The Twenty-Four Elders

TWENTY-FOUR ELDERS – Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads. From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. (Revelation 4:4, 5a)

Who They Are – The rainbow was around the throne vertically, while these Heavenly beings surround the throne horizontally. They appear to be the king’s court,(1) and are somewhat reminiscent of the Jewish Sanhedrin that sat in a semicircle with the high priest in the middle.(2) As a symbolic number, twenty-four occurs only in this book and only for these elders (Revelation 4:4, 10; 5:8; 11:16; 19:4). We do not really know why there are twenty-four. Perhaps it is two elders for each tribe? Or could it refer to the twelve tribes (law and Judaism) and the twelve apostles (grace and Christianity)? It…