Genesis 3:1-6 (NLT)The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”
“Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’”
“You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”
The woman was convinced.
How did the serpent deceive Eve? He started by adding a subtle twist to what God said, and then drawing a completely incorrect, but convincing, conclusion from it.
When I first heard about the topic that I was being assigned to preach on, something in me recoiled because of the way it was worded. It said, “We are kings and priests.” When it should have said “We are a kingdom of priests.”
To some of you this may seem like I’m nit-picking over semantics, but the subtle twisting of words, and the incorrect conclusions we can easily draw from them, is exactly the kind of tactic that the serpent used against Eve in Eden. God said not to eat from one particular tree, and the serpent twisted that to include all trees - making the one tree that God forbade seem equal to all the others that He did not.
Now, I want to focus on us as a kingdom of priests, but first I must address the difference between the two words - king and kingdom.
I remember a home group meeting at our pastor’s house when we were praying. I remember having a vision of a pair of hands placing a crown on my head, and it gave me a very unsettling feeling, like I was not worthy or even capable of wielding the authority that came with it. In the vision I immediately took the crown off and handed it to Jesus. Ever since then I have felt a complete deference of authority to God, and I have absolutely no desire to try to assume His authority.
I cannot think of anyone other than Jesus as King, and the topic that I was given was worded “We are kings and priests,” which says to me that I am supposed to think of myself as a king and a priest. The priest part is all good, and we will get to that in a few minutes, but the king part does not sit well with me at all.
The thought of me being a king bothers me because of what it means to be a king. To put it in context let’s look at some different forms of government. Most forms of government are defined by a word that ends in “archy.”
“archy” is a suffix that means “rule” or “government”
Some different types of “arcy” are:
- anarchy - a state with no government, or complete disorder.
- patriarchy - where the father is the supreme authority in the family, clan, or tribe.
- matriarchy - where the mother is the supreme authority in the family, clan, or tribe.
- oligarchy - where all power is vested in a few people or in a dominant class of people
- tetrarchy - rule by province and tenure within the ancient Roman Empire
- exarchy - rule by province and tenure within the Byzantine Empire.
- monarchy - supreme power or sovereignty held by a single person.
- monarch - a sole and absolute ruler of a state or nation, typically called a king or queen.
So there are many forms of government, ranging from no government at all, to government by many, to government by one.
A king is a monarch. A sole and absolute ruler of a kingdom. So there cannot be many kings unless there are many kingdoms. God’s Kingdom can only have one king, and that’s Him!
A state ruled by a group of kings would be an oligarchy with no single person holding absolute power over any other. But that is not God’s kingdom. In God’s kingdom Jesus is the King!
So, why does the Bible say that we will be kings?
Well, does it really say that?
The verses most referenced for this “quote” are Revelation 1:6 and Revelation 5:10, and specifically, the King James Version of those verses.
Revelation 1:6 in the KJV reads:
Revelation 1:6 (KJV) "And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.”
But, just about every other translation of the Bible words this verse a little differently. I’ll give two examples that represent the way that most of the other translations word this verse.
The NLT says:
Revelation 1:6 (NLT) "He has made us a Kingdom of priests for God his Father. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.”
The NASB95 says:
Revelation 1:6 (NASB95) "and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
There’s a similar passage that follows this same example in Revelation 5:10.
The KJV says:
Revelation 5:10 (KJV) "And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth."
But the NASB95 says:
Revelation 5:10 (NASB95) "You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth."
and the NLT says:
Revelation 5:10 (NLT) "And you have caused them to become a Kingdom of priests for our God. And they will reign on the earth."
Where the KJV uses the word king, most other versions use the word kingdom. There’s quite a difference of meaning between God making us kings, and God making us a kingdom. A king rules over a kingdom. A kingdom is made up of everyone that the king rules over. In a way they’re opposites.
So why is there such a difference between the KJV and all the rest?
It seems to stem from the Greek text that was being translated from.
The Greek word that the KJV uses is basileus. It means king, and is translated as king throughout the New Testament.
The Greek word that the NASB95 uses is basileia. It means kingdom, and is translated as kingdom throughout the New Testament.
The reason that there are two different Greek words being used here is that there are two different underlying Greek texts that the translators are using as their primary source. They are named the Textus Receptus (which the KJV uses), and the Critical Text (which almost all modern translations use). I won’t get into the details of them other than to say that the Critical Text is widely considered to be more complete and authentic than the Textus Receptus - it just wasn’t recognized as such when the KJV was translated.
