The number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands

Revelation 5 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible 

I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed up with seven seals. ² And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to break its seals?” ³ And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it. ⁴ Then I began to weep greatly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. ⁵ And one of the elders said to me, “Stop weeping; behold, the Lion that is from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome so as to be able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”

⁶ And I saw between the throne (with the four living creatures) and the elders a Lamb standing, as if slaughtered, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. ⁷ And He came and took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne. ⁸ When He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. ⁹ And they sang a new song, saying,

“Worthy are You to take the scroll and to break its seals; for You were slaughtered, and You purchased people for God with Your blood from every tribe, language, people, and nation.

¹⁰ You have made them into a kingdom and priests to our God, and they will reign upon the earth.”

¹¹ Then I looked, and I heard the voices of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, ¹² saying with a loud voice,

“Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered to receive power, wealth, wisdom, might, honor, glory, and blessing.”

¹³ And I heard every created thing which is in heaven, or on the earth, or under the earth, or on the sea, and all the things in them, saying,

“To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be the blessing, the honor, the glory, and the dominion forever and ever.”

¹⁴ And the four living creatures were saying, “Amen.” And the elders fell down and worshiped.

Today’s text says: Then I looked, and I heard the voices of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered to receive power, wealth, wisdom, might, honor, glory, and blessing.” And I heard every created thing which is in heaven, or on the earth, or under the earth, or on the sea, and all the things in them, saying, “To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be the blessing, the honor, the glory, and the dominion forever and ever.”  A myriad is defined as: a very large, indefinite number; innumerable.  Surely, we cannot put a finite number on how many John saw and heard. It was innumerable and indefinite on top of innumerable and indefinite, plus thousands of thousands. I don’t believe that there is an algorithm to calculate that number. Philippians 2:10-11 says: At the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. The myriads include everyone who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth; every created thing which is in heaven, or on the earth, or under the earth, or on the sea, and all the things in them. Each person has a choice of whether or not they will bow their knee and praise the Lord in their lifetime, but the time will come when there is no longer a choice. All will bow and confess that Jesus is Lord. In Luke 9:26 Jesus says: Whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory and the glory of the Father and the holy angels.   The world might think it foolish, but it is better to bow and praise the Lord now, even if it causes shame in the sight of people, than to wait and have the Lord be ashamed when He returns.

In our culture and society, we see thousands of people gather in stadiums and arenas to be entertained. Nothing on earth, nothing we can imagine with our finite minds can compare to what already takes place in heaven and what will be on earth. In Isaiah 6:1-7, we are given another glimpse into the heavenly realm. It says:  In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim were standing above Him, each having six wings: with two each covered his face, and with two each covered his feet, and with two each flew. And one called out to another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of armies. The whole earth is full of His glory.” And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke. Then I said, “Woe to me, for I am ruined!
Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of armies.” Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. He touched my mouth with it and said, “Behold, this has touched your lips; and your guilt is taken away and atonement is made for your sin.”  Far too often we try to view and understand heaven from earth’s perspective. We cannot describe what is indescribable. We cannot imagine the unimaginable. The heavenly realm is incomparable to earth. We should not limit or try to define God and heaven by what we see and know on earth. If we will look from heavens perspective, then like the seraphim, we will see not the chaos of the world reaching to heaven, but the glory of God in all the earth.  That’s why Jesus taught us to pray saying: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Hebrews 4:14-16 says: Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Like Isaiah, we have been cleansed at the altar of sacrifice, by Jesus and the cross. We too can see the living God in heaven and live, because of His atonement for our sins. Isaiah 6:8-9 says: Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I. Send me!” And He said, “Go, and tell this people…”  We too, having been cleansed by the blood of Jesus, have been sent. We are not just to remain in the heavenly realm, at the throne of grace. We are to take the things of heaven to earth. We are to be those who are part of the answer to Jesus prayer: Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. In Mark 16:15-18 Jesus says: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. The one who has believed and has been baptized will be saved; but the one who has not believed will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not harm them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

“Here am I. Send me!”  Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered to receive power, wealth, wisdom, might, honor, glory, and blessing. To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be the blessing, the honor, the glory, and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.