TRV
Translation
King James Version
And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven,
Complete Jewish Bible
Then the angel I saw standing on the sea and on the land lifted his right hand toward heaven
Berean Standard Bible
Then the angel I had seen standing on the sea and on the land lifted up his right hand to heaven.
American Standard Version
And the angel that I saw standing upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his right hand to heaven,
World English Bible Messianic
The angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land lifted up his right hand to the sky,
Geneva Bible (1599)
And the Angel which I sawe stand vpon the sea, and vpon the earth, lift vp his hand to heauen,
Young's Literal Translation
And the messenger whom I saw standing upon the sea, and upon the land, did lift up his hand to the heaven,
See also
See on the biblical-era map
In the KJVVerse 30,867 of 31,102
Study This Verse
Commentary on Revelation 10 verses 1–7
1 ¶ And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:
2 And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth,
3 And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.
4 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.
5 And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven,
6 And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer:
7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.
Here we have an account of another vision the apostle was favoured with, between the sounding of the sixth trumpet and that of the seventh. And we observe,
I. The person who was principally concerned in communicating this discovery to John - an angel from heaven, another mighty angel, who is so set forth as would induce one to think it could be no other than our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! 1. He was clothed with a cloud: he veils his glory, which is too great for mortality to behold; and he throws a veil upon his dispensations. Clouds and darkness are round about him. 2. A rainbow was upon his head; he is always mindful of his covenant, and, when his conduct is most mysterious, yet it is perfectly just and faithful. 3. His face was as the sun, all bright, and full of lustre and majesty, Rev 1:16. 4. His feet were as pillars of fire; all his ways, both of grace and providence, are pure and steady.
II. His station and posture: He set his right foot upon the sea and his left foot upon the earth, to show the absolute power and dominion he had over the world. And he held in his hand a little book opened, probably the same that was before sealed, but was now opened, and gradually fulfilled by him.
III. His awful voice: He cried aloud, as when a lion roareth (Rev 10:3), and his awful voice was echoed by seven thunders, seven solemn and terrible ways of discovering the mind of God.
IV. The prohibition given to the apostle, that he should not publish, but conceal what he had learned from the seven thunders, Rev 10:4. The apostle was for preserving and publishing every thing he saw and heard in these visions, but the time had not yet come.
V. The solemn oath taken by this mighty angel. 1. The manner of his swearing: He lifted up his hand to heaven, and swore by him that liveth for ever, by himself, as God often has done, or by God as God, to whom he, as Lord, Redeemer, and ruler of the world, now appeals. 2. The matter of the oath: that there shall be time no longer; either, (1.) That there shall be now no longer delay in fulfilling the predictions of this book than till the last angel should sound; then every thing should be put into speedy execution: the mystery of God shall be finished, Rev 10:7. Or, (2.) That when this mystery of God is finished time itself shall be no more, as being the measure of things that are in a mutable changing state; but all things shall be at length for ever fixed, and so time itself swallowed up in eternity.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 1–7. Public domain.
Copy as
Victorinus of PettauAD 304
Commentary on the Apocalypse of the Blessed John
"Seven thunders uttered their voices." The seven thunders uttering their voices signify, the Holy Spirit of sevenfold power, who through the prophets announced all things to come, and by His voice John gave his testimony in the world; but because he says that he was about to write the things which the thunders had uttered, that is, whatever things had been obscure in the announcements of the Old Testament; he is forbidden to write them, but he was charged to leave them sealed, because he is an apostle, nor was it fitting that the grace of the subsequent stage should be given in the first. "The time," says he, "is at hand."45 For the apostles, by powers, by signs, by portents, and by mighty works, have overcome unbelief. After them there is now given to the same completed Churches the comfort of having the prophetic Scriptures subsequently interpreted, for I said that after the apostles there would be interpreting prophets.
For the apostle says: "And he placed in the Church indeed, first, apostles; secondly, prophets; thirdly, teachers,"46 and the rest. And in another place he says: "Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the others judge."47 And he says: "Every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered, dishonoureth her head"48 And when he says, "Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the others judge," he is not speaking in respect of the Catholic prophecy of things unheard and unknown, but of things both announced and known. But let them judge whether or not the interpretation is consistent with the testimonies of the prophetic utterance.49 It is plain, therefore, that to John, armed as he was with superior virtue, this was not necessary, although the body of Christ, which is the Church, adorned with His members, ought to respond to its position.
Andreas of CaesareaAD 614
COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 10:5-6
God swears by himself, since there is none greater than he. But the angels, being creatures, swear by the Creator, for due to our untrustworthiness, they are the guarantors of what is said by them. They swear either that in the coming age there will no longer be time which is measured by the sun, since eternal life is transcendent to temporal measure, or they swear that there is not much time after the six voices of the angel before the prophecies are fulfilled.
