John's vision of the Son of Man

In Revelation 1:18, the figure identifies himself as "the First and the Last", who "was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever", a reference to the resurrection of Jesus.

[1] The Son of Man is portrayed as walking (2:1) among seven lampstands, which represent the seven churches of Asia (1:20).

In John's vision the Son of Man has white hair, a sword, and lampstands.

[5] William Hendriksen suggests that the whole of the vision "is symbolical of Christ, the Holy One, coming to purge His churches," and to "punish those who are persecuting His elect.

"[18] Although Domitian's son cannot be said to be holding the stars, some scholars have drawn parallels between the numismatic and biblical evidences.

Frederick Murphy notes that "Revelation's image of Jesus with seven stars in his hand may be an allusion to that coin and an implicit critique of it.

"[12] Austin Farrer, on the other hand, takes them to be the seven classical planets, and interprets the vision as representing Christ's lordship over time.