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Introduction:

Who wants to know the future?

Judging from the proliferation of (so-called) psychic hotlines, astrologers, and television shows like “Crossing Over” with John Edwards, one would think there are a whole lot of people out there today who want to know the future. What these various shows or methods all have in common, however, aside from being the wrong places to go for the answer is that those utilizing such avenues are not interested in the future generally but in their own future specifically. Sometimes I provoke conversations with non-believers by telling them that I know the future. Then when they ask me how I know the future, I point them to the Scriptures and tell them that they can know the future, too.

This evening we are about to embark on an in-depth study of The Revelation of Jesus Christ. It is not the Book of Revelations; it is a single revelation. Neither is it the Revelation of John (John was merely the recipient.); it is The Revelation of Jesus Christ, Yeshua the Messiah, or you can simply call it The Revelation.

How long will we be studying this letter? (Notice I didn’t call it a “book.” Well, there are 22 chapters. Some weeks we’ll cover an entire chapter or maybe more. Some weeks we may not cover more than three or four verses! Consequently, your guess is as good as mine; but those who have been attending the Wednesday night study can tell you that we don’t rush through God’s Word. We want to understand it, and we want to enjoy it – like a perfect morning cup of coffee on your day off. What’s the rush? Enjoy it! Revelation 1:3 says, Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy and heed the things which are written in it. So there is a blessing in it for each of you, but you have to first hear it before you can heed it. So I encourage each of you, as much as is possible, to stay with us and learn with us through the entire series. And please pray for me. Too many people calling themselves Bible teachers have twisted the original intent of The Revelation and promoted sensationalism, and at times it has had disastrous consequences.

For example, what is the “mark of the beast”? Is it a credit card? Is it the UPC bar code that’s on everything you buy? Will it be a microchip implanted under the skin on your hand? Is it worship on Sunday instead of Saturday? Is it the Magen David (six-pointed star symbolic of Judaism)? Maybe you think it’s the move toward national/international I.D. cards. Could it be the use of digital transponders (like the Mobile Speedpass)? Articles and books and websites galore have dogmatically asserted some of these notions. If you’re looking for that kind of conspiratorial content in our study, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. Our goal in the study of The Revelation is not to try to figure out what the mark of the beast consists of but how we are to live our lives in view of the soon-coming return of Yeshua to earth.

That’s not to say we won’t have some fun in here; and there’s plenty of apocalyptic material in The Revelation to keep our interest, believe me. But our goal is as nearly as possible to understand this letter the way the author intended it to be understood and the way the original audience would have understood it.

This will not necessarily be an easy study. Taking the Literary-Grammatical-Historical Approach always requires more rigor than the “let’s just go around the room and say what it means to you” approach. Listen to the words of one biblical scholar concerning The Revelation:

The last book of the Bible is, for most Christians, one of the least read and most difficult. A few passages from it are well-known and well loved (e.g. 7:9-17); but for the most part modern readers find the book unintelligible. This is largely because it abounds in symbolism of a type that we do not use and to which we no longer possess the key. Yet this kind of imagery was readily comprehensible to the men of the day. Indeed, this partly accounts for our difficulties. The author could assume that his readers would detect his allusions, and therefore he felt no need to make explanations. [1]

As with all studies, what you get out of this class will be directly proportional to what you put into it. I won’t be assigning homework, per se, at least none that I’ll be collecting. But be sure you’ll have some reading to do on your own during the week. To the extent that you do it, you will come out of here with some amazing insights; and your faith will be deepened considerably.

That said, let’s begin our study of The Apocalypse.

1. Literary Genre and The Revelation

The New Testament contains several genres of literature: narrative, epistolary, prophetic, and apocalyptic. What makes interpreting The Revelation so difficult is that it contains aspects of both epistolary and apocalyptic literature. It takes the form of a letter but not quite in the typical classic form more characteristic of Paul’s letters. It contains prophecy (In fact, the word prophecy is used five times versus the one use of apocalypse.) but is undeniably apocalyptic in style, and there are shades of difference between the two.

Michaels suggests that, in order to understand The Revelation, we would do well to study other examples of (largely Jewish) apocalyptic literature such as 1 Enoch and 4 Ezra, Shepherd of Hermas, and Jubilees^[2]. However, for our purposes I will have us compare The Revelation with other biblical examples of apocalyptic literature. I believe there is sufficient material in the canon of Scripture for us to make the needed connections and understand the symbols. I may include brief citations from time to time, however, from extra-biblical literature if I think it will help us understand the first-century Jewish (somewhat apocalyptic) mind set.

