Intro and Revelation 1:1-3
Revelation is considered one of the most controversial and difficult books of the Bible, with many diverse interpretations of the meanings of the various names and events in the account. Martin Luther at first considered Revelation to be "neither apostolic nor prophetic" and stated that "Christ is neither taught nor known in it". However, he later changed his mind, believing the book to be divinely inspired. John Calvin believed the book to be canonical, yet it was the only New Testament book on which he did not write a commentary.
In the 4th century, St. John Chrysostom and other bishops argued against including this book in the New Testament canon, chiefly because of the difficulties of interpreting it and the danger for abuse.
The Bible is a collection of books of history, poetry and prophecy. We don't know who first collected the books of the Old Testament, which were written by many authors over thousands of years, and created the Old Testament. We don't know who first collected all the books of the Apostles and their companions, and created the collection of books we call the New Testament. We don't know who arranged the books of the New Testament in the order we now have them, but it was done very early on in the history of the Church.
The book of Revelation was the obvious choice to complete the New Testament. It is the perfect match for Genesis, the first book of the Bible.
- In Genesis God created the heavens and the earth.
In Revelation God creates the new heavens and the new earth.- In Genesis Paradise is lost to mankind.
In Revelation Paradise is regained.- In Genesis sin and misery enter the world.
In Revelation sin and misery are excluded.- In Genesis Mankind loses fellowship with God.
In Revelation God dwells with man.- In Genesis God bars the way to the tree of life.
In Revelation God invites His people to partake of the tree of life.
The New Testament Scriptures would have been incomplete if the Book of Revelation had not been written. The last book of the Bible is a necessary conclusion to God's revelation of himself and of His plan for the human family. It is in the Book of Revelation that many of the great themes of divine truth are brought to a climactic conclusion.
The purpose of the Book of Revelation is to unveil Jesus Christ, and to present Him as the victorious Lord-active, alive, and in full control over all that is happening on earth. He will ultimately defeat every enemy, and will bring peace and order to this troubled planet.
The word "Revelation" is the Latin translation of the Greek word "Apocalypse" which simply means "to unveil." The Revelation is an unveiling of Jesus Christ as He brings human history to a close here on earth. It is not a revelation of the four horsemen; it is not a revelation of the ten homed beast; it is not a revelation of the fall of Babylon; it is a revelation of Jesus Christ bringing human history to a close.
The Book of Revelation is the only book in the Bible that begins and ends with a distinct promise of blessing to those who read it and observe its instructions. Chapter 1:3 says "Blessed is he that reads, and they that...keep those things that are written in it. Chapter 22:7 says "Blessed is he that keeps the words of the prophecy of this book."
SCHOOLS OF INTERPRETATION
There are three main schools of interpretation of the Book of Revelation.
The Preterist -- Revelation relates only to the events of the day in which it was written. The symbols of the book nearly all refer to the things that happened in the days of the Roman Empire, just before and after 70 AD, when the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed. The word "preterist" means "focused on the past." Those who adopt the preterist view believe that John was shown things (in the future to him) that would SHORTLY COME TO PASS (Revelation 1:1; 1:3 and 22:6).
"The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place." (Rev. 1:1)
"Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near." (Rev. 1:3)
"The angel said to me, "These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place."" (Rev. 22:6)
Famous Preterists include R.C. Sproul, the authors of the New Geneva Study Bible, Puritan authors Jonathan Edwards and John Owen, as well as Arthur W. Pink, Ken Gentry, Gary DeMar and modern well-known English theologian N.T. Wright.
The Historicist -- Revelation corresponds to the events of history from Pentecost to the end time. The book is a symbolic forecast of the history of the church from its beginning until the second coming of Christ. The seven churches of chapters two and three refer to seven periods of church history. Historicists find symbols to represent Constantine, the rise of the papacy, the Reformation, the French Revolution, etc.
Examples of Interpreting Passages with an Historicist Approach
Revelation 6 & 7, record the Lord Jesus breaking seven seals that are on a scroll in His hand. As each seal is broken and the scroll is unwound, great events of judgment transpire on the earth. It was a common interpretation of the historical approach to view these chapters as predicting the sacking of the Roman Empire by invading barbarians. The fifth seal was viewed as signaling the rise of Mohammedanism and the sixth seal signaled the invasion of Rome by the Turks.
Of course, the most significant interpretation that was promoted was that of Revelation 13. There the Beast is declared the Roman papacy. The pope was universally held to be the antichrist by the Reformers who used the Historicist approach of interpreting the book of Revelation.
