PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible — Revelation
Gill, John, 1697-1771 · 232,308 words · 199 reading sections
Revelation 1:1
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible. Revelation 1:1 INTRODUCTION TO REVELATIONS That this book was written by the Apostle and Evangelist John, is clear not only from the express mention of his name, and from his office, a servant of Jesus Christ, Re 1:1; but also from the character this writer gives of himsel…
2,164 wordsSECTION 2Revelation 1:2
Revelation 1:2 Ver. 2. Who bore record of the word of God,.... Of the essential and eternal Word of God, his only begotten Son; as John the apostle did in his Gospel, and in his epistles, and also in this book; and which is a clear evidence of his being the writer of it. And of the testimony of Jesus Christ; that is,…
227 wordsSECTION 3Revelation 1:3
Revelation 1:3 Ver. 3. Blessed [is] he that readeth,.... This book the Revelation, privately, in his closet or family, carefully and diligently, with a desire of understanding it; or publicly in the church of God, and endeavours open and explain it to others; and may allude to the reading of the law and the prophets i…
340 wordsSECTION 4Revelation 1:4
Revelation 1:4 Ver. 4. John to the seven churches which are in Asia,.... In lesser Asia; their names are mentioned in Re 1:11; grace [be] unto you, and peace; which is the common salutation of the apostles in all their epistles, and includes all blessings of grace, and all prosperity, inward and outward: See Gill on …
805 wordsSECTION 5Revelation 1:5
Revelation 1:5 Ver. 5. And from Jesus Christ,.... Who, though the second Person in the Trinity, is mentioned last, because many things were to be said of him; and who is described in all his offices: in his prophetic office, the faithful witness; as he is of his Father, of his mind and will, with respect to doctrine …
695 wordsSECTION 6Revelation 1:6
Revelation 1:6 Ver. 6. And hath made us kings and priests,.... The Alexandrian copy, and Complutensian edition, read, "a kingdom, priests"; and the Vulgate Latin version, "a kingdom and priests"; and the Arabic version, "a kingdom of priesthood"; reference seems to be had to Ex 19:6: "and ye shall be unto me a kingdom…
623 wordsSECTION 7Revelation 1:7
Revelation 1:7 Ver. 7. Behold he cometh with clouds,.... John carries on the account of Christ in his kingly office, one branch of which is to execute judgment; and describes him by a future coming of his, which cannot be understood of his coming to take vengeance on the Jews, at the time of Jerusalem's destruction, t…
808 wordsSECTION 8Revelation 1:8
Revelation 1:8 Ver. 8. I am Alpha and Omega,.... These are the words of Christ himself, appearing at once, and confirming what John had said of him, concerning his person, offices, and future coming: Alpha is the first letter, and Omega the last in the Greek alphabet, and signifies that Christ is the first and the las…
1,303 wordsSECTION 9Revelation 1:9
Revelation 1:9 Ver. 9. I, John, who also am your brother,.... Here begins the narrative of the visions and prophecies of this book, the former verses containing a general preface to the whole; and this, and the two following verses, are the introduction to the first vision, which John saw; who describes himself by his…
680 wordsSECTION 10Revelation 1:10
Revelation 1:10 Ver. 10. I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day,.... Not on the Jewish sabbath, which was now abolished, nor was that ever called the Lord's day, and had John meant that, he would have said on the sabbath day; much less the Jewish passover, but the first day of the week is designed; so the Ethiopic vers…
6,849 wordsSECTION 11Revelation 2:1
Revelation 2:1 INTRODUCTION TO REVALATION 2 This chapter contains the epistles to the churches at Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, and Thyatira. It begins with that to Ephesus, in which the sender of it describes himself by some of his characters mentioned in the preceding chapter; takes notice of some things commendable i…
1,531 wordsSECTION 12Revelation 2:2
Revelation 2:2 Ver. 2. I know thy works,.... The good works, both of ministers and churches; no evil works are mentioned, nor anything complained of in this church but an abatement of the fervour of her first love. Christ, as the omniscient God, knows all the works of his people, and the springs, and principles, and e…
