And they shall see his face; and his name [shall be] in their foreheads.
4. shall see his face ] This is the locus classicus for what constitutes the blessedness of heaven, the “Beatific Vision.” It is intimated in Job 19:26 and in Isa 52:8, where there may be an allusion to the privilege of Moses, Exo 33:11; Num 12:8; Deu 34:10. In the last verse of Psalms 17 it may be questioned whether the final and immediate vision, or an earthly foretaste, is intended; but Job 42:5-6; Isa 6:5 shew that it is only to “the spirits of just men made perfect” that the vision is endurable. In the N. T. we have the promise in St Mat 5:8; 1Co 13:12; St John’s I Eph 3:2 .
his name [shall be] in their foreheads ] So in Rev 14:1, where, according to the true text, we see that “ His ” still means the Name of God, both the Father and the Son.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
And they shall see his face – See the notes on Mat 18:10. They would be constantly in his presence, and be permitted continually to behold his glory.
And his name shall be in their foreheads – They shall be designated as his. See the notes on Rev 3:12; Rev 7:3; Rev 13:16.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 4. See his face] Enjoy what is called the beatific vision; and they shall exhibit the fullest evidence that they belong entirely to him, for his name shall be written on their foreheads.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
And they shall see his face; it is a phrase by which the happiness of the glorified saints is oft expressed, Mat 5:8; 1Co 13:12; Heb 12:14; 1Jo 3:2; they shall enjoy him immediately.
And his name shall be in their foreheads; there shall be none that have the name of the beast on their foreheads; they shall have Gods name on their foreheads, and be so manifested to be the sons of God.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
4. see his facerevealed indivine glory, in Christ Jesus. They shall see and know Himwith intuitive knowledge of Him, even as they are known by Him(1Co 13:9-12), andface to face. Compare 1Ti 6:16;Joh 14:9. God the Father can onlybe seen in Christ.
inGreek, “ontheir foreheads.” Not only shall they personally and in secret(Re 3:17) know their sonship,but they shall be known as sons of God to all the citizens of the newJerusalem, so that the free flow of mutual love among the members ofChrist’s family will not be checked by suspicion as here.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And they shall see his face,…. The face of God, so as he is not to be seen now; they shall see him as he is; not only the angels, who always behold the face of God, but all the saints, risen and changed, being pure in heart, and perfectly holy; they shall see him face to face, they shall have intimate and familiar communion with him; they shall enjoy his favour, and have the freest and largest discoveries of his love; and they shall see the face of the Lamb; they shall behold Christ and his glory both with the eyes of their understanding, and with the eyes of their bodies; and this is a very desirable sight, and will be very glorious and delightful; it will be fully satisfying, and will make the saints like unto him; it will be free from all darkness and any interruption, and will always continue.
And his name shall be in their foreheads; they shall be known to be his servants, as if his name was written and bore on their foreheads; it will be a clear case that they are the children and people of God; now they are, but it is not known, at least not so known as it will be in this state; and they will also in the fullest and freest manner own God to be their God, and the Lamb to be their Redeemer; they will be under no fear of man, nor be under any temptation to be ashamed of Christ, or of his service; see Re 14:1. Some think there is an allusion to the inscription on the mitre of the high priest’s forehead, “holiness to the Lord”, the saints being now openly, visibly, and perfectly holy.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
They shall see his face ( ). Future active of . This vision of God was withheld from Moses (Exod 33:20; Exod 33:23), but promised by Jesus to the pure in heart (Mt 5:8) and mentioned in Heb 12:14 as possible only to the holy, and promised in Ps 17:15. Even here on earth we can see God in the face of Christ (2Co 4:6), but now in the New Jerusalem we can see Christ face to face (1Co 13:12), even as he is after we are made really like him (2Cor 3:18; Rom 8:29; 1John 3:2). It is anthropomorphic language, to be sure, but it touches the essential reality of religion. “The supreme felicity is reached, immediate presence with God and the Lamb” (Beckwith).
His name on their foreheads ( ). As in Rev 3:12; Rev 7:3; Rev 14:1.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
See His face. Compare 1Jo 3:2; Mt 5:8; Exo 33:20; Psa 17:15.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “And they shall see his face,” (kai opsontai to prosopon autou) “And they shall see (look upon) his face; for they shall be the “pure in heart,” Mat 5:8; 1Jn 3:2; Act 2:9-11; Psa 42:2.
