Revelation 4:11 kjv

Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

Revelation 4:11 nkjv

"You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created."

Revelation 4:11 niv

"You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being."

Revelation 4:11 esv

"Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created."

Revelation 4:11 nlt

"You are worthy, O Lord our God,
to receive glory and honor and power.
For you created all things,
and they exist because you created what you pleased."

Revelation 4 verses

Revelation 4 11 Meaning

Revelation 4:11 is a central doxology within a profound vision of heavenly worship, declaring God's absolute worthiness to receive all glory, honor, and power. This worthiness stems directly from His ultimate role as the Creator of all things, and the ongoing sustainer of their existence purely by His sovereign will. It proclaims God alone as the rightful recipient of cosmic praise because He is the source and ground of all reality.

Revelation 4 11 Context

Revelation chapter 4 opens John's vision after the letters to the seven churches. He is invited "up here" into heaven, a symbolic representation of entering the divine perspective and courtroom. This chapter establishes the ultimate authority and holiness of God. The throne scene (4:2) is the focal point, surrounded by 24 elders and four living creatures, all engaged in ceaseless worship. Verse 11 serves as a high point of this worship, a theological explanation for why God is being worshipped, complementing the "Holy, holy, holy" of verse 8. Historically, John's audience was under pressure to worship the Roman emperor. This chapter, culminating in verse 11, presents a powerful counter-narrative, emphatically stating that only the Creator God is worthy of such adoration and allegiance. It is a profound assertion of monotheism and divine sovereignty against any competing claims.

Revelation 4 11 Word analysis

• Worthy (Ἄξιος - Axios):
  • Meaning: Deserving, fitting, merited. Indicates that God rightfully commands all praise, not as a subjective preference, but as an inherent quality and due recognition of His nature and acts.
  • Significance: It's a declaration of divine claim. His worthiness is not granted by creation but inherent.
• are You (Εἶ – Ei):
  • Meaning: You are. Direct affirmation, placing the praise immediately and personally on God.
  • Significance: Highlights the direct, personal nature of the heavenly address to God.
• our Lord (ὁ Κύριος ἡμῶν - ho Kyrios hēmōn):
  • Meaning: Our Master, our Sovereign.
  • Significance: Refers to God's supreme authority and ownership, not just generally but in relation to the worshippers ("our"). Connects Him to both creation and covenant.
• and God (καὶ ὁ Θεὸς - kai ho Theos):
  • Meaning: And the God.
  • Significance: Emphasizes His unique divine identity, asserting His status as the only true God in opposition to any idols or false gods, particularly relevant in a polytheistic Roman context.
• to receive (λαβεῖν - labein):
  • Meaning: To take, to acquire, to grasp. Implies that this praise is legitimately due and taken by God.
  • Significance: It's not a gift from creatures but God's inherent right to accept what is His.
• glory (τὴν δόξαν - tēn doxan):
  • Meaning: Majesty, renown, splendor, visible manifestation of inherent divine quality.
  • Significance: Refers to the visible brilliance and inner weight of God's being, deserving of outward expression of adoration.
• and honor (καὶ τὴν τιμήν - kai tēn timēn):
  • Meaning: Esteem, respect, value.
  • Significance: Recognizes God's elevated position and unique dignity. It implies acknowledging His supreme worth.
• and power (καὶ τὴν δύναμιν - kai tēn dynamin):
  • Meaning: Strength, might, ability.
  • Significance: Acknowledges God's omnipotence and active sovereignty in ruling and bringing things to pass.
• for (ὅτι - hoti):
  • Meaning: Because, since, that. Introduces the ground or reason for God's worthiness.
  • Significance: Crucially links God's character to His actions, making creation the irrefutable basis for worship.
• You created (ἔκτισας - ektisas):
  • Meaning: You brought into being, You made. A specific, completed act of creation in the aorist tense.
  • Significance: Refers to the initial act of bringing the universe into existence, affirming God as the sole uncreated origin.
• all things (τὰ πάντα - ta panta):
  • Meaning: Everything, the totality.
  • Significance: Emphasizes the comprehensive scope of God's creative work, excluding nothing. This is total dependence on God.
• and by Your will (καὶ διὰ τὸ θέλημά σου - kai dia to thelēma sou):
  • Meaning: And through your will/purpose. God's volitional, purposeful agency in creation and existence.
  • Significance: Highlights that creation was not accidental or necessitated but proceeded from God's deliberate and sovereign purpose.
• they exist (ἦσαν - ēsan):
  • Meaning: They were, they came into being (imperfect tense).
  • Significance: Points to the origin of existence—they began to be or existed (as a state of being) through His will.
• and were created (καὶ ἐκτίσθησαν - kai ektisthēsan):
  • Meaning: And they were made/brought into being (aorist passive).
  • Significance: Reaffirms the initial act of creation while potentially indicating their continued sustenance or being brought forth by divine power. It confirms the "fact" of creation. The Greek emphasizes both that they came to exist (first verb) and that they were created (second verb), powerfully affirming God's singular act of bringing all things into being and their continued existence through His will.

Words-group Analysis:

• "Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power": This phrase constitutes a threefold declaration of worthiness, affirming God's right to ultimate adoration based on His divine nature, His mastership, and His very being. The objects of praise (glory, honor, power) are precisely those things that pagan rulers, especially the Roman emperor, arrogated to themselves, creating a strong theological polemic.
• "for You created all things": This clause provides the primary reason for God's supreme worthiness. The act of creation is the foundational truth, establishing God's unique sovereignty as the uncreated Originator of all that is. This statement connects Him irrevocably to everything visible and invisible.
• "and by Your will they exist and were created": This phrase further amplifies the previous one, showing that not only did God create everything, but their continued existence and being are entirely dependent on His sovereign will and purpose. It underscores divine providence and sustained existence through His continuous intention, moving beyond the initial act to perpetual reliance.

Revelation 4 11 Bonus section

The repeated emphasis on God's act of creation in Revelation 4:11 is not merely a statement of fact but a foundational theological premise for worship. In ancient contexts, often linked to mythologies where creation was the result of struggle among deities or accidental events, the biblical portrayal of a single, sovereign God creating ex nihilo by His word and will ("by Your will they exist and were created") stood in stark contrast. This served as a powerful declaration of God's unmatched uniqueness and ultimate authority. The declaration from the heavenly throne room in Revelation underscores that the purpose of all creation is for God's glory and that its very existence serves as a perpetual testimony to His matchless worth. This echoes the sentiment found in Old Testament creation psalms and later New Testament teachings on God as the source, sustainer, and ultimate end of all things.

Revelation 4 11 Commentary

Revelation 4:11 is a pivotal doxology, articulating the core reason for God's supreme worthiness of all praise. The worship here is not emotional outburst but an informed, logical consequence of God's identity and action. The emphasis on "Creator" is crucial. In a world with many deities and human rulers demanding worship, this verse redirects all glory, honor, and power solely to the One who brought "all things" into existence. The phrase "by Your will they exist and were created" speaks to both the initial generative act and the ongoing, intentional sustenance of creation. It means the entire cosmos exists, from its inception to its every moment, because God purposed it to be so. This leaves no room for randomness or any independent claims of authority; God's sovereign will is the absolute foundation of all reality. This declaration serves as both a hymn of worship and a theological statement of ultimate truth, providing comfort and conviction to those facing pressures to compromise their allegiance to God.