Revelation 4:4
And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold. And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.
The verse belongs to the vision of heaven centered on the throne of God, where the white-robed redeemed are seen and anthems of joy resound through the heavenly courts, stirring longing to stand with the redeemed in God's presence. The vision was given half a century after Jesus ascended to present His church before God and to prepare mansions for His faithful ones, proving He still loved His people by coming to His aged servant to reveal God's plans for future ages. Its scenes use figures and symbols to reveal God's plan and the church's experience and history through the close of time, presenting the triumph of those who overcame through the Lamb's blood and their testimony so God's people can understand the conflicts and dangers before them.
The twenty-four elders are worshipers gathered around the throne in prayer and praise, clothed in white garments with crowns of gold on their heads, a picture echoed when the redeemed on the sea of glass receive a white mantle and crowns and stand gloriously clothed in God's presence. When believers on earth as active workers assemble together for prayer and praise they come near those heavenly worshipers, but absenting from religious meetings breaks that nearness, lays off spiritual garments and leaves lamps untrimmed and not burning, so only a feeble reflection of God's light and glory remains. Standing among that crowned number around the throne requires preparation for the great change in this life with thoughts of an altogether different character, beginning with the heart cleansed of moral defilement through Jesus Christ and made pure for the Holy Spirit to dwell in the soul temple, making haste before it is too late. The crown of gold is a gift Jesus will give when He comes to those who please Him now by being gentle and kind and obedient, pleasant with a beautiful character, and together with the crown He will give a beautiful harp to play upon, and those who receive it will always be very happy, never falling and never being sick.