Revelation of John 8:3
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Then another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, along with the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar before the throne.
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
another angel--not Christ, as many think; for He, in Revelation, is always designated by one of His proper titles; though, doubtless, He is the only true High Priest, the Angel of the Covenant, standing before the golden altar of incense, and there, as Mediator, offering up His people's prayers, rendered acceptable before God through the incense of His merit. Here the angel acts merely as a ministering spirit (Heb 1:4), just as the twenty-four elders have vials full of odors, or incense, which are the prayers of saints (Rev 5:8), and which they present before the Lamb. How precisely their ministry, in perfuming the prayers of the saints and offering them on the altar of incense, is exercised, we know not, but we do know they are not to be prayed TO. If we send an offering of tribute to the king, the king's messenger is not allowed to appropriate what is due to the king alone. there was given unto him--The angel does not provide the incense; it is given to him by Christ, whose meritorious obedience and death are the incense, rendering the saints' prayers well pleasing to God. It is not the saints who give the angel the incense; nor are their prayers identified with the incense; nor do they offer their prayers to him. Christ alone is the Mediator through whom, and to whom, prayer is to be offered. offer it with the prayers--rather as Greek, "give it TO the prayers," so rendering them efficacious as a sweet-smelling savor to God. Christ's merits alone can thus incense our prayers, though the angelic ministry be employed to attach this incense to the prayers. The saints' praying on earth, and the angel's incensing in heaven, are simultaneous. all saints--The prayers both of the saints in the heavenly rest, and of those militant on earth. The martyrs' cry is the foremost, an…
Open source ↗We have already seen what occurred upon opening six of the seals; we now come to the opening of the seventh, which introduced the sounding of the seven trumpets; and a direful scene now opens. Most expositors agree that the seven seals represent the interval between the apostle's time and the reign of Constantine, but that the seven trumpets are designed to represent the rise of antichrist, some time after the empire became Christian. In this chapter we have, I. The preface, or prelude, to the sounding of the trumpets (Rev 8:1-6). II. The sounding of four of the trumpets (Rev 8:7, etc.).
Open source ↗8:3-4 The prayers of God’s people ask for God’s ultimate justice and judgment (6:10-11; see also 5:8; Ezra 9:5-6; Ps 141:2; Dan 9:21). The mixture of incense and prayers that reaches God’s presence shows that God hears their prayers (see Rev 6:9-11) and is prepared to act.
Open source ↗Cross-references
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When He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp, and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
And the smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, rose up before God from the hand of the angel.
May my prayer be set before You like incense, my uplifted hands like the evening offering.
And at the hour of the incense offering, the whole congregation was praying outside.
For My name will be great among the nations, from where the sun rises to where it sets. In every place, incense and pure offerings will be presented in My name, because My name will be great among the nations,” says the LORD of Hosts.
Then the sixth angel sounded his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God
containing the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered ark of the covenant. Inside the ark were the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant.
Moses placed the gold altar in the Tent of Meeting, in front of the veil,
Therefore He is able to save completely those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to intercede for them.
Who is there to condemn us? For Christ Jesus, who died, and more than that was raised to life, is at the right hand of God—and He is interceding for us.