A Study of Revelation (Rev. 1:12): The Voice and the Candlesticks

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And I turned to see the voice that spake with me.
And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;
Revelation 1:12

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In this passage, the Apostle John describes himself turning "to see" the voice that "spake" unto him. It is strange to attempt to "see" a voice. Typically, "voices" are not seen but heard. Perhaps John employs this figure of speech (see below) to draw the reader's attention to the fact that "hearing" leads to "seeing" (Rom. 10:17). Peter Leithart notes, "Jesus meets John first as the Voice; before he sees Jesus, he hears him. Revelation is given to a seer, but that seer is also a hearer. Word and vision go together through the book. The movement from hearing to sight is the movement of human experience and of history generally. We move from ear to eye, from hearing and obeying the word of the Lord to seeing him face to face." [1]

John recognizes the voice of his Shepherd (Jhn. 10:27) and turns to behold Him in glory. However, upon his turning, John first sees, not the voice that spake unto him, but, "seven golden candlesticks." Verse twenty explains the symbolism of the candlesticks: "The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches" (Rev. 1:20). The function of the Church mirrors the symbol. A candlestick or lampstand expels the darkness and gives light. The Church is the "light of the world" (Mat. 5:14). The oil enlivens the flame of the lampstand. The Church, filled with the Holy Spirit of God, witnesses the truth of Christ to the world. The maker or fashioner of the lampstand takes the precious metal and fashions it with beauty and purpose to be beheld and admired (Ex. 25:35-41; 37; Num. 8). So, the Church built and fashioned by Christ reflects the beauty and deity of Christ to the world. Gold is a representation of the glory and divinity of Christ. The Church is the representation of Christ to all.

​One may also take the menorah or lampstand as a synecdoche; the lampstand, part of the temple, is put for the whole (cf. Zech. 4:2-6). Therefore, the Church is not just the lampstand but the temple of the living God (1 Cor. 3:16; Eph. 2:19-22) indwelt by the Spirit of God. In Revelation, the seven Spirits of God are directly linked with the seven lampstands (Rev. 1:4; 3:1; 4:5; 5:6). ​Seven is the number of completion or fulness. Thus, the seven candlesticks are representative of the complete Church, just as the seven Spirits are representative of the fullness of the Holy Spirit sent into the world. May this profound imagery inspire us to embrace our role as bearers of light in a world longing for illumination (Matthew 5:14-16; Ephesians 5:8; Philippians 2:14-16).

"We draw people to Christ not by loudly discrediting what they believe...but by showing them a light that is so lovely that they want with all their hearts to know the source of it"
Madeleine L'Engle

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Footnotes:
[1] ​Peter J. Leithart, Revelation, ed. Michael Allen and Scott R. Swain, vol. 1, The International Theological Commentary on the Holy Scripture of the Old and New Testaments (London; Oxford; New York; New Delhi; Sydney: Bloomsbury; Bloomsbury T&T Clark: An Imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, 2018), 108.

Figure of Speech: The figure of speech John employs here is known as metonymy. Metonymy is the use of one word or phrase substituted for another with which it's closely associated (such as "crown" for "royalty"). Here, the "voice" is personified to represent the glorified Christ.