Revelation 1:16: And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

The glorified Christ in Revelation chapter 1,¹ symbolically had in his right hand seven stars.² Revelation 1:20 identifies these seven stars as the angels of the seven churches.³ The Joseph Smith Translation changes the word angels to servants.⁴ Therefore, the seven stars in this verse represent each of the seven mortal leaders in the seven churches of Asia at the time of John's vision in 96 AD.⁵

Christ held the seven stars (mortal leaders) in his favored right hand of power.⁶ This means the power of Christ supported and upheld the seven leaders,⁷ just as Christ supports and upholds the leaders of his church today through the power of the priesthood.⁸ Unfortunately, and generally, members of the seven churches were not worthy of God's favor.⁹ They had become increasingly wicked.¹⁰ For them, the light of truth¹¹ from their seven leaders¹² had become like the flickering light of seven stars in the growing night of apostasy.¹³

The growing apostasy¹⁴ provides the context for the image of the sharp two-edged sword,¹⁵ which figuratively¹⁶ came from the mouth of Christ in Revelation 1:16.¹⁷ The sword represents destructive judgments¹⁸ carried out on the wicked according to the spoken word of Christ.¹⁹ The double edge of the sword figuratively doubles the power and speed of Christ's destructive judgments on the wicked.²⁰ This deadly sword of judgment appears six times in the Revelation,²¹ and much more frequently in the Old Testament.²² Elsewhere, Christ's sword is said to be bathed in heaven with blood, which means it is made bare or ready for an immense slaughter of the wicked.²³

Christ's countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.²⁴ He is the Day Star.²⁵ This title for Christ alludes to the planet Venus, which continues to reflect the light of the sun in the growing light of day and is therefore mistakenly considered to be the brightest star among all the starry constellations. In this scriptural context, the Day Star holds the light of the seven stars in his right hand that are dim when compared to his glorified countenance.²⁶ Christ is the ultimate source of light.²⁷ He possesses the glory of his Father,²⁸ which Christ prayed for during the intercessory prayer on the Thursday night before his death.²⁹

Revelation 1:17: And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last.

John was so overcome by the image of Christ as a righteous judge with a double-edged sword³⁰ that John fell at his feet as dead.³¹ Others overcome by the spirit have had similar experiences such as Isaiah, Ezekiel, and people in the Book of Mormon.³² The glorified person that John saw was Jesus Christ and not an angel speaking with divine investiture of authority, as is the case in Revelation 19:10 and 22:8-9.³³ Thus, John was not rebuked in Revelation 1:17, when he fell in solemn reverence before the Savior. Instead, when John fell and prostrated himself before his Lord, Christ laid his right hand upon³⁴ the fallen disciple whom he loved³⁵ and raised him up³⁶ saying: Fear not. I am the first and the last.³⁷

This tender scene may have caused John to reflect back to Christ's mortal ministry more than sixty years earlier,³⁸ when the Savior healed the sick and raised the dead by the touch of his hand.³⁹ Christ said fear not to many people of faith.⁴⁰ These words remain the watchwords for faithful saints that endure trials and tribulations.⁴¹ Christ will raise up all who endure to the end by the power of his right hand and the power of his word.⁴² Those that endure in faith have no reason to fear Christ's double-edge sword of judgment because it also has power to save.⁴³

Christ twice calls himself the first and the last in rapid succession⁴⁴ just before and just after he miraculously raises John⁴⁵ from a death-like condition.⁴⁶ This name-title⁴⁷ expresses the reality that salvation is in Christ⁴⁸ for all his creations.⁴⁹ He has power to give life to the first and last of all his creations⁵⁰ because Christ, the eternal one, is the first and the last.⁵¹

Revelation 1:18: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.

Christ restored John to conscious life to display Christ's power to raise all things in the resurrection.⁵² This connection is made when Christ raised John to life and said: I am he that liveth, and was dead.⁵³ By these words, Christ identifies himself as the Redeemer⁵⁴ and restorer of life.⁵⁵ These words confirm Christ's power to raise all things from death,⁵⁶ which he promised before his own death.⁵⁷ The promise of life after death⁵⁸ is as certain, enduring, and everlasting as Christ himself.⁵⁹ He declared it to be so by the evidence of his own eternal existence when he said, I am alive for evermore, Amen.⁶⁰

The Savior also said that he possessed the keys of hell and of death.⁶¹ This is Christ's solemn declaration of his power over spiritual death (hell)⁶² and physical death.⁶³ Spiritual death exists whenever God's children are banished from his presence.⁶⁴ It occurs in mortality as a result of Adam's transgression⁶⁵ and will continue in the next life with people that fail to repent.⁶⁶ Sons of perdition will suffer a permanent spiritual death known as the second death.⁶⁷ Physical or temporal death⁶⁸ occurs when the inward spirit body⁶⁹ and physical body separate.⁷⁰

When Christ said that he had the keys of death, he meant the keys of physical death to which all things have been appointed⁷¹ since the fall of Adam.⁷² At physical death, human spirits that are worthy of the celestial kingdom‒including those who receive their gospel ordinances‒go to celestial paradise in the postmortal spirit world.⁷³ These spirits are in God's presence,⁷⁴ and they are no longer spiritually dead as they await a glorious resurrection to the celestial kingdom.⁷⁵

Spirits of the dead that are unworthy of celestial glory go to hell, also called spirit prison, in the postmortal spirit world.⁷⁶ In hell they will continue to experience spiritual death,⁷⁷ which began for them when they were born on this earth during their second (mortal) estate.⁷⁸ The word hell typically describes the temporary abode of wicked spirits that do not qualify for the celestial kingdom.⁷⁹ However, the word hell in the original Greek (hades) and Hebrew (sheol) usually meant the postmortal dwelling of both righteous and wicked spirits.⁸⁰ Regardless of where the disembodied spirits of the dead may go, Christ holds the keys to redeem them from both spiritual death and physical death.⁸¹

The keys held by Christ represent his supreme governing power and authority.⁸² He acquired these keys by virtue of his Sonship⁸³ and because he voluntarily gave up his perfect life to complete the infinite atonement.⁸⁴ The keys (plural) of hell and death include the keys of the resurrection, which Christ also holds.⁸⁵ These keys represent Christ's power and authority to redeem all disembodied spirits in the postmortal spirit world⁸⁶ from the captivity and bondage of physical death.⁸⁷ The keys of the resurrection are not delegated to mortal men on earth.⁸⁸ However, they are delegated to those that have been resurrected so that exalted persons have the privilege of bringing forth (raising) others after them from physical death in the resurrection.⁸⁹

Christ will exercise the keys of hell and death on at least three separate occasions as his Second Coming approaches. First, Christ will exercise his key of the bottomless pit⁹⁰ at the start of the First Woe to fully unleash the power on earth of all the spirit sons of perdition in Revelation chapter 9.⁹¹ This key will unleash on earth⁹² the unprecedented power and influence⁹³ of both unembodied spirit sons of perdition⁹⁴ and disembodied spirit sons of perdition from the postmortal spirit prison.⁹⁵ Then, when the earth is spiritually cleansed during the Third Woe in Revelation chapter 16,⁹⁶ Christ will exercise the same key to cast all disembodied spirit sons of perdition into the lake of fire and brimstone permanently⁹⁷ and to bind all unembodied spirit sons of perdition in the bottomless pit for 1000 years.⁹⁸ Finally, at the dawn of the Second Coming, Christ will exercise his keys of death and hell to resume the morning of the first resurrection for exaltation-worthy saints that began with his own resurrection in the meridian of time.⁹⁹