After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.
Parallel translations
- WEB After these things I looked and saw a door opened in heaven, and the first voice that I heard, like a trumpet speaking with me, was one saying, “Come up here, and I will show you the things which must happen after this.”
- BSB After this I looked and saw a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had previously heard speak to me like a trumpet was saying, “Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after these things.”
- NKJV After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.”
- NASB After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with me, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.”
- NLT Then as I looked, I saw a door standing open in heaven, and the same voice I had heard before spoke to me like a trumpet blast. The voice said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after this.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
John is summoned through an open door into heaven to be shown future things. The scene shifts from earthly churches to the heavenly throne room that governs all history.
Overview
Having addressed the churches, the vision now turns heavenward, grounding everything that follows in God's sovereign rule. The trumpet-like voice (Christ's, from 1:10) invites John 'up here,' a glimpse of heaven's reality breaking into view. This open door reassures suffering believers that history's unfolding is directed from God's throne, not by hostile earthly powers.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Rev 11:12And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.
- Exod 24:12And the LORD said unto Moses, Come up to me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee tables of stone, and a law, and commandments which I have written; that thou mayest teach them.
- Rev 1:19Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;
- Rev 1:10I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet,
- Mark 1:10And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him:
- Rev 1:1–3The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:
- Exod 34:2–3And be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning unto mount Sinai, and present thyself there to me in the top of the mount.
- Rev 16:17And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done.
- Rev 22:6And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.
- John 16:13Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
- Acts 7:56And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.
- Exod 19:24And the LORD said unto him, Away, get thee down, and thou shalt come up, thou, and Aaron with thee: but let not the priests and the people break through to come up unto the LORD, lest he break forth upon them.
- Luke 3:21Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened,
- Matt 3:16And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:
- Acts 10:11And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth:
- Exod 1:1Now these are the names of the children of Israel, which came into Egypt; every man and his household came with Jacob.
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Christ at the center
Revelation ends the story with the slain-yet-standing Lamb who is worthy, the Lion of Judah, the Alpha and Omega, the returning King who makes all things new and dwells with his people forever.
How Revelation 4:1 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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