Book of Revelation: An Introduction
By JK Sellers
April, 11, 2019
What: The Book's language and symbolisms
Who: Short Bio of John the beloved
Why: The Conditions Prior to the vision
Introduction:
While studying the New Testament, have you ever come to the last book and found yourself faced with the daunting task of trying to comprehend the symbolism found in the Book of Revelation? Don’t feel bad, so have millions of other Bible students, me among them. For years, I was baffled and confused by the mysterious imagery of John’s vision. Just like Enoch, Ezekiel, Daniel, and Isaiah, God showed John an amazing array of imagery as He communicated to His prophet those things He wanted to relate to His children. What made me finally tackle John’s Revelation? I caught the Prophesy Bug.
After years of studying the scriptures, I desired to find the truth about what lay ahead for me and my family. I found many prophesies of the last days scattered throughout the Old and New Testaments. I studied the prophesies of Daniel and his vision of King Nebuchadnezzar’s image, Ezekiel and Yoel’s descriptions of devastating end times wars against Israel, Isaiah’s descriptions of the coming Messiah and the events surrounding Israel in the last days. Unfortunately, I could not find anywhere in scripture where these scattered prophesies were explicitly tied together in chronological order. History is filled with hundreds of scholars who have attempted to piece these scattered prophecies into a coherent chronology, each one differing in some extent from the other. Today is no different.
I knew that God wouldn’t ask us to study these prophesies (Revelation 1:3; 3:3; 22:7-10, Matthew 24:42-43, Luke 21:36) without giving the Bible student a hint as to the timeline of the events that will occur during the last days. You can visit any Christian bookstore today and find hundreds of books on the subject of end time chronology, each one different from another. On the internet there are just as many conflicting webpages discussing this same topic. I found all this just as confusing as the next Bible student has. It is especially difficult if you don’t know the order of the many prophesies found in the Bible and how they relate to one another.
During my study, I finally decided to tackle the book of Revelation. I weighed the many different ways to interpret John’s vision using several different books and webpages and found that Revelation of St John the Divine did indeed have a timeline of last days events. Not every prophesied event in the Bible can be found IN John’s Revelation. However, one can logically insert them in his chronology (or at least to my satisfaction). Of course, this is where the debate begins among Bible students and scholars. This debate has been ongoing ever since John first disseminated his revelation to the seven churches.
I will explain what I have gleaned from John’s great work in future articles. This First article will be an introduction to the Book of Revelation and will answer the Five W’s: What, Who, When, Where and Why of John’s Revelation. But first, let’s look at the different categories of how the Book of Revelation has been interpreted over the centuries since it’s recording. I will only touch on the basics here. There are as many interpretations of Revelation as there are scholars. Many books have been written on the many differing ways to interpret Biblical prophesy, let alone the exegesis of the Book of Revelation itself.
Eschatology (study of end times prophecy) and Exegesis (Interpretation):
It is not surprising that the rich imagery and symbolism contained in the Book of Revelation, next to Daniel, has made it the most argued over book in the Bible when it comes to exegesis or interpretation. Ever since John left the scene in the First Century, Christian scholars have interpreted John’s Revelation in a variety of ways. These can be divided into two broad categories: A Prophetic View and a Non-Prophetic View:1
Non-Prophetic View:
These proponents reject the idea that John saw the events of the far future.
Preterists (derived from the Latin praeter meaning “past” or “beyond”) interpret John’s Revelation as having taken place in the First Century AD. “Preterists believe that most or all of Bible Prophecy (especially the big three events — the Second Coming, Resurrection, and Judgment) have already been fulfilled in Christ and the on-going expansion of His Eternal Kingdom.” (From What is the Preterist View?: Preterist.Org)
Then you have the Idealists or the Allegoricists who believe that the Book of Revelations does not refer to actual people or specific events in the future but rather it is an allegorical story relating how we can persevere in the struggle between good and evil.2
The Prophetic View:
These are they who believe that the Book of Revelations contain prophesies of future events but differ in how these events relate to history.
