Episode 16: Revelation 10 – Our Glorious Future

 

You can watch the video of this study on my channel from 8pm to 9pm AEST on Monday nights.

Tonight we are going to look at one of the shorter chapters of the book of Revelation 10. This is another really good example that trying to tie the book of revelation to temporal events is not very easy. This chapter is also another clear intermission, which this time takes us outside of the events of judgement and looks at the recommissioning of this man of God to prophesy warning and judgement.

However, this does not mean we cannot be blessed by what this passage is teaching, and even see how this could possibly have either a future, past, or even future and past application.

Again, we should note the Old Testament imagery behind this passage:

Key OT Symbolic Themes in Revelation 10

1. The Divine Warrior-Angel
• The angel’s cloud attire (Exodus 19:9; Psalm 97:2) and fiery feet (Exodus 13:21; Daniel 10:6) evoke theophanic appearances where God manifests in storm imagery to enact judgment.
• His lion-like roar recalls God’s voice shaking creation (Amos 1:2; Joel 3:16) and His role as Israel’s defender (Hosea 11:10).
2. The Sealed Thunder Mystery
• The seven thunders’ secrecy (Rev 10:4) mirrors Daniel 12:4, 9 ("seal the words"), signifying God’s sovereign control over revelation. The command not to write contrasts with Daniel’s sealed visions now opened in Christ (Revelation 5:1–5).
3. The Oath of No More Delay
• The angel’s oath "by Him who lives forever" (Rev 10:6, NKJV) directly quotes Daniel 12:7 (LXX), where an angel swears judgment’s culmination. The lifting of hands to heaven mirrors Deuteronomy 32:40 and Daniel 12:7 – divine oaths of covenant fulfillment.
4. The Bittersweet Scroll
• John’s ingestion of the scroll reenacts Ezekiel 2:8–3:3, where eating a scroll symbolizes internalizing God’s message of judgment. The sweetness reflects God’s Word as delight (Psalm 119:103), while bitterness embodies the wrath it proclaims (Jeremiah 15:17; Lamentations 3:15).
5. "Prophesy Again" Commission
• Like Ezekiel 37:10 (prophesying to dry bones) and Jonah 3:1–2 (Nineveh’s second chance), John’s recommissioning signals hope amid judgment. The scroll’s dual sweetness/bitterness reflects prophetic calling: joy in salvation, grief over wrath.

If we stick to our principle of focusing on the what, rather than the when and the how, we will get more out of this passage and be less likely to lose ourselves in speculation.

Chapter 10 study questions:

 

1. Who is the angel in this passage, mentioned in verses 1-3 (if you look up Psalm 29, and Revelation 1, it might help with the answer)?

 

2. Why does this angel look so much like Jesus and what does this angel, therefore, tell us about our own destiny in Christ (cf. 2 Corinthians 3:16-18).

 

3. V.4, What did the seven thunders say?

 

4. What connection does verse 6 have with chapter 6?

 

5. What is the mystery of God in verse 7? (cf. Ephesians 3:3-6, Col 2:2, Romans 16:25).

 

6. What is this scroll, and why did it make John’s mouth taste as sweet as honey, but make his stomach bitter? (not Ezekiel 3:1-3, 14, might be helpful here).