

The Greek word referring to his garment, something interesting, is used in the Septuagint just 7 times. There are other words for robe used, but this one occurs in the Greek translation of the OT (The Septuagint) 7 times and 6 of those times it describes the High Priest’s robe. Ex 28:4, Zech 3:4. That doesn’t dogmatically make the significance of His robes as priestly, but.... if you read this in the first century you would most likely have pictured this.

There is also this broad belt or sash. It’s called a girdle and they were typically warn around your hips and used as a belt. If you were working or engaged in battled you would typically tuck your garment into that belt so it wouldn’t impeded progress. But… if someone of an elevated position lifted it up around their chest, it wasn’t for action, it was worn for impression. The OT High Priest had one that was woven with golden thread. The Son of Man’s however was just golden. That is impressive.

Gold was regal and the metal of kings. This person is tending to His churches arrayed in a priestly garment, but with the material of kings.

How would we react if someone like that came in. He has on a priestly garment down to His foot, but across His chest is this sash of pure supple gold. Weird, right? But only weird because that is not how people dress in our culture. But even if that were the case. We would certainly think of that person as someone of wealth and of some significant importance. This person is not a normal/usual person.

We sing things like “be thou my vision.” We say that we want to have our eyes on Jesus. Ok.... what is it that you are seeing? Well… it needs to be this. We have this description here, but He also describes Himself the same way as He walks through those churches. He is going to tell those churches that the one speaking to them has eyes like a flame of fire so if you have ears, you better hear. That’s frightening. And it is intended to be.

We need a healthy dose of viewing Jesus like He is to counteract the constantly increasing sentiment that Jesus is our buddy. This is the Son of Man, and His appearance and bearing is intended to put us down where we need to be. It did that to John, are we any better that we shouldn’t fall down before Him as dead men?

Now listen… that may not be very comforting. It’s supposed to be that way. But it is necessary. We have to have that kind of disposition. The comfort comes when He stoops down and says… “don’t be afraid.” But that must be the order of it. When we get down to our place as a church. If we look at ourselves properly it gives Jesus the opportunity to say that to us. Until then, He is resisting the proud and must bring us low.

The clothing itself reveals the nature of His ministry there. It’s like the ministry of the priest.

He has the garb of a priest on a throne.

There was a day when they took His clothing away and hung Him on a cross without anything on and then they gambled carelessly over that robe.

Here is garbed like a priest on a throne, later on when we look at His second coming He is going to come dressed as a warrior king.

We need to see Christ on the cross. That God we have that picture. But you should see Him now. The sight is glorious. Every knee is going to bow before the man of sorrows now.

So when we come to a place where the Scripture says that He is in our midst. He is walking among us. We need to see Him as He is and let that bring us low so He can do His work in us.