Why is There a Rainbow Around God's Throne in Revelation 4:3?

  I saw a rainbow last week unlike any I've ever seen before.  I was watching my grandkids last Monday and decided to take them to the park for a picnic on the bay.  While I was sitting on the blanket watching my four-year old grandson play, all of a sudden my granddaughter told me to look at the rainbow.    

   I was a bit surprised when she said that because it was a hot sunny day with hardly a cloud in the sky.  So I flopped down on the grass next to her and looked up, and there in a half circle around the sun was a rainbow. I grabbed my phone and took a picture hoping it would show the rainbow.  It did.  

    In about ten minutes the entire sun was almost encircled with this rainbow and I took this picture. I thought about that rainbow a lot that day because it was so unusual. I heard that there's a scientific reason for this to occur, but it still fascinated me. It touched me on Tuesday when I came across a section in  chapter 49 of the  Life-Study of Revelation on the rainbow around God's throne and the one around Christ's head.  

And He who was sitting was like a jasper stone and a sardius in appearance, and there was a rainbow around the throne like an emerald in appearance.  Revelation 4:3

And I saw another strong angel coming down out of heaven, clothed with a cloud, and the rainbow was around His head, and His face was like the sun, and His feet like pillars of fire.  Revelation 10:1

It touched me that here in Revelation the mentioning of the rainbow points back to God being faithful to the promise He made concerning mankind  way back in Genesis:  

The earthquake at the end of chapter eleven comes from the throne with the rainbow…. Rather, the rainbow encompassing the throne reminds Him of His covenant [Genesis 9:8-17]. This rainbow is Christ.  In 10:1 we are told that another strong Angel, who is Christ will come down out of heaven clothed with a cloud with a rainbow upon His head.  Christ is the universal rainbow.   As God in His righteous fury is carrying out His judgment upon rebellious mankind, Christ in the cloud will be the rainbow to remind God of His covenant with Noah.  It seems that as the rainbow Christ will say, God I agree with Your righteous fury, but I remind You of Your faithfulness.  You cannot forget the covenant You made with Noah.  I am the rainbow in the cloud" (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Revelation.  Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1976, Print). 

Whenever I see a rainbow, I am always reminded that God is faithful to what He says.  

You can listen to excerpts from the Life-Study of Revelation and some excellent commentary on Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee. 

Other Posts on the Book of  Revelation:
What is the Focus of the Book of Revelation?
What Does the Book of Revelation Show Us About Loving the Lord?
What Does Revelation 4:11 Tell Us About the Purpose of God's Creation?
What are the Golden Bowls of Incense in Revelation 5:8?
What is the Controlling Vision of he Bible Seen in the Book of Revelation?
From the Life-Study of Revelation - What are the Two Sides of Rapture Seen in Revelation 14:1
How Does Transformation Produce the New Jerusalem Mentioned in Revelation 3:12?
Taking a Look at Revelation 12:11 - How Do you Overcome Satan's Accusation?
From the Life-Study of Revelation - The Connection Between Revelation & Ephesians 
Why is There is A Rainbow Around God's Throne in Revelation 4:3?
How Do you Get Ready for the Marriage of the Lamb in Revelation 19:7-8?