April 2025 - RandyElster.com

You’re probably familiar with the Beatitudes—the blessings that Jesus speaks of in Matthew 5:3-11 that start off the Sermon on the Mount. Revelation actually has seven beatitudes of its own.

ONE Blessed are those who read, hear, and heed the prophecy.

Revelation 1:3: “Blessed is the one who reads, and those who hear the words of the prophecy and keep the things which are written in it; for the time is near.”

I wrote about this last week, but the bottom line is that the blessing goes to those who read, hear, and heed (keep, apply) Revelation. Thankfully the word “understand” is not included. Even John, the author of the book of Revelation, didn’t understand all Jesus was revealing to him.

TWO Blessed are those who die in the Lord.

Revelation 14:13: “And I heard a voice from heaven, saying, ‘Write: “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on!”’ ‘Yes,’ says the Spirit, ‘so that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow with them.’”

This is sometimes quoted as a comfort for those who have lost Christian loved ones. When those who love Christ die, they literally close their eyes on earth and open them in heaven. Suffering and persecution are over, and rest and rewards are just beginning.

THREE Blessed are those who stay alert and keep their clothes.

Revelation 16:15: “Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and people will not see his shame.”

This may seem like an odd one. I think the NLT says it a little clearer: “Look, I will come as unexpectedly as a thief! Blessed are all who are watching for me, who keep their clothing ready so they will not have to walk around naked and ashamed.” It’s a reminder to stay vigilant, ready, and faithful.

FOUR Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of Christ.

Revelation 19:9: “Then he said to me, ‘Write: “Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.”’ And he said to me, ‘These are the true words of God.’”

This is a reminder of the celebration in store for us, along with all God’s people, including the apostles and patriarchs.

FIVE Blessed are those who have a part in the first resurrection.

Revelation 20:6: “Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and will reign with Him for a thousand years.”

The second death is a spiritual death—separation from God. Christ-followers are blessed because they will reign with Christ as kings and priests.

SIX Blessed are those who heed the words of the prophecy of this book.

Revelation 22:7: “And behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”

This blessing calls back to the first one—it bookends Revelation. Blessed is the one who keeps, heeds, applies the words of the book.

SEVEN Blessed are those who wash their robes.

Revelation 22:14: “Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life, and may enter the city by the gates.”

Those who “wash their robes” have been purified by trusting in Christ and following Him faithfully. They remain faithful and ready for His return. Adam and Eve were barred from the Tree of Life, but we will have ready access to it.

It’s significant that there are seven blessings. The number seven is all over the book of Revelation. The number seven signifies completion, totality, fulness, perfection. (Think of the seven-day week established in Genesis 1 and many other sevens throughout the Bible.)

Will you be ready for His return? Are you not just reading and listening to the Word, but applying it and letting it change you? Don’t just read the Word; let the Word read you.

I’ve started teaching through the book of Revelation in my men’s group, so I will be sharing some of that in the blog.

It’s a difficult book of the Bible, one that I have put off studying, to be honest. The imagery and the language of the book can seem mysterious and alarming. And, frankly, overwhelming.

But I have been comforted somewhat by what Tremper Longman III¹ (what a name, right?) said in his commentary:

“The difficulty, though, is not because of the complexity of the book of Revelation, but rather because we modern readers are unfamiliar with imagery that would have been known to its first readers. These images, for the most part, were not created out of thin air, but have a background not only in first-century-AD Greco-Roman culture but also in the Old Testament, which itself has its background in ancient Near Eastern literature.”

I am also comforted by the fact that the book of Revelation comes with its own baked-in blessing, in Revelation 1:3 (NASB):

“Blessed is the one who reads, and those who hear the words of the prophecy and keep the things which are written in it; for the time is near.”

Who is blessed?

The one who reads it
The one who hears it
The one who keeps it

Back in the day, when this letter went from town to town—originally to the seven churches listed in verse 11—there were not 100 paperback copies to pass out. There was one scroll, and one person read while the rest listened.

There is a blessing for the one who reads this book and for the one who hears it.

Notice what it does not say. There is no blessing listed for the one who understands it. That’s comforting too!

We know that even John, who wrote the book down, didn’t understand everything he was saying. See Revelation 7:13-14:

“Then one of the elders responded, saying to me, ‘These who are clothed in the white robes, who are they, and where have they come from?’ I said to him, ‘My lord, you know.’ And he said to me, ‘These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.’”

So even the apostle John, the “one Jesus loves,” didn’t quite understand all he was seeing and conveying in this book. Why should I expect to understand it completely? Very comforting.

But—back to Revelation 1:3—the blessing is also for the one who keeps it.

I don’t have to understand every little symbol, but I do have to keep—to obey and apply—what I do understand.

And this is reinforced at the end of the book, in Revelation 22:7:

“[Jesus says:] And behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”

So this blessing bookends the book: I will be blessed if I keep what I find in Revelation.

And this reminds me of James 1:22-25:

“But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not just hearers who deceive themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who has looked intently at the perfect law, the law of freedom, and has continued in it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an active doer, this person will be blessed in what he does.”

I want that blessing! And the only way to get it is to read, hear, and keep God’s Word. As Nike says, just do it!

¹ Revelation Through Old Testament Eyes: A Background and Application Commentary by Tremper Longman III (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Kregel Academic, 2022)

Month: April 2025

The Beatitudes of Revelation