What the Bible says about Seven Eyes
(From Forerunner Commentary)

Zechariah 4:10 The seven eyes—we will assume they represent the messengers of the seven churches—are glad when they see the measuring of the church commencing. They see something happening within the church that will bring them back to a standard. The "plumb line" in Zechariah 4:10 corresponds to the "reed like a rod" in Revelation 11:1. This provides an idea of its timing. Revelation 10 and 11 seem to proceed in a straight-line chronology. It starts with the thunders pealing—one at a time, seven successive claps of thunder. When the seven thunders are about to cease, John (in the antitype) is given a reed like a rod, and he is told to measure the temple, the altar, and the worshippers. The time that the plumb line or measuring rod is placed in the hand of this servant of God is the same time that "these seven [eyes] rejoice." The seven eyes—the seven messengers—are glad to see that God is moving His purpose forward by placing this implement of measurement in the hand of His servant to measure the church. Perhaps we would be more correct to say that God has put in Christ's hand the authority—or the permission—to assess the church because now is the time when things are starting to move forward. Then, right after this, the Great Tribulation begins—after the measuring is done. This seems to be the timing of this particular verse. When the plumb line is put into Zerubbabel's hand, it is equivalent to when the measuring rod is given to John in the antitype. Has that time already begun? We can hope that it has. This verse implies that all God's servants should be happy, glad, to see that is beginning to happen—not only because the end is near, but also because it is something the church needs to finish the temple (the church). The Bride of Christ can be made ready. So, with the rejoicing, gladness, and hope, there is also motivation to participate in this work of measuring the temple. If these seven eyes are the seven messengers to the seven churches extant in the end time, they will all pitch in to prepare their flocks for Christ's return and the Kingdom of God. The seven eyes rejoice when they witness the measuring, a joy obviously tempered by their sorrow at the destruction it causes. When a measuring line (a plummet or measuring rod) is set up to measure, it will find instances of materials and construction that meet the standard, but it will also find others that do not. It seems as if, in this case, because the standard is so high, many more will fail than pass. We can imagine a great deal of sadness behind the joy of seeing God's plan moving forward. The immediate context, though, is very positive. The joy at the completion of the temple comes to the fore, which tempers the sorrow in the background. The main point is that the return of Christ is near, and God's people can express a great deal of joy about that. Richard T. Ritenbaugh The Two Witnesses (Part Five) Related Topics: Great Tribulation, The | Imminent Return of Christ | Measuring Rod | Measuring the Temple | Measuring the Temple, Altar, and Worshippers | Plumb Line | Revelation, Seven Churches of | Seven Churches of Revelation | Seven Eyes | Seven Thunders | Two Witnesses

Zechariah 4:10 The word "scan" tends to track with the English-language idea of the eyes being receptors. These eyes are looking throughout all the earth, gathering information. The Hebrew word shuwt means literally "to push forth," which simply implies "to go" or "to run." Thus, the King James version reads that the eyes "run" throughout the whole earth, which is a literal rendering. The New American Standard, the Revised Standard Version, and the New International Version use the word "range," while The New Living Translation reads "search." The translation in the Keil & Delitzsch commentary uses the word "sweep," which seems to be a close synonym for "scan." However, when they explained it, they said that this word has the implication of influence—that their influence sweeps throughout the whole earth. If that is the case, if the messengers of the seven churches are the seven eyes, then these seven messengers have influence that runs over the whole planet. Their influences is not localized, say, to Judea where the original prophecy was uttered and to which it was given. At the time of Zerubbabel, only a few thousand Jews and Levites were interested in this prophecy. Yet, he is saying that, in its fulfillment, the prophecy applies worldwide. It is not centered just on Jerusalem or just on a small area of Judea, but the influence of these seven eyes "pushes forth" throughout the whole earth. This seems to fit what is happening today in God's church. Zechariah's prophecy does not say that their influence is necessarily strong throughout the whole earth, but it exists globally. This adds to the several things in this chapter that promote the idea that a worldwide work is being done. Even the last three words in this chapter speak of "the LORD of the whole earth." Zechariah 4 suggests quite strongly that this is a worldwide phenomenon. Richard T. Ritenbaugh The Two Witnesses (Part Five) Related Topics: Influence | Seven Eyes | Zechariah's Prophecies

Revelation 1:4-8 Verses 4-8 comprise an extended greeting to the seven churches in Asia (later specifically named in verse 11, as well as in chapters 2 and 3). As the human author of the book, John includes himself as a sender of the greeting, but the bulk of it reemphasizes the real authors: God the Father, shown as eternal and sovereign, and Jesus Christ, extolled as "the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth" (verse 5). John ensures that we understand that Jesus is the same One who exhibited His love for us by sacrificing Himself for the forgiveness of our sins and made possible our future glorification (verses 5-6). In verse 8, he carries the identification even farther by quoting Jesus' own words: "'I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,' says the Lord, 'who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.'" Lest we misunderstand, John makes certain that there is no doubt that Jesus is the Lord of the Old Testament, the first and the last (Isaiah 44:6; 41:4), the Almighty God, who "declar[es] the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure'" (Isaiah 46:10). This extensive greeting certifies, not only that the prophecy has its source in God, but also that it will come to pass. The greeting also includes "from the seven Spirits who [or which] are before [the Father's] throne" (verse 4), a quite controversial phrase. Commentators are divided among four interpretations, which can be summarized as angelic, symbolic, mystical, and Trinitarian. Understandably, the Trinitarian view—that "the seven Spirits" identifies a so-called Third Person of the Trinity—has the support of most Catholics and Protestants. Their primary reason centers on the fact that this phrase appears between greetings from God the Father and the Son of God. They contend that this phrase refers to the sevenfold description of the Spirit of the Lord in Isaiah 11:2. The book of Revelation itself identifies the seven Spirits as equivalent to the Lamb's "seven eyes, which are . . . sent out into all the earth" (Revelation 5:6). These "seven eyes" probably allude to Zechariah 3:9 and 4:10, where they are shown to be "upon the stone," a symbol of the Branch or Messiah, and directly described as "the eyes of the LORD which scan [or rove] to and fro throughout the whole earth." In addition, Revelation 3:1 states Christ "has [or possesses] the seven Spirits of God," and Revelation 4:5 calls them "seven lamps of fire . . . burning before the throne." This may indeed be a description of the Holy Spirit, not as a "Person" somehow divided into seven parts, but as a seven-branched conduit of God's communication to the seven churches mentioned earlier in the verse. Thus, John includes "the seven Spirits" as a source of the prophecy to specify how it was imparted to the seven churches. The apostle Paul pens a similar greeting in II Corinthians 13:14, in which he writes of "the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit," meaning that God's Spirit is the means by which Christians can have a relationship with God. Richard T. Ritenbaugh The All-Important Introduction to Revelation Related Topics: Alpha and the Omega | Firstborn from the Dead | Holy Spirit | Jesus Christ as Firstborn from the Dead | Jesus Christ as King of Kings | Jesus Christ as Lord of Lords | Jesus Christ as Messiah | Jesus Christ as Revelator of God | Jesus Christ as the Alpha and Omega | Jesus Christ as the Beginning and End | Jesus Christ as the Branch | Revelation | Revelation of Jesus Christ | Revelation, Seven Churches of | Revelation, Symbols of | Seven Candlesticks | Seven Churches of Revelation | Seven Eyes | Seven Lamps | Seven Spirits | Trinity

 

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