Historicists believe that Revelation entails the history of Christ’s Church from John’s day to the day of Judgement and that many (but not all) of the events John saw have already taken place. This was the most dominate view in the first three centuries of the Christian era until the time of Augustine. For example, they see the Muslim invasion of Christian lands in the Middle East, North Africa and Spain as the plague of locusts released from the Abyss in chapter 9 verses 1 through 11. Almost all of the Protestant Reformers of the Reformation held historicist views. This was the most common interpretation among Protestants into the Ninetieth Century.3
A sub category of Historicists is Historical Premillennialism. They believe that the Savior will return just before the Millennium, a literal thousand-year golden age of peace. Historical Premillennialism had “been the prevailing eschatology during the first three centuries of the Christian era, and is found in the works of Papias, Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, Tertullian, Hippolytus, Methodius, Commodianus, and Lactanitus.”4
Virtually all historians acknowledge that a premillennial faith was the dominant eschatological belief in the church from "the apostolic age until the time of Augustine".5
Futurists view most of the Book of Revelation as occurring in the near future. That only the first three chapters refer to John’s days, while the events recorded in rest of the book all happen in the end times and shortly before the Second Coming. John Darby and the Scofield Bible made this view popular after the 1830’s. In the last century, John Lindsay and Tim Lahaye among others, helped make this view widely accepted among Evangelicals with their books, “The Late Great Planet Earth” and the “Left Behind” series.
Of course, eschatology is much more nuanced than these two broad categories. For a list of subcategories see my Eschatology webpage.
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What: The Book's language and symbolisms
John revealed the name of his book in the first verse, "The Revelation of Jesus Christ". 'Revelation' is from the Greek word 'apocalypse' (ἀποκάλυψις) meaning "an uncovering" or "an unveiling."
John wrote the Book of Revelation in a style much different from John’s Gospel and his three epistles. Oft times, God chose to communicate with His prophets using symbols and imagery as found in the visions of Enoch, Daniel, Joel, Zechariah, Isaiah and Ezekiel. Over the centuries, man has interpreted these symbols in a wide variety of ways to fit their eschatological view. This is one of the major problems for this style of revelation, the ease to which it can be interpreted in so many ways. The term "apocalyptic literature" has been applied to Revelation and those sections of the Bible where God used symbols and imagery to give information to His people.
There are several commonalities in apocalyptic literature.
- They were given in times of trouble, persecution or exile such as the cruel reign of Rome in John's time or the Babylonian exile of Daniel.
- They comfort God's people, that even though they are suffering and may have given up hope, that a day will come when the enemies of God will be judged and defeated and they will be freed and live in peace and prosperity.
- That the forces of evil that seem to be winning at the time of the vision, will ultimately lose to the forces of good, lead by their God.
- That a Messiah will come and save them from their tormentors.
- Very often, an angel is there to conduct the prophet through the vision and helps him when he becomes confused.
- The prophet sees Heaven and the throne of God.
- The history of God's people is shown, many times as a warning to avoid distancing themselves from God and His protection.
- Instruction in the form of scenes from the past or future are used to explain or expound what is being shown.
I do not doubt that the debate as to Revelation's exegesis will continue until Christ's return. All arguments will be settled as we witness the fulfillment of each prophesy.
Who: Short Bio of John the beloved
John the Revelator Shown the Heavenly City, by Innes Fripp.
In several places the author identifies himself as “John” (1:1,1:4,1:9; 22:8). Justin Martyr, one of the earliest apologists of the Church identifies ‘John’ as the Apostle whom Jesus called the beloved.6 Irenaeus (Against Heresies 4.20.11), Tertullian (Against Marcion 3.14.3), Clement of Alexandria (Paedagogus 2.108) and Origen ( De principiis 1.2.10) also taught that John wrote Revelaton. However soon after the early church fathers left the stage of history, beginning in the third century, theories cropped up that it was not John the Beloved but another John, John the Presbyter, whose name appears in other ancient texts. One of the reasons used to claim that it was a different author is that the writing style was so dissimilar to John’s gospel or his epistles. Well, yes, the style is different since God gave John his vision using symbolisms and images just as He did with several Old Testament prophets as recorded in their apocalyptic books. However, John did use similar verbiage and syntax in Revelation as in his other writings and most scholars attribute the Book of Revelation to John the Beloved.7 The overwhelming evidence points to John the Beloved as the author, supporting the traditional view of authorship.
Who was John the Beloved?
What we know about John from The New Testament:
- He was a fisherman of comfortable circumstances on the Sea of Galilee with his father, Zebedee, and his brother James (Mark 1:19-20).
- Jesus called John and his brother to be His disciples at the beginning of Christ's ministry (Matthew 4:21–22; Luke 5:1–11).
- Jesus chose from among those disciples, twelve apostles, John and his brother James being among them (Matthew 10:1-4).
- John was part of the leadership of the apostles, along with Peter and his brother James who, apart from the other apostles, witnessed the raising of Jairus' daughter (Mark 5:35-43), the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-9), and His suffering in Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-38).
