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Revelations Writer: John Place Written: Patmos Writing Completed: c. 96 C.E. Are the symbolisms of Revelation intended to terrify? Far from it! The fulfillment of the prophecy may bring terror to the wicked, but God's faithful servants will agree with the inspired introduction and the angel's comment at the end: "Happy is he who reads aloud and those who hear the words of this prophecy." " Happy is anyone observing the words of the prophecy of this scroll." (Rev. 1:3; 22: 7) Though written before the four other inspired books by John, Revelation is correctly placed last in the collection of 66 inspired books making up our Bible, for it is the Revelation that takes its readers far into the future, by providing an all-embracing vision of what God purposes for mankind, and that brings the grand theme of the Bible, the sanctification of Jehovah's name and the vindication of His sovereignty by means of the Kingdom under Christ, the Promised Seed, to a glorious climax. According to the title verse, this is "a revelation by Jesus Christ, which God gave Him.....And He sent forth His angel and presented it in signs through him to His slave John." So John was merely the writer, not the originator, of the material. Therefore John is not the revelator, nor is the book a revelation of John. (Rev. 1:1) This unveiling to God's slave of His wonderful purposes for the future makes its title most appropriate, for the book's Greek name A.po.ka'ly.psis (Apocalypse) means "Uncovering" or "Unveiling". Who was this John referred to as the writer of Revelation in its first chapter? We are told that he was a slave of Jesus Christ, as well as a brother and sharer in tribulation, and that he was exiled on the island of Patmos. Obviously he was well-known to his first readers, to whom no further identification was necessary. He must be the apostle John. This conclusion is supported by most ancient historians. Papias, who wrote in the first part of the second century C.E., is said to have held the book to be of apostolic origin. Says Justin Martyr, of the second century, in his "Dialogue With Trypho, a Jew" (LXXXI ): "There was a certain man with us, whose name was John, one of the apostles of Christ, who prophesied, by a revelation that was made to him." (The Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, pg. 240) Irenaeus speaks explicitly of the apostle John as the writer, as do Clements of Alexandria and Tertullian, of the late second and early third centuries. Origen, noteworthy Biblical scholar of the third century, said: "I speak of him who leaned back on Jesus' breast, John, who has left behind one Gospel,....and he wrote also the Apocalypse." (The Ecclesiastical History, Eusebius, VI, xxv, 9, 10) The fact that John's other writings put so much emphasis on love does not mean that he could not have written the very forceful and dynamic Revelation. He and his brother James were the ones so filled with indignation against the Samaritans of a certain city that they wanted to call down fire from Heaven. That is why they were given the surname "Boanerges," or "Sons of Thunder," (Mark 3:17) This divergence in style should cause no difficulty when we remember that in Revelation the subject matter is different. What John saw in these visions was unlike anything he had ever seen before. The outstanding harmony of the book with the rest of the prophetic Scriptures unquestionably proves it to be an authentic part of God's inspired Word. According to the earliest testimony, John wrote the revelation about 96 C.E., approximately 26 years after the destruction of Jerusalem. This would be toward the close of the reign of Emperor Domitian. In verification of this, Irenaeus in his "Against Heresies" (V, xxx) says of the Apocalypse: "For that was seen no very long time since, but almost in our day, towards the end of Domitian's reign".(The Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, pg. 559-60) Eusebius and Jerome both agree with this testimony. Domitian was the brother of Titus, who led the Roman armies to destroy Jerusalem. He became emperor at the death of Titus, 15 years before the book of Revelation was written. He demanded that he be worshiped as god and assumed the title Dominus et Deus noster (meaning "Our Lord and God") (The Lives of the Caesars (Domitian, XIII, 2) Emperor worship did not disturb those who worshiped false gods, but it could not be indulged in by the early Christians, who refused to compromise their faith on this point. Thus, toward the close of Domitian's rule (81-96 C.E.), severe persecution came upon the Christians. It is thought that John was exiled to Patmos by Domitian. When Domitian was assassinated in 96 C.E., he was succeeded by the more tolerant emperor Nerva, who evidently released John. It was during this imprisonment on Patmos that John received the visions he wrote down. We must appreciate that what John saw and was told to write to the congregations was not just a series of unrelated visions, haphazardly recorded. No, the entire book of Revelation, from beginning to end, gives us a coherent picture of things to come, going form one vision to another until the full disclosure of God's Kingdom purposes is reached at the end of the visions. We should therefore see the book of Revelation as a whole and as made up of related, harmonious parts, transporting us far into the future from John's time. After its introduction (Rev. 1:1-9), the book can be viewed as being divided into 16 visions: 1. 1:10-3:22 The Message to the Seven Congregations; 2. 4:1-5:14 The Vision of Jehovah's Holiness and Glory; 3. 6:1-17 The Lamb Opens Six Seals of the Scroll; 4. 7:1-17 The Four Angels Hold Back the Four Winds; 5. 8:1-9:21 The Seventh Seal is Opened; 6. 10:1-11:19 The Sacred Secret of God is to be Brought to a Finish; 7. 12:1-17 The Kingdom of the World Did Become the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; 8. 13:1-18 The Wild Beast from the Sea; 9. 14:1-20 The "Everlasting Good News" and Related Messages; 10. 15:1-16:21 The Angels with the Seven Last Plagues; 11. 17:1-18 God's Judgement Upon Babylon; 12. 18:1-19:10 The Marriage of the Lamb; 13. 19:11-21 The Lamb Makes War in Righteousness; 14. 20:1-10 The Angel Comes Down with the Key to the Abyss; 15. 20:11-21:8 Judgement Day; 16. 21:9-22:5 The Glory of the New Jerusalem. These visions are followed by a motivating conclusion, in which Jehovah, Jesus, the angel and John all speak, making their final contribution as the principals in the channel of communication. (Rev. 22:6-21) Such a thrilling climax to such a thrilling Book! A climax that we are, right now, in the throes of. Amazing that we are so blessed as to see these things come to pass. Something that so many before us have kept faith in and longed for. Eventhough some never heard these prophecies and many could not understand them, yet they longed for their fulfillment. And here we are, with the possibility of 'coming out of'(surviving) God's Great Day to see the beginning of The New World under Kingdom rule. So wonderful a future awaits. Hallelujah! (Praise Jehovah All You People) Love Katidid. |
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