Revelation

Revelation Authorship

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The writer is clearly identified as John the Apostle, the son of Zebedee (Matt. 10:2), a prophetic witness and disciple of Jesus, and the writer of the Gospel of John (John 1:1; Rev. 1:1, 3-4, 9; 22:6-10, 18-19). Obviously, he was a Jew, shown by his use of the Old Testament and Targums (the Aramaic Hebrew Scriptures) and his knowledge of the Temple. He knew the Scriptures well. The author was also a significant church leader who spoke with great authority and was well known to the seven churches of Asia Minor, making a pseudo author or a second or third century writing impossible.

Johannine authorship was accepted by the churches in Asia Minor without question as he was well known and it would have been impossible to forge or be misrepresented. The Early Church also identifies John as the author, including Justin Martyr, Ireneaus, Clement of Alexandria, Hippolytus, and Origen.

A few of the later Early Church Fathers, including African bishop Dionysius, concluded that the style of the Gospel of John was scientifically different from Revelation and thus one of them may not have been written by him. But, in later letters, Dionysius also said that it was plausible that John did write both. Liberal scholarship that sometimes seeks to minimize and neuter God’s Word will contend for various other writers and very late writings, using their preconceived personal agendas instead of honest scholarship.

There are some problems in the Gospel of John and Revelation mainly due to some word usages and stylistic differences. However, what is in common as word usage is greater than what is in variance, contending for a singular author for both as well as his three epistles. When one closely examines Revelation, it can easily be seen that the genre is quite different being apocalyptic rather than narrative in nature. Therefore, obviously, there will be different words and styles imposed because the literature style requires it. John also borrows images and vocabulary from the book of Ezekiel as well as Daniel and Zechariah, contributing to the variances. Furthermore, any good writer can write in various genres as many do today, not to mention a possible time lapse between the Gospel (60-90AD) and Revelation (95AD).

But ultimately, the human hands that penned the words or the secretary who dictated them is irrelevant as to the True Author – the Inspiration of the Holy Spirit and Jesus Himself (John 1:1, 10-11; 22:16-20).

Revelation Theme and Purpose

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Revelation is written to the Seven Churches of Asia Minor, which is now modern Turkey (Rev. 1:4, 11). The principle purpose for the writing is the encouragement and chastisement for how they were running their churches (Rev. 2:1-3:22). John was fully convinced that Christ would triumph over the forces of Satan and his work in the world. He then exhorted them to be faithful and discerning between what is false and what is truth, and also warned them not to worship the Emperor or to comply with evil, apathy, or compromise. He restated the importance of discipleship and Christian formation so they (we) can be authentic Christians of excellence and distinction, bringing no disrepute to Christ or His Church.

Revelation is about the victory Christ brings, giving hope for those who are in Him and fear for those who do not know Him (Rev. 2:13; 19:20-21; 20:10-15).

As Christians, we can embrace Revelation rather than fearing it or the end times! God is the one who is in charge and in control. He has the big picture of the consummation of all humanity and history. He rules all of time and space, all events, and all actions; there is nothing in all of creation outside of His providence! Even in the darkest hours, God is in control. He will win and we who are in Him will be triumphant. Then, all of humanity will stand before the Throne, and all will be accountable; judgment for all who ever lived, rewards, condemnation, Heaven, and Hell await, and those who have oppressed His Church and children will be severely judged (Rev.1:12-16; 4:1-5:14)!

Revelation is just as much about how we are to live as it is about what is coming.

Our purpose is to understand that no matter what we have been through or will go through, God is in control and has our best interests in hand. Therefore, we can trust Him as we see His mighty hand throughout history and also in the future. We learn here on earth how we are to endure suffering and problems, not escape them, for there is no escape in a sin-infused world. Rather, it is how we discover and grow more from God’s work in us regardless of our situation that matters.

John knows what the church is going through, for he has personally experienced it. He has also experienced Christ firsthand and now has been receiving updated files from Christ in the form of seven visions. John’s visions bring hope as do all things in life when we are in Him. Our lives have significance and purpose; we are not alone for He is there with us. God is in command of all outcomes, the consummation, the fulfillment, the fruition, and the ultimate goal of His plan and purpose. Our call is to keep our churches in line with His precepts and in obedience (Rev. 4:1-5:14; 21:22-23; 22:5).

Revelation is also about the conflict between good and evil. It is both history and prophecy. It speaks to the first century churches of Asia Minor and it speaks to us today. For John’s readers, this book was also about what was going on in their day and in their churches. Knowing what is coming is important for our hope, but not vital to how we are to grow in Him or our faithfulness in staying firm to His truth.

