Wahyu 4:6

4:6 and in front of the throne was something like a sea of glass, like crystal. ¹ 

In ²  the middle of the throne ³  and around the throne were four living creatures ⁴  full of eyes in front and in back.

Wahyu 9:14

9:14 saying to the sixth angel, the one holding ⁵  the trumpet, “Set free ⁶  the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates!”

Yehezkiel 7:2

7:2 “You, son of man – this is what the sovereign Lord says to the land of Israel: An end! The end is coming on the four corners of the land! ⁷ 

Yehezkiel 37:9

37:9 He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, ⁸  – prophesy, son of man – and say to the breath: ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these corpses so that they may live.’”

Zakharia 1:18-20

Vision Two: The Four Horns

1:18 (2:1) ⁹  Once again I looked and this time I saw four horns. 1:19 So I asked the angelic messenger ¹⁰  who spoke with me, “What are these?” He replied, “These are the horns ¹¹  that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.” ¹²  1:20 Next the Lord showed me four blacksmiths. ¹³ 

Zakharia 6:1

Vision Eight: The Chariots

6:1 Once more I looked, and this time I saw four chariots emerging from between two mountains of bronze. ¹⁴ 

Matius 24:31

24:31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet blast, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven ¹⁵  to the other.

Markus 13:27

13:27 Then he will send angels and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven. ¹⁶ 

[4:6]  ¹ tn This could refer to rock crystal, but it is possible this refers to ice (an older meaning). See BDAG 571 s.v. κρύσταλλος.

[4:6]  ² tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[4:6]  ³ tn Perhaps, “in the middle of the throne area” (see L&N 83.10).

[4:6]  ⁴ tn On the meaning of ζῴον (zwon) BDAG 431 s.v. 2 states, “Of the four peculiar beings at God’s throne, whose description Rv 4:6-9 reminds one of the ζῷα in Ezk 1:5ff, the cherubim. S. also Rv 5:6, 8, 11, 14; 6:1, 3, 5-7; 7:11; 14:3; 15:7; 19:4.”

[9:14]  ⁵ tn Grk “having.”

[9:14]  ⁶ tn On λῦσον (luson) BDAG 606-7 s.v. λύω 2 states, “set free, loose, untie – a. lit. a pers., animal, or thing that is bound or tied…Angels that are bound Rv 9:14f.”

[7:2]  ⁷ tn Or “earth.” Elsewhere the expression “four corners of the earth” figuratively refers to the whole earth (Isa 11:12).

[37:9]  ⁸ tn Or “spirit,” and several times in this verse.

[1:18]  ⁹ sn This marks the beginning of ch. 2 in the Hebrew text. Beginning with 1:18, the verse numbers through 2:13 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 1:18 ET = 2:1 HT, 1:19 ET = 2:2 HT, 1:20 ET = 2:3 HT, 1:21 ET = 2:4 HT, 2:1 ET = 2:5 HT, etc., through 2:13 ET = 2:17 HT. From 3:1 the verse numbers in the English Bible and the Hebrew Bible are again the same.

[1:19]  ¹⁰ tn See the note on the expression “angelic messenger” in v. 9.

[1:19]  ¹¹ sn An animal’s horn is a common OT metaphor for military power (Pss 18:2; 75:10; Jer 48:25; Mic 4:13). The fact that there are four horns here (as well as four blacksmiths, v. 20) shows a correspondence to the four horses of v. 8 which go to four parts of the world, i.e., the whole world.

[1:19]  ¹² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[1:20]  ¹³ tn Heb “craftsmen” (so NASB, NIV; KJV “carpenters”), a generic term which can mean “metalworker, smith, armorer” (HALOT 358 s.v. חָרָשׁ). “Blacksmiths” was chosen for the present translation because of its relative familiarity among contemporary English readers.

[1:20]  sn The horns are perhaps made of iron, the strongest of all metals known to the ancient Near Eastern world, since military activity is implied in the context. Only blacksmiths can cut the horns off. If the horns represent oppressive nations, the blacksmiths must represent deliverers whom the Lord raises up, kings like Cyrus of Persia (cf. Isa 54:16).

[6:1]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “two mountains, and the mountains [were] mountains of bronze.” This has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[6:1]  sn Bronze, a hard, almost impenetrable metal, is an apt figure to speak of the obstacles standing in the way of the accomplishment of God’s purposes for the postexilic Jewish community (cf. 4:7). The cleft between the two from which the chariots emerge might be related to the eschatological triumph of the Lord who will return to the Mount of Olives and divide it into two mountains, one on the north and the other on the south (cf. Zech 14:1-8; Ezek 47:1-12).

[24:31]  ¹⁵ tn Or “of the sky”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context.

[13:27]  ¹⁶ tn Or “of the sky”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context.