This will be the last post in this series which examines passages Platonists cite as evidence of the soul’s ability to exist independently from the body. Next week’s post will wrap up the series. In this post, I will consider Revelation 6:9-11. This text depicts the souls of martyrs crying out for justice from under the altar. This scene might appear to contradict the biblical concept of death as a state of unconsciousness. How should we interpret this passage so that its message agrees with the overall scriptural portrayal of death?
The key to understanding this passage is recognizing that Revelation is a book of symbols. The souls under the altar are not literal disembodied souls in a conscious intermediate state. They are a symbolic representation of the martyrs’ deaths, their cry for justice, and God’s awareness of their sacrifice.
Revelation is highly symbolic
It’s crucial to consider the nature of John’s Revelation itself. The opening verse of the book states that God signified this message to John (Rev 1:1). The use of the term “signified” implies that the contents of Revelation are largely symbolic. This clue tells the reader that they should not take all of the book literally. In his commentary on Revelation, Ogden notes:
“The language used by John in this book is unlike any other used in the New Testament. The message was signified unto John, indicating the abundant use of signs and symbols in its presentation. Words and phrases are often used to signify, symbolize and reveal what is otherwise hidden truth. This identifies the book more specifically in nature with the prophetic books of the Old Testament.”1
This sets the stage for viewing the cries of the martyrs through a symbolic lens. The passage in question reads:
9 And when the Lamb opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony they had upheld. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You avenge our blood and judge those who dwell upon the earth?” 11 Then each of them was given a white robe and told to rest a little while longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers, were killed, just as they had been killed. (Rev. 6:9-11 BEREAN)
Symbolism in the passage
Do lambs open seals on scrolls? Of course not. The Lamb in this passage is referring to Jesus; He is not literally a lamb. The author uses symbolic imagery to convey something about Jesus. Likewise, these souls are under the altar. The author does not intend to communicate the literal position of these martyrs in heaven. Instead, “under the altar” symbolized “the sacrifice of their lives for the word of God and the testimony which they held.”2
“Your brother’s blood cries out”
To understand this passage, it helps to look to other instances of figurative language in Scripture. We find a prime example in Genesis 4:10, where God confronts Cain after he has murdered his brother Abel: “’What have you done?’ replied the LORD. ‘The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground.’” Clearly, Abel’s literal blood was not audibly crying out; rather, this is powerful imagery expressing the gravity of the crime and God’s awareness of it.
If the souls crying out in Revelation 6 are literally conscious disembodied souls in heaven, then Abel’s blood is literally crying out from the ground. No one believes that. The figurative language in Genesis 4:10 and Revelation 6:9-11 operates the same way.
This Genesis passage provides a strong precedent for interpreting Revelation 6:9-11 symbolically. Just as Abel’s blood figuratively cried out for justice, we should understand the souls of the martyrs crying out in Revelation as a symbolic plea for justice and divine judgment.
The symbolism in Revelation 6 serves multiple purposes
Furthermore, the symbolism in Revelation 6 serves multiple purposes. First, it emphasizes God’s awareness of the sacrifices made by His faithful followers. The image of souls beneath the altar evokes the Old Testament practice of pouring out the blood of sacrificial animals at the base of the altar (Lev 4:7). This connection portrays the martyrs’ deaths as sacrificial offerings, highlighting their faithfulness.
Second, the symbolic cries for justice underscore the theme of retribution that runs throughout Revelation. The martyrs’ question, “How long?” echoes the pleas found in many psalms (e.g., Psa 13:1-2) and emphasizes the tension between present suffering and future vindication. This cry represents not only the martyrs themselves but all of God’s people who have faced persecution throughout history.
The white robes given to the souls and the instruction to “rest a little longer” further support a symbolic interpretation. White robes in Revelation often symbolize purity and victory (Rev 3:4-5, 7:9). The command to rest hints at the biblical concept of death as sleep, suggesting that the final vindication will come at the resurrection, not in an intermediate conscious state.
The white robes given to the souls are part of the symbolic vision, not a literal wardrobe distribution. Just as the Lamb does not literally open physical seals, the robes do not literally clothe physical or spiritual bodies. They symbolize the vindication and purity that God promises to those who died for His name.
Symbolism, not literal souls under the altar
The symbolism actively reinforces the biblical teaching that death is a state of unconscious rest awaiting resurrection. Ecclesiastes 9:5 states, “For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing. They have no further reward, because the memory of them is forgotten.” Similarly, Psalm 146:4 describes death as the cessation of thought: “When his spirit departs, he returns to the ground; on that very day his plans perish.”
Revelation 6:9-11, read within its own symbolic framework and in light of the Bible’s consistent testimony about death, is a powerful statement about God’s justice and the certainty of future vindication. It is not a window into a conscious intermediate state. It is a promise that the deaths of the faithful are not forgotten and that God will act.
The martyrs are not speaking. Their blood is. Just like Abel’s.