The Bible Says
Revelation 15:2-4 Meaning

In Revelation 15:2-4, John begins to describe the sign in heaven, the sign that is great and marvelous:

And I saw something like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who had been victorious over the beast and his image and the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, holding harps of God. (v.2).

The Greek word “megas” is rendered as great. “Megas” occurs 80 times in 75 verses in Revelation. This underscores that the events John sees throughout the book are extraordinary and of the utmost significance. The Greek word translated marvelous also appears in verse 3, where the song of the Lamb is sung and includes the line “Great and marvelous are Your works.”

This imagery of a sea of glass mixed with fire evokes earlier visions of God’s heavenly throne room (Revelation 4:6). In the ancient Hebrew mind, the sea often represented chaos and danger. Yet here, this sea of glass is a picture of complete calm. In place of the chaos of the world, God’s throne and temple in heaven has complete peace. The image of a sea might indicate a large number of people.

The fire likely indicates God’s presence, as He is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29). In Daniel 7:9, God’s throne is pictured as being engulfed with fire. In the new earth, the unveiled, fiery presence of God will be so bright that the sun is not needed as a source of light (Revelation 22:5). Whereas in previous verses people hid from God’s fiery presence because it brought them into judgment, here the scene is one of serenity.

This is because the people pictured are those who were victorious over the beast. This means that these are saints of God, redeemed believers who have been cleansed and made righteous. They are like the three Hebrews basking in the fire of the furnace in complete serenity in God’s presence (Daniel 3:24-26).

Amid this peaceful setting, we find those who had been victorious over the beast (v. 2). This is a reference to faithful believers who resisted worshiping the beast and accepting his mark (Revelation 13:1-7). Refusing to take the number of his name as a mark or worshiping his image resulted in losing the ability to engage in commerce at a minimum and in many cases martyrdom (Revelation 13:15-17).

The Greek word translated had been victorious has the root “nikao.” This is the same word translated as “overcome” or “overcomes” in Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 26, 3:5, 12, 21, 5:5, 11:7, 12:11, 13:7, 17:14 and 21:7. To overcome is to be victorious. This is a great irony, as in Revelation 13:7 the beast was given power to “overcome” (“nikao”) the saints of God and kill them while on earth. But, by having faith to endure death rather than worship the beast, these saints have been victorious. The beast will soon be thrown into the lake of fire and these saints who refused to worship the beast will reign with Christ forever and ever (Revelation 19:20, 20:4).

These overcomers are following in the footsteps of Jesus, who laid down His life that He might “take it up again” (John 10:18). It was through the “suffering of death” that Jesus was “crowned” with the “glory and honor” originally designed for humans in God’s created order to have dominion over the earth (Hebrews 2:9). It was through “becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” that His name was made to be above all names and He was given all authority over heaven and earth (Philippians 2:8-9, Matthew 28:18).

Now these overcomers who stood firm are victorious. Their death was swallowed up in victory. Their victory was not in political might or worldly power in this world, but in faithful witness-even to the point of death (Revelation 12:11). This emphasizes Revelation’s primary point, that all who are fearless witnesses and do not fear rejection, loss, or death will gain a great blessing (Revelation 3:1). What looked like defeat on earth is now an eternal victory. The faithful believers, likely also martyrs, will soon reign with Christ in His messianic kingdom (Revelation 20:4).

The victorious believers stand on this gleaming sea, holding harps of God (v. 2). We also see harps mentioned in Revelation 5:8,14:2. These harps do not suggest an idle, ethereal passing of time without purpose or end, as is often represented in heavenly scenes. These are the same people who have an occupation to reign with Christ in His kingdom. They will be fully occupied with work-but they are also part of a unified chorus of praise. John describes their song:

And they sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, ‘Great and marvelous are Your works, O Lord God, the Almighty; Righteous and true are Your ways, King of the nations!’ (v. 3).

