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There are 13 creatures mentioned in the Book of Revelation: The Lamb (Rev. 5:6), the four living creatures (Rev. 4:7), the four horses (Rev. 6:1-8), the Red Dragon (Rev. 12:3), the Beast from the Sea (Rev. 13:1-2), the Beast from the Earth (Rev. 13:11), and the locusts (Rev. 9:3-11).
Revelation is a visual of what is seen in heaven written by the Apostle John with words that struggle to describe what he sees. Have you ever had difficulty explaining an experience? Can you imagine the difficulty for John, given the task of detailing heaven to us alive today?
So, I’m going to help the Apostle John and give you my pictorial rendition of some of the creatures he saw in heaven…
The Lamb of God
And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
Artistic note: The seven spirits of God are specifically named in this pictorial, inspired from Isaiah 11:2 (ESV).
The Four Living Creatures
The first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like an eagle in flight. And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within (Revelation 4:7-8a).
Editor’s Note: The style of this illustration was patterned after early Christian iconography. The Latin at the bottom says, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come.” The phrase contains the words (look up Revelation 4:8b) that the living creatures never cease to utter in the presence of God. This iconograph doesn’t have the correct number of six wings or the eyes, as even AI can’t completely describe heaven.
The Four Horses
White horse … came another horse, bright red … and behold, a black horse … and behold a pale horse (Revelation 6:1-8).
An OG (Old Guy) note: This is one of my favorite scenes from the Book of Revelation, as the four horsemen ride out from the Lamb’s throne to vanquish evil. Read the full text to appreciate this illustration. Each of the four living creatures (image shown previously) shouts, “Come!” with different horsemen going forth to execute God’s judgment of conquest, war, famine, and death. When I personally see these horses, I will rejoice that I have confessed the Lamb of God as my Savior. You will too!
That’s it for this Saturday. I will illustrate and describe the remaining four creatures of the Book of Revelation next Saturday.