Today we will be discussing the song entitled “Revelation Song,” by Jennie Riddle. This song is based on Revelation 4:8 which says: “holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.”

Preview the Song.

First off, what I love about this song is that it engages the reality and thought of Christ’s Return and forever Reign in heaven and on earth.  There are not many songs that center on Christ's Return or the Revelation.  Some people see the Revelation as a taboo topic because of the many varying interpretations of eschatology and the last times.  On the other hand, some people see the return of Christ and the end times as a terrifying event, because thoughts turn towards the Apocalypse, battles, gnashing of teeth and the fiery pit. Whoa! That in itself is a scary thought for those who are without Christ. What is agreeable is that Christ is returning to Reign and we will forever be with the Lord.

The concept of this song is to convey the Reign of Christ and His triumphant power. From the perspective of the songwriter and those who sing the words, we are in awe and wonder of His glorious power, splendor and majesty. Holy is the Lamb, who is seated on the Throne! What awesome truthful imagery!

When the song opens, we hear majestic chord shifts. The tonic chord moves to the minor five, to the seventh and lastly to the fifth chords (layman’s terms please: D – Am7 – C and G). This progression moves closely to the circle of fifths. The second chord in the tune (Am7) is the minor five chord. Hearing the progression move to this chord is uncommon in most worship music because you expect to hear a Major chord and not a minor five. Upon hearing this chord, at least in my opinion, it produces an ethereal and mysterious texture that denotes emotions of stillness wonder and awe. This is perfect for the song. When we think about God's only perfect Son, who was slain and died on the cross on our behalf, we are compelled to give Him worth. He is worthy of our praise, not just because of the death, but also because of His resurrection power, return and Eternal Reign.

Notice how the melody line moves upwards on the words: “sing a new song to the one who sits on.” We see the Lamb seated upon the throne high and lifted up. The melody gives us this ascending depiction; this is a great example of what we refer to as “text painting,” (lyrics and melody that denote emotion or personification). When we move to the chorus section, we have the words: “holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty.” Notice again, the melody moves upward to convey the angels’ praise as in the key Scripture verse. (you know, where the angels are never ceasing to render praise to God). Along with the ascending melody, we have the return of the majestic chordal shifts.  You almost don’t even notice the re-cycling of chords because the melody is doing something different from the verses. This is precisely how melodies can appear new and fresh; they sound different all the time when they are varied and inverted against simple chord progressions.

Through the song’s chord choices, melody and lyric content, we have a glimpse of the praise and worship activity taking place in the presence of the Great I AM. What would your response be standing below looking above to the Lord on high, reigning from His throne? Can you imagine the One who is seated on heaven's mercy seat, calling you and I  to worship, to be invited, to take part in his loving fellowship of peace, as we join with all creation, to utter praise and adoration to the Creator? Wow! This song rocks and well conveys God’s beauty and holiness and mankind’s place in worship. The songwriter urges us to take into inventory all of the worth, mercy and grace that is found in Christ, who makes us complete. God and His everlasting love for us is our everything.  He is our everything. Our response is to adore Him.

Jennie, thank you for sharing your heart song and message to be embraced by all worshipers, as we worship the Lamb, the Lord God Almighty, who was it is and is to come.

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