QUICK FACTS: REVELATION 3:14 — WHAT DOES “THE BEGINNING OF GOD'S CREATION” REALLY MEAN?
Does Jesus Mean He Was Created, That He Created Everything, or That He Is the Beginning of God's New Creation?
Research by Simon Brown
ONE VERSE — THREE VERY DIFFERENT INTERPRETATIONS
Revelation 3:14 is one of the most fascinating verses in the debate over who Jesus Christ is.
Jesus says:
“And to the messenger of the church in Laodicea write: These things says the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of God's creation.”
Revelation 3:14 — Berean Literal Bible
But what did Jesus mean when he called himself:
“THE BEGINNING OF GOD'S CREATION”?
Does this mean:
1. JESUS WAS THE FIRST BEING GOD CREATED?
This is essentially the interpretation associated with Jehovah's Witness theology.
Or:
2. JESUS IS THE SOURCE OR ORIGINATOR OF THE ORIGINAL CREATION?
This is a common Trinitarian interpretation.
Or:
3. JESUS IS THE BEGINNING AND HEAD OF GOD'S NEW CREATION?
This interpretation connects Revelation 3:14 particularly with Jesus' resurrection and his position as “the firstborn of the dead.”
Which interpretation best fits the biblical evidence?
Rather than beginning with a theological system, let's begin with the actual Greek text.
WHAT DOES THE GREEK ACTUALLY SAY?
The Greek expression in Revelation 3:14 is:
ἡ ἀρχὴ τῆς κτίσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ
hē archē tēs ktiseōs tou Theou
Literally:
“the archē of the creation of God.”
The Greek text itself is well established here. Archē (ἀρχή) is a noun, while ktiseōs (κτίσεως) and Theou (Θεοῦ) are genitives—hence the familiar translation “the beginning of God's creation.” (Bible Hub)
The crucial word is:
ἀρχή — ARCHĒ
And this is where we must be careful.
DOES ARCHĒ SIMPLY MEAN “BEGINNING”?
It certainly can mean beginning.
For example:
“The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ…”
— Mark 1:1
And:
“In the beginning was the Word…”
— John 1:1
But archē can also carry ideas associated with first position, rule or authority, depending upon its context.
That is why translations and scholars have understood Revelation 3:14 differently.
Even the NET Bible's textual note acknowledges that, linguistically, interpretations involving beginning, ruler, or originator have been proposed. Scholarly discussion of this verse likewise recognizes several competing meanings rather than one uncontested definition. (Net Bible)
Therefore:
THE WORD ARCHĒ BY ITSELF DOES NOT SETTLE THE DEBATE.
We must examine the context and compare Scripture with Scripture.
INTERPRETATION ONE:
WAS JESUS GOD'S FIRST CREATED BEING?
One way of reading the expression:
“the beginning of God's creation”
is:
“the first thing God created.”
This interpretation has an obvious attraction.
If someone is the “beginning” of God's creation, perhaps he stands at the beginning of the created order.
However, Revelation 3:14 does not explicitly say:
“Jesus was the first creature God created.”
Nor does the Greek use a word meaning:
“FIRST-CREATED.”
That interpretation must therefore be inferred from archē.
This distinction matters.
WHAT ABOUT “FIRSTBORN OF ALL CREATION”?
This interpretation is frequently connected with Colossians 1:15:
“who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.”
— Colossians 1:15, BLB
At first sight, “firstborn of all creation” might sound like Jesus is the first member of creation.
But firstborn does not automatically mean first-created.
An extremely important example occurs in Psalm 89.
Speaking about the Davidic king, God says:
“Also I will make him My firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth.”
— Psalm 89:27
Notice:
“I WILL MAKE HIM MY FIRSTBORN.”
And the parallel explanation is:
“THE HIGHEST OF THE KINGS OF THE EARTH.”
Here “firstborn” clearly involves rank and supremacy, not simply the chronological order of someone's birth.
Therefore Colossians 1:15 cannot simply be reduced to:
“Jesus was God's first created being.”
We have to keep reading.
PAUL EXPLAINS JESUS' PREEMINENCE
Only three verses later Paul says:
“And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, firstborn out from the dead, so that He might be holding preeminence in all things.”
— Colossians 1:18, BLB
Now notice something remarkable.
The same important word appears:
ἀρχή — ARCHĒ
Jesus is:
THE BEGINNING
THE FIRSTBORN FROM THE DEAD
THE ONE HOLDING PREEMINENCE.
This deserves our attention when interpreting Revelation 3:14.
NOW COMPARE REVELATION 1:5
Before John ever reaches Revelation 3:14, he has already described Jesus:
“and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.”
— Revelation 1:5, BLB
Look carefully at these titles:
THE FAITHFUL WITNESS
THE FIRSTBORN OF THE DEAD
THE RULER OF THE KINGS OF THE EARTH.
Now compare Revelation 3:14:
THE AMEN
THE FAITHFUL AND TRUE WITNESS
THE BEGINNING OF GOD'S CREATION.
There is an obvious literary connection between these descriptions.