- Jesus nicknamed John and his brother, "the sons of thunder" (Mark 3:17).
- John was called, "beloved", by the Savior. (John 13:21-30, John 19:26-27, John 21:7 and John 21:20)
- Jesus sent Peter and John to find the site where His last Passover would take place (Luke 22:8).
- John followed Jesus after he was arrested and went into the palace of the high priest with others (John 18:15).
- John was the only apostle mentioned to visit Jesus on the cross. While there Jesus asked John to take care of Mary, his mother, as he would his own mother (John 19:26-27).
- John and Peter were the first to be told by Mary Magdalene that Jesus had risen (John 20:2).
- The ressurrected Lord appeared to Peter, James, John, and several others while they were fishing on the sea of Tiberias (John 21:2-4).
- After the Day of Pentecost, John and Peter went to the Temple to preach at Solomon's Porch and healed a lame man (Acts 3:1-11). Afterward they were arrested. They boldly testified of Christ before the council and were whipped (Acts 4).
- The apostles assigned Peter and John to go to Samaria after they discovered that Samarians were being converted (Acts 8:14-17).
- Peter, James, and John met Paul and Barnabas in Galatia and commissioned them to preach to the gentiles (Galatians 2:9).
- John was banished to Patmos (Revelation 1:9).8
The historical record fills in the missing pieces as to where John served his apostolic commission to spread the gospel and organize the Church. (Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:14-18) Both Polycarp9 (69-156 AD) and Tertullian10 (155 –240 AD) place John in Asia Minor, now present-day Turkey. One of the earliest historians of the Church, Eusebus (AD 260– 339), wrote that John served the Christians in Ephesus and its neighboring cities:
"For after the tyrant (Domitian) was dead, coming from the isle of Patmos to Ephesus, he (John) went also, when called, to the neighboring regions of the Gentiles: in some to appoint bishops, in some to institute entire churches, in others to appoint to the ministry some of those that were pointed out by the Holy Ghost."11
Later historians and traditions say that John died in Ephesus and was buried there. Or did he? There is no mention in the New Testament of John's death, however there are a couple of scriptures which allude to a final status other than death.
Luke gives an account of Christ foretelling of his own death and resurrection (Luke 9:22-27 KJV). He tells the apostles that if they are to follow him, they must forget themselves and carry His cross (vs 23). That those who “will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it” (vs 24). Christ was hinting that they too would suffer persecution and death, just as he had predicted for himself. Jesus tells them that if any of them would be ashamed of him or his words, then Jesus would be ashamed of them when He came in His glory (vs 26). Jesus warned these men to be brave, for they too will be required to give their lives for their witness that the Messiah had indeed come, that He had fulfilled the prophets and the Law, that He came to save all mankind and conquered death with the resurrection. In the very next verse, Jesus makes a surprise announcement. He tells them that “there be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the kingdom of God” (vs 27). Apparently one or more of the apostles would not be required to suffer death but would live until He returned with power in the second coming (Mark 9:1, Matthew 16:27-28) to establish the Kingdom of God (Daniel 7:18, 22, 27; Revelation 11:15) .
It fascinates me that none of the Gospel authors record the apostles' reaction to this declaration. That no one asked who would live beyond everyone else to see Jesus return in His glory. I would have been astonished had I been told that someone would not taste of death and be translated. After all, this had not occurred since the prophets Enoch (Genesis 5:24; Hebrew 11:5) and Elijah (2 Kings 2:11) were translated and taken up to heaven. (Some Jewish intertestamental traditions say that Moses may have been translated also.12 This is one way to explain how Moses, along with the translated Elijah can appear at the Transfiguration of Jesus as men. (Luke 9:28–36) Of course, this is a minority view.)
So, who was the apostle who was to tarry until Christ’s return? Apparently, none of the apostles dared ask Jesus who would tarry. It was left unasked until Peter finally broached the subject with the Savior prior to His final visit with His apostles. After the resurrection, Peter, James, John, Thomas, Nathanael and two other disciples were fishing on the sea of Galilee. The Lord visited them as they worked. This is when Christ gave Peter the great admonition to feed His sheep. Just before Jesus departed at the end of the visit, curiosity overwhelmed Peter and he finally asked the question that must have been bothering him for so long:
“Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved (John) following…Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do? Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me. Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? This is the disciple (John) which testified of these things and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true” (John 21:20-24 KJV).