The song of Moses is from Exodus 15, which, tells of how the Lord parted the Red Sea for the Israelites to pass through and escape from the Egyptians. It tells of God’s might and how His power is known throughout the land because of the way He protects His people. So the overcomers sing the song of Moses, and they also sing a new song, the song of the Lamb, the words of which are recorded here:

“Great and marvelous are Your works,
O Lord God, the Almighty;
Righteous and true are Your ways,
King of the nations!
“Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy;
For all the nations will come and worship before You,
For Your righteous acts have been revealed” (vv. 3-4).

That the overcomers sing the song of Moses as well as the song of the Lamb shows that the pictures and realities of the Old Testament fit with the pictures and realities of the New Testament and together form a narrative of God’s redemption of the earth and all creation through His anointed, the Christ. The Passover foreshadows Jesus as the Lamb of God whose blood atoned for the sins of the world (for more, see our article on “The Passover Seder”).

Jesus the Lamb who is also the Lion will save Israel and all who believe the “eternal gospel” and choose to “fear God” rather than taking the mark of the beast (Revelation 14:6-7). Jesus will deliver them through the plagues soon to be released from the seven bowl judgments, and then by returning to earth and defeating the beast just as God delivered Israel by bringing plagues upon Egypt then parting the Red Sea and slaying Pharaoh’s soldiers.

The worshipers exclaim, Great and marvelous are Your works (v. 3). In the midst of unveiling the final judgments, John’s vision stops to marvel at God’s redemptive plan. It is stunning that God will bring such incredible peace and good out of such chaos and evil. The assertion righteous and true are Your ways (v. 3) affirms that, though these plagues are severe, they are just. Unlike Satan, God is not an arbitrary tyrant but King of the nations, fully entitled to reign. The cosmic question “Who has the right to reign?” is answered here: God alone, who acts in holy justice. He and He alone has the right to reign. It is even more Great and more marvelous that He will appoint those who overcome to reign with Him, as He promises in Revelation 2:26-27, 3:21.

Also, the phrase “Lord God, the Almighty” (v. 3) is a title emphasizing God’s sovereignty, echoing the key theme that He alone wields rightful rule over heaven and earth. The Lamb, Jesus Christ, stands as the rightful heir to that authority (Revelation 5:6-7), having defeated death and triumphed over sin on the cross (Colossians 2:14-15). The message to believers across all ages is to join this song-proclaiming God’s victory, confident that He will complete what He has begun.

The worship continues, “Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy; For ALL THE NATIONS WILL COME AND WORSHIP BEFORE YOU, FOR YOUR RIGHTEOUS ACTS HAVE BEEN REVEALED” (v. 4).

These words declare the inevitability of God’s universal reign: All the nations will come and worship before You. This directly responds to the beast’s global influence as we saw earlier in Revelation (Revelation 13:7-8). Despite Satan’s attempts to destroy God’s people-whether Israel or faithful believers who follow the Lamb-God’s plan remains unstoppable. Through the ages Satan has attempted to ascend and usurp God’s position (Isaiah 14:12-14). But although Satan gains temporary victories, he ultimately fails. God continually turns the temporary progress of evil into an inevitable advance of good (Romans 8:28). Satan’s goal was to ascend over all, but he will be brought to kneel and Jesus will be exalted over all. Even Satan will be required to bow before Jesus as the King of all kings (Philippians 2:9-11).

For Your righteous acts have been revealed (v. 4) underscores how these final judgments demonstrate the moral perfection and justice of God. The destruction of Babylon (the world system) and the downfall of the beast make visible what has always been true: God alone is righteous and worthy of worship.

In the song of Moses, God’s power is known throughout Philistia, Edom, Moab, and Canaan: other enemies of the Israelites who have heard what God did to the Egyptians and tremble before Him. It says:

“Terror and dream fall upon them;
By the greatness of Your arm they are motionless as stone;
Until Your people pass over, O Lord,
Until the people pass over whom You have purchased.”
(Exodus 15:16)

But this time, in the song of the Lamb, the attitude of the nations is not marked by fear in itself but fear that moves towards worship. This would indicate that this scene in heaven is a preview of what those who overcome will gain after Jesus has fully vanquished the beast. We will see Jesus throw the beast into the lake of fire and conquer the nations gathered against Him in Revelation 19:20-21.

Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy;
For all the nations will come and worship before You (v. 4).

