Bible Strands
Revelation 4:3
The One seated there looked like jasper and carnelian, and a rainbow that gleamed like an emerald encircled the throne.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator, suddenly transported into the Spirit, witnesses a throne standing in heaven with a figure seated upon it. He records the visual details of that figure and the encircling rainbow.
The words — καθήμενος (kathēmenos) means "sitting" and identifies the central figure on the throne. ὅμοιος (homoios) translates as "like," indicating the seated One resembled jasper and carnelian in physical appearance.
The thread — The rainbow encircling the throne parallels Ezekiel 1:28, which places a rainbow around divine glory. The description of the seated figure resembling jasper aligns with Revelation 21:11, where radiance matches jasper clarity.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition of the throne’s supreme authority and the covenant promise symbolized by the rainbow. It asks the reader to observe the boundary between Creator and creation without softening the vision’s intensity.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.
Cross-references
- Ezekiel 1:28 The appearance of the brilliant light all around Him was like that of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell facedown and heard a voice speaking.
- Genesis 9:13 I have set My rainbow in the clouds, and it will be a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.
- Revelation 21:11 shining with the glory of God. Its radiance was like a most precious jewel, like a jasper, as clear as crystal.
- Revelation 10:1 Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, with a rainbow above his head. His face was like the sun, and his legs were like pillars of fire.
- Ezekiel 28:13 You were in Eden, the garden of God. Every kind of precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald. Your mountings and settings were crafted in gold, prepared on the day of your creation.
- Ezekiel 1:26 Above the expanse over their heads was the likeness of a throne with the appearance of sapphire, and on the throne high above was a figure like that of a man.
- Revelation 21:19 The foundations of the city walls were adorned with every kind of precious stone: The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald,
- Exodus 24:10 and they saw the God of Israel. Under His feet was a work like a pavement made of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself.
- Exodus 39:11 the second row had a turquoise, a sapphire, and a diamond;
- Exodus 28:18 in the second row a turquoise, a sapphire, and a diamond;