Thou art worthy, O our Lord and [our] God, to receive glory and honour and power; for *thou* hast created all things, and for thy will they were, and they have been created.
In Revelation 4, crowned elders sing before God's throne. They say who deserves all glory, and they give one reason: God made everything. Judgment is about to fall on the earth, yet those nearest the throne answer with worship, not fear.
Worship That Understands
Two groups praise in this chapter, and they do not praise in the same way. One writer draws the distinction sharply.
Someone has remarked "that the living creatures only celebrate and declare; the elders worship with understanding." All God's works will praise Him. But only the redeemed have the mind of Christ. Only they can, through the Holy Spirit, enter into the things of God and share in them, whether in grace or in judgment.
The living creatures speak about God. The elders speak to Him, calling Him "our Lord and God" (Walter Scott).
Crowns Thrown Down
The elders wear gold crowns, and they do not keep them. One writer explains where such crowns come from.
When Christ rewards the believer with a crown, or crowns, at His judgment seat, there will be no sinful nature left to swell with pride. The believer will cast those crowns at the feet of the One who gave them. It was His grace that produced this fruit in the believer, for His praise.
The crowns came from Christ, and the saints "use the crowns that Christ has given them to own their perfect submission to Him" (Hamilton Smith). The elders are "more blessed in owning His glory than in having their own" (Edward Dennett).
The Reason Behind Everything That Exists
The word "for" carries the whole verse. The elders give the reason God is worthy.
These twenty-four elders (representatives, as I have said, of the saints), as kings and priests, understand what makes the Lord worthy of praise: "for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created." The Lord is the source and final end of all that exists.
Older translations read "for your pleasure" where the ESV has "by your will." Both point to God's will as the one cause.
Created Beings Owe Their Creator
If God's will alone brought everything into being, then everything remains answerable to Him. That is the argument the elders' last words make.
They praise Him as the Creator, and they own the sovereign claims this gives Him over all His creatures. His will alone called them into being, and by His will alone they went on existing. So, since they depend on their Creator, they must answer to Him in judgment.
People on earth will soon deny this claim. One commentator notes that those who are a new creation in Christ "enter into God's rights as Creator; which earth's inhabitants, and especially apostate Christians, are about to dispute and deny" (William Kelly).
Who Is Being Worshipped
The Lamb is not named separately in this chapter, which raises a question about who receives this praise.
This praise goes not to the Father, but to the God of creation and providence. In this chapter Jesus is never named or seen on His own. Yet in creation He is the person of the Godhead who works; for "all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together." (Col. 1:16-17.) So the one worshipped here is not the Father as distinct from the Son. It is God the Creator, including Father, Son, and Spirit. All the glory a creature has is only given to it. So the elders, though crowned, fall down and worship the ever-living One, casting their crowns before the throne and owning that He alone is worthy of honour, glory, and power.
Two Songs, Two Chapters
This song does not mention redemption yet. That comes next: "In chapter 4, it is the praises of creation, and in chapter 5, the praises of redemption" (J. N. Darby).
When His Pleasure Is Restored
A creation made for God's pleasure is not what we see around us now.
Sin has spoiled the beautiful creation, so that now the whole creation groans and suffers pain. But the saints in heaven have the mind of the Lord. They can see that God will deal with all the evil in judgment. Then God can once again take pleasure in His creation, just as He did long ago when the creation work was finished: "And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good" (Gen. 1:31).
Summary
- His will — Nothing exists by accident. God's will alone called everything into being and keeps it in being.
- His right — Because He made all things, He may judge all things. To depend on a Creator is to answer to Him.
- His worthiness — The elders give a reason for their praise. Worship that knows why it worships is worship "with understanding."
- His crowns — Real rewards go straight back to the Giver. The elders would rather own His glory than hold their own.
- His pleasure — Sin has spoiled what He made for His delight. Judgment clears the way for God to enjoy His creation again.