Charles Ellicott Commentary Revelation 10:8-9

"And the voice which I heard from heaven, [I heard it] again speaking with me, and saying, Go, take the book which is open in the hand of the angel that standeth upon the sea and upon the earth. And I went unto the angel, saying unto him that he should give me the little book. And he saith unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but in thy mouth it shall be sweet as honey." — Revelation 10:8-9 (ASV)

And the voice... —Translated: And the voice which I heard from heaven (I heard it) again talking with me (it is not the angel that speaks, but the voice which had commanded him to seal up the thunders is heard again speaking), and saying, Go, take the roll (or, the little roll; there is a difference in the manuscripts) which is opened in the hand of the angel who stands upon the sea and upon the earth. And I went away to the angel, telling him to give me the little book. And he says to me, Take and eat it up; and it will make your belly bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.

The image of eating the roll is derived from the Old Testament. We find it in Ezekiel (Ezekiel 3:1–3) and Jeremiah (Jeremiah 15:16). The passage in Ezekiel is probably the basis of the present passage, and the chapter in which it occurs gives us the meaning of the symbol: the eating of the roll, or the words of the roll, is the complete mastering of the contents of the book—the digesting, as we say, its meaning, until the principles and truths are thoroughly familiar and loved.

As the explanatory verse, Ezekiel 3:10, says: All my words that I shall speak to you, receive in your heart and hear with your ears. This is similar to the Psalmist’s practice: Your words have I hidden within my heart. He made himself so familiar with them that they were no longer a code of laws, but a constant instinct, a second nature to him.

Thus should he who is to be a witness and a prophet for his Lord be preeminently familiar with his Master’s words and heart, saturated with his Master’s principles. “He who would carry God’s words to another must first be impressed and penetrated with them himself. He must not only hear, read, mark, and learn, but also (according to the Scriptural figure) inwardly digest them.”