713 wordsSECTION 13Revelation 2:3
Revelation 2:3 Ver. 3. And hast borne,.... Not evil men, nor false apostles, but "burdens", as the Ethiopic version reads, and as the word signifies; meaning afflictions, reproaches, and persecutions, which pressed sore, and lay heavy on these ministers and churches; and yet they bore them with constancy and cheerfuln…
257 wordsSECTION 14Revelation 2:4
Revelation 2:4 Ver. 4. Nevertheless I have [somewhat] against thee,.... So the Jews represent God saying, concerning their fathers, "Abraham", &c. Mhyle yl vy, "I have something against them" {a}. Christ has nothing against his people, his faithful ministers, and true churches, in a judicial way, or to their condemnat…
372 wordsSECTION 15Revelation 2:5
Revelation 2:5 Ver. 5. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen,.... Believers cannot totally and finally fall away from the grace which they have received; but they may fall into sin, and from a degree of grace, and the exercise of it, as these first and pure churches did, from some degree of their love to God,…
510 wordsSECTION 16Revelation 2:6
Revelation 2:6 Ver. 6. But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans,.... Though these Christians had left their first love, yet they bore an hatred to the filthy and impure practices of some men, who were called "Nicolaitans"; who committed fornication, adultery, and all uncleanness, and had their…
429 wordsSECTION 17Revelation 2:7
Revelation 2:7 Ver. 7. He that hath an ear,.... Such who have new ears given them, as all have who are made new creatures; such who have their ears circumcised, and opened by the Spirit of God; who hear with understanding, affection, and faith; who try what they hear, and approve, embrace, and retain that which is goo…
593 wordsSECTION 18Revelation 2:8
Revelation 2:8 Ver. 8. And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write,.... Of the city of Smyrna, See Gill on "Re 1:11". That there was a church of Christ here is not to be doubted, though by whom it was founded is not certain; very likely by the Apostle Paul, who was in those parts, and by whose means all Asia hear…
726 wordsSECTION 19Revelation 2:9
Revelation 2:9 Ver. 9. I know thy works,.... Good works, as before in Re 2:2; and tribulation; this is Christ's legacy to his people, and which lies in their way to heaven; and never was the way of any to heaven more strewed with it than was the way of the saints in this period. But Christ took notice of it, and of t…
434 wordsSECTION 20Revelation 2:10
Revelation 2:10 Ver. 10. Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer,.... God's people undergo sufferings of various sorts, as the Christians of those times did, scourgings, imprisonment, confiscation of goods, and death itself in various shapes; and these are certain, they shall suffer them; they are all known …
9,124 wordsSECTION 21Revelation 3:1
Revelation 3:1 INTRODUCTION TO REVELATION 3 This chapter contains the epistles to the churches at Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea, and begins with that to Sardis; in which the sender describes himself by some things taken out of a former description of him; and gives an account of the state of this church; that he…
1,776 wordsSECTION 22Revelation 3:2
Revelation 3:2 Ver. 2. Be watchful,.... Which may respect both ministers and members: the ministers of the Gospel, whose business is to watch over themselves, their conversation and doctrine, and watch every opportunity to preach it, and the success of their ministry; and that they do not grow careless, or be drawn as…
710 wordsSECTION 23Revelation 3:3
Revelation 3:3 Ver. 3. Remember, therefore, how thou hast received and heard,.... That is, hast received upon hearing; for hearing goes first, and then receiving: the design of the advice is to put this church in mind of the doctrines of grace she had heard at the beginning of the Reformation, from Luther and others; …
445 wordsSECTION 24Revelation 3:4
Revelation 3:4 Ver. 4. Thou hast a few names even in Sardis,.... The Alexandrian copy and others, the Complutensian edition, the Vulgate Latin, and all the Oriental versions, read, "but thou hast a few names", &c. or "a few men", as the Ethiopic version renders it; who were called by name, and were men of renown, exce…
