Who is worthy.—“The inquiry compassed the period from before Jesus came into the world up to His resurrection from the grave. God had given the most honorable One of all the host of Heaven the first opportunity to prove His worthiness to loose the Scroll of God’s great Plan, and to fulfill its provisions. And He did not allow the privilege to go by. He accepted it.”—Z. ’16‐252. To open the book.—“The inquiry, ‘Who is worthy to open the book [scroll] and to loose the seals thereof?’ had long been made: for four thousand years, from the giving of the promise that the Seed of the woman should bruise the serpent’s head, it had been the query—Who shall be esteemed, by Jehovah God, to be worthy to perform His gracious purposes, and thus be honored above all others as Servant (Messenger) of the Covenant of Grace?”—Z. ’97‐150. And to loose the seals thereof.—“John in the symbol hears the proclamation, ‘Who is worthy to open the Book and to loose the seals?’—who is worthy to have committed to his care _the execution_ of the great Divine Plan, wonderful for its wisdom and love, and its lengths and breadths and depths and heights past human comprehension—that he may open it and execute it?”—Z. ’97‐256. 5:3. And no man in Heaven.—No angel had been proven worthy. “Which things the angels desire to look into.”—1 Pet. 1:12. Nor in earth, [neither under the earth].—No man on earth was worthy. “There is none righteous; no, not one; for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”—Rom. 3:10, 23. Was able to open the book.—“In the picture John looked to see who the worthy one might be, but none was found worthy.”—Z. ’09‐243. Neither to look thereon.—In the light of this Scripture, who can dare, in his own strength, wisdom or righteousness to interpret the Word of God or take any part in the execution of the Plan?—Heb. 12:18‐29. 5:4. And I wept much.—“It seemed to John too bad that God should have some great, wonderful purposes which might come to naught because no one was worthy to be the Divine executor.”—Z. ’09‐243. Because no man.—No being in the Universe. Was found worthy to open and to read the book.—“When silence prevailed, and none was found worthy either in Heaven or on earth (representing the condition of things prior to the First Advent), John began saying to himself: Alas! we may never know God’s gracious and wise plans for the welfare of His creatures, because none is found worthy to know or execute them.”—Z. ’97‐150; John 1:27; Matt. 8:8. Neither to look thereon.—“So it was that, even our Lord Jesus, prior to the finishing of His sacrifice, as He then declared, did not know all about the Father’s plans, times and seasons (Mark 13:32.)”—Z. ’97‐150. 5:5. And one of the elders.—The deathbed prophecy of Jacob. It is the identification of this elder that enables us to recognize the other twenty‐three.—Rev. 4:10.