BedeAD 735
Commentary on Revelation
And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land lifted up his hand to heaven, and swore, etc. The angel swears by the one who lives forever, as Christ, coming in the name of the Father, confirms his words with his unchangeable truth: Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away (Matthew XXIV).
Alcuin of YorkAD 804
COMMENTARY ON REVELATION
And the angel, whom I saw standing upon the sea and upon the earth, lifted up his hand to heaven, and he swore by him that liveth for ever and ever. When the Lord forbids swearing, what does it mean that he himself swears, if not that men are often mistaken in swearing, whereas he, who is the truth, is never mistaken? So, the angel lifting up his hand to heaven was our Redeemer carrying his humanity up to the Father's seat by his own power. His swearing by him that lives for ever and ever means that he shows that he, who is the Father's Word, and his flesh, which indicates the whole man, who consists of flesh and soul, are one person of God and the true God of man; or if it is not this, then certainly he swears by the Father because he attributes him everything. In what is said after that, who created heaven, and the things which are therein; and the earth, and the things which are in it; and the sea, and the things which are therein, he refutes the error of the heretics who are not afraid to claim that some things were made by the good prince and others by the prince of darkness. Now let us hear what he swore: That time shall be no longer, but in the days of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound the trumpet, the mystery of God shall be finished, as he hath declared by his servants the prophets. The seventh angel and the seventh trumpet are the end of the Church's preaching, with the completion of which the second coming of the Lord is expected to take place. However, if time shall be no longer when holy preaching has come to an end, how can the Psalmist say, Their time shall be forever? [Ps. 80:16] One should know then that for the just, whom the eternity of immortality will receive, no time of changeableness will come after that; whereas the unjust, whom an eternal decline will take possession of, will be as if they were confronted with times of mutability: for, since time declines moment by moment, it is fitting for the decline of the wicked to be called by the name of time. Therefore the Psalmist affirms concerning the unjust what the Lord denies concerning the just. Finally, when he says that the mystery of God shall be finished, it is not meant in the sense of destruction, but in the sense of completion. He says that it was foretold by the prophets because nearly all their focus was on the Lord's first and second coming and the end of the world.
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
Copy as
Continue studying Revelation 10:5 across the web’s major study libraries — every link below opens this exact verse, chapter, or book on the destination site.
Read & Compare
BibleGatewayThis verse in more than 200 translations and 70 languages.
Bible.comThe YouVersion reader — hundreds of translations, reading plans, and highlights.
ESV.orgCrossway's official English Standard Version reader.
NET BibleThe NET translation with 60,000+ translators' notes on every rendering decision.
STEP BibleTyndale House's free study tool — original text, vocabulary, and scholarly resources.
BibliaLogos Bible Software's free web reader.
USCCBThe New American Bible (Revised Edition) with the U.S. bishops' study notes.
Commentaries
BibleHub CommentariesDozens of classic commentaries on this verse, gathered on one page.
StudyLightMore than 100 commentary sets — the largest collection on the web.
BibleRefPlain-English commentary on what this verse means, verse by verse.
Enduring WordDavid Guzik's free commentary on this chapter, widely used by Bible teachers.
Bible Study ToolsVerse commentary alongside Greek and Hebrew study aids.
Original Language & Research
- BibleHub InterlinearThe verse word by word — original language, transliteration, and English.
- BibleHub LexiconEvery word's original-language definition and Strong's entry.
Blue Letter BibleDeep-study tools — Strong's numbers, concordance, and word studies.
CNTR CollationThe earliest Greek manuscripts of this verse, collated letter by letter.
Sermons, Hymns & Audio
TrulyRandomVerse is not affiliated with these sites and doesn’t control their content. They’re linked because they’re genuinely useful.
SUMMARY
Revelation 10:5 presents one of the most solemn and awe-inspiring moments in the Apocalypse: the mighty angel who straddles both sea and earth — the totality of the created order — raises his hand toward heaven in preparation for a divine oath. This gesture is not merely ceremonial but carries the full weight of covenantal authority, echoing the ancient practice of oath-swearing before God as witnessed throughout the Old Testament. The angel, already described in extraordinary terms — clothed with a cloud, crowned with a rainbow, face blazing like the sun, feet like pillars of fire — now assumes the posture of one who speaks with ultimate divine authority. By lifting his hand to heaven, he invokes the throne room of God itself as the guarantor of the declaration that follows in verse 6, where he swears that delay shall be no more and the mystery of God will reach its consummation. This verse serves as the hinge between the angel's dramatic appearance and the climactic announcement that the seventh trumpet will bring God's purposes to completion.
