The Son of David in the Book of Revelation

Christ’s Davidic position is emphasized several times in the book of Revelation. At the end of this vision, he says of himself, I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright, the morning star (22:16). Earlier in the book, he is identified to John as the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, who had overcome to open the book and the seven seals thereof (5:5). These are titles quite applicable to one who had inherited the throne of David; they would seem somewhat unfitting for one who had not.

It appears, furthermore, that Christ held this Davidic position in more than name alone. The letter to the church of Philadelphia opens with these words: These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth and none shall shut, and that shutteth and none openeth (Rev. 3:7). Keys in scripture are symbols of authority. Just as Jesus had given Peter the keys of the kingdom, the authority to bind and loose, so he had himself received a certain authority to open and shut. (Matt. 16:19).

What is significant, of course, is that this authority is clearly identified as the key of David. Whatever power was signified by this key, whatever authority it indicated, it was in some sense the same authority that had been possessed and exercised by David himself. Therefore, we see that even as John was recording the words of this prophecy, Christ had already received and was already exercising authority, not only from his Father God, but also from his father David. It is difficult to see how scripture could attribute such power to Christ yet still teach that he was not yet ruling on David's throne.

Errata

My mistake. The proclamation which I attributed to Simeon in the previous post was actually uttered by Zacharias (Luke 1:69). It would not, then, be accurate to apply it, as I did, to the birth of Christ--He had not yet been born. It would apply rather to his conception.

A Savior from David's House

There are a number of conditions of the promised Davidic kingdom that began to be fulfilled even as Christ was born. First, it is evident that in the birth of Christ, Israel’s Davidic Savior had arrived. When Simeon saw the Christ child in the temple he said, Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; for he hath visited and wrought redemption for his people, And hath raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David (Luke 1:69). Simeon realized that he could finally die in peace, for he had seen the day long promised.

Furthermore, after the ascension of Christ, Paul recounted in the synagogue in Antioch how God had raised up David to be Israel’s king; to whom he also bare witness and said, I have found David the son of Jesse a man after my own heart, who shall do all my will. Paul then added: of this man’s seed hath God according to promise brought unto Israel a savior, Jesus (Acts 13:22-23). God’s promise to Israel had been fulfilled. The long awaited Davidic Savior had arrived.

Not only had Israel’s Savior arisen out of the house of David, but in that Savior that house was also itself being rebuilt. At the Jerusalem Council, James explained in this way God’s obvious decision to begin calling Gentiles into the faith: After these things I will return, And I will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen; And I will build again the ruins thereof, And I will set it up: That the residue of men may seek after the Lord, And all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called (Acts 15:16-17). The fact that the Gentiles were putting their trust in Christ was proof, to James at least, that David’s house was being restored.

So it appears that, as the New Testament was still being written, the promises of a Davidic Savior and the restoration of the David's house were already being fulfilled. Do these passages prove beyond doubt that Christ is now reigning on the throne of David? Not by themselves, no. They are, however, important introductory indications that whatever God had promised concerning David and the kingdom of his Descendant, that program had clearly begun to unfold.

The Reign of Christ and the Throne of David

The Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end (Luke 1:33).

This is the promise the angel Gabriel gave to Mary when he announced that she would give birth to the long awaited Messiah. The fulfillment of this promise has been the subject of much controversy. Has God yet given Jesus the throne of his father David? Or is Christ still waiting to receive it in the future? What does it even mean that Christ was to sit upon the throne of David? It is to these questions I would now like to turn.

The identification of Christ as the son of David is very clear in scripture; the multitude of references to this effect makes it a fact beyond denial. I recognize, however, that this alone is not sufficient proof that he is presently sitting on the throne of David. I feel, in fact, that of all the points I’ve been making in this series, it is this last one in which I find myself relying most upon inference and less upon the straightforward declarations of scripture.

However, I must say that I find the scriptural indications of this prophecy's fulfillment to be very strong, perhaps even good and necessary. Over all, as I look at the scope of scriptures that address the issue, I find it them very supportive of the notion that when Christ ascended into heaven and sat down on his Father’s throne, he was at the same time, taking his place upon the throne of his Father David.

The Reign of Christ over the Nations

There is a sense in which, if what I have been saying is correct, it might seem unnecessary to argue that Christ is ruling over the nations. After all, Christ had already claimed, before his ascension, to have received all authority in heaven and on earth. When he sat down at God’s right hand, he sat down on his throne above all rule and power and every name that is named. It seems that this would naturally include authority over the nations.

