What Does Revelation 5:13 Mean?
And every created thing in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and in the sea, and all that is in them, I hear them saying, Blessing, and honor, and weight, and power, be to the one who sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb, into the ages of the ages.
Key words are shown with the Hebrew or Greek and what each word meant.
Selah Decoded Version The Selah Decoded Version renders what the Hebrew and Greek words meant to the people who first heard them.
King James wording
King James Version
And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.THE KEY
The Lamb’s honor reaches beyond heaven: every created realm and everything within it joins the chorus.
THE MEANING
Every realm named here belongs to one chorus: heaven, earth, beneath the earth, the sea, and everything within them. The Lamb receives blessing, honor, weight, and power, and this recognition extends through the ages of ages.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
The belief that praise belongs only to heaven or to human worship dissolves here: the depths, the sea, and every creature within them are included.
THE ROOT
κτίσμα
ktisma
GROWS FROM
κτιζ-
ktiz-
To create or establish; to bring into being.
“created thing” in this verse is ktisma. The word belongs to the same family as the word for creation itself, widening the praise beyond any one kind of being. The verse moves through heaven, earth, beneath the earth, and sea, leaving no created realm outside the chorus.
ALSO GROWS
ktisis: Creation; the created order.
κτίσις
This branch names the whole created order that the verse gathers into praise.
ktizō: To create or establish.
κτίζω
This verb traces each creature back to the act of bringing it into being.
δόξα
doxa
GROWS FROM
δοκ-
dok-
To regard, think, or seem; what is held in regard or esteem.
Here the Lamb receives weight: creation’s praise recognizes his worth. The Greek word family carries the sense of regard and esteem, so this is more than sound; it is creation acknowledging what it holds as worthy.
ALSO GROWS
dokeō: To think, seem, or hold an opinion.
δοκέω
This word shows the family’s connection to what is regarded or esteemed.
doxazō: To honor or glorify.
δοξάζω
This branch names the act of giving visible honor to the one regarded as worthy.
αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων
aiōnas tōn aiōnōn
GROWS FROM
αἰων-
aiōn-
An age, era, or span of time.
“into the ages of the ages” in this verse is aiōnas tōn aiōnōn. The phrase layers ages upon ages, placing the Lamb’s honor across the full sweep of time. Its image keeps the language of ages in view: the praise continues through them.
ALSO GROWS
aiōnes: Ages; plural of αἰών (aiōn, age).
αἰῶνες
This plural form makes the time horizon explicit.
aiōnios: Of an age; age-long.
αἰώνιος
This related adjective carries the same age-word into descriptions of what belongs to or lasts through an age.
THE PATTERN
The praise and authority of God extend through every created realm, so no region is outside the chorus.
When the morning stars rang out together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?Praise the LORD from the earth, you great serpents, and all the deeps.That at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of things in heaven, and things on the earth, and things under the earth.THE THREAD
For the creation waits with its head stretched forward, watching for the unveiling of the sons of God.Both verses draw on the same word family: κτίσμα (ktisma, creature) here and κτίσις (ktisis, creation) in Romans, from κτίζω (ktizō, create). Revelation lets creation’s praise be heard across every realm; Romans describes that same creation waiting for the revealing of God’s children.
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