Both passages call Jesus the:
FAITHFUL WITNESS.
And Revelation 1:5 connects that title with:
THE FIRSTBORN OF THE DEAD.
This becomes even more interesting when Colossians 1:18 calls Jesus:
THE BEGINNING,
THE FIRSTBORN FROM THE DEAD.
Some commentators have indeed connected Colossians 1:18 and Revelation 3:14, and discussion of Colossians 1:18 includes the idea of Christ as the beginning of a new humanity/new creation through resurrection. (galaxie.com)
This deserves serious consideration.
JESUS IS THE FIRSTBORN FROM THE DEAD
What does this mean?
Jesus was obviously not the first human being ever restored to life.
People were raised before Jesus.
For example, Jesus raised Lazarus.
But Lazarus eventually died again.
Jesus' resurrection was different.
Paul explains:
“Christ, having been raised out from the dead, dies no more; death no longer rules over Him.”
— Romans 6:9, BLB
Jesus was raised to immortal, indestructible life.
Paul therefore calls him:
“the firstfruit of those having fallen asleep.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:20, BLB
And then:
“But each in the own order: Christ the firstfruit, then those of Christ at His coming.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:23, BLB
Jesus is therefore the beginning of an entirely new order of humanity.
IMMORTAL HUMAN LIFE.
IS THIS GOD'S NEW CREATION?
Paul writes:
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.”
— 2 Corinthians 5:17
The New Testament repeatedly presents the resurrection of Jesus as the beginning of God's coming renewed creation.
This makes the relationship between these expressions highly significant:
“the beginning”
“firstborn from the dead”
“firstfruits”
“new creation.”
This provides a genuine biblical basis for interpreting Revelation 3:14 in relation to God's new creation.
But we need to be precise.
REVELATION 3:14 DOES NOT ACTUALLY CONTAIN THE WORD “NEW.”
Jesus says:
“the beginning of God's creation.”
Therefore, “new creation” is an interpretation based upon comparison with other passages, particularly Revelation 1:5 and Colossians 1:18.
We should say that openly.
INTERPRETATION TWO:
DOES REVELATION 3:14 MEAN JESUS CREATED EVERYTHING?
Many Trinitarian interpreters understand archē differently.
They argue that Jesus is the origin, source or originating cause of God's creation.
Under this interpretation:
JESUS IS NOT PART OF CREATION.
Rather:
JESUS IS ITS ORIGINATOR.
This interpretation is often supported by comparison with John 1:1–3 and Colossians 1:16.
And it should not simply be dismissed.
Some major lexical and scholarly treatments have considered an “originator” interpretation viable or preferable in Revelation 3:14. Other scholarship notes that “first-created” is linguistically possible/probable while nevertheless arguing from context for another meaning. In other words, the lexical evidence is more complicated than either side sometimes admits. (Net Bible)
But here is an important question:
DOES REVELATION 3:14 ITSELF SAY JESUS CREATED EVERYTHING?
No.
It doesn't say:
“Jesus created God's creation.”
It calls Jesus:
“the archē of God's creation.”
Therefore the claim that Jesus is the Creator must depend upon how archē is interpreted and upon other passages.
NOTICE SOMETHING ELSE VERY IMPORTANT
Whose creation is it?
Revelation doesn't say:
“JESUS' CREATION.”
It says:
“GOD'S CREATION.”
The Greek ends:
τοῦ Θεοῦ — tou Theou
“OF GOD.”
This does not by itself settle Jesus' identity—Trinitarians distinguish persons within the Godhead—but grammatically the creation is described as God's creation. (Bible Hub)
That distinction deserves to remain visible rather than being silently rewritten as:
“Jesus, the Creator.”
WHO DOES JESUS CALL HIS GOD?
This becomes particularly interesting within Revelation itself.
Jesus says:
“The one overcoming, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God…”
— Revelation 3:12, BLB
And in that single verse Jesus repeatedly speaks of:
“MY GOD.”
Then only two verses later he says:
“THE BEGINNING OF GOD'S CREATION.”
The immediate context therefore contains a distinction between Jesus and the One whom Jesus calls:
“MY GOD.”
That fact should be included in any serious examination of Revelation 3:14.
WHO GAVE JESUS THE REVELATION?
The entire book begins:
“The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him…”
— Revelation 1:1, BLB
Again there is a distinction:
GOD
gave
JESUS CHRIST
the revelation.
That doesn't by itself answer every Christological question, but it establishes how Revelation itself speaks about God and Jesus.
JESUS RECEIVED HIS AUTHORITY
After his resurrection Jesus declared:
“All authority in heaven and on the earth has been given to Me.”
— Matthew 28:18, BLB
The words:
“HAS BEEN GIVEN TO ME”
are important.
Jesus possesses enormous authority.
But the authority is given.
Peter similarly proclaimed:
“Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.”
— Acts 2:36, BLB
And Paul writes:
“Therefore God also highly exalted Him, and granted to Him the name above every name…”
— Philippians 2:9, BLB
Again:
GOD EXALTED JESUS.