2) “And his name,” (kai to onoma autou) “And the name of him,” his name, his identity and authority, token of honor, exhalation, consecration, and sublime service, Isa 9:6-7; Col 3:17.
3) “Shall be in their foreheads,” (epi ton metopon auton) “Shall be upon (or in) their foreheads,” Rev 7:3; Rev 14:1; as a symbol of identity and free, voluntary servant of the Lamb forever, as set forth in the Mosaic Law, Exo 21:5-6; Deu 15:12-18.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
4. Shall see his face This is that “vision of God” of which theologians have much spoken, constituting the highest glory of heaven.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
4. By JESUS, reaffirming his coming, denouncing the corrupters of the record, 16-19.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
4 And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.
Ver. 4. And they shall see his face ] How we shall see God, whether with our minds only, or with bodily eyes we shall behold his invisible Majesty in the glorious face of Jesus Christ, there can be nothing determined.
And his name shall be ] As servants of old had their master’s name branded in their foreheads.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
The ancient ideal of intimate confidence is also to be realised ( cf. on Mat 5:8 and Iren. Adv. Har. Rev 22:7 ). With this phrase and that of Rev 21:22 compare Browning’s lines: “Why, where’s the need of temple when the walls | O’ the world are that This one Face, far from vanish, rather grows | Becomes my universe that feels and knows.” The idea here is that reproduced in the seventh and supreme degree of bliss in 4 Ezra 7 :[78] where the saints “shall rejoice with confidence, have boldness undismayed, and gladness unafraid, for they shall hasten to behold the face of him whom they served in life”. By Oriental usage, no condemned or criminal person was allowed to look on the king’s face (Est 7:8 ), In the ancient ch. 64 of E. B. D. (papyrus of Nu) the “triumphant Nu saith, ‘I have come to see him that dwelleth in his divine uraeus, face to face, and eye to eye. Thou art in me, and I am in thee,’ ” The Apocalypse, however, shuns almost any approach to the inner union of the individual Christian and Christ which distinguished both Paul and the fourth gospel; it also eschews the identification of God and man which was often crudely affected by Egyptian eschatology. No allusion occurs to the supremacy of the saints over angels (Ap. Bar. 51:12, etc.), though John is careful elsewhere to keep the latter in their place (see on Rev 21:17 , Rev 22:9 ). He also ignores the problem of different degrees in bliss, . In Chag. 5 b there is a story of a blind rabbi who blessed some departing visitors with the words, “Ye have visited a face that is seen and sees not: may ye be counted worthy to visit the Face which sees and is not seen”. The Christian prophet has a better hope and promise. Compare, however, Plutarch’s touching faith ( Iside , 79) that the souls of men after death will “migrate to the unseen, the good,” when God becomes their king and leader and where “they, as it were, hang upon him and gaze without ever wearying, and yearn for that unspeakable, indescribable Beauty”.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
Revelation
THREE INSCRIPTIONS WITH ONE MEANING
‘HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD.’ – Zec 14:20 .
‘ His name shall be in their foreheads .’ – Rev 22:4 .
You will have perceived my purpose in putting these three widely separated texts together. They all speak of inscriptions, and they are all obviously connected with each other. The first of them comes from the ancient times of the institution of the ceremonial ritual, and describes a part of the high priest’s official dress. In his mitre was a thin plate of gold on which was written, ‘Holiness to the Lord.’ The second of them comes from almost the last portion recorded of the history of Israel in the Old Testament, and is from the words of the great Prophet of the Restoration-his ideal presentation of the Messianic period, in which he recognises as one feature, that the inscription on the mitre of the high priest shall be written on ‘the bells of the horses.’ And the last of them is from the closing vision of the celestial kingdom, the heavenly and perfected form of the Christian Church. John, probably remembering the high priest and his mitre, with its inscription upon the forehead, says: ‘His servants shall do Him priestly service’-for that is the meaning of the word inadequately translated ‘serve Him’-’and see His face, and His name shall be in their foreheads.’
These three things, then-the high priest’s mitre, the horses’ bells, the foreheads of the perfected saints-present three aspects of the Christian thought of holiness. Take them one by one.