679 wordsSECTION 25Revelation 3:5
Revelation 3:5 Ver. 5. He that overcometh,.... The deadness, formality, and imperfection of this church state; gets over these things, and is among the few names in it: the same shall be clothed in white raiment; the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, Arabic, and Ethiopic versions, read, "thus shall he be clothed in white raimen…
591 wordsSECTION 26Revelation 3:6
Revelation 3:6 Ver. 6. He that hath an ear, let him hear,.... See Gill on "Re 2:7".…
19 wordsSECTION 27Revelation 3:7
Revelation 3:7 Ver. 7. And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write,.... Of the city of Philadelphia, See Gill on "Re 1:11"; According to the Apostolical Constitutions {m}, one Demetrius was ordained bishop of this church by the Apostle John; but this is not to be depended on; nor is it known who this angel wa…
1,296 wordsSECTION 28Revelation 3:8
Revelation 3:8 Ver. 8. I know thy works,.... Good works, of faith, love, and patience; and which lay much in preaching, professing, and maintaining the pure Gospel, and in acts of charity to one another; and which were done to some degree of perfection, and with great sincerity; since this church is not complained of,…
440 wordsSECTION 29Revelation 3:9
Revelation 3:9 Ver. 9. Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan,.... Which may be understood either of the Papists, the followers of the man of sin, whose coming was after the working of Satan, and whose doctrines are the doctrines of devils, many of whom will now be converted, and brought to the true church…
369 wordsSECTION 30Revelation 3:10
Revelation 3:10 Ver. 10. Because thou hast kept the word of my patience,.... The Gospel; so called because it gives an account of the patience of Christ, in the midst of all his outward meanness and humiliation; and because it is a means of implanting and increasing the grace of patience, which God is the efficient ca…
416 wordsSECTION 31Revelation 3:11
Revelation 3:11 Ver. 11. Behold, I come quickly,.... To bring on this hour of temptation on the reformed churches, which will be at the beginning of this period; to help and deliver, save and preserve the truly godly among them; to destroy antichrist, and introduce the latter day glory: hold that fast which thou hast…
254 wordsSECTION 32Revelation 3:12
Revelation 3:12 Ver. 12. He that overcometh,.... In the hour of temptation, in this period of time; that stands his ground then, sustains the shock of the beast, with courage and intrepidity, and overcomes him: will I make a pillar in the temple of my God; by which is meant not the church triumphant, though such will…
5,433 wordsSECTION 33Revelation 4:1
Revelation 4:1 INTRODUCTION TO REVELATION 4 This chapter contains an account of the second vision John saw, as preparatory to the sealed book, and the opening of it, as the first vision was to the epistles to the seven churches. The preface to this vision, or the introduction to it, and preparation of John for it, ar…
1,202 wordsSECTION 34Revelation 4:2
Revelation 4:2 Ver. 2. And immediately I was in the Spirit,.... As he had been before, Re 1:10; it seems he had been some little time out of his ecstasy, how long cannot be said, and now, upon this new scene of things, returned to it; upon the opening of the door in heaven, and hearing the former voice, and the things…
503 wordsSECTION 35Revelation 4:3
Revelation 4:3 Ver. 3. And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper,.... For the brightness, glory, and majesty of his countenance, and for his being light itself, clothed with it, and dwelling in it; see Re 21:11; and for the various perfections of his nature, as eternity, infinity, immutability, omniscience, omnip…
1,203 wordsSECTION 36Revelation 4:4
Revelation 4:4 Ver. 4. And round about the throne [were] four and twenty seats,.... In a semicircular form, as the rainbow also was; the thrones in the above form, came to both ends, or sides of it; just as when the sanhedrim, or great court of judicature among the Jews say {m}, the "Nasi", or prince, sat in the upper…
841 wordsSECTION 37Revelation 4:5
