Revelation: The Incense

 Revelation: Justification by Faith

The Incense

Here we find our protection, our forgiveness, our assurance in the face of judgment, and God's response to avenge our enemies — leading to our deliverance and to His glory and honor.
It says:

Revelation 8:3–4 (ESV-paraphrased):

“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.
And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel.”

Again, we are directed to the Old Testament tabernacle.
As mentioned before, this tabernacle is a shadow or example of what happens in heaven.
In Revelation, the incense is portrayed as the prayers of the saints. At one point it is equated with the prayers, but here it says that the incense rises with the prayers. So, incense is added to the prayers, making them — in a manner of speaking — pleasing to God.

The psalmist says:

Psalm 141:2

“Let my prayer be counted as incense before you,
and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.”

And what does he pray for in Psalm 141? Among other things, for a pure heart, God’s discipline, but also for deliverance from the wicked and for their judgment.
When the psalms pray for the downfall of the wicked, it is often in the context of the oppression they suffer under them, a rightful longing for justice, or the honor of God, which is often tarnished by the actions of the ungodly.

But such prayers would never be accepted from the ungodly themselves. God would find no delight in them.
It says:

Proverbs 15:29

“The LORD is far from the wicked,
but He hears the prayer of the righteous.”

And here we run into a problem:
We are wicked.

Romans 3:10–12

“None is righteous, no, not one;
no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
All have turned aside;
together they have become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one.”

By nature, we are rebellious toward God. Even our best prayers, praises, and good works are tainted by the sin within us. They may ascend to God, but they are not like incense.

This is why we need a High Priest — someone who stands between us and God, who presents our prayers before God as incense. He adds the incense, and so our prayers are regarded as coming from a righteous person.

The work of incense in the tabernacle belonged to the high priest:

Exodus 30:1–3, 7 (ESV):

“You shall make an altar on which to burn incense; you shall make it of acacia wood. 2 A cubit shall be its length, and a cubit its breadth. It shall be square, and two cubits shall be its height. Its horns shall be of one piece with it. 3 You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top and around its sides and its horns. And you shall make a molding of gold around it. ... 7 And Aaron shall burn fragrant incense on it. Every morning when he dresses the lamps he shall burn it,”

So who is our High Priest in heaven? It is that “other angel” in Revelation 8.
Yes — it is Jesus.

Hebrews 9:11

“But when Christ appeared as a High Priest of the good things that have come,
then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation)...”

This is what the incense tells us:
We have a High Priest in a heavenly tabernacle who presents our prayers before God as incense. Then, when we pray, God sees these prayers as fragrant incense.
He may not answer in our way, but He certainly does what is best.

So, what must we do to have this High Priest do this for us?
We must simply trust Him:

Mark 11:24

“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”