I. The high priest’s mitre.
And what is it? It is a very unfortunate thing-indicating superficiality of thought-that the modern popular notion of ‘holiness’ identifies it with purity, righteousness, moral perfection. Now that idea is in it, but is not the whole of it. For, not to spend time upon mere remarks on words, the meaning of the word thus rendered is in Hebrew, as well as in Greek and in our own English, one and the same. The root-meaning is ‘separated,’ ‘set apart,’ and the word expresses primarily, not moral character, but relation to God. That makes all the difference; and it incalculably deepens the conception, as well as puts us on the right track for understanding the only possible means by which there can ever be realised that moral perfection and excellence which has unfortunately monopolised the meaning of the word in most people’s minds. The first thought is ‘set apart to God.’ That is holiness, in its root and germ.
And how can we be set apart for God? You may devote a dead thing for certain uses easily enough. How can a man be separated and laid aside?
Well, there is only one way, brethren, and that is by self-surrender. ‘Yield yourselves to God’ is but the other side, or, rather, the practical shape, of the Old and the New Testament doctrine of holiness. A man becomes God’s when he says, ‘Lord, take me and mould me, and fill me and cleanse me, and do with me what Thou wilt.’ In that self-surrender, which is the tap-root of all holiness, the first and foremost thing to be offered is that most obstinate of all, the will that is in us. And when we yield our wills in submission both to commandments and providences, both to gifts and to withdrawals, both to gains and to losses, both to joys and to sorrows, then we begin to write upon our foreheads ‘Holiness to the Lord.’ And when we go on to yield our hearts to Him, by enshrining Him sole and sovereign in their innermost chamber, and turning to Him the whole current of our lives and desires, and hopes and confidences, which we are so apt to allow to run to waste and be sucked up in the desert sands of the world, then we write more of that inscription. And when we fill our minds with joyful submission to His truth, and occupy our thoughts with His mighty Name and His great revelation, and carry Him with us in the hidden corners of our consciousness, even whilst we are busy about daily work, then we add further letters to it. And when the submissive will, and the devoted heart, and the occupied thoughts are fully expressed in daily life and its various external duties, then the writing is complete. ‘Holiness to the Lord’ is self-surrender of will and heart and mind and everything. And that surrender is of the very essence of Christianity.
What is a saint? Some man or woman that has practised unheard-of austerities? Somebody that has lived an isolated and self-regarding life in convent or monastery or desert? No! a man or woman in the world who, moved by the mercies of God, yields self to God as ‘a living sacrifice.’
So the New Testament writers never hesitate to speak even of such very imperfect Christians as were found in abundance in churches like Corinth and Galatia as being all ‘saints,’ every man of them. That is not because the writers were minimising their defects, or idealising their persons, but because, if they are Christians at all, they are saints; seeing that no man is a Christian who has not been drawn by Christ’s great sacrifice for him to yield himself a sacrifice for Christ.
Of course that intrusive idea which has, in popular apprehension, so swallowed up the notion of holiness-viz. that of perfection of moral character or conduct-is included in this other, or rather is developed from it. For the true way to conquer self is to surrender self; and the more entire our giving up of ourselves, the more certainly shall we receive ourselves back again from His hands. ‘By the mercies of God, I beseech you, yield yourselves living sacrifices.’
II. I come to my next text-the horses’ bells.
And then he goes on with variations on the same air, ‘In that day there shall be upon the bells of the horses, “Holiness unto the Lord,”‘ and adds that ‘the pots in the Lord’s house’-the humble vessels that were used for the most ordinary parts of the Temple services-’shall be like the bowls before the altar,’ into which the sacred blood of the offerings was poured. The most external and secular thing bearing upon religion shall be as sacred as the sacredest. But that is not all. ‘Yea! every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the Lord of hosts, and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them,’ and put their offerings therein. That is to say, the coarse pottery vessels that were in every poverty-stricken house in the city shall be elevated to the rank of the sacred vessels of the Temple. Domestic life with all its secularities shall be hallowed. The kitchens of Jerusalem shall be as truly places of worship as is the inner shrine of the Most High.
On the whole, the prophet’s teaching is that, in the ideal state of man upon earth, there will be an entire abolition of the distinction between ‘sacred’ and ‘secular’; a distinction that has wrought infinite mischief in the world, and in the lives of Christian people.