Revelation 4:5 Ver. 5. And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings, and voices,.... Which may be understood either of the doctrines of the Gospel which come out of Zion, and out of Jerusalem, the church of God, where he has his throne; and which are comparable to "lightning", both for the light and know…
372 wordsSECTION 38Revelation 4:6
Revelation 4:6 Ver. 6. And before the throne [there was] a sea of glass like unto crystal,.... By which is meant, not heaven, nor the souls of the blessed there, nor the multitude of the holy angels, nor the first converts to Christianity at Jerusalem; for those that got the victory over the beast are said to stand up…
2,546 wordsSECTION 39Revelation 4:7
Revelation 4:7 Ver. 7. And the first beast [was] like a lion,.... And this figure expresses the strength of the ministers of the word, the lion being the strongest among beasts, Pr 30:30, to do the work they are called to, to endure hardness, as good soldiers of Christ, and to bear the infirmities of the weak; and als…
270 wordsSECTION 40Revelation 4:8
Revelation 4:8 Ver. 8. And the four beasts had each of them six wings about [him],.... As the seraphim in Isa 6:2 with two of which they might cover their faces as they did, testifying thereby their reverence of God, when in his presence; and with the other two cover their feet, signifying their sense of their sinfuln…
433 wordsSECTION 41Revelation 4:9
Revelation 4:9 Ver. 9. And when these beasts give glory,.... When they give God the glory of all his perfections, covenant, and promises, and of all the gifts and grace bestowed on them, and of the success of their ministry; and in it glorify Father, Son, and Spirit, who bear their respective parts in the business of …
140 wordsSECTION 42Revelation 4:10
Revelation 4:10 Ver. 10. The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne,.... The ministers of the Gospel begin the worship of God, and lead in it, who are the four living creatures; when the members of churches, who are the four and twenty elders, follow, and approach the divine Being in a most…
561 wordsSECTION 43Revelation 5:1
Revelation 5:1 INTRODUCTION TO REVEALTION 5 This chapter contains the vision of the sealed book, and the opening of it by Christ, which occasions universal joy among all ranks and sorts of creatures. The book is described by the place where it was, in the right hand of God; by the uncommon manner in which it was writ…
1,337 wordsSECTION 44Revelation 5:2
Revelation 5:2 Ver. 2. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice,.... This was not the uncreated angel, Jesus Christ; for he is after spoken of as the lion of the tribe of Judah, and as the Lamb in the midst of the throne, but a created one; though who he was, whether Gabriel, as some say, because his nam…
434 wordsSECTION 45Revelation 5:3
Revelation 5:3 Ver. 3. And no man in heaven,.... Or "no one in heaven", whether angels, or the souls of departed saints; neither the one nor the other know anything of what is to come, until it is revealed unto them: nor in earth: among all the men on earth, even those of the greatest sagacity and penetration, the wi…
257 wordsSECTION 46Revelation 5:4
Revelation 5:4 Ver. 4. And I wept much,.... Not so much on his own account, because he feared his curiosity would not be gratified, and that strong desire answered, which were raised in him upon sight of the book, and increased by the angel's proclamation; but for the sake of the church of God, whose representative he…
300 wordsSECTION 47Revelation 5:5
Revelation 5:5 Ver. 5. And one of the elders said unto me,.... The Ethiopic version reads, "one of these elders"; that is, one of the four and twenty elders that were round about the throne; not the first of the four and twenty books of the Old Testament; nor the patriarch Jacob, because of the prophecy concerning Shi…
799 wordsSECTION 48Revelation 5:6
Revelation 5:6 Ver. 6. And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts,.... These words, "in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts", are left out in the Syriac version: and in the midst of the elders stood a Lamb; John, upon the intimation given him by the elder, lift up his eyes, an…
1,026 wordsSECTION 49Revelation 5:7
