The Throne in Heaven | Revelation 5-8

Intent. This illustration was requested by a fellow Bible student, as part of a series for Revelation 4–5. It’s extremely complicated because the scene changes as the chapters progress, so it wasn’t possible for me to depict every element described in Scripture, though I tried to get as much as possible into this one illustration.

1. Twenty-five thrones. One holds what is presumably a personification of God Himself at the center of everything. This figure is different in kind from all others. The rainbow surrounding the throne “shone like an emerald,” and is presumably green.
2. Why a vast figure with a hidden face? Nothing in the chapter says that this figure is giant, that His face is hidden, or that He is smoking like a furnace. These are assumptions, but I’ve depicted Him this way because Isaiah 6 describes the Lord as “high and exalted, seated on a throne,” size and height are prominent in the Divine throne of Ezekiel 1, and scale is implied with Moses at Sinai when God’s hand shields Moses from His Glory.
3. Fire, cloud and lightning. Ezekiel 1 describes the figure as glowing metal, full of fire, with brilliant light and a rainbow-like radiance around him. Blending those features with the lightning and thunder coming from the throne, my thought was that smoke or cloud would arise from the figure, emitting thunder and lightning. Under the cloud, His blinding, glowing face would emit an intense, glorious light that creates the emerald rainbow.
4. What was the throne made of? I could very well be wrong. Ezekiel 1 describes a throne of lapis lazuli, echoing the “sapphire pavement” of Exodus 24. However, when John is brought before the Lord, there seems to be a connection with entering into the Most Holy Place, and the “temple” in heaven of Revelation 11:1 seems to be the same space. If so, perhaps all the thrones were gold, since all the materials in the Most Holy Place were covered in pure gold. My intent was also to make the Throne of the Ancient of Days different in kind to the thrones of the Elders. This is speculation and artistic license on my part, but I don’t think it presents a scriptural conflict.
5. Crowns of victory. The elders’ crowns are not diadema, royal circlets, but stephanos, wreaths given to victors, made of gold. I’ve tried to capture the moment as the elders once again arise from their thrones to cast these crowns of victory before God.
6. The angels and the multitude. The angels and the great multitude (of chapters 5 and 7) appear to be distinct groups that might occupy the same space. In the background I’ve included robed figures vague enough to be perceived as either or both (with some hints of palm leaves). The multitude John saw would have been unfathomably large, and my work surely does not do the vision justice.
7. A temple without a veil. The golden altar in front of the throne (Revelation 8:3) appears to be the Altar of Incense. Together with the lampstands standing before God, the implication seems to be of a temple without a veil between the Holy and Most Holy.

“Again, I cannot be certain that my visual interpretation is correct, so please view this drawing as you should with all of my work: with healthy skepticism!”

Each figure has its own notes: the Four Living Creatures, the Lamb, and the Seven-Sealed Scroll. Compare the Tabernacle’s Altar of Incense and Golden Lampstand, and the kids’ God’s Glory at Chebar coloring page.