Let me translate these words of our prophet into English equivalents. Every cup and tumbler in a poor man’s kitchen may be as sacred as the communion chalice that passes from lip to lip with the ‘blood of Jesus Christ’ in it. Every common piece of service that we do, down among the vulgarities and the secularities and the meannesses of daily life, may be lifted up to stand upon precisely the same level as the sacredest office that we undertake. The bells of the horses may jingle to the same tune as the trumpets of the priests sounded within the shrine, and on all, great and small, may be written, ‘Holiness to the Lord.’
But let us remember that that universally diffused sanctity will need to have a centre of diffusion, else there will be no diffusion, and that all life will become sacred when the man that lives it has ‘Holiness to the Lord’ written on his forehead, and not else. If that be the inscription on the driver’s heart, the horses that he drives will have it written on their bells, but they will not have it unless it be. Holy men make all things holy. ‘To the pure all things are pure,’ but unto them that are unclean and disobedient there is nothing pure. Hallow thyself, and all things are clean unto thee.
III. And so I come to my third text-the perfected saints’ foreheads.
But there is an advance in his words which I think it is not fanciful to note. It is only the name that is written in the perfected saint’s forehead. Not the ‘Holiness unto the Lord,’ but just the bare name. What does that mean? Well, it means the same as your writing your name in one of your books does, or as when a man puts his initials on the back of his oxen, or as the old practice of branding the master’s mark upon the slave did. It means absolute ownership.
But it means something more. The name is the manifested personality, the revealed God, or, as we say in an abstract way, the character of God. That Name is to be in the foreheads of His perfected people. How does it come to be there? Read also the clause before the text-’His servants shall see His face, and His name shall be in their foreheads.’ That is to say, the perfected condition is not reached by surrender only, but by assimilation; and that assimilation comes by contemplation. The faces that are turned to Him, and behold Him, are smitten with the light and shine, and those that look upon them see ‘as it had been the face of an angel,’ as the Sanhedrim saw that of Stephen, when he beheld the Son of Man ‘standing at the right hand of God.’
My last text is but a picturesque way of saying what the writer of it says in plain words when he declares, ‘We shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.’ The name is to be ‘in their foreheads,’ where every eye can see it. Alas! alas! it is so hard for us to live out our best selves, and to show to the world what is in us. Cowardice, sheepishness, and a hundred other reasons prevent it. In this poor imperfect state no emotion ever takes shape and visibility without losing more or less of its beauty. But yonder the obstructions to self-manifestation will be done away; and ‘when He shall be manifested, we also shall be manifested with Him in glory.’
‘Then shall the righteous blaze forth like the sun in My heavenly Father’s Kingdom.’ But the beginning of it all is ‘Holiness to the Lord’ written on our hearts; and the end of that is the vision which is impossible without holiness, and which leads on to the beholder’s perfect likeness to his Lord.
Fuente: Expositions Of Holy Scripture by Alexander MacLaren
see. App-106.
in = upon. Greek. epi.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Chapter 56
Face to face with Christ our savior
‘And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads’
Rev 22:4
Heaven is set forth in the Scriptures by many pictures of bliss awaiting Gods elect in eternity. Heaven is a place prepared for us. It is the everlasting kingdom. It is eternal glory. Heaven is our purchased inheritance. It is the city of God and of the Lamb. It is our home. Heaven is our final resting place These, and many other descriptive phrases, fill our hearts with joy and anticipation. But here is the greatest bliss of the eternal state, the consummation of glory, the very heaven of heaven – ‘And they shall see his face.’ When the Lord said to Moses, ‘Thou canst not see my face and live,’ he was speaking to a mere mortal upon the earth. Those words have no reference to those who have put on immortality and incorruption. In the coming glory-land every child of God shall see the face of our God and live. Indeed, it is this sight of Christ which shall be the essence and excellence of our life. We shall see him who is the brightness of the Fathers glory and the express image of his person face to face! That is the heaven which awaits us!
‘Face to face with Christ my Savior, Face to face, what will it be;
When with rapture I behold him, Jesus Christ who died for me?’
