And one of the elders says to me, Do not weep. Behold, the lion which [is] of the tribe of Juda, the root of David, has overcome [so as] to open the book, and its seven seals.
John weeps because no one in creation can open the sealed scroll. Then an elder speaks. The answer is a Person, named by two titles and one verb: Lion, Root, and "has conquered."
Who Brings the Comfort
Notice who answers John. It is not an angel.
One of the elders answered — not the angel, notice, but one of the elders. Only these have the intelligence of God and of His ways. He said to John, "Weep no more."
Not everyone reads John's tears the same way.
Some have called John's tears "the weakness of the creature." But if "wept much" is sometimes the expression of weakness, it is just as much the expression of a right and godly feeling. As one writer said: "Without tears the Revelation was not written, and without tears it cannot be understood."
The Lion of the Tribe of Judah
The title reaches back to Jacob's dying words over his sons. Scripture is answering itself across the centuries.
The metaphor carries the majesty and power of wild beasts on earth. Jacob compared Judah to a lion. One great chain runs through all Scripture. The Holy Spirit who spoke by Jacob on his deathbed now speaks through John. He reveals that, rejected as He may be on earth, heaven owns the Lion of the tribe of Judah as the One in whom all God's purposes centre.
The title carries more than raw force.
"The Lion of the tribe of Judah" is a glorious title. It means human majesty with no stain on it, and Royalty that is really royal. In it is the wisdom that stoops to conquer. In it is the power that subdues all enemies. It lifts those who love righteousness out of all oppression and depression.
The Root of David
The second title says something a family tree cannot say. A descendant comes from David; a root is what David himself came from.
He is described as the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Offspring of David, the One who as Man descended from David. But He is also the Root of David. He is the One who was before David, and the One David came from. In short, He is the One who was from all eternity.
Why name David here, and not Moses or Abraham? Because these chapters are about a throne.
David stands for Royalty. Moses stands for Law. Abraham holds the Promise. Now these two chapters (4 and 5) have as their main subject the kingdom rights and glories of Christ. They speak again and again of thrones and crowns, and that is what marks out this magnificent part of Revelation.
He Has Prevailed
Everything turns on one word in the elder's answer. Older translations read "has prevailed" where the ESV has "has conquered."
The elder does not only say that He is worthy. He says, "He has prevailed." That little word "prevailed" (conquered or overcame) is bound up with the whole subject of the chapter. It is the victory of Jesus by His blood. The Lord Jesus always had personal worthiness to take the book. But suppose He had received and opened it on the ground of His own worthiness alone. What good would that have done us? The book would have stayed sealed to us.
He won that victory as a man, and that is why God's secrets now reach His people.
If He had not prevailed as Son of Man, not even as Son of God could He have opened the secrets of God to His people. He goes up and takes the book, and then praise flows out.
Told a Lion, Shown a Lamb
The next verse springs a surprise, and it shapes how we read the title.
John had heard of a Lion, but when he looked, it was a Lamb. He expected the symbol of power. Instead, before them all stood the picture of most holy suffering and rejection... The Lord of glory has become a Lamb, and we must know Him as such if we are to profit by Him.
Summary
- Tears — John weeps over a sealed book. That is right feeling, not weakness: Revelation was not written without tears, and cannot be understood without them.
- Comfort — the answer comes from an elder, not an angel, because the elders know God and His ways.
- Lion — the title reaches back to Jacob's deathbed words over Judah. It means royal power that subdues enemies and lifts the oppressed.
- Root — He is David's source, not just David's descendant. He was there before David, from all eternity.
- Prevailed — worthiness alone would have left the book shut for us. He conquered as Son of Man, and God's secrets flow out. Then John looks and sees a Lamb.