Thus, John meets them head-on with the truth and with hope. He reassures them that Christ has not gone away, but He knows of their circumstances and has His plan for them. John gives them glimpses of the wonders of Heaven (Rev. 4-16). John is seeking to restore their confidence in Christ, and to persuade them to be encouraged and hold fast to their faith. He does not want them to fall prey to pagan practices and temptations or to false teachings, but, rather to focus firmly upon Christ so He is Lord over all fears and situations.

Christ has already secured the victory for life now and for eternity by His shed blood. Satan has been defeated and those who are evil and corrupt have been judged and sentenced (Rev. 5:9-10; 12:11; 19:11-20:10). We are victorious. We are made for eternity to be in Him, and our real hope and home is still to come (Rev. 7:15-17; 21:3-4).

The bulk of Revelation is dedicated to John’s seven visions in which Christ extols and rebukes the Church to get us to get our act together. John’s visions give us a depiction of things to come—a future history of the world through the Second Coming and into eternity. John also gives significant details in imageries. John not only gives us a glimpse of things to come, he also tells us how Satan operates and how to be on guard.

Revelation depicts how God is still in control even when Satan, the ultimate false prophet, the great dragon, and Beast is unleashed in his full power, causing insurmountable and suffering. Satan is seeking to lead the world astray now just as he will in his final act by seeking to not only blaspheme Christ, but trying to counterfeit Christ and provide us with a variety of misrepresentations. He seeks to attack God’s power and purpose and persecute those who are His (2 Cor. 11:14-15; Rev. 13; 17:1-9:10).Christ is the Divine Warrior who fights for us (Ex. 15:3; Isa. 59:16-18; 63:1-6; Eph. 1:13; Hab. 3:3-15; Zech. 9:13-15; 14:1-5; Dan. 7:1-8), and we can take hope because God is the One who is still seated on His throne and wins (Psalm 2:7; John 5:21-23; Col. 1:15; Heb. 1:3; Rev. 13: 1-10; 16:13; 17:14; 19:1-21).

At the same time, God has his remnant who remain faithful and true to Him, because fulfillment is in Christ, not in the false words and deeds of the false prophet (Rev. 12:11). The theme for the Christians in this age is to learn and to trust, to obey and remain faithful even against all odds, so we can remain spiritually pure and continue to grow. Satan seeks us to worship him; when he can’t, he seeks to disrupt us from who we are in Christ. Because Satan does not want us to be a good witness of Christ, he tries to sway us to only see our struggles, be seduced by the ways of the world, to conspire, fight, and gossip amongst ourselves, and to misunderstand or misuse our faith (Rev. 12:11; 14:4; 19:8; 21:9, 22-27).

Revelation is not a puzzle for which we must endeavor to find a code or secret meaning, nor is it a source book for our inclinations, theories, or conjectures.

Revelation is given so we can see God at work, His Wonder of Wonders, so we can pursue our faith with more diligence in trust and obedience, and to be prepared when He does return!

Revelation Background and Setting

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The Romans believed that there was a thin line between humanity and divinity, and their gods were often depicted as petty, conniving, dysfunctional principalities just as humans are. Thus, they demanded that people worship their Emperors.

Now, here comes a new “religion” in town that is rebelling against and disrupting the status quo. These followers challenged the loyalty and conformity of Rome and what it meant to be a Roman by claiming Christ as Lord and citing and pronouncing judgment of God for the Roman‘s oppressive ways. Revelation itself is an oracle of judgment on the oppressor and cryptic language of Babylon, Edom, and Kittim, referring to Rome. Consequently, the Romans considered this new Christian sect as subversive and the persecutions began under Nero who was paranoid about those who he considered subversive for fear of assassination. Then, the persecutions escalated with the other Emperors and came to fruition with Domitian, who was totally brutal. Faith, for the Romans, was seen in the state; Christians saw it in Christ. These two contradictory mindsets were not compatible in the market place of ideas. Faith is not in an institution or about false gods and Emperor worship. Rather, it is in the One True God who has a plan and purpose for us all.

Just as there was a new “religion,” now there came a new Emperor who was even more heinous than Nero, seeking to get Christians to worship him. The Romans were trying to force anyone who was devout and character-driven to worship their gods.

This started for the Jews under the Emperor Caesar. For the Christians, right off the bat during the beginning of the Church, there were several-  first Caligula, then Claudius, Nero (54-68 AD), Tiberius (14-37), Galba, Vitellius, Otho, Vespasianus, and Julius Sabinus (these Emperors reined less than a year and were mostly assassinated via being lynched, executed, poisoned, murdered by soldiers, executed and the such. I guess Nero’s paranoia was based on some fact. Ironically, Nero committed suicide!), Titus (79-81 AD) and then Domitian. James and Peter dealt with Nero, Paul dealt with Titus, and then there was Domitian (81-96 AD) who was the worst of all. The persecutions continued provincially under Nerva (96- 98) and Trajan (98-117). These dates are significant. Since Nero predates or is current to Revelation even for an early writing, this would make the events depicted as being current as well as pointing to future troubles the readers would see and experience themselves. We know history often repeats itself, so we can also see them in various forms and in what is still to come.

