And when he had taken the book, the four
beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one
of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of the
saints. (Rev 5:8)
And another angel came and stood at the
altar, having a golden censer, and there was given unto him much incense, that
he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar
which was before the throne. (Rev 8:3)
Commenting
on Rev 5:8, Craig Koester wrote:
The way the heavenly
beings bringing the saints’ prayers before God had precedent in Jewish writings
(Tob 12:12), but the more common idea was that angels interceded (1 En. 9:3; 40:6; 47:2; 104:1; T. Dan 6:2) or offered sacrifices (T. Levi 3:5) on behalf of the righteous.
(Craig R.
Koester, Revelation: A New Translation with
Introduction and Commentary [AB 38A; New Haven: Yale University Press,
2014], 379)
On Rev 8:3, we read:
Jewish sources sometimes
told of angels interceding on behalf of the righteous (1 En. 9:3; T. Levi 3:5),
but in Revelation the angel brings the saints’ own prayers before God (Tob
12:12; Rev 5:8) (Ibid., 432-33)
Here are the
extra-canonical works Koester references:
So now when you and Sarah prayed, it was I
[the archangel Raphael] who brought and read the record of your prayer before
the glory of the Lord, and likewise whenever you would bury the dead. (Tobit
12:12 NRSV)
And now, [O] holy ones of heaven, the souls
of people are putting their case before you pleading, 'Bring our judgment
before the Most High.'" (1 Enoch 9:3)
And the third voice I heard interceding and
praying on behalf of those who dwell upon the earth and supplicating in the
name of the Lord of the Spirits. (1 Enoch 40:6)
There shall be days when all the holy ones
who dwell in the heavens above shall dwell (together). And with one voice, they
shall supplicate and pray--glorifying praising, and blessing the name of the
Lord of the Spirits--on behalf of the blood of the righteous ones which has
been shed. Their prayers shall not stop from exhaustion before the Lord of the
Spirits--neither will they relax forever--(until) judgment is executed for
them. (1 Enoch 47:2)
"I swear unto you that in heaven the
angels will remember you for good before the glory of the Great One; and your
names shall be written before the glory of the Great One. (1 Enoch 104:1)
Draw near to God and to the angel who
intercedes for you, because he is the mediator between God and men for the
peace of Israel. He shall stand in opposition to the kingdom of the enemy.
(Testament of Dan 6:2)
There with him are the archangels, who serve
and offer propitiatory sacrifices to the Lord in behalf of all the sins of
ignorance of the righteous ones. (Testament of Levi 3:5)