Revelation 5:7 Ver. 7. And he came,.... He drew nigh to the throne of God, he engaged his heart to approach unto him, and came up even to his seat, which a mere creature, without a Mediator, cannot do: and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne; See Gill on "Re 5:1"; it being given unto h…
101 wordsSECTION 50Revelation 5:8
Revelation 5:8 Ver. 8. And when he had taken the book,.... The Vulgate Latin version reads, "when he had opened the book", very wrongly; for the opening of it by unloosing the seals, one after another, is hereafter mentioned, in Re 6:1, but when it was observed, that the Lamb took the book, and his commission to open,…
660 wordsSECTION 51Revelation 5:9
Revelation 5:9 Ver. 9. And they sung a new song,.... Upon a new occasion and subject, redemption by the blood of the Lamb, and his worthiness to open the sealed book; and in distinction from the old song of Moses and the children of Israel at the Red sea; and this was a most famous and excellent song, an unheard of on…
505 wordsSECTION 52Revelation 5:10
Revelation 5:10 Ver. 10. And hast made us unto our God kings and priests,.... See Gill on "Re 1:6". The Alexandrian copy, and Complutensian edition, and the Syriac, Arabic, and the Ethiopic versions, read "them", instead of "us": and we shall reign on the earth; meaning not merely in a spiritual sense, through grace …
117 wordsSECTION 53Revelation 5:11
Revelation 5:11 Ver. 11. And I beheld, and heard the voice of many angels,.... Immaterial spirits, made by Christ, and worshippers of him, and ministering spirits to him and his, the holy and elect angels, who are confirmed in their state by Christ; these John beheld in a visionary way, and heard the voices and articu…
609 wordsSECTION 54Revelation 5:12
Revelation 5:12 Ver. 12. Saying with a loud voice,.... To signify their zeal, fervour, and affection for Christ, and to make a free, open, and public acknowledgment of him, and that all might hear of his worthiness, and of the praise and glory that were due unto him:worthy is the Lamb that was slain; they address him …
1,079 wordsSECTION 55Revelation 6:1
Revelation 6:1 INTRODUCTION TO REVELATION 6 This chapter contains the vision of the opening six of the seals of the sealed book, by the Lamb, and of the events following thereupon. The preparation to the vision of the first seal is in Re 6:1; the Lamb opens it, John hears a noise like thunder, and one of the living c…
1,001 wordsSECTION 56Revelation 6:2
Revelation 6:2 Ver. 2. And I saw, and behold a white horse,.... Representing the ministration of the Gospel in the times of the apostles, which were just now finishing, John being the last of them, who saw this vision; and the "horse" being a swift, majestic, and warlike creature, and fearless of opposition and war, m…
650 wordsSECTION 57Revelation 6:3
Revelation 6:3 Ver. 3. And when he had opened the second seal,.... Of the sealed book; that is, the Lamb, as before: I heard the second beast say, come and see; this living creature was the ox, whose situation was on the west side of the throne, as the standard of Ephraim, on which was an ox, was on the west of the c…
215 wordsSECTION 58Revelation 6:4
Revelation 6:4 Ver. 4. And there went out another horse, [that was] red,.... Which may be an emblem either of the suffering state of the church, being answerable to the Smyrnaean one, as the purity and power of the Gospel, represented in the former seal, may answer to the Ephesine church; or else of those contentions …
810 wordsSECTION 59Revelation 6:5
Revelation 6:5 Ver. 5. And when he had opened the third seal,.... Of the sealed book: I heard the third beast say, come and see; this living creature was that which was like a man, who was on the south side of the throne, as the standard of Reuben, which had the figure of a man, was on the south side of the camp of I…
562 wordsSECTION 60Revelation 6:6
Revelation 6:6 Ver. 6. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say,.... Not the voice of Agabus to the Apostle Paul, Ac 11:28; but rather of Christ, who was in the midst of them, Re 5:6; the Ethiopic version adds, "as the voice of an eagle": a measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for…
577 wordsSource & rights
Public domain; John Gill (1697–1771). Source item is marked Public Domain on Internet Archive.
Project Gutenberg source record →
Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.