John Gill's Bible Commentary Ver. 9. And I went to the angel , etc.] According to the order given him; he was not disobedient to the heavenly vision; and, indeed, whither should any go knowledge but to him who has the words of eternal life, and is the great prophet of the church? and to whom should John go to qualify him for prophesying, but to him, who, as man and Mediator, had this revelation of future things given him? ( Revelation 1:1); and said unto him, give me the little book ; he did not take it without his leave, but in a modest and humble manner asks him to give it him, that he might deliver out the prophecies in it to others: so ordinary prophets and ministers of the word should go to Christ, to have their eyes opened, their understandings enlightened, that they may understand the Scriptures, and explain them to others: and he said unto me, take it, and eat it up ; which must be understood not literally, but mystically; and the sense is this, take the book, and diligently peruse it, and with as much eagerness as an hungry man would eat a meal; so greedy are some persons of reading, and as it were of devouring books; hence Cicero called Cato helluo librorum, a glutton at books: and in such manner John is bid to take and eat this book, and look into it, and read it over diligently, and consider what was in it, and meditate upon it, and digest the things contained in it, and lay them up in his mind and memory; and for the present hide and conceal them, in like manner as he was bid to seal, and not write what the seven thunders uttered; and so, though this book is represented to him as open in the angel's hand, yet he must take it and eat it, and hide it in his belly, because the things in it as yet were not to be accomplished: so for ordinary prophesying, or preaching, the ministers of the word should diligently read the Scriptures, constantly meditate on them, digest the truths of the Gospel in their own minds, and lay them up in the treasury of their hearts, and bring them forth from thence in due season: and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey ; as Ezekiel's roll was to him when he ate it, ( Ezekiel 3:1-3); the Alexandrian copy, instead of thy belly, reads thy heart.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 8-11 - Most men feel pleasure in looking into future events, and all good me like to receive a word from God. But when this book of prophecy wa thoroughly digested by the apostle, the contents would be bitter; ther were things so awful and terrible, such grievous persecutions of the people of God, such desolations in the earth, that the foresight an foreknowledge of them would be painful to his mind. Let us seek to be taught by Christ, and to obey his orders; daily meditating on his word that it may nourish our souls; and then declaring it according to ou several stations. The sweetness of such contemplations will often by mingled with bitterness, while we compare the Scriptures with the stat of the world and the church, or even with that of our own hearts _________________________________________________
Greek Textus Receptus
και 2532 CONJ απηλθον 565 5627 V-2AAI-1S προς 4314 PREP τον 3588 T-ASM αγγελον 32 N-ASM λεγων 3004 5723 V-PAP-NSM αυτω 846 P-DSM δος 1325 5628 V-2AAM-2S μοι 3427 P-1DS το 3588 T-ASN βιβλαριδιον 974 N-ASN και 2532 CONJ λεγει 3004 5719 V-PAI-3S μοι 3427 P-1DS λαβε 2983 5628 V-2AAM-2S και 2532 CONJ καταφαγε 2719 5628 V-2AAM-2S αυτο 846 P-ASN και 2532 CONJ πικρανει 4087 5692 V-FAI-3S σου 4675 P-2GS την 3588 T-ASF κοιλιαν 2836 N-ASF αλλ 235 CONJ εν 1722 PREP τω 3588 T-DSN στοματι 4750 N-DSN σου 4675 P-2GS εσται 2071 5704 V-FXI-3S γλυκυ 1099 A-NSN ως 5613 ADV μελι 3192 N-NSN
Vincent's NT Word Studies
9. I went (aphlqon). The preposition ajpo has the force of away. I went away from the place where I was standing.Eat it up. Compare Ezek. iii. 1-3; Jer. xv. 16.