What is this heavenly vision
Some people have very carnal and unscriptural ideas about heaven. Some think of heaven only as a place where they can gratify their carnal desires. They seem to think only of the comforts and pleasures that heaven might bring to them in a natural, physical way. To them, the streets of gold, the gates of pearl, and the walls of jasper are enough.. I have even heard men talk about heaven as though it were a place that would gratify their religious pride and self-righteousness. Some religious denominations have the vain imagination that their particular brand of religion will give them a place of superiority in glory. In pride and self-righteous bigotry, they suppose that all of Gods saints will be beneath them and serve them!
Such carnal ideas of heaven must be rejected. However, there are many things in heaven that we shall see and enjoy. We will see the holy angels who have ministered to us throughout our earthly pilgrimage (Heb 1:14). Men and women of flesh and bones will commune with cherubim and seraphim. Gabriel, and all the heavenly hosts, shall be known by us. We will see the patriarchs who served God in those early days of time. We will even know those men and women who walked with God before the flood like Abel, Enoch, and Noah.. The apostles and prophets will be seen and known by us. Those martyrs, with whose blood the pages of church history are written, shall be seen. Those brethren, with whom we have enjoyed sweet fellowship upon the earth, will be seen by us. And those loved ones who fell asleep in Christ Jesus shall be seen again. Without question, in our glorified state, earthly ties will no longer divide us; but the saints in glory will know one another, just as Peter, James, and John knew Moses and Elijah when they appeared with them in the mount of transfiguration.
Yet, for all of this, the greatest joy and fullness of heaven will be the fact that we shall see Christ himself face to face. That which we desire above all else in heaven is the sight of Christ. With the Psalmist we most gladly declare, ‘Whom have I in heaven but thee? And there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee’ (Psa 73:25). Christ is all in all to us here, and we long for a heaven in which he shall be all in all to us forever. Here upon the earth, it was a sight of Christ which first turned our sorrow into joy. The daily renewal of communion with Christ lifts us up above the cares of this world. Even here, we say, if we have Christ we have enough. If Christ is all to us now, what shall he be in glory? The Paradise of God is a heaven of intense, eternal, spiritual fellowship with Christ. Heaven is a place where it is promised – ‘They shall see his face.’ Moses, we are told, saw his back parts. He saw the train of his majesty. But, there, we shall see his face. We shall literally see our Saviors face. Though he is glorified, that very man who died at Calvary is upon the throne of glory. We shall see him, the God-man.
What a sight that shall be for redeemed sinners. We will see our well-beloved – his hands, his feet, his side, his head, and his face. We shall literally see him who loved us and gave himself for us. Even sweeter is the fact that we shall enjoy a perfect, spiritual sight of our Redeemer. This text seems to imply a greater ability in the next world by which we shall be able to more fully see Christ. Here, upon the earth, the very best of us are only infants. Now we know in part. Now we see through a shaded glass. But in heaven, we shall see the Savior face to face. And we shall know even as we are known. We will see Christ in such a way that we shall know him. We shall know the heights, depths, lengths, and breadth of the love of Christ that passes knowledge. We shall see the Savior always. The saints in heaven shall never cease to see him. We shall never cease to embrace our Savior! It is not so now. Sometimes we are near the throne, at other times we are afar off. Sometimes we are as bright as the angels, at other times we are as dull as lead. At times we are hot with love, but at other times we are cold with indifference. But, the day will soon come, when we shall forever be in the closest possible association with Christ. Then we shall see his face without ceasing. And we shall see our Saviors face as it is now, in the fullness of his glory (Joh 17:24). John gave us a little glimpse of that in chapter one Rev 22:13-16. Read it again and rejoice in the prospect of this blessed hope.