The Savior did not say that John would avoid death. No one can. But he did say that John would be allowed to live an extended lifetime until the Lord returned in glory. This did not mean that he would be free from persecution and attempts on his life. Tertullian, a second century Christian author, records that Emperor Domitian of Rome sentenced John to die by being boiled alive in oil at a spectacle in the Colosseum. However, the boiling oil had no effect on him and the Emperor had him banished to Patmos in frustration. Tertullian said that thousands of those who witnessed the miracle converted to Christianity on the spot.13 It is not known how many other attempts were made on his life. We do know that all of the other apostles died for their testimony of the Savior and his resurrection.
Paul, in his letter to the Hebrews, who must have heard the stories of John not tasting of death from the other apostles or even from John himself, describes the translation of Enoch in this way:
By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that 'earnestly seek him' (Hebrews 11:5-6).
Thus, John did not die, but was translated as Enoch and Elijah before him, to work among mortals until Christ’s return.
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When: AD 95
Emperor Domitian
As in all the other aspects of the Book of Revelation, the year it was written is also fiercely debated. All agree that it was written during intense Roman persecution. The debate is over whose reign that it occurred. Preterists believe that John wrote Revelation during the reign of Nero somewhere around AD 54-68. This allows the interpretation that Revelation was fulfilled in the first century. Most scholars believe that John wrote it during Domitian's reign (AD 81-96), after the destruction of Jerusalem. Some have suggested a middle date of AD 69-79 during the reign of Vespasian.
I prefer the latter date of AD 95:
Internal and Historical Evidence:
- There is a marked difference in the condition of the Asian churches of Ephesus and Colosse as recorded in Paul's epistles to the Ephesians and Colossians as well as his letters to Timothy written in the 60s as compared to the grave spiritual decline and apostacy that John writes about in Revelation. (2:2,4) It is difficult to believe that this great spiritual decline only took a few years to occur. Thus, placing the writing of Revelation later in the 90s.
- John describes the church at Laodicea as being affluent and prosperous (3:17). However, in 60 AD the entire city was destroyed by an earthquake14 and the populace was involved in heavy reconstruction through Nero's reign15. It is hard to imagine an early iron age city recovering so quickly. It sounds more reasonable that it would take the population to rebuild and recover its past wealth over several decades rather than just a few short years.
- Persecution under Domitian was wide spread, even into Asia where John taught and served the church.16 On the other hand, Nero's persecution was mostly local, around the capital of Rome.
- John "did not come to Asia from Palestine before the late 60, at the time of the Jewish revolt of A.D. 66-70. This was after Paul's final visit to Asia in A.D. 65. John was part of a migration of Palestinian Christians from Palestine to the province of Asia before the outbreak of the rebellion. A Neronic dating would hardly allow time for him to have settled in Asia, to have replaced Paul as the respected leader of the Asian churches, and then to have been exiled to Patmos before Nero's death in A.D. 68."17
- The early Church father Irenaeus (AD 130 to AD 202), a student of Polycarp who studied under the apostle John, records that, "For (the vision) was seen no very long time since, but almost in our day, towards the end of Domitian's reign."18 John would naturally have discussed his revelations with his disciple Polycarp who in turn passed it down to his students, Irenaeus being among them.
Where: The Isle of Patmos
The Isle of Patmos
John received his revelation while on Patmos, a small Greek island in the Aegean Sea, just off the coast of present-day Turkey. Patmos is a rocky island, about 7.5 miles (12 km) long from north to south and about 6 miles (10 km) at its widest from east to west. Its natural protective harbor made Patmos a perfect location for a small port to protect the sea lanes between the important trade cities of Ephesus and Rome. The Greeks had placed a small garrison there to ward off pirates and the Romans added a large administrative center (acropolis) surrounded with thick protective walls, outlying villages, a hippodrome (for racing horses and other events), and at least three temples. The remains of the upper acropolis wall and towers can still be seen today. Besides being an important naval garrison, those that lived on Patmos engaged in fishing and agriculture for their livelihood.19
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Why: The Conditions Prior to the vision.
John received his revelation during a period of great despair, misery and apostasy for the church. Even John, the last living apostle, must have felt gloom for his flock. The Emperor Domitian had passed laws that all must worship him as a god. Anyone refusing would be punished. John must have done something to anger the Roman authorities to be sentenced to die by being boiled alive. I can imagine it was his refusal to worship Roman deities, which included the Emperor, that got his death sentence.