It is difficult (and unnecessary, I believe) to place The Revelation into any one specific genre. It is just too unique to do that! For example, as stated above it has some elements of a letter but also of prophecy. It is clearly an apocalypse; but unlike most apocalypses, which were either anonymous or pseudonymous, John, the author, readily identifies himself.

Michaels explains the struggle to categorize The Revelation perfectly:

The discussion of Revelation genre demonstrates how stretched the scholars’ generic categories can become when they begin to deal with real literature, particularly good literature. Many literary theorists have suggested that good, and especially great, works never quite belong to a single genre. They are highly individual creations that expand the categories to the breaking point. This is certainly true of the Book of Revelation. If a letter, it is like no other early Christian letter we possess. If an apocalypse, it is like no other apocalypse. If a prophecy, it is unique among prophecies. Those who bring to the book a set of expectations based on a particular genre can expect to be surprised sooner or later – probably sooner.^[3]

1. Four Predominant Views on The Revelation

1. Preterist View – The events described are all past events.
2. Historicist View – The events described are a broad panorama of history from the first century to the return of Yeshua.
3. Futurist View – Events described in Chapter 4 onward are yet to take place.
4. Idealist/Poetic View – The entire work is symbolic/poetic and written simply to inspire and encourage persecuted Christians to endure to the end.

III. Another View (ours) on The Revelation

Tempting as it is to want to place The Revelation definitively into one category or another, I believe it contains both past and future events as well as symbols. I also believe we are meant to see parts of it as a broad panorama of the eternal struggle between God and Satan and good and evil. Our view, then, you could call the mish-mash view – a little of this and a little of that with an extra helping of Futurist – but in the end The Revelation has everything we need to know.

1. Authorship

We will be proceeding on the premise that John the beloved disciple, who later became one of the Great Apostles, is the author. It is not John the Baptist (who had long since been beheaded by Herod and buried), nor do I think it likely that it was John Mark, of whom we read briefly in Acts 13 and 15 and whom Paul commends in Colossians 4. That the author makes no attempt to say which John is writing (None would be necessary for the Apostle.) but rather humbly identifies himself as our brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance (1:9) argues strongly for the traditional view that it is John the Apostle to whom this prophecy was given. Early church fathers such as Justin Martyr (c. 140 AD) and Irenaeus held John the Apostle to be the author.

Arguments against Johanine authorship have been advanced primarily on the basis of the style of Greek used. It is unlike the other writings of John and at times fails to follow even the most basic rules of Greek grammar, which would have been uncharacteristic of John. Truthfully, a majority of modern scholars question Johanine authorship. I would suggest that the ecstatic nature of prophecy and especially of apocalyptic and the very content of such visions may account for these differences and lapses in Greek grammar.

1. Recipients

The letter is directed initially to seven of the churches located in Asia; but given the proximity of cities and the proliferation of new congregations of Messiah in the first century, coupled with the eternal and weighty message contained in the prophecy, there is little doubt that this letter was meant to be circulated far and wide and was meant to fall into our hands as well – even in the twenty-first century! In that sense, the letter is both time bound and, yet, eternal in its scope.

1. Geography

The order of churches/cities named may very well have to do with geography rather than the message that the Spirit of God had for them, respectively. Ephesus was a seaport city; from Patmos, Ephesus would be a likely first destination. Follow the order of cities given in 1:11 (which is the same order in Chapters 2 and 3), and you’ll see a natural direction of delivery of this letter.

Memorization technique:

E.S.P. – T.S.P.L.

(Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea)

VII. Purpose/Occasion

The greater purpose of God in revealing these messages to the churches (and us) and the events that were to come were for God’s people to be strengthened and encouraged to persevere. It is hard for us to imagine really being persecuted for our faith. For one thing, so few have real faith these days; and weak faith seldom poses a threat to the powers-that-be. Those whose faith has no practical effect on their day-to-day life are not likely to defy Caesar. It is the one who recognizes the ultimate sovereignty of God who may refuse an edict even at the cost of his or her life. Worship of Caesar may not have been customary in Yeshua’s day; but, by the close of the first century, it was progressing from being simply a matter of one’s own preference to becoming obligatory.

It is sadly ironic that so many people say they get scared when they read The Revelation when the very purpose of it is to inspire us to have courage and greater faith! Perhaps the problem is that we have not studied it in sufficient depth (something I hope this series will remedy, in part); or else we may have artificially isolated certain passages, especially those dealing with the antichrist, and so focused on trying to figure out what the evil is that we missed the bigger picture, which is that God will be victorious and so will we if we endure to the end.