GOD GAVE JESUS AUTHORITY.
GOD MADE JESUS LORD AND CHRIST.
This fits naturally with Revelation 1:5 calling Jesus:
“THE RULER OF THE KINGS OF THE EARTH.”
COULD ARCHĒ MEAN “RULER”?
This is another important possibility.
The Greek archē can be associated with rule or authority, and some translations therefore render Revelation 3:14 along the lines of:
“THE RULER OF GOD'S CREATION.”
The Biblical Unitarian commentary, for example, argues that “ruler” fits the immediate Laodicean context, particularly Jesus' authority to rebuke, discipline and grant participation in his rule. (Biblical Unitarian)
And Revelation has already called Jesus:
“the ruler of the kings of the earth.”
— Revelation 1:5
This makes a rulership interpretation worth considering too.
But once again, we should not pretend there is no debate.
SO WHICH INTERPRETATION FITS BEST?
We now have several possibilities.
JESUS AS FIRST CREATED BEING
Possible only if archē is understood temporally as the first member of God's creation.
But Revelation 3:14 does not explicitly call Jesus “the first-created.”
JESUS AS ORIGINATOR OF GENESIS CREATION
Possible if archē carries an originating/source sense and if passages such as John 1 and Colossians 1 are understood accordingly.
But Revelation 3:14 itself does not explicitly say:
“Jesus created the universe.”
JESUS AS RULER OF GOD'S CREATION
This fits a recognized meaning of archē and agrees with Revelation's explicit description of Jesus as:
“the ruler of the kings of the earth.”
JESUS AS BEGINNING OF GOD'S NEW CREATION
This has a particularly interesting parallel in Colossians 1:18:
“the beginning”
“firstborn from the dead”
and Revelation 1:5:
“firstborn of the dead.”
It fits the New Testament's wider resurrection/new-creation pattern.
But Revelation 3:14 itself does not explicitly say “new creation.”
That conclusion remains an interpretation.
WHICH VIEW DO I BELIEVE BEST FITS THE EVIDENCE?
After examining the evidence, I believe Revelation 3:14 is best understood in connection with Jesus' supreme position in God's creation and particularly the new creation inaugurated through his resurrection.
The close parallels are difficult to ignore:
REVELATION 1:5
Faithful witness
Firstborn of the dead
Ruler of the kings of the earth
COLOSSIANS 1:18
The beginning
Firstborn from the dead
Preeminent in all things
REVELATION 3:14
Faithful and true Witness
The beginning of God's creation
Together these passages provide a strong case that archē concerns Jesus' priority, supremacy and position at the head of God's creation/new creation, rather than requiring us to read Revelation 3:14 as either:
“JESUS WAS THE FIRST THING GOD CREATED”
or:
“JESUS IS GOD BECAUSE HE CREATED GENESIS.”
Neither sentence actually appears in Revelation 3:14.
DOES THIS DIMINISH JESUS?
Absolutely not.
The New Testament gives Jesus an astonishing position.
He is:
God's Son.
The Christ.
The faithful and true witness.
The firstborn from the dead.
The firstfruits of those who sleep.
The Lord and Messiah appointed by God.
The ruler of the kings of the earth.
The one to whom all authority in heaven and earth has been given.
None of that needs to be diminished.
But neither should we change those descriptions into something the text itself doesn't say.
THE SIMPLE TEST
Read Revelation 3:14 again:
“These things says the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of God's creation.”
Ask yourself:
Does Jesus say:
“I AM GOD THE CREATOR”?
No.
Does Jesus say:
“I AM THE FIRST CREATURE GOD MADE”?
No.
He says he is:
“THE BEGINNING OF GOD'S CREATION.”
Therefore our responsibility is to investigate what that title means without adding words to it.
FINAL CONCLUSION
Revelation 3:14 is not the simple proof-text that either side sometimes makes it.
The Greek word:
ἀρχή — ARCHĒ
has to be interpreted in context.
The verse does not explicitly identify Jesus as the first-created being.
Neither does the verse explicitly say Jesus created the Genesis universe.
But Revelation itself calls Jesus the:
FAITHFUL WITNESS,
FIRSTBORN OF THE DEAD,
and
RULER OF THE KINGS OF THE EARTH.
And Paul describes Jesus as:
THE BEGINNING,
FIRSTBORN FROM THE DEAD,
so that he might have:
PREEMINENCE IN ALL THINGS.
For these reasons, I believe the strongest interpretation is that Revelation 3:14 presents Jesus as the beginning and supreme ruler of God's new creation—the resurrected Messiah through whom God establishes His coming order.
But there is an equally important lesson here.
WE SHOULD NEVER MAKE ONE GREEK WORD SAY MORE THAN IT CAN PROVE.
Study the language.
Study the context.
Compare Scripture with Scripture.
And allow the Bible—not tradition—to determine what we believe.
ONE GOD — AND HIS SON JESUS CHRIST
Jesus himself prayed:
“And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”
John 17:3 — BLB
Research by Simon Brown
wwwrealdiscoveriesorg-simon.blogspot.com
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