Some of the Christians were compromising, even forsaking their faith, falling prey to their situations, and not trusting in our Lord. The temptation of making life easier by following the ways of the world were as persuasive then as in our day. The dedication and discipline their faith required was negated as temptations continue to lure them, just as they do in our day. The other problem is that false teachings inter-tangled in the churches too.

This is the same thing with which James and Peter dealt. Heretical teachings only glorify Satan and prove his ways of seeking to corrupt and distract people away from God (Rev. 2:2-4, 14-24; 3:1-17). Thus, the churches were in chaos; some were thriving, others were in apostasy, while others were being indifferent.

Revelation was also meant to teach them (and us) to remain in Christ, be faithful, and have security and contentment in Him.

Hence, what John has to say meant something significant and was understood. It is understandable and hopeful for us, too (Rev. 1:3; 22:10)!

Introduction to the Book of Revelation, PI

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Have you ever wondered what the book of Revelation is all about?

Minus the nonsense and feeble theories we theologians (not to mention the sensationalists) seem to come up with, what is its purpose for you now concerning how you live and lead your life? Revelation is a much debated and often misunderstood book. It seems foreboding and unattainable to some, while being over-simplified and twisted by others. But, it does have honest, truthful, and literal meanings for us now. And, simply put, we can know about Revelation, as it is about God’s power and purpose and how His plan will come about in our lives now and in a time to come.

Revelation is and has been the most controversial and difficult to understand book of the Bible. It has met its readers and redactors with suspensions, fears, and apprehension, as well as with excitement that fascinates and at the same time both confounds and awes us.

Why is this so? Revelation is unique; it is not Gospel, nor is it instruction and doctrine, although it contains all of these. It is poetic with seemly vague and elusive imagery that has sustained suffering Christians in all generations with consolation, encouragement, and hope as well as warnings of how things are and of things that are to come. Revelation and its truth are as precious and timeless as the rest of Scripture, if not even more so (Rev.1:9; 22:16).

This is a very difficult book to interpret and many gifted scholars over the centuries have taken very different views of it. This has cased divisions and conflicts that were needless and without purpose that, ironically, only served to give glory to the devil‘s ways while distracting us from its main purpose. To escalate this, many current sensationalists like to reinterpret Revelation to fit the latest news headlines and their own whims. Thus, I do not take my venture into Revelation lightly. In fact, having studied this book intensely for over 25 years in addition to all my degrees, readings, research, and experience has not prepared me for this quest. To think otherwise would be significantly arrogant. I approach this study as a fellow learner and as a humble student as I would with any of God’s beloved books.

My intention here is to stimulate your thinking and provide you with an honest and open look in to the book of Revelation from an Exegetical and Inductive perspective. I seek to honor the science and art of careful biblical interpretation and analysis. We will discover that John, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, has given us something that is very important and clear for us to understand today, not just in the future.

That means I will seek to come to the text without preconceived, theological agendas or personal, eschatological viewpoints.

Rather, I will be carefully researching word meanings and historical examination as well as context and comparing with other passages in Daniel, Ezekiel, and the teaching of our Lord from the Gospels. Besides, you may discover that Revelation has a deeper purpose for us today on how to watch, build, manage, and do our churches better! Thus, I will not sate the usual viewpoints and trends of the day, try to argue my view, or twist Scripture to fit my theological education or denominational agendas. Rather, my aim is to challenge the current thinking by seeking facts and honestly examining what God’s inerrant Word says in context and in truth.

Thus, my other intention is to challenge myself and perhaps your thinking, too, concerning end time events and theories and to seek sound reason and Scripture, not myths, traditions, or popular theorems.

However, I want to state up front that whatever theory to which you or I subscribe is not as important as our love for the Lord and our desire for authentic spiritual growth. These are the things that are truly and eternally important! Arguing over conjecture or spurious, elusive doctrine does not bring glory to Christ; it only proves Satan!

Warning: a lot of Christian writers love to embellish on this subject and give their own version of what will happen. But, the scores of books that have been written in the last hundred years have not panned out in their theories. It is “their” theories, not ones based on fact or careful study of Scripture. The Bible clearly tells us we do not have access to that information, for no one will know the time… (Mark 13:14-37).