Revelation 4:9

And when the living creatures shall give glory and honor and thanks to him that sitteth on the throne, to him that liveth for ever and ever, the four and twenty elders shall fall down before him that sitteth on the throne, and shall worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and shall cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

Now the big thing in view here would seem to be the counterpart of that cited by Barnes above on Revelation 4:8. Seeing that celestial and supernatural beings spend their time in the worship and adoration of God, there could not possibly be any better activity for mortals. This could well be the significance of the "when" standing at the head of these two verses, also translated "whenever." It is only a quibble to inquire, "If these spontaneous outbursts of praise contradict the continuous worship of Revelation 4:8"![45] Such an attitude reminds this writer of the occasion when a concert artist gave a harp solo at a meeting of the Rotary Club. It took four men to bring in the harp; and Willie Weinberger, owner of a local ladies' store, said, "If we're all going to have to carry around harps in heaven, I don't want to go!" What one gets out of Revelation depends to a great deal upon the attitude which he brings into the study of it.

Cast their crowns before the throne ... The twenty-four elders enjoy kingly authority, but it is due entirely to their relation to God, all of their authority being derived from him. This is beautifully symbolized by the action here.