How are we going to see Christ in glory
The word ‘see’ in this text implies a clear, full, undimmed sight of Christ. We will see Christ clearly, because everything that hinders our sight of him here will be removed. Our sins and our carnal nature will be completely removed. All of those earthly cares that now cloud our vision will be taken out of the way. All our sorrows will be ended (Rev 21:4). And there nothing will stand between us and our Savior. In glory there will be no rival in our hearts. We will love Christ supremely. We will see Christ personally. Now we see him by faith, but then faith will be turned to sight, and we will see Christ personally for ourselves. The language of Job is a proper confession of every believers future prospect (Job 19:25-27). We shall see our Savior in all the fullness of his person and work. .Beholding fully his glorious person, we will see him who is God over all and blessed forever in the perfection of his glorified manhood. In that day, we will see Christ in the fullness of his covenant engagements, and in the perfection of all his mediatoral offices as our Surety: Prophet, Priest, King, Husband, Shepherd, and Substitute. In the world to come, we will see Christ in the fullness of his saving grace. Then we will know the meaning of electing love. Then we will know the price of blood atonement. Then we will know the power of his priestly intercession. Then we will know the goodness of his preserving grace. And when we see his face, our eyes shall be full of adoration for him alone. In that world of glory to come there will be no voice heard that speaks of the power of mans free-will, or the goodness of mans works. In that day we shall say, ‘Not unto us, not unto us, but unto thy name be honor, and power, and glory, and dominion forever and ever.’ (Psa 115:1; Rev 1:5-6; Rev 5:9-10).
Why do we consider this vision of Christ the greatest bliss and joy of heaven
I have said that seeing Christ face to face is the heaven of heaven, the glory of glory. But why do we place such importance upon this one aspect of our eternal inheritance? The answer should be obvious. When we see him our salvation will be complete. Soon the resurrection day will come, and all men shall see the great God and Savior. When the wicked see his face, they will be consumed in his fierce wrath. But we shall see him and live. We will be like the burning bush, glowing with the glory of God, but not consumed. We shall stand in the presence of God in perfect salvation. Our souls shall be eradicated of every spot of sin. Our bodies shall be made immortal, uncorruptible, glorious. When we see his face we shall be conscious of his favor and have a perfect and uninterrupted fellowship with him. In glory, we shall walk with God perfectly. Not until we see his face will we fully know the meaning of being one with him.
When we see him there will be a complete transformation – ‘We shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.’ We will see things as he sees them, think as he thinks, will what he wills, love what he loves, and hate what he hates, perfectly. When we see the face of the Son of God we will be perfectly satisfied (Psa 17:15).
Who are they to whom this promise is given
The apostle tells us that those who shall see his face are none ‘but they which are written in the Lambs book of life’ (Rev 21:27). Everyone of those who are the objects of Gods eternal grace shall see his face. Every soul that was chosen of God in the council of love shall see Christ in the courts of glory (Eph 1:4). Every one predestined to be his son shall be his son (Rom 8:29). Every soul for whom Jesus died at Calvary shall see his face in heaven. They are accepted, pardoned, justified, sanctified, and purchased. And they shall see him (Isa 53:10-12). Every man, woman, and child who is called by the Spirit of God and regenerated by divine power shall see his face (Eph 1:13-14). Everyone that repents of his sin and believes on Christ shall see him (Joh 1:12-13). Every heart that bows in submission to King Jesus shall see the King in his beauty (Luk 14:25-33). Everyone who loves Christ shall see Christ (2Ti 4:8). They may have been the vilest, most abominable wretches ever to walk upon the earth, but they are washed, they are justified, they are sanctified. And ‘they shall see his face!’
They shall all with equal clearness see the face of Christ. I read of no secondary joys in heaven. There are no back streets in the New Jerusalem! Whoever invented the doctrine of degrees in heaven knew nothing of free-grace. There is as much foundation for such a doctrine in the Scriptures as there is for the doctrine of purgatory, and no more. All the saints of God shall see the Saviors face. What more can anyone want? The dying thief went with Christ to paradise, and so did Paul. Heaven is altogether the reward of grace, not of debt and shall be fully possessed by all the heirs of grace (Rom 8:17). All the saved are loved by God with a perfect love. All were chosen in Christ. We all have the same blessings of grace in the covenant. We are all redeemed by the same blood. We are all accepted in the same righteousness. We are all the sons of God upon the same grounds. And we all have the same hope of glory. Heaven was earned and bought for us by the Son of God. And it shall be given to us in all its fulness. In this world of sorrow, comfort yourself with this hope. ‘They’ who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ ‘shall see his face.’
