The Meaning of Revelation 10:4 Explained

Revelation 10:4

KJV: And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.

YLT: and when the seven thunders spake their voices, I was about to write, and I heard a voice out of the heaven saying to me, 'Seal the things that the seven thunders spake,' and, 'Thou mayest not write these things.'

Darby: And when the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write: and I heard a voice out of the heaven saying, Seal the things which the seven thunders have spoken, and write them not.

ASV: And when the seven thunders uttered their voices , I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying, Seal up the things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And  when  the seven  thunders  had uttered  their  voices,  I was about  to write:  and  I heard  a voice  from  heaven  saying  unto me,  Seal up  those things which  the seven  thunders  uttered,  and  write  them  not. 

What does Revelation 10:4 Mean?

Verse Meaning

An authoritative voice, probably belonging to God or Christ (cf. Revelation 1:11; Revelation 1:19; Daniel 12:4; Daniel 12:9), did not permit John to record the judgments these seven thunders revealed (cf. 2 Corinthians 12:1-4). This indicates that God has not revealed in Scripture all the judgments that will take place on the earth during the Great Tribulation. [1]
Apparently John used the intervals between events in his visions to write down what he had seen and heard or at least to make notes.

Context Summary

Revelation 10:1-11 - The Angel With The Little Book
If one of God's angels is so strong and glorious, what must the Lord of angels be! From the splendor of His retinue, we may estimate the wealth of the Prince. How exactly does this description of the little book suit the word of the Cross, that is, the message of the gospel! Things are spoken to the saints, which, as Paul says, no tongue can utter. They are sealed to the unbelieving but opened to the children of God. Notice that magnificent description of the ever-living God, the Creator, the Unfolder of the mystery of His dealings, Revelation 10:6-7. See also 1 Corinthians 2:12.
The gospel is full of sweetness and delight in its first conception. The sense of peace with God, the consciousness of pardoned sin and acceptance in the be-loved, are like the music of heaven or the dew of paradise. But the cross cuts deep into the self-life, as we carry the sentence of death in ourselves. We learn the necessity of being crucified with Christ, if we would enter into His resurrection joys; and so the Word of God, which is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrates lower and lower, dividing soul and spirit, the joints and marrow. Our Lord never concealed this from those who sought to be enrolled as His followers; but there is blessedness in the bitterness, as springs of fresh water arising amid the brine of the sea. [source]

Chapter Summary: Revelation 10

1  A mighty strong angel appears with a book open in his hand
6  He swears by him who lives forever, that there shall be no more time
9  John is commanded to take and eat the book

Greek Commentary for Revelation 10:4

I was about to write [ημελλον γραπειν]
Imperfect active of μελλω — mellō (double augment as in John 4:47; John 12:33; John 18:32) and the present (inchoative) active infinitive of γραπω — graphō “I was on the point of beginning to write,” as commanded in Revelation 1:11, Revelation 1:19. [source]
Seal up [σπραγισον]
Aorist active imperative of σπραγιζω — sphragizō tense of urgency, “seal up at once.”And write them not (και μη αυτα γραπσηις — kai mē auta grapsēis). Prohibition with μη — mē and the ingressive aorist active subjunctive of γραπω — graphō “Do not begin to write.” It is idle to conjecture what was in the utterances. Compare Paul‘s silence in 2 Corinthians 12:4. [source]
And write them not [και μη αυτα γραπσηις]
Prohibition with μη — mē and the ingressive aorist active subjunctive of γραπω — graphō “Do not begin to write.” It is idle to conjecture what was in the utterances. Compare Paul‘s silence in 2 Corinthians 12:4. [source]
To write []
According to the injunction in Revelation 1:11. [source]