Notable persons who used this approach would include John Wycliffe, John Knox, William Tyndale, Martin Luther, John Calvin, Isaac Newton, John Hus, John Wesley, Jonathan Edwards, George Whitefield, Charles Spurgeon, and Matthew Henry
The Futurist -- The Book of Revelation tells about events on into the future, looking ahead for fulfillment. Beginning with chapter four, it is all about the future, even from our viewpoint in the year 2007. It is currently the most widely held approach of modern evangelicals. It lies at the root of the best selling "Left-Behind" movies and novels. It is the approach of Fundamentalists, Dispensationalists and TV preachers, particularly John Hagee with his 50 foot wide charts about what will happen next in Israel and Iraq. Other famous proponents are John MacArthur, Jack Van Impe, Tim LaHaye, Jerry Jenkins and Hal Lindsey.
Question: How can we know if we should hold to the preterist, historicist or futurist view of interpretation?
Answer: Honestly, we can't know for sure which way is right. It largely depends on the date of the writing of the Book of Revelation, and we don't know for sure when John wrote the book. If he wrote it around 69 AD, then Preterism may be correct. If he wrote it nearer 95 AD, then the other views may be correct. But the date is uncertain, and it cannot be proved either way. I also believe that there is an element of truth in all of these interpretations, and that we should think carefully about each statement in the Book of Revelation, and not automatically try to make a verse fit into a particular interpretive system.
I am not going to attempt to prove any system to you one way or the other. I am not going to try to interpret the events in today's newspaper as necessarily corresponding to something in the Book of Revelation. There may or may not be a correlation. But, I am going to constantly remind you of what the Bible says in Acts 1:6-8....
6 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? 7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. 8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
BE AWARE OF SYMBOLISM
The Book of Revelation is full of symbolic language. It is all true, but it is not all LITERALLY true. The Bible is full of symbols, and it is our job to try to figure them out. When the Psalmist writes: "All the mountains shall jump for joy," he is not speaking literally. I don't expect to go out to Colorado and see the mountains literally jumping up and down. What he says is true and important, but we must not be overly literal in our interpretation of the Bible, especially in the Book of Revelation.
And now, let's begin our verse by verse study in the Book of Revelation.
Revelation 1:1-3
1 ¶ "The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,"
*The word "revelation" is the Greek: apocalypse, and means "that which is uncovered."*God the Father gave a revelation to Jesus Christ. This speaks to us of the Trinity. There is a relationship of authority between the persons of the Trinity. Jesus is the only begotten of the Father, and glorifies the Father. The Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son, and glorifies the Son. The Father is over all, but delights in giving glory to His Son.
*Jesus Christ, in turn, sends the revelation to John, by means of an angel (messenger.) Angels are God's messengers, and often bring the Word of God to God's people. Examples: the announcement of the birth of John the Baptist to his father Zacharias; the announcement of the birth of Jesus to both Mary and Joseph.
*God wanted "his servants" to know about some events that would happen soon. I.E. this is practical information for the Christians living at the time. Here we should pause and point out that the Preterists are at least right about SOME of the Book of Revelation. IF the Book of Revelation was written just before the fall of Jerusalem, and the horrible suffering that happened at that time, then this was practical information indeed!
*There is an important principle of Bible interpretation here: "What did the passage mean to the actual first century recipients?" This must be asked about the Gospels and the Epistles, as well as about the Book of Revelation.
*"his servant John..." We assume this means John the Apostle, but there is no proof, only tradition. There are actually four different Johns named in the Bible, and John was a common name in Israel 2000 years ago.
2 "who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ."
*"testifies" is from a form of the Greek word "martyr." We NOW use the word "martyr" for a person who testifies of his love for Christ to the extent that he was killed for his witness. But basically the word "martyr" in Greek means "a person who bears witness." John insists: I'm not making these things up. This is the Word of God. This Book is the testimony of Jesus Himself.*We should respectfully see the entire Bible in this light. It is the Word of God. We should treat it with respect, and we should seek to bring all we do and say into conformity with it. That is what we mean by having a "Biblical Worldview."
3 ¶ "Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near."
*God promises a special blessing to those who read, or hear, and who take the book of Revelation to heart. The blessing is repeated at the end of the book, too:Revelation 22:7...."Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book."
*In Israel in the 1st century, the ability to read was not universal. Also, few people had private copies of books, which were all done by hand (no printing presses) and which were expensive. But the Word of God would be read in worship services, and people would listen carefully, and remember very well.
*Those who hear (1st century) are again urged to pay close attention "because the time is near." In other words, the things described in the Book of Revelation were not just for some far away future time thousands of years away, but were about to happen.
Conclusion: Let's summarize what has been said today:
For further study: The Date and Authorship of Revelation, by Enoch Pond (1871)