Revelation 1:4 - Who is, who was and is to come

1:4

The previous verses were a kind of prelude, a foreword to the book. We now move into the main text of the book, with John introducing himself. The letter is written to the seven churches in the province of Asia, the names of the churches will be introduced in the seven letters. Numbers play an important part in Revelation (but we are not going into numerology!). Seven represents completeness. 

Revelation is different from the other letters in the New Testament, but there similarities as well. “Grace and peace” is a common greeting in Paul’s letters. And the grace and peace is not just a way of wishing someone well, the grace and peace comes from God. “Who is, who was, and who is to come” reminds us of God introducing Himself to Moses as “I am”.  The “seven spirits” is an unusual term and maybe John’s way of referring to the Holy Spirit. Other possibilities are that it refers to seven angelic beings, or to the sevenfold nature of the spirit referred to in Is 11:2 (spirit of wisdom etc). Referring to the Holy Spirit seems to be the most likely.