Reverse Greek Commentary Search for Revelation 10:4

Revelation 22:10 Seal [σφραγίσῃς]
Rev., seal up. This word occurs eighteen times in Revelation and twice in the Gospel, and only five times elsewhere in the New Testament. It means to confirm or attest (John 3:33); to close up for security (Matthew 27:66; Revelation 20:3); to hide or keep secret (Revelation 10:4; Revelation 22:10); to mark a person or thing (Revelation 7:3; Ephesians 1:13; Ephesians 4:30) [source]
Revelation 10:8 Again speaking and saying [παλιν λαλουσαν και λεγουσαν]
Present active predicate participles feminine accusative singular agreeing with ην — hēn (object of ηκουσα — ēkousa), not with πωνη — phōnē (nominative) as most of the cursives have it Ordinarily it would be ελαλει και ελεγεν — elalei kai elegen See Revelation 4:1 for like idiom. This is the voice mentioned in Revelation 10:4. No great distinction is to be made here between λαλεω — laleō and λεγω — legō take Present active imperative of υπαγω — hupagō and second aorist active imperative of λαμβανω — lambanō The use of υπαγε — hupage (exclamation like ιδε — ide) is common in N.T. (Matthew 5:24; Matthew 8:4; Matthew 19:21; John 4:16; John 9:7). Charles calls it a Hebraism (Revelation 16:1). Note the repeated article here (το — to) referring to the open book in the hand of the angel (Revelation 10:2), only here βιβλιον — biblion is used, not the diminutive of βιβλαριδιον — biblaridion of Revelation 10:2, Revelation 10:9, Revelation 10:10. [source]
Revelation 10:11 They say [λεγουσιν]
Present active of vivid dramatic action and the indefinite statement in the plural as in Revelation 13:16; Revelation 16:15. It is possible that the allusion is to the heavenly voice (Revelation 10:4, Revelation 10:8) and to the angel (Revelation 10:9). [source]
Revelation 12:10 A great voice saying [πωνην μεγαλην λεγουσαν]
Accusative after ηκουσα — ēkousa in this phrase as in Revelation 5:11; Revelation 10:4; Revelation 14:2; Revelation 18:4, but the genitive πωνης λεγουσης — phōnēs legousēs in Revelation 11:12; Revelation 14:13. We are not told whence this voice or song comes, possibly from one of the twenty-four elders (Swete) or some other heavenly beings (Revelation 11:15) who can sympathize with human beings (Revelation 19:10), the martyrs in heaven (Charles). [source]
Revelation 14:2 Of a great thunder [βροντης μεγαλης]
For which see Revelation 6:1; Revelation 19:6. For this voice out of heaven see Revelation 10:4; Revelation 14:15; Revelation 18:4 and note accusative with ηκουσα — ēkousa the voice of harpers harping with their harps Triple use of κιταρα — kithara (Revelation 5:8), κιταρωιδων — kitharōidōn (Revelation 18:22), κιταριζοντων — kitharizontōn (old verb κιταριζω — kitharizō in N.T. only here and 1 Corinthians 14:7). Wonderful melody in this chorus by the angels, not by the 144,000. [source]
Revelation 22:10 Seal not up [μη σπραγισηις]
Prohibition with μη — mē and the ingressive first aorist active subjunctive of σπραγιζω — sphragizō Charles takes this to be the command of Christ because in Revelation 22:7, Revelation 22:18 “the words of the prophecy of this book” come from Christ. But that is not a conclusive argument, though Charles, as already stated, rearranges these chapters to suit his own notion. Once only (Revelation 10:4) was John directed to seal and not to write. See note on Revelation 10:4 for discussion of σπραγιζω — sphragizō This book is to be left open for all to read (Revelation 1:3; Revelation 13:18; Revelation 17:9; Revelation 22:7, Revelation 22:18).At hand (εγγυς — eggus). As in Revelation 1:3. [source]
Revelation 8:1 There followed a silence [εγενετο σιγη]
Second aorist middle of γινομαι — ginomai “There came silence.” Dramatic effect by this profound stillness with no elder or angel speaking, no chorus of praise nor cry of adoration, no thunder from the throne (Swete), but a temporary cessation in the revelations. See Revelation 10:4.About the space of half an hour (ως ημιωρον — hōs hēmiōron). Late and rare word (ημι — hēmi half, ωρα — hōra hour), here only in N.T. Accusative of extent of time. [source]

What do the individual words in Revelation 10:4 mean?

And when had spoken the seven thunders I was about to write But I heard a voice out of - heaven saying Seal what have spoken not them write
Καὶ ὅτε ἐλάλησαν αἱ ἑπτὰ βρονταί ἤμελλον γράφειν καὶ ἤκουσα φωνὴν ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ λέγουσαν Σφράγισον ἐλάλησαν μὴ αὐτὰ γράψῃς

ἐλάλησαν  had  spoken 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Indicative Active, 3rd Person Plural
Root: ἀπολαλέω 
Sense: to utter a voice or emit a sound.
ἑπτὰ  seven 
Parse: Adjective, Nominative Feminine Plural
Root: ἑπτά  
Sense: seven.
βρονταί  thunders 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Feminine Plural
Root: βροντή  
Sense: thunder.
ἤμελλον  I  was  about 
Parse: Verb, Imperfect Indicative Active, 1st Person Singular
Root: μέλλω  
Sense: to be about.
γράφειν  to  write 
Parse: Verb, Present Infinitive Active
Root: γράφω 
Sense: to write, with reference to the form of the letters.
ἤκουσα  I  heard 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Indicative Active, 1st Person Singular
Root: ἀκουστός 
Sense: to be endowed with the faculty of hearing, not deaf.
φωνὴν  a  voice 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Feminine Singular
Root: φωνή  
Sense: a sound, a tone.
ἐκ  out  of 
Parse: Preposition
Root: ἐκ 
Sense: out of, from, by, away from.
τοῦ  - 
Parse: Article, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root:  
Sense: this, that, these, etc.
οὐρανοῦ  heaven 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root: οὐρανός  
Sense: the vaulted expanse of the sky with all things visible in it.
λέγουσαν  saying 
Parse: Verb, Present Participle Active, Accusative Feminine Singular
Root: λέγω 
Sense: to say, to speak.
Σφράγισον  Seal 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Imperative Active, 2nd Person Singular
Root: σφραγίζω  
Sense: to set a seal upon, mark with a seal, to seal.
ἐλάλησαν  have  spoken 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Indicative Active, 3rd Person Plural
Root: ἀπολαλέω 
Sense: to utter a voice or emit a sound.
γράψῃς  write 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Subjunctive Active, 2nd Person Singular
Root: γράφω 
Sense: to write, with reference to the form of the letters.