Have a look at how these two words are spelled in Greek.
Honestly, the way these two Greek words appear visually, when hand-written, I could see this being a case of a typo in the original document. It appears to be well known that the Textus Receptus that the KJV was translated from had many typographical errors and lacked a complete copy of the book of Revelation. In fact, the translators used Latin manuscripts to fill in the missing parts of their incomplete copy of Revelation - so they were translating from texts that themselves were translations.
You can look up Textus Receptus on Wikipedia to read more, and dig into the references listed there if you want to dig even deeper. You can also search for Textus Receptus on the web and find all kinds of heated debates that rage around it versus the other Greek texts.
Now, I want to emphasize that I believe that the translators did the best they could with what they had, and I can’t have anything but gratitude for their efforts. Without them we would all have to learn Greek and Hebrew if we wanted to read the Bible. But the meaning we read into their translation can have grave consequences for our relationship with God.
You might agree with the KJV. Many people think it is the only correct English translation that exists. But, if you are going to consider yourself a king in God’s kingdom, I would encourage you - no, I would plead with you - to do so with the utmost humility and deference to Him. As for me, I am perfectly happy just to be in His kingdom!
I also want to point out that there is one other place in the Bible, where all the translations (including the KJV) seem to agree, that the phrase “kingdom of priests” occurs, and that is in Exodus 19:6, which says:
Exodus 19:6 (NLT) "And you will be my kingdom of priests, my holy nation.' This is the message you must give to the people of Israel."
And I believe that Revelation 1:6 and 5:10 are both echoing this promise that God made to Israel in Exodus 19:6. Exodus 19:6 is God talking to Moses the first time he called him up the mountain in Sinai. He called Moses up, told Him that He would make Israel His kingdom of priests if they would promise to follow and obey Him, then told Moses to go down and deliver this proposal to the people. Moses did, and the people agreed that they would obey and be faithful to God. And so the covenant was made that Israel would be God’s kingdom of priests. But Israel couldn’t hold up their end of the bargain - but God held it up for them through Jesus, and that covenant passes on to everyone who believes in Jesus. So we see God fulfilling His end of the promise in Revelation after Jesus fulfilled our end of the agreement.
As for the phrase “kings and priests”, that verse also occurs in one other place in the Bible in Lamentations 2:6, but it is in the context of condemnation, not exultation.
Lamentations 2:6 (NLT) "He has broken down his Temple as though it were merely a garden shelter. The LORD has blotted out all memory of the holy festivals and Sabbath days. Kings and priests fall together before his fierce anger.”
And I think this verse clearly has kings and priests separated into two different categories of people.
To finish up this subject - there are a few places in the Bible that talk about us reigning or being given dominion on earth, so God does indeed give us some authority. But I would like to offer some perspective on that in the form of an analogy.
Think of a mom inviting her son to help her make cookies.
It’s not that the mom needs the son’s help, but it’s that she wants to teach him how to do it. The mom knows how to make cookies by herself, but she wants to share the experience with her son. And the son is likely thrilled by the idea.
She will have to pay close attention to him being around sharp knives and a hot oven. And the kitchen will probably get a lot messier than it would if mom just made the cookies by herself. The son might even stop helping half way through when there are spoons to be licked, and chocolate chips at arms reach. And, of course, after the cookies are done, he is probably going to brag that he helped make them - maybe even try to take all the credit.
Now, the son didn’t help mom make the cookies because she couldn’t do it and she needed his help. Instead he was invited and allowed to help mom make the cookies.
This is how I see us reigning in God’s kingdom with Him. He doesn’t need our help, but He is lovingly inviting us to come make a joyful mess of the place, and learn a few things in the process. There are hot stoves and sharp knives that we will need special training for before we are allowed to “help” with those things, but our Great Lord and King is more than happy to invite us into the kingdom kitchen to share a wonderful and glorious experience with Him.
And that is where we come in as priests.
Priests
When God brought Israel out of Egypt and they arrived at Mt. Sinai, Moses made several trips up and down the mountain. The first time he went up the mountain God gave him a simple message and then sent him back down to deliver it to the people. That message is recorded in Exodus 19:5-6, which we have already heard, but we’ll hear it again.
Exodus 19:5-6 (NLT) Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to me. And you will be my kingdom of priests, my holy nation.’ This is the message you must give to the people of Israel.”