The song of the Lamb also states that Your righteous acts have been revealed (v. 4). The long-awaited judgment of the Lord has finally come. The moment that the faithful witnesses have been waiting for has arrived. Both of these songs declare that justice has been done and God has won.

God is the creator of all. His very name means “existence”-He is the “I Am” (Exodus 3:14). All that was made was made through Him. All that exists remains because of Him (Colossians 1:16-17). The word righteous means “working according to design.” God alone is the creator and sustainer of all things. It is only when things line up with His design that things are “right,” meaning “as they should be” or “according to their design”; in other words righteous. God is righteous and throughout history His righteous acts are revealed.

When God reveals His judgments, it is to bring cosmic justice and restore creation to its original design. Humans were appointed to reign over the earth, although created lower than the angels (Psalm 8:5-6, Hebrews 2:7-8). Humans fell, and apparently Satan gained the reign as a result (John 12:31). Now Jesus has regained the authority to reign, through the “suffering of death” (Hebrews 2:9). Jesus will include those who overcome, those who are victorious, to reign with Him, and thus restore the earth to its proper design (righteousness).

The rhetorical question, Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name? (v. 4) presumes an answer of “no one.” As Philippians 2:9-10 asserts, there will come a time when all knees will bow before Jesus.

Scripture tells us that the fear of the LORD is the very beginning of both wisdom and knowledge (Proverbs 1:7, 9:10). Revelation illustrates the two basic responses humans can have to God: willful rebellion, which leads to destruction, or obedience and worship, which leads to life. This has been the case from the Garden of Eden, where God offered humanity the choice of life and death, to the covenant of Moses which made the same offer (Genesis 2:17, Deuteronomy 30:19).

It is currently the case in that people can gain the free gift of eternal life by looking upon Jesus on the cross hoping to gain deliverance from the poisonous venom of sin (John 3:14-15). The alternative is to refuse to “look” and die. Now in Revelation, the “eternal gospel” is to fear God and obey Him, believing that His judgment is imminent, rather than fearing the beast and taking his mark (Revelation 14:6-7).

In all cases, believing God and following His ways leads to life, and following our own ways leads to death. The irony though is that rebellion against God not only leads to the terrible consequence of death, in time all will bow before Him and glorify His name in any event. This means that in the end, all rebellion is not only destructive, but useless.

In Christ, we see that the path to victory includes faithfulness and obedience-even to the point of suffering. The promise to every believer is that those who hold fast and “overcome” will rule with the Lamb and partake in this glorious worship scene.

It is God, and God alone, who is holy. All holiness that exists is derivative of God’s holiness. The word holy means “set apart.” God alone is the creator. He alone sustains all things. He alone is the very essence of existence. Everything that exists does so only because of God’s creative and sustaining power (Colossians 1:16-17).

The singers assert that ALL THE NATIONS WILL COME AND WORSHIP BEFORE YOU, FOR YOUR RIGHTEOUS ACTS HAVE BEEN REVEALED. We will see in Revelation 21:24, 26 that all the nations will bring their “glory” into the new Jerusalem, where God will reign in all the earth. This phrase appears to quote Psalm 86:9-10, which further indicates that God’s redemptive plan was created before the foundation of the world, and it is inevitable that it will come to pass (John 17:24, Ephesians 1:4, 1 Peter 1:20). That all nations will come and worship indicates that in the new earth, nations will still exist, which is confirmed by Revelation 21:24, 26. The new earth will be filled with diversity, but that diversity will be harmonized into unity.

That God’s righteous acts are revealed indicates that part of the purpose of the human story is to conclusively demonstrate that God’s design for flourishing comes through mutual service and is superior to Satan’s desire to reign as a tyrant and impose his will upon others.

Those who will reign in the new earth are those who overcame by serving in obedience, following Jesus’s example. Jesus did not come to be served, but to serve (Matthew 20:28, Mark 10:45). The new earth will be ruled by those who have proven a willingness to serve in truth and love. This might be a material part of God’s revelation of His righteous acts, which He will accomplish through His people who are willing to walk in obedience-those who overcome and are victorious.