And signified it.-"Our Lord's revelation, which God gave Him after He had passed into glory, He sent and signified [signified, told in signs, symbols, etc.] to His Church."-B203.

By His angel.-The "angel" of Rev. 3:14 represented this messenger who appeared to St. John. Our Lord's promise in Luke 12:44 is not limited to activities on this side the veil.

Unto His servant John.-"This simplicity, common to all the Apostles, commends them to us as men of humble mind-the very kind we should expect our Lord to use as special messengers to His people.”—Z.'16-343; Rev. 19:10. 1:2. Who bare record.-Previously, in the Fourth Gospel, and in the three epistles bearing his name.

Of the Word of God.-The Logos. St. John has had more to say of the Logos than had any other Apostle. "In olden times certain kings made addresses to their subjects by proxy, the king sitting behind a screen, while his word, or spokesman, stood before the screen, and addressed the people aloud on subjects whispered to him by the king, who was not seen, and such a speaker was termed the King's logos."-E94-85.

And of the testimony.-The daily words and deeds, during the three and a half years of His ministry.

Of Jesus Christ.-"The Faithful and True Witness."Rev. 3:14.

[And of all] WHAT things [that] SOEVER he saw.-St. John's powers of observation were acute. His Gospel contains records of twenty-two events or teachings not mentioned by the other Evangelists.

1:3. Blessed is he.-Singular.

That readeth.-Correctly interprets the symbolisms.
And they.-Plural.

That hear the [words] WORD of this prophecy.-"All who have read and understood even a part of the teachings of the book were blessed as promised. It was an important aid to Luther in deciding that the Papacy, of which he was a conscientious minister, was 'Antichrist.'"-A27. And keep. Keep the eyes upon, observe (so the Greek indicates).-Rev. 22:7.

Those things which are written therein.-"There is a blessing upon those who read this revelation, even though they do not understand, and a special blessing upon those who hear and understand the words of this prophecy, and who conform their lives to the things therein written."-Z.'16-343.

For the time is at hand.-The fulfilments began at once, in St. John's own day.

1:4. John to the seven churches.-Not merely the seven literal congregations mentioned in Verse 11 and elsewhere, but to the epochs of the Church as a whole, from Apostolic days until now.

Which are in Asia.-In the Orient, the East, the early path of the sun. Before the Sun of Righteousness can illuminate the world of mankind, its rays must first have passed through the Church, the first to greet and welcome the New Day.

Grace be unto you.-May favor, unmerited, be your happy portion.

And peace. The Lord's special legacy to His Church.John 14:27.

From Him. Our glorified Lord and Head.-Rev. 1:8.

Which is. Now self-existent, like the Father.-John 5:26. And which was.-The Logos, the Father's Agent in the creation of all things (John 1:3), and subsequently, as man's Redeemer, "made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death."-Heb. 2:9.

And which is to come.-In glory and great power at His Second Advent, "until He shall have set judgment in the earth."-Isa. 42:4.

And from the seven spirits.-Lamps of fire, or eyes. (Rev. 4:5; 5:6.) "In this symbolical picture the eye of the Lord is represented as seven or complete, all-seeing, everywhere, all-knowing. This is our confidence, this is our rejoicing."-Z.'05-318; Zech. 3:9, 4:10.

Which are before His Throne.-Which are "sent forth into all the earth."-Rev. 4:5,

1:5. And.-Kai, even. For a similar use of the word see the expression, "God Himself and our Father" (1 Thes. 3:11), which, in the Diaglott, is rendered, "God Himself, even our Father."

From Jesus Christ the faithful Witness.-"Who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession." (1 Tim. 6:13.) Our Lord's admission to Pilate, "I am a King; to this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world" (John 18:37), was the direct cause of His death. The accusation set up over His head was, "This is Jesus the King of the Jews." (John 19:19; Matt. 27:37.) Similarly faithful admissions may end the earthly careers of the feet-members of His Body.

The First Begotten of the dead.-"The First-Born of the dead ones." (Diaglott.) (1 Cor. 15:20; Col. 1:18; Acts 26:23.) "This verse clearly teaches what the creeds of Christendom ignore; namely, that our Lord was the first to experience a resurrection to perfection and eternal life in the full sense of the word."-Z.'16-343; Acts 13:33, 34.

And.-Even.

The Prince. The King-Elect, now ruling in their hearts. Of the kings of the earth. His associate kings, "The kings of the East." (Rev. 16:12.) "All are to be awakened from the Adamic death, as though from a sleep. They will then be under the care of the Royal Priesthood, whose experience with sin, and whose victory over sin, well fitted them to be helpful toward those over whom they will reign, as Kings as well as Priests. (Rev. 5:10.)"-E487, 478.

Unto Him that [loved] LOVETH us.-Our Lord's love for us is ever-present.

And [washed] FREED us from our sins [in] BY His own blood.-"That it was the death of the Man Christ Jesus, His 'blood,' that secured our release from sin and death is most unequivocally stated in many Scriptures. See 1 Pet. 1:2; Acts 4:12; 20:28; Rev. 5:9; Rom. 5:9; Heb. 13:12."-E458, 446; Matt. 20:28; 1 Tim. 2:6; Rev. 14:4. 1:6. And hath made us. And will make us during the Millennial Age.

[Kings and] A KINGDOM, priests.-The work of a priest is that of intervention and of instruction in righteousness. It logically implies subjects and a future work of salvation.-1 Pet. 2:9; Rev. 5:10; 20:6; 22:5.