The Christians in many cities were suffering economically in addition to the religious persecution. In order to work or learn a trade a Roman citizen needed the friendship and permission from the trade guilds which were connected to pagan temples20. Failure to worship at a temple and refusing to participate in religious rites or worship the gods of the Greeks cost Christians great hardship. Not only in the form of persecution, punishment and imprisonment, but also economic sanctions from the pagans. In addition, the followers of Christ were threatened with death or imprisonment if they didn’t bow down and worship the Emperor. Besides this cruel persecution, there was apostasy rising in the form of false doctrine and leaders, wolves in sheep's clothing, leading many Christians astray during this period21.
John must have prayed mightily to seek help from the Lord. He had been banished to a small island and was not able to give support and comfort to his beloved flock in Asia where he had been serving for several decades. The saints were suffering from torture, prison and death in the coliseum. Evil men were sewing lies and false doctrine in the guise of authorities among his friends he had served for so long. Even though he escaped execution, he was now exiled on an island, separated from his fellow Christians and could not comfort them or counter the false doctrine that was beginning to spread in the church.
These are the circumstances we find John and the church when the Lord gives John the vision. A vision of comfort and hope. That the forces of Satan and evil will only win in the short term. That the saints would be required to suffer a little more and may even be required to die a martyr's death. But in the long term of the eternities, God will prevail, the wicked will be destroyed and the saints will enter into God's rest in glory. The revelation gave hope to the hopeless and comfort to the distressed.
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Notes:
1. The Life and Teachings of Jesus and His Apostles, (1979), The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, Utah, 443–46.
2. The Concise Dictionary of Christian Theology, Millard J. Erickson, Crossway, 2001, p. 95.
3. What is Historicism? What is Postmillennial Historicism? Historicism.com
4. Walter A. Elwell, Editor, Evangelical Dictionary Of Theology, Baker, p. 714.
5. The Basis of the Premillennial Faith, Ryrie, Charles C., Loizeaux Brothers Inc., 1953, 17-35. See also Clouse, Robert G., The Meaning of the Millennium, Intervarsity Press, 1977, 7; and Erickson, Millard J., Contemporary Options in Eschatology, Baker Publishing Group, 1987, 94.)
7. Grant R. Osborne, Revelation, Baker Publishing Group, 2002, pages 5-6
8. "Early tradition says that John was banished to Patmos by the Roman authorities. This tradition is credible because banishment was a common punishment used during the Imperial period for a number of offenses. Among such offenses were the practices of magic and astrology. Prophecy was viewed by the Romans as belonging to the same category, whether Pagan, Jewish, or Christian. Prophecy with political implications, like that expressed by John in the book of Revelation, would have been perceived as a threat to Roman political power and order. Three of the islands in the Sporades were places where political offenders were banished." (Pliny Natural History 4.69-70; Tacitus Annals 4.30) From: Adela Collins. (1985). 'Patmos' Paul J. Achtemeier [Ed.]. (1985) Harper's Bible Dictionary. San Francisco, CA: Harper & Row. p. 755.
9. Polycarp, Fragments from Victor of Capua (2006), Chapter 3.
10. Tertullian. The Prescription Against Heretics. Chapter 32.
11. Eusebius. Church History, Book III, Chapter 23. See also Bk 3 Ch. 18; Bk 3, Ch 39; Bk 4, Ch 18; Bk 5, Ch 8; and Bk 5, Ch 18.
12. Josephus, Titus Flavius, The Antiquities Of The Jews, 8.48, 326.
13. Tertullian, The Prescription against Heretics, chapter 36.
14. Tacitus, Publius Cornelius, Annals. xiv. 27.
15. Hemer, Colin J., The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia in Their Local Setting, WM. B. Eerdman's Publishing Co., 2000, 192-94.
16. Swete, H. B., Apocalypse of St. John, Macmillan, 1911, 85-91.
17.Thomas,Robert L., Revelation 1-7, An Exegetical Commentary, Moody Press, 1992, pp, 22.
18. Irenaeus, Against Heresies, Book V, Chapter 30.
19. Associates for Biblical Research: Exiled To Patmos, by Gordon Franz.
20. Caird, G. B., A Commentary on the Revelation of St. John the Devine, Harper and Row, 1962, 35.
21. Acts 20:29, 1 Cor. 11:17-19, Gal. 1:6-7, 1 Tim. 1:3-7, 2 Tim. 1:15, 2 Tim. 2:18, 2 Tim. 4:1-5, 2 Pet. 2:1-3, 2 Pet. 3:17, 1 Jn. 2:18-19, Jude 1:4, Rev. 2:2.
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