VIII. Dating

The likeliest date for the composition of The Revelation is in the early to mid-90s of the first century. This was during the brutal reign of Emperor Domitian, a cruel and callous ruler, who insisted on being addressed as Dominus et Deus (“Master and god”). Domitian lived between AD 51 and 96.

Dr. L. L. Morris, writing in The Illustrated Bible Encyclopedia, states:

The book was obviously written at a time when the church was undergoing persecution and difficulty. During the possible time for the composition of the book the two most important periods when this was so were during the reigns of Nero and of Domitian… The later date (Domitian) is attested by a number of ancient authors, such as Irenaeus and Eusebius, who state categorically that the book was written in the time of Domitian… In Nero’s reign the church was still very young and vigorous. By the time of Domitian there is much more possibility of development and of degeneration. Most scholars today are agreed that the later date is to be preferred.^[4]

1. Potential pitfalls and prerequisites to understanding The Revelation

The first thing we need to avoid when dealing with a work as variegated in literary form and as complex as The Revelation is dogmatism. While I ascribe without reservation to a Pre-millennial view of eschatology, there are those who hold different convictions; and we need to be careful not to treat The Revelation as merely a source of proof – texts to prove our own position.

We must also avoid the temptation to treat as symbolic those things that were meant to be taken literally and would have been understood that way by the ancient audience. Likewise, it is wrong to insist on treating as literal what the first-century hearers of this prophecy would have understood to be symbolic. A careful, conscientious study of The Revelation necessitates familiarizing ourselves with the forms and content of other biblical (and occasionally extra-biblical) writings including other prophecies and apocalypses.

With that caveat, let us embark on what I hope will be a memorable and blessed study for each of you in The Revelation of Jesus Christ, Yeshua the Messiah, as given by God to John, our brother.

Bibliography

Brighton, Louis A., Concordia Commentary: Revelation, 1999 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO – A scholarly (albeit a-millennial) commentary from a classical reformed position. Valuable for analysis of the Greek grammar of The Revelation.

Fee, Gordon D., New Testament Exegesis (3^rd Ed.) 2002 Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, KY – An extremely helpful book in understanding and working with the various genres of biblical literature in order to interpret and apply its truths carefully and correctly.

Gregg, Steve, Revelation: Four Views – A Parallel Commentary, 1997 Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, TN – A very helpful commentary on The Revelation that examines each passage in parallel columns with each of the four traditional interpretations.

Hemer, Colin J., The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia (in their local setting), 1986 William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, MI/Cambridge, UK – An outstanding source for background material on the seven cities of Revelation Chapter 1 and for understanding the possible figures of speech employed in the letters to these churches.

Michaels, J. Ramsey, Interpreting the Book of Revelation, Guide to New Testament Exegesis, 1992 Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, MI – A concise but excellent book detailing the various methods used in interpreting The Revelation and the proper literary, historical, and cultural approach and discussing in brief the four main views and their respective strengths and weaknesses.

Pentecost, J. Dwight, Things To Come – A Study in Biblical Eschatology, 1958 Dunham Publishing Co., Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI – A somewhat lengthy work dealing broadly but carefully with matters of eschatology and prophecy and specifically with views on the Millennium, the Tribulation, and the Resurrection.

Walvoord, John F., The Blessed Hope and the Tribulation: A Historical and Biblical Study of Post-tribulationism 1976 Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI – A concise challenge to a-millennialism and an examination of the differences between the pre- and post-tribulation positions concerning the Rapture of the Church. Helpful for re-examination of one position on this issue in light of careful study of the Scriptures.

Additional Helps:

The Illustrated Bible Dictionary, 3 Volumes 1980, 1994, Intervarsity Press

The Moody Atlas of Bible Lands, Barry Beitzel, 1985, The Moody Bible Institute of Chicago

Footnotes:

^[1]L.L. Morris, M.Sc., M.Th., Ph.D., formerly Principal, Ridley College, Melbourne; Canon of St. Paul Cathedral, Melbourne, in The Illustrated Bible Encyclopedia, 980, 1994, Intervarsity Press, Leicester, England, pg. 1337

^[2] Michaels, J. Ramsey, Interpreting the Book of Revelation, Guide to New Testament Exegesis, 1992 Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, MI

^[3] Ibid., pg. 31-32

^[4] The Illustrated Bible Dictionary, 3 Volumes 1980, 1994, Intervarsity Press, pg. 1338