Revelation 10:1-11

“Then the voice which I heard from heaven spoke to me again and said, ‘Go, take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel who stands on the sea and on the earth.’ So I went to the angel and said to him, ‘Give me the little book.’ And he said to me, ‘Take and eat it; and it will make your stomach bitter, but it will be as sweet as honey in your mouth.'”

Morning sunlight streams through the ancient windows of Debre Libanos monastery (one of Ethiopia’s holiest sites, founded in the 13th century), casting colored patterns across worn stone floors. Here in the highlands north of Addis Ababa (Ethiopia’s capital city), Father Dawit carefully unfolds a treasured manuscript, its pages yellow with age. “This,” he tells the small group of visitors, “is one of our oldest copies of the Book of Revelation, written in Ge’ez (an ancient Ethiopian liturgical language). Ethiopia has preserved these sacred texts for nearly 1,700 years.”

Among the visitors is Aster, a young Ethiopian Bible worker who has brought two missionaries to see the monastery. She translates Father Dawit’s words as he gently turns the fragile pages. “In the Ethiopian Orthodox tradition,” he continues, “we have always understood that God’s message is not for one nation, but for all humanity. This understanding kept our faith alive through centuries of isolation.”

He points to an illustration of the angel in Revelation 10, standing with one foot on the sea and one on land, holding an open scroll. The colors remain vibrant despite the passage of time. “This image shows that God’s final message will reach both land and sea—meaning it will go to everyone in every nation.” Later, as they walk through the monastery gardens overlooking the deep Blue Nile Gorge (a massive canyon carved by the Blue Nile River), Aster shares her own understanding of the passage.

“What fascinates me about Revelation 10,” she tells her friends, “is the command to ‘prophesy again concerning many peoples, nations, tongues, and kings.’ This isn’t just ancient history—it’s our mission today.” Michael, one of the visiting missionaries, nods thoughtfully. “That’s why we’re here in Ethiopia. The message must go everywhere before Christ returns.” Aster pauses beside a flowering tree. “Ethiopia has a special connection to this mission. Did you know we’re mentioned in the Bible? ‘Ethiopia shall quickly stretch out her hands to God,'” she quotes from Psalm 68:31.

She explains how Ethiopia embraced Christianity in the 4th century, becoming one of the world’s earliest Christian kingdoms. Despite being surrounded by other powers and facing persecution, Ethiopian Christians preserved biblical manuscripts when they were being destroyed elsewhere. “But preserving isn’t enough,” Aster continues. “The angel told John to take the little book and eat it—to internalize God’s message before sharing it with others.” As they descend stone steps toward the monastery’s ancient spring, they meet pilgrims who have traveled for days from remote villages.

“These people understand something important,” Father Dawit explains, rejoining them. “The sweet taste of God’s promises comes with responsibility. Like John, we must also experience the bitterness that comes from understanding the world’s condition and the urgency of our times.”

“Ethiopia has known both sweetness and bitterness,” Aster says quietly. “Periods of greatness and times of terrible suffering. But through it all, we’ve kept the Scriptures alive, not as museum pieces but as living words.” As they prepare to leave, Father Dawit shares a final thought. “The angel in Revelation 10 stands between sea and land, holding heaven’s message for all people. We are all called to be like that angel—to have one foot in our own culture but to reach beyond it with truth that everyone needs to hear.”

Did You Know? Ethiopia has one of the oldest continuous Christian traditions in the world, dating back to the 4th century. While much of Europe was still pagan, Ethiopia’s king had already embraced Christianity. When European churches lost access to many biblical manuscripts during the Middle Ages, Ethiopian monasteries preserved ancient biblical texts, including some of our oldest existing copies of certain biblical books. This remarkable preservation fulfills the prophetic symbolism of Revelation 10, where the “little book” that had once been sealed was now open and meant to be proclaimed to “many peoples, nations, tongues, and kings.”

🔥 Personal Reflection:

• What parts of God’s message have been “sweet as honey” in your experience of faith?
• What truths have been harder to swallow—”bitter” realities that challenge or convict you?
• How can you help carry God’s final messages to those who haven’t yet heard them in your community?

🙏 Prayer: Faithful God, thank You for preserving Your Word through all generations and in all parts of the world. Like John in Revelation, help me take Your message and truly “eat it”—making it part of who I am, not just something I know about. Give me courage to embrace both the sweet promises and the sometimes bitter truths that challenge me to grow. As the angel stood between sea and land with a message for everyone, help me bridge differences to share Your love with people from every background. Make me part of the final proclamation that will fill the earth with Your glory before Jesus returns. Amen.