Unto God and His Father.-"Unto the God and Father of Himself."-Diaglott. Rom. 15:6; 2 Cor. 1:3; Eph. 1:3.

To Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. "He shall have dominion also from sea to sea and from the river unto the ends of the earth; and

let the whole earth be filled with His glory; Amen, and Amen." (Psa. 72:8, 19.) "For ever and ever" is literally "for the ages of the ages." The Millennium and subsequent ages are the ages of the ages.

1:7. Behold, He cometh with clouds.-"While the clouds of trouble hang heavy and dark, when the mountainskingdoms of this world-are trembling and falling, when the earth-organized society-is being shaken and disintegrated, some will begin to realize that Jehovah's Anointed is taking to Himself His great power and is beginning His work of laying justice to the line and righteousness to the plummet."-Z.'16-344; Matt. 24:30.

And every eye shall see Him.-"He will not be visible to natural sight, but to the eyes of understanding, as these shall open to an appreciation of the punishments and blessings which will flow to mankind from His Reign. Our King will reveal Himself gradually. Some will discern the new Ruler sooner than will others. But ultimately 'every eye shall see [Greek, horao, discern] Him.'"-Z.'16-344.

And they also which pierced Him.-"And I will pour upon the House of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusa lem [the Jewish people], the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for Him, as one mourneth for his only son."-Zech. 12:10.

And all kindreds of the earth shall [wail because of] BEWAIL Him.-"At the time of our Lord's Second Advent the world will be far from converted to God; for 'all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him.' Christ comes before the conversion of the world and for the very pur pose of converting all mankind."-Z.'16-344.

Even so, Amen.-We cannot stop the clouds of the Time of Trouble, or the tears of disappointment, and later, of repentance; and we would not if we could. The trouble and the tears are a necessary preparation for the blessings which follow.

1:8. I am THE Alpha and 1 AM ALSO THE Omega.Alpha is the first letter, and Omega the last letter, of the Greek alphabet.

The Beginning and the Ending.-"Our Lord's great honor is shown in that He was not only the first of God's creation, but the last. From this we are to understand that the great Jehovah did not directly employ His own power in creating either men or angels; but that He delegated His power to His Only-begotten Son."-Z.'93-115.

Saith the Lord GOD.-But not the clergy; they will have none of this doctrine.

Which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. "It is since His resurrection that the message has gone forth-All power in Heaven and in earth is given unto Me.' (Matt. 28:18.) Consequently it is only since then that He could be called the Almighty."-Z.'93-115; Rev, 1:4; 16:5-7.

1:9. I John, who [also] am your brother.-"Instead of adding titles to his name, as Reverend, Bishop, Overseer of all the Churches in Asia Minor, we find John introducing himself as 'your brother.'"-Z. '01-187.

And companion in tribulation.-"He was sharer with Christ, as a member of His Body, in His afflictions, in His endurance; and the brother of all fellow-disciples, sharers of the same sufferings, and prospectively of the same glory."-Z. '01-187: Matt. 20:23.

And [in] the kingdom.-Now, while "the Kingdom of Heaven suffereth violence;" and later, when "the Kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the Kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High"-Matt. 11:12; Dan. 7:27.

And patience [of] IN Jesus [Christ].-When Saul persecuted the saints, he persecuted Jesus. When St. Paul suffered as a Christian, it was as part of the "dying of the Lord Jesus." (Acts 9:5; 2 Cor. 4:10.) What St. John cheerfully endured was endured by Jesus.

Was in the isle that is called Patmos.-"At the time of this vision St. John was a prisoner, exiled to the Isle of Patmos, a penal colony of those days [a convict quarry]— a rocky, barren island in the Ægean Sea. The crime for which he suffered this banishment was his faithfulness as the Lord's mouthpiece. St. John, the beloved disciple, in some measure, or degree, represented the last living members of the Body of Christ (John 21:20-23)—a class that see with the eyes of their understanding the visions and revelations which the beloved disciple saw in symbol in a trance. If, then, St. John's exile in any degree represents ostracism which the Lord's followers may expect in the close of this Age-a complete isolation from others and a treatment implying that they are prisoners—they may take comfort from the thought that our Lord's favor and revelation to St. John more than offset his persecutions."-Z. '16-343.

For the Word of God.-"St. John, with remarkable modesty, passes over his previous service for the Truth (Rev. 1:2), which had brought him his persecution, and lightly passes over the persecution itself, merely noting that he was in the island because of his fidelity to the Word of God."-Z. '01-187.

And for the testimony of Jesus.-As recorded in the Gospel according to St. John and the three Johannean epistles.

1:10. I was in the spirit.-"Visions are not realities, although symbolically representing them. (Dan. 7:1; Matt. 17:9.) The visions granted to St. John, recorded in the Revelation, are in no sense to be understood as realities."-Z. '16-343; Acts 10:10.

On the Lord's Day.-"According to our understanding of Bible chronology we today are living in the early dawn of this Day of Christ; and it is here, properly enough, that we begin to see the wonderful things of the Divine Character and Plan. But to see and to understand we must be in the spirit.' Only those who have become New Creatures in Christ can be expected to appreciate spiritual things; and this is the class which the Apostle John represented."-Z. '16-343.

And heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet."The fact that its location is mentioned implies that it has a symbolic meaning. It signifies that the beginning of