But it is apparent that not everyone draws this specific conclusion from these general premises; and so, I offer up two passages that I believe support this claim more or less clearly. I admit, these passages are not great in number, nor are they as straightforward as one trying to support my position might hope, but I think that what they say goes a long way toward supporting the idea that, even as the apostles were writing, Christ was reigning over the nations.

In the preface to the book of Revelation, John identifies Jesus as the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth (1:5). He is not describing, as it seems to me, what Jesus would someday be or ought to have been, but declaring instead what was true of Christ at the very time he was writing. It appears, then, that even before the close of the canon, Jesus was already ruling the kings of the earth.

In the letter to the church of Thyatira, Jesus told the saints there that he that overcometh and he that keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give authority over the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron, as the vessels of the potter are broken to shivers; as I also have received of my Father (Rev 2:27).

There is, in this passage, a promise that was clearly focused upon the future. Those saints who were part of the church in Thyatira, if they were faithful, would one day in the future share with Christ in exercising authority and rule over the nations. But notice: this future promise to the saints is based upon an already-accomplished achievement for Christ. For as he says, this authority and this rule over the nations was something he had already received of his Father. Is this not what the passage says? How does it fail to prove that Christ, at the time he spoke this promise to his church, already possessed authority over the nations or that he was already ruling them with a rod of iron?

If we can say that Jesus is already ruler of the kings of the earth- and we must if we are to be true to scripture- if we can say that he has already received authority over the nations and that he has already received to rule them with a rod of iron, how can we not say that he is presently reigning over the nations? I am sincerely interested to hear from those who disagree with these conclusions. I would very much like to understand why you believe they do not follow from these passages.

The Reign of Christ in the Church

As I’ve been attempting to demonstrate, even during the apostolic age, Christ was reigning in heaven and over all heavenly beings. As Peter said, he was on the right hand of God, having gone into heaven; angels and authorities being made subject to him. But there are, I believe, many verses that show that, at the same time, Christ was also reigning over earth. As promised, I’ll now be attempting to prove that, even while he was reigning from heaven, Christ was already ruling over the earth: in the church, over the nations, over Israel and from the throne of David.

1. Christ was reigning in the church.

One sub-issue frequently in play between proponents of the various millennial positions is the relationship between Christ’s kingdom and the church. Some postmillennialists and amillennialists go so far as to say the two are nearly identical, while some premillennialists say that there is little to no present connection between the two. While defining the precise relationship between the church and the kingdom would be beyond the scope of this post, I would at least argue that, though the kingdom of Christ extends beyond the church, the church is clearly an earthly manifestation of his kingdom and, as such, is proof of his earthly reign.

There is, of course much controversy over the meaning of Jesus’ words to Peter that he would build his church upon this rock (Matt. 16:18). It is evident, however, that in the next breath, Christ did promise to give Peter great authority in the church. What is important to the present discussion is Christ’s designation of this authority as the keys of the kingdom of heaven (16:19). Peter’s authority in the church, then, was identified as authority in the kingdom. This suggests, at the very least, a very significant relationship between the church and the kingdom.

Second, Paul told the saints of Ephesus that God had given Christ to be head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all (1:22). More specifically, he told the Colossians that God had already delivered them out of the power of darkness, and translated them into the kingdom of the Son of his love (1:13). Christ was the head of the church, and the saints were, therefore, subjects of his kingdom.

Finally, John, in the book of Revelation, reminded his readers that in addition to loosing them from their sins by his blood, Christ had also already made them to be a kingdom to be priests unto his God and Father (1:6). This was a kingdom in which John was a partaker with them (1:9). Here, then, we see direct identification of the saints as the kingdom of Christ. Again, while it might be too much to say that the kingdom of Christ is fully identical with the church, it seems clear, on the basis of these passages, that the church is at least an earthly manifestation of that kingdom and, therefore, of his reign upon the earth.

New Blog

I just wanted to inject a little commercial announcement: I've opened a new blog on which I plan to discuss matters related to grammar, logic, and rhetoric.

My original intention in starting this first blog was to include posts from a number of subject areas, but it seems best to continue devoting LFA exclusively to theological topics. Still feeling like it would help me to think out loud about some of these other issues, I've decided to carve out a bit more 'sphere space.

Warning: If you're not intensely passionate about learning or teaching the trivium, this new blog is likely to be the least interesting page you've ever had the misfortune to open. However, if you think these topics might amuse you, please pay it a visit.

Crossroads