Revelation 8:3

Revelation 8:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.
• New International Version (NIV)Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all God’s people, on the golden altar in front of the throne.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne,
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.

Context of Revelation 8:3

1When the Lamb broke the seventh seal on the scroll, there was silence throughout heaven for about half an hour. 2I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and they were given seven trumpets. Then another angel with a gold incense burner came and stood at the altar. And a great amount of incense was given to him to mix with the prayers of God’s people as an offering on the gold altar before the throne. 4The smoke of the incense, mixed with the prayers of God’s holy people, ascended up to God from the altar where the angel had poured them out. 5Then the angel filled the incense burner with fire from the altar and threw it down upon the earth; and thunder crashed, lightning flashed, and there was a terrible earthquake.

Revelation 8:3 word by word

Καὶ ἄλλος ἄγγελος ἦλθεν καὶ ἐστάθη ἐπὶ τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου ἔχων λιβανωτὸν χρυσοῦν. καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτῷ θυμιάματα πολλὰ ἵνα δώσει ταῖς προσευχαῖς τῶν ἁγίων πάντων ἐπὶ τὸ θυσιαστήριον τὸ χρυσοῦν τὸ ἐνώπιον τοῦ θρόνου.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Andκαίkai · andG2532
• anotherἄλλοςallos · anotherG243
• angelἄγγελοςaggelos · angelG32
• cameἔρχομαιerchomai · to come/goG2064
• stoodἵστημιhistēmi · to standG2476
• atἐπίepi · upon/to/againstG1909
• the altarὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• the altarθυσιαστήριονthusiastērion · altarG2379
• havingἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
• a goldenχρύσεοςchruseos · goldenG5552
• censerλιβανωτόςlibanōtos · censerG3031
• there was givenδίδωμιdidōmi · to giveG1325
• unto himαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• muchπολύςpolus polos · muchG4183
• incenseθυμίαμαthumiama · incenseG2368
• thatἵναhina · in order that/toG2443
• with the prayersπροσευχήproseuchē · prayerG4335
• of allπᾶςpas · allG3956
• saintsἅγιοςhagios · holy: saintG40
• beforeἐνώπιονenōpion · beforeG1799
• the throneθρόνοςthronos · throneG2362

Cross-references for Revelation 8:3

• Revelation 7:2And I saw another angel coming up from the east, carrying the seal of the living God. And he shouted to those four angels, who had been given power to harm land and sea,
• Revelation 10:1Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, surrounded by a cloud, with a rainbow over his head. His face shone like the sun, and his feet were like pillars of fire.
• Genesis 48:15Then he blessed Joseph and said, “May the God before whom my grandfather Abraham and my father, Isaac, walked— the God who has been my shepherd all my life, to this very day,
• Exodus 3:2There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing fire from the middle of a bush. Moses stared in amazement. Though the bush was engulfed in flames, it didn’t burn up.
• Acts 7:30“Forty years later, in the desert near Mount Sinai, an angel appeared to Moses in the flame of a burning bush.
• Revelation 9:13Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice speaking from the four horns of the gold altar that stands in the presence of God.
• Exodus 30:1“Then make another altar of acacia wood for burning incense.
• 2 Chronicles 26:16But when he had become powerful, he also became proud, which led to his downfall. He sinned against the Lord his God by entering the sanctuary of the Lord’s Temple and personally burning incense on the incense altar.
• Romans 8:34Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us.
• Hebrews 7:25Therefore he is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf.
• Leviticus 16:12he will fill an incense burner with burning coals from the altar that stands before the Lord. Then he will take two handfuls of fragrant powdered incense and will carry the burner and the incense behind the inner curtain.
• 1 Kings 7:50the small bowls, lamp snuffers, bowls, ladles, and incense burners—all of solid gold; the doors for the entrances to the Most Holy Place and the main room of the Temple, with their fronts overlaid with gold.
• Hebrews 9:4In that room were a gold incense altar and a wooden chest called the Ark of the Covenant, which was covered with gold on all sides. Inside the Ark were a gold jar containing manna, Aaron’s staff that sprouted leaves, and the stone tablets of the covenant.
• Leviticus 16:13There in the Lord’s presence he will put the incense on the burning coals so that a cloud of incense will rise over the Ark’s cover—the place of atonement—that rests on the Ark of the Covenant. If he follows these instructions, he will not die.
• Numbers 16:46And Moses said to Aaron, “Quick, take an incense burner and place burning coals on it from the altar. Lay incense on it, and carry it out among the people to purify them and make them right with the Lord. The Lord’s anger is blazing against them—the plague has already begun.”
• Malachi 1:11But my name is honored by people of other nations from morning till night. All around the world they offer sweet incense and pure offerings in honor of my name. For my name is great among the nations,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

Commentaries on Revelation 8:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Another angel - About to perform the office of priest. Having a golden censer - This was a preparation peculiar to the day of expiation. "On other days it was the custom of the priest to take fire from the great altar in a silver censer, but on the day of expiation the high priest took the fire from the great altar in a golden censer; and when he was come down from the great altar, he took incense from one of the priests, who brought it to him, and went…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3And another angel came - Who this angel was is not mentioned, nor have we any means of determining. Of course a great variety of opinion has been entertained on the subject (see Poole‘s Synopsis) - some referring it to angels in general; others to the ministry of the church; others to Constantine; others to Michael; and many others to the Lord Jesus. All that we know is, that it was an angel who thus appeared, and there is nothing inconsistent in the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3-4The prayers of God's people ask for God's final justice and judgment (Revelation 6:10–11; see also 5:8; Ezra 9:5–6; Psalm 141:2; Daniel 9:21). The mix of incense and prayers that reaches God's presence shows that God hears them (see Revelation 6:9–11) and is ready to act.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. another angel--not Christ, as many think; for He, in Revelation, is always designated by one of His proper titles; though, doubtless, He is the only true High Priest, the Angel of the Covenant, standing before the golden altar of incense, and there, as Mediator, offering up His people's prayers, rendered acceptable before God through the incense of His merit. Here the angel acts merely as a ministering spirit (He 1:4), just as the twenty-four elders…Read the comment

Topics related to Revelation 8:3

• Altar
• Angel (a Spirit)
• Censer
• Incense
• Intercession
• Meteorology and Celestial Phenomena
• Prayer

In the dictionaries

• Altar
• Censer
• Frankincense
• Incense
• Ethics
• Literature, Sub-Apostolic
• Midian; Midianites
• Revelation of John
• Tabernacle

Commentaries on Revelation 8

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings