Revelation For All Time

The book of Revelation has been a challenge to read and understand for many centuries. Times change, and assumptions about its meaning change with the times. A generation familiar with modern warfare can be excused for thinking that the “locusts” with human faces and “horses and riders” with smoke and fire from their mouths and stings in their tails might refer to attack helicopters and tanks.

Yet, this book started as a letter addressed to seven specific churches in a relatively small geographical area in what is now southern Turkey. There are even specific messages addressed to each individual church, addressing specific problems. The very first word of the letter in its original language means “a revealing.” Whatever the message was, it seems odd to call it a revealing if the bulk of it is to be a mystery.

Dr. Paul Spilsbury is the author of The Throne, the Lamb & the Dragon: A Reader’s Guide to the Book of Revelation. He explains that it is important to understand the genre or type of writing of the text as well as the cultural and historical background of the writer and his audience.

Because it is a letter, it must have made sense to the members of the seven churches to whom it was originally sent. This means that interpretations that would not have made sense to that generation are extremely unlikely to be true. The plagues are unlikely to be caused by modern high-tech weapons, for instance. As another example, the seven heads of the beast are unlikely to be later resurrections of an empire that could only be understood by later generations that lived after them. There were readily-available understandings of those sorts of images in that generation, which will be explored later in this series.

It was also an “apocalypse.” This was a higly stylized form of writing that used images to suggest truths more indirectly than prose. The intent is to engage the mind emotionally at least as much as rationally. It is closer to poetry than narrative in how it conveys information, because the intent is to stir to action rather than quiet contemplation.

Most of the images are intended to remind the reader (or hearer) of prophetic passages of Old Testament scripture that contained direct or implied warning messages aimed at people who were in danger of leaving God or of dishonoring Him by denying Him under pressure. Others are there to remind the readers of specific Old Testament stories or events to let the readers draw parallels in their own lives. For instance, the “beast” reminds the reader of similar passages in Daniel, referring to evil Gentile empires that would rule the world until the arrival of the Messiah in glory to deliver God’s people. In their day the “beast” would have been immediately understood as the mighty Roman Empire.

Numbers are used mostly for their symbolic value. 7 is the number of completion or perfection, 12 is the number of tribes of Israel or the people of God. A woman with a crown of 12 stars would be Israel or the followers of Jesus. A beast with seven heads would be perfectly beastly (more on the 7-headed monster in a later installment). The number 10 represents testimony, law, responsibility or completeness of order. For instance, tithes, ten commandments, 10 plagues on Egypt, Day 10 of the first and seventh months.

A woman can have either a positive or negative meaning, such as the book of Proverbs’ “lady wisdom” (Prov. 8:1-9:12) or “dame folly” (Prov. 9:13-18). For instance, in 17:18, the evil “harlot” is identified as a “great city which reigns over the kings of the earth.” This “woman” is Rome. It is sitting astride an empire (beast) made up of most of the known kingdoms of the world. On the other hand, the woman with a crown of twelve stars clearly represents Israel, the people of God.

The key to it all is that it made sense to the original recipients of the letter. It can also make the same kind of sense to anyone with an eye to see and an ear to hear today. Armed with Dr. Spilsbury’s insights, the next post will begin exploring the book itself.

Revelation Begins with a short introductory paragraph that gives the title of the book, “The Revelation of Jesus Christ.” This is followed by a statement of intent: showing God’s servants “things that must shortly take place.” This is followed by an attestation regarding the author and vision contained in the book. Finally, there is a blessing pronounced on those who “hear” the prophecy and “keep” what was written.

Verses 4-8 begin the letter proper, and identify its intended recipients: seven churches in the Roman province of Asia (now the south part of Turkey in Asia Minor). This section is theologically charged with statements about who God the Father and Jesus Christ are, what they have done and what they will do in the world. Jesus is identified as “firstborn from the dead,” “ruler over the kings of the earth,” the one who “washed us from our sins in his own blood,” and the one who “has made us kings and priests.” Finally he is the one who “is coming with clouds” in a way that will be obvious to all, to the joy of his followers and the terror of his foes.

Jesus is quoted as saying that he is the “Alpha and Omega,” the “beginning and the end,” and the one “who was and is and is to come.” In others words, Jesus Christ is indeed God in the flesh and is just as worthy to be worshiped as “the One on the throne.” Verses 10-20 elaborate on that basic description and Jesus’ own introduction to the visions. Jesus then goes on to speak directly to the seven churches, both collectively and individually over chapters 2 and 3. This suggests that the messages, from His own voice, are of the utmost importance.

The ninth verse of the first chapter, however, are what highlight the major pastoral theme of the book. John calls himself a “brother and companion” in three things: 1) in the tribulation , 2) in the kingdom and 3) in the patience (patient endurance) of Jesus Christ. All of these things are to be seen as “of Jesus Christ.” In other words, they are all companions in Jesus’ own tribulation, His own kingdom and His own patience. These three themes will be the major focus of the remainder of the book. So keep an eye out for these three themes: Tribulation, Kingdom, and Patient Endurance.

The message?

Steel yourself to continue worshiping God and Christ, because intense persecution by the state is coming against believers.