1After 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.”
2Immediately I was in the Spirit. Behold, there was a throne set in heaven, and one sitting on the throne 3that looked like a jasper stone and a sardius. There was a rainbow around the throne, like an emerald to look at. 4Around the throne were twenty-four thrones. On the thrones were twenty-four elders sitting, dressed in white garments, with crowns of gold on their heads. 5Out of the throne proceed lightnings, sounds, and thunders. There were seven lamps of fire burning before his throne, which are the seven Spirits of God. 6Before the throne was something like a sea of glass, similar to crystal. In the middle of the throne, and around the throne were four living creatures full of eyes before and behind. 7The first creature was like a lion, the second creature like a calf, the third creature had a face like a man, and the fourth was like a flying eagle. 8The four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within. They have no rest day and night, saying, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come!”
9When the living creatures give glory, honor, and thanks to him who sits on the throne, to him who lives forever and ever, 10the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever, and throw their crowns before the throne, saying, 11“Worthy are you, our Lord and God, the Holy One, to receive the glory, the honor, and the power, for you created all things, and because of your desire they existed and were created!”
The book of Revelation has enigmatic references to the "seven spirits of God"1 in Revelation 1:4; 3:1; 4:5; and 5:6, and so it is difficult to know exactly what this identification means. Revelation 1:4 says that the seven spirits are before the throne of God. Revelation 3:1 indicates that Jesus Christ has the seven spirits of God. Revelation 4:5 identifies the seven spirits of God with seven burning lamps that are before the throne. Last, Revelation 5:6 connects to the seven spirits, who are "sent out into all the earth."
There seem to be three different ways that the phrase "seven spirits of God" may be interpreted from the most likely interpretation, in my opinion, to the least likely, but one cannot be dogmatic with the obscure expression. First, John may be referring to the usage in Isaiah 11:2 that says, "Yahweh’s Spirit will rest on him: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of Yahweh."
The seven references to the "spirit" may speak of attributes of God possessed by the Spirit of God, His identity with Yahweh, wisdom, understanding, counsel, power, knowledge, and fear of Yahweh.
The second option is that the "seven spirits" uses "seven," the number of completeness and perfection, to accentuate the Spirit of Yahweh's perfection.2
Last of all, the "seven spirits" may refer to seven angelic beings, as is discussed in the book of Revelation (see Rev 4:6-9; 5:6-14; 19:4, 5), or to cherubim and seraphim.
See the study of the "Spirit of God" in the Old Testament beginning at Genesis 1:2, and in the New Testament beginning at Matthew 1:18. ↩︎
For a discussion of the use of numbers in the Bible, see John J. Davis, Biblical Numerology - A Basic Study Of The Use Of Numbers In The Bible. ↩︎