CONTEXT
Literary Context: This verse falls within the interlude between the sixth and seventh trumpets (Revelation 10:1–11:14), a pattern John employs to pause the sequence of judgments and provide deeper revelation. The mighty angel's oath-taking in verses 5–7 forms the theological center of this interlude, transitioning from the visual description of the angel in verses 1–4 to the command for John to eat the little book in verses 8–10. The raised hand and subsequent oath mirror the structure of Daniel 12:7, where a heavenly figure similarly lifts his hands and swears by the Eternal One.
Historical & Cultural Context: In the ancient Near Eastern and Greco-Roman world, raising the hand toward heaven while making an oath was among the most binding and sacred acts a person could perform. This practice is attested throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, as in Deuteronomy 32:40, where God Himself declares, "I lift up my hand to heaven, and say, I live for ever." The gesture called upon the highest possible authority — God in heaven — as witness and enforcer of the vow. For John's original audience, familiar with both Jewish oath traditions and the Daniel 12 passage, this scene would have unmistakably signaled that a definitive, irrevocable divine pronouncement was about to be made.
Key Themes: The dominant themes of this verse include divine sovereignty over all creation (signified by the angel standing upon both sea and earth), the certainty and finality of God's prophetic purposes (expressed through the solemn oath gesture), and the connection between heaven and earth as God's decree moves from the heavenly throne to the earthly realm. The angel's posture — feet planted on the created order, hand raised toward the Creator — embodies the truth that God's plans encompass and govern the entirety of existence.
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
This verse is deceptively brief in its wording yet profoundly rich in its symbolism and theological weight. Every element — the angel, the act of seeing, the stance upon sea and earth, the lifted hand, and the heavenly direction of the gesture — contributes to a carefully constructed scene that conveys the absolute authority behind the oath that follows. John draws upon deeply rooted Old Testament imagery to frame this moment as one of ultimate divine finality.
Key Word Analysis
hand (Greek, cheír, G5495): From Strong's G5495, meaning the hand literally or figuratively, encompassing the idea of power and authority. The singular "hand" raised toward heaven echoes the oath-swearing posture found in Genesis 14:22, where Abram lifts his hand to the LORD. The hand represents both the physical gesture and the authority vested in the one making the oath — this angel acts not on his own behalf but as an agent of divine power.
lifted up (Greek, aírō, G142): From Strong's G142, a primary root meaning to lift up, to raise, or to take up. The deliberate raising of the hand is an act of solemn intentionality; it signals that what follows is not casual speech but a formal, binding declaration. The word carries connotations of elevation and exaltation, fitting for a gesture directed toward the heavenly throne.
heaven (Greek, ouranós, G3772): From Strong's G3772, referring to the sky and by extension heaven as the abode of God, with implications of power and eternity. The angel directs his oath toward heaven — the seat of ultimate authority — grounding the coming declaration not in angelic power but in the eternal sovereign will of the Creator. This is the same heaven from which the angel descended in verse 1.
Verse Breakdown
"And the angel which I saw": John emphasizes his eyewitness role with the verb "saw" (from Greek eídō, G1492), connecting this moment back to the initial vision of the angel in verse 1. This is not a new figure but the same mighty angel whose extraordinary appearance has already been described in vivid detail — an angel of such majesty that many interpreters have identified him as Christ Himself or as a uniquely exalted angelic representative of divine authority.
"stand upon the sea and upon the earth": The angel's posture — one foot on the sea, one on the land — is reiterated from verse 2 to reinforce the scope of his dominion. The sea (thálassa, G2281) and the earth (gē, G1093) together represent the totality of the physical creation. This is not an angel with a limited commission but one whose authority and message encompass the entire world. The repetition in this verse underscores that the oath he is about to make applies universally.
"lifted up his hand to heaven": This is the central action of the verse and the pivot point of the entire passage. The raising of the hand toward heaven is the formal initiation of a sworn oath, a gesture loaded with covenantal significance. By directing the gesture toward heaven (ouranós), the angel appeals to God's own throne as the authority behind the declaration. This mirrors Daniel 12:7, where the figure raises both hands — here, the singular hand may indicate that the other hand holds the little book mentioned in verse 2.
