Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Revelation 1:8

"I am the Alpha and the Omega, saith the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty." — Revelation 1:8 (ASV)

Such a stupendous promise requires more than the prophet’s own signature or even Christ’s “Amen.” God himself speaks and, with his own signature, vouches for the truthfulness of the coming of Christ. Of the many names of God that reveal his character and memorialize his deeds, there are four strong ones in this verse. (1) “Alpha and Omega” are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. Their mention here is similar to the “First” and “Last” in v.17 and is further heightened by the “Beginning” and the “End” in 21:6 and 22:13. Only this book refers to God as the “Alpha and the Omega.” (2) He is the absolute source of all creation and history, and nothing lies outside him. Thus he is the “Lord God” of all. (3) He is the one “who is, and who was, and who is to come” (see comment on v.4). (4) He is continually present to his people as the “Almighty” (lit., “the one who has his hand on everything”; GK 4120; cf. 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7, 14; 19:6, 15; 21:22; 2 Corinthians 6:18).