God freed Israel from slavery so that they would be His kingdom of priests. That point was so important to God that it’s the first thing He said to Moses on top of Mt. Sinai, and God wouldn’t say anything more to Moses until he went down and shared that message with the people of Israel.
The people accepted God’s conditions - that they would obey Him and keep His covenant - and everything else that happened to Israel from then on was founded on the basis of that agreement. Israel wasn’t just God’s people. They were God’s kingdom of priests; His holy nation. It was their God-given calling and purpose.
The Levites would soon after be set apart as priests within Israel, but Israel had already been declared to be God’s kingdom of priests, so the Levites were actually priests to the priests.
It is this covenant with Israel that we hear echoed in two other places in the New Testament. In 1 Peter, and in Revelation. But there’s one major difference in the New Testament, and that difference is that it’s no longer up to us to fulfill the conditions of God’s covenant - because Jesus did that for us.
1 Peter 2:4-10 (NLT)You are coming to Christ, who is the living cornerstone of God’s temple. He was rejected by people, but he was chosen by God for great honor.
And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple. What’s more, you are his holy priests. Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices that please God. As the Scriptures say,
“I am placing a cornerstone in Jerusalem, chosen for great honor, and anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.”
Yes, you who trust him recognize the honor God has given him. But for those who reject him,
“The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.”
And,
“He is the stone that makes people stumble, the rock that makes them fall.”
They stumble because they do not obey God’s word, and so they meet the fate that was planned for them.
But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.
“Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy.”
In these few verses we hear a pretty full description of how God views our relationship with Him.
- we are living stones in His spiritual temple
- we are His holy priests
- through Jesus we offer spiritual sacrifices that please God
- we are
- a chosen people,
- royal priests,
- a holy nation,
- God’s people
- and God’s own possession
That’s a lot of great sounding things, but they are all told to us in the context of a reminder that Jesus is the cornerstone.
We may be living stones that God is building into His spiritual temple, but Jesus is the cornerstone of that temple. Without the cornerstone the foundation will be weak and the temple will not stand for long. It is only by building on the rock that the foundation will be secure.
Jesus is the cornerstone of God’s temple, and we are stones in God’s temple. Jesus is the king of God’s kingdom, and we are priests in God’s kingdom.
Now, it’s great that we are priests, but what does that mean?
As priests we are to make sacrifices that are pleasing to God. Our sacrifices are not of animals, but of spiritual things.
Hebrews 13:15-16 (NLT) Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name. And don’t forget to do good and to share with those in need. These are the sacrifices that please God.
Notice how it says that we offer our sacrifice through Jesus. This is because it is only through Jesus that we have access to God at all. If it wasn’t for Jesus there would be no sacrifice we could make that would please God. But through Jesus our sacrifice of continual praise not only reaches God’s ears, but pleases Him.
We are not a kingdom of priests because of any piety that we possess ourselves. We are priests in God’s kingdom only because we believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins, and rose from the dead to overcome death for us. Without Jesus, we could never know God. Only through Jesus can we ever approach God. And it is only because of Jesus’s sacrifice that our sacrifices will ever mean anything to God.
Our responsibility as part of our reign on earth is clearly described in that passage from Hebrews. Do good, and share with those in need.
Our responsibility as God’s kingdom of priests is also clearly described in that passage. To offer a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to His name.
I can’t do a better job of describing what that looks like than to point out the beauty of the picture that is given to us in Revelation 5:6-14.
Revelation 5:6-14 (NLT)Then I saw a Lamb that looked as if it had been slaughtered, but it was now standing between the throne and the four living beings and among the twenty-four elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which represent the sevenfold Spirit of God that is sent out into every part of the earth. He stepped forward and took the scroll from the right hand of the one sitting on the throne. And when he took the scroll, the four living beings and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp, and they held gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. And they sang a new song with these words:
“You are worthy to take the scroll and break its seals and open it. For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. And you have caused them to become a Kingdom of priests for our God. And they will reign on the earth.”
Then I looked again, and I heard the voices of thousands and millions of angels around the throne and of the living beings and the elders. And they sang in a mighty chorus:
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered— to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing.”
And then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea. They sang:
“Blessing and honor and glory and power belong to the one sitting on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever.”
And the four living beings said, “Amen!” And the twenty-four elders fell down and worshiped the Lamb.