Literary Devices
This verse employs several powerful literary devices that deepen its impact. Anaphoric repetition — the phrase "upon the sea and upon the earth" — echoes the identical language from verse 2, creating a rhythmic insistence that reinforces the angel's universal dominion. Allusion functions prominently, as the entire scene deliberately recalls Daniel 12:5–7, where a linen-clad figure raises both hands and swears by the Eternal One regarding the duration of prophetic events; John's audience would have recognized this parallel immediately. The verse also serves as a masterful example of narrative suspension — John pauses mid-action, describing the raised hand without yet revealing the content of the oath, creating a dramatic tension that compels the reader forward into verse 6. The spatial imagery of the scene — feet below on creation, hand raised above toward the Creator — constructs a vertical axis that visually represents the angel as a mediating figure between God and the world, a conduit through whom divine decree flows downward to all that exists.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
The raising of the hand to heaven for an oath is one of Scripture's most ancient and sacred gestures, rooted in the very character of God. In Deuteronomy 32:40, God Himself lifts His hand and swears, "As I live for ever," establishing the pattern that this angel now follows. The theological significance is profound: an oath sworn with the hand raised toward heaven invokes the highest possible authority and admits no possibility of failure or falsehood. This connects directly to the theme of divine faithfulness — God's promises, once sworn, are as certain as His own existence. The angel's stance upon sea and earth recalls the creation mandate of Genesis 1:9–10, where God Himself separated the waters from the dry land, and anticipates the new creation of Revelation 21:1, where the sea is no more. The oath thus spans the entire biblical narrative, from the first creation to the final consummation.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
This single verse invites the believer to contemplate the breathtaking certainty of God's purposes. In a world that often feels chaotic, ungoverned, and endlessly delayed in its resolution, the image of a mighty angel — feet planted firmly on the totality of creation, hand raised solemnly toward the throne of God — offers a profound reassurance. The oath has not yet been spoken in this verse, but the very posture declares that what comes next is irrevocable, unbreakable, and backed by the full authority of the living God. For the original recipients of Revelation, suffering under persecution and wondering if God's justice would ever arrive, this scene was a powerful reminder that heaven had not forgotten them and that the final chapter was already written. For believers today, the same truth applies: the God who governs sea and land, who dispatches mighty angels with earth-shaking authority, is actively bringing all things to their appointed conclusion. The delays we experience are not evidence of divine indifference but part of a sovereign plan that will culminate exactly as God has decreed.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Why does the angel raise only one hand when the similar figure in Daniel 12:7 raises both hands?
Answer: The most widely accepted explanation is practical and textual: in Revelation 10:2, the angel is described as holding "a little book open" in his hand. With one hand occupied by the book of divine revelation, only one hand is free to raise in the oath-swearing gesture. Far from diminishing the solemnity of the oath, this detail reinforces the scene's internal consistency and highlights that the angel simultaneously holds God's revealed word and swears by God's eternal authority — uniting the written decree with the spoken vow.
Is this mighty angel actually Christ, or is he a created angelic being?
Answer: Scholars have debated this for centuries. Those who identify the angel as Christ point to his extraordinary attributes in verses 1–2 — the cloud, the rainbow (recalling Revelation 4:3), the sun-like face (echoing Revelation 1:16), and feet like pillars of fire — as well as his universal dominion over sea and earth. Those who see him as a created angel note that he is called "another mighty angel" (distinguishing him from Christ) and that the oath he swears in verse 6 appeals to a higher authority — "him that liveth for ever and ever" — suggesting he is subordinate to God. Either way, the angel functions as an authoritative agent of divine revelation, and the theological weight of the passage remains the same.
What is the significance of the angel standing on both sea and earth?
Answer: The dual stance upon sea and earth signifies total, universal authority over the entire created order. In biblical symbolism, the sea often represents chaos, the nations, or the untamed forces of the world, while the earth represents the inhabited, ordered realm of humanity. By planting one foot on each, the angel demonstrates that no domain — chaotic or ordered, wild or civilized — falls outside the scope of the divine decree he is about to announce. This imagery reinforces that the oath in verse 6 applies to all of creation without exception.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
The mighty angel's solemn oath in Revelation 10 points ultimately to Christ as the one in whom all divine promises find their "Yes" and "Amen," as 2 Corinthians 1:20 declares. The angel's stance upon sea and earth reflects the universal authority that Christ claimed after His resurrection: "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth" (Matthew 28:18). The raised hand toward heaven anticipates the moment when Christ Himself, the faithful and true witness, will bring to completion the mystery of God — the full realization of redemption, judgment, and the restoration of all things. Just as this angel bridges heaven and earth in his very posture, Christ is the true mediator between God and humanity (1 Timothy 2:5), the one whose finished work on the cross and coming return guarantee that there will indeed be "delay no longer." The oath sworn here finds its deepest ground not in angelic authority but in the eternal covenant sealed by the blood of Christ, who as the Lamb of Revelation 5:5–7 alone was worthy to open the sealed scroll and set in motion the final acts of redemptive history.