Fuente: Discovering Christ In Selected Books of the Bible
they: Eze 33:18-20, Eze 33:23, Job 33:26, Psa 4:6, Isa 33:17, Isa 35:2, Isa 40:5, Mat 5:8, Joh 12:26, Joh 17:24, 1Co 13:12, Heb 12:14, 1Jo 3:2, 1Jo 3:3
and his: Rev 3:12, Rev 14:1
Reciprocal: Gen 33:10 – I have seen 2Sa 14:24 – let him not Est 1:14 – saw Psa 119:135 – Make Mar 9:5 – it is Luk 9:32 – they saw Rom 5:2 – the glory 1Co 13:10 – General 2Ti 2:19 – Let Rev 1:7 – and every Rev 7:3 – in their Rev 13:17 – name
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Rev 22:4. Shall see his face is mentioned to indicate the great intimacy that will exist between God and tRev 15:2-3 es that have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. Persons spending some time in a city where many others are present, may be seen with pennants attached toRev 15:2 lothing for the purpose of identifiRev 22:4 In this celestial city the name will be on the person, on the most conspicuous pRev 22:5 t, the forehead. How different this is from the Rev 21:25 of the members of the apostate church; they had the mark of the beast in their forehead (Rev 14:9).
Comments by Foy E. Wallace
Verse 4.
(4) The mark of recognition and approval–Rev 22:4.
The citizenry should see his face in the sense of having the recognition and approval of the One whom they served. The face of the Lord was said to be against them that do evil (1Pe 3:12); and the wicked rulers of the nations (Rev 6:16) implored the mountains and the rocks to fall upon them for a cover to hide them from the face of the One on the throne. But the righteous s1Ti 6:16 ace in acceptable and approved service rendered to him. “Make thy face to shine upon thy servant: save me for thy mercies sake’ (Psa 31:16); and, “Cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.” To see the face of God meant to bask under the smile of his approval. It therefore deno1Co 15:25-26 and the favor of God. The receiving of his name in their foreheads–and his name shall be in their foreheads –was the mark of submission and subservience to Christ the Lamb in contrast with the mark of the beast in the hand or on the foreheads of the devotees of emperor-worship, so frequently mentioned in the previous chapters of this Revelation.
The persecuting beast had “caused all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name” (Rev 13:16-17); and, “If any man worship the beast and his Rev 22:5 nd receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God” (Rev 14:9-10); but the victors “over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name” were among the thRev 21:3 nding on the sea of glass (Rev 15:2-3) singing “the song of Moses, the servant God, and the song of the Lamb; and it wa2Co 6:14-16 ng which had the name of the Father written iAct 26:18 oreheads” (Rev 15:2). So the name in the foreheads of Rev 22:4 was the symbolic designation that they were the servants of God.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Rev 22:4. And they shall see his face. It had been said to Moses by the Almighty, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see Me, and live (Exo 33:20). But the blessing denied to the great leader of the hosts of Israel is granted to those who are taken up into the Mount with God. He is revealed to them in the Son, and they shall see Him even as He is (1Jn 3:2). The beatific vision of the pure in heart is that they shall see God (Mat 5:8).
And his name shall be on their foreheads. The name referred to is that of God and of the Lamb. As the high priest of old wore upon his forehead a plate of gold with the name of Jehovah inscribed upon it. So the redeemed, now all high priests in the sanctuary, shall wear the same name upon their foreheads. Nothing is said of the golden plate. The name is written upon the forehead itself.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Verse 4
Shall see his face; shall be admitted to intimate communion with him.–His name, &c. This was a mark of ownership. The meaning is, that they shall be entirely his.
Fuente: Abbott’s Illustrated New Testament
God’s bond-servants will see God’s face; we will enjoy personal, intimate fellowship with Him. We will be able to do this because we will be pure in heart, righteous, and holy then (cf. Psa 11:7; Psa 17:15; Mat 5:8; 1Co 13:12; Heb 12:14). Adam and Eve’s sin broke their fellowship with God, and they hid from Him (Gen 3:8; cf. Exo 33:20; Exo 33:23). Our ability to view God’s glory is limited now (cf. Job 19:25-27; 2Co 3:18; Heb 9:7), but then it will be unhindered (1Jn 3:2). Scripture does not reveal whether we will see one, two, or three persons of the Godhead.
Moreover we will bear God’s name on our foreheads. Having His name on our foreheads means that we will be His and will reflect His divine glory in our persons. Having a name on one’s forehead appeared three times earlier in this book (Rev 3:12; Rev 7:3; Rev 14:1). In each case it was a great privilege indicating ownership and protection as well as identification (cf. Exo 28:36-38).