Our God Reigns! A Look at the Book of Revelation.

Transcription

1 Equipping leaders so that the Body of Christ is built up Our God Reigns! A Look at the Book of Revelation. John E. Gore "Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Revelation 19:6b-7

2 Our God Reigns! A Look at the Book of Revelation. Copyright 2009, John E. Gore. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced, translated or otherwise published or transmitted in any form or by any means without the written permission of the copyright holder; except for brief quotations used in critical reviews or articles. All Scripture, unless otherwise stated, taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright 1973,1978,1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers. Cover photo. Himalayan Range near Mt. Everest Original photo by John E. Gore, October 2012 For further information, please contact. John E. Gore Leadership Development Ministries Inc. Version: 5 January 2014

3 Table of Contents Chapter. 1. Understanding Revelation The Big Picture Rev. 1-3 The Risen Christ and His Words Rev. 4-5 The Throne Room of the Universe Rev. 6-7 The Seven Seals Rev. 8-9 The Seven Trumpets Rev The Little Scroll and Two Witnesses Rev Behind the Scenes Rev The Seven Bowls Rev Defeat of the Beast Rev. 20 The Millennium and Final Judgment Rev The New Heaven and New Earth. 98 Bibliography 104 3

4 Chapter 1. Understanding Revelation Introduction. The book of Revelation has to be the most difficult book in the New Testament to understand. Its vivid visions and bizarre symbols present us who live in the western world with a genre that is foreign to our way of thinking. As a result, the more cautious types ignore it all together, except maybe for the first three and last three chapters, while other more creative and imaginative types find all kinds of bizarre interpretations within it. We are impoverished by both of these extremes for the book contains a great deal of encouraging theology. It is the only book in the bible, as far as I know, that promises a blessing to the one who reads it; 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 (1:3). However, we need to understand the nature of apocalyptic thought and the structure of Revelation before we can gain a proper understanding of the book. This chapter is designed with that in mind. Not only will we discuss the usual questions of authorship - as we would with any other book - but we will also delve into other issues that relate especially to Revelation; namely, Understanding apocalyptic literature, Methods of interpretation, and The structure of the book. A proper examination of these issues is necessary before we can successfully begin a detailed examination of the text Author. Revelation 1:4 tells us that the author is John but the question is, Which John? Early church tradition is unanimous in its claim that it was written by John the apostle. Justin Martyr, who lived for some time at Ephesus during the first part of the second century, was familiar with Revelation and held that the apostle John was its author. The early church Father Irenaeus, maintains that it is the work of John the disciple of the Lord. 1 One of the Gnostic documents, Apocryphon of John, which can t be dated much later than about AD150, claims that the book of Revelation was written by John, the brother of James, these who were sons of Zebedee. 2 However, around the middle of the third century, Dionysius, who was bishop of Alexandria, compared the style of Greek in Revelation with that of the Gospel and Letters that bear the name of John, and concluded that they couldn t have been written by the same author. Assuming that the other works were written by the apostle he maintained that Revelation must have been written by another John. Those who deny apostolic authorship of Revelation are invariably restating in some way the theory put forward by Dionysius. While there are serious differences in style between Revelation and the Gospel of John, these could be explained by the use of a secretary in one or more of the writings of John. Such a person would take the rough work of an author and write it down in a more sophisticated style. The external evidence from the second century provides a powerful argument for advocating that the book of Revelation was written by John the apostle Date of Writing. The most likely date of composition is AD 90-95, during the reign of the emperor Domitian; although some present a strong argument for the later part of Nero s reign (AD 54-68). 1 Mounce, Revelation, 27 2 Mounce, Revelation, 28. 4

5 When we examine the book of Revelation it seems that emperor-worship was being practiced. For example, the beast, who represents the Roman Emperor, demands that all people worship him; passages such as 13:4,12,15-16; 14:9,11; 15:2; 16:2 make this reasonably clear. Leon Morris writes, It is difficult to think that these passages do not refer to the demand for worship of the emperor. 3 While some of the earlier emperors saw themselves as being divine, there seems to have been a significant advance in Emperor worship during the reign of Domitian (AD 81-96). Whereas the earlier emperors had at worst accepted emperor-worship, and at best actively discouraged it, Domitian seems to have regarded himself as a god. It was he, more than any other emperor, who demanded worship from his subjects. 4 Revelation shows that John believed that a great persecution was about to begin and the demand for Christians to worship the emperor was the occasion for the persecution. We know that Antipas had already been martyred and that the church at Smyrna was about to suffer imprisonment and death (2:10). The church at Philadelphia was given the promise, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth (3:10b). Later in the book we see that some of the saints had already been persecuted and martyred (6:9). Later church leaders wrote about persecution during the reign of Domitian; although one has to say that historical evidence for this happening outside of Rome seems to be minimal. However, all the facts suggest that the book was written sometime during the reign of Domitian. Morris writes, But as far as establishing the date of the book goes, all that we can say from the evidence of persecution is that it accords with all that we know of Domitian that there should have been such persecution, and that there is no other period in the first century which fits nearly as well. 5 I conclude that Revelation was written during the reign of the emperor Domitian after he had demanded that his subjects worship him as god. Failure to do so would have resulted in persecution even to the point of death. The date of AD is therefore the most likely Understanding Apocalyptic literature. The book of Revelation is written in a style that is known as apocalyptic, which is characterized by vivid visions and bizarre symbols. Robert Mounce writes, Symbolism plays a major role in apocalyptic. In giving free rein to the imagination, symbols of the most bizarre sort become the norm. 6 If we are to understand Revelation we need to appreciate that it is written using bizarre symbols. Sometimes John explains the symbols to us, as he did in 1:20, where the seven lampstands are the seven churches, but usually he doesn t. It is the latter that makes interpreting Revelation difficult. We should not interpret the symbols in a literal scientific way but understand them as conveying a specific meaning; more the work of an artist as he splashes colour and shape on a canvas to depict a certain truth, than that of a scientist. For example, in 17:9 we read, "This calls for a mind with wisdom. The seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits. It should be obvious that we are not meant to interpret this literally because there is no woman large enough to physically sit on seven hills. The seven heads is a symbol for Rome, the city that is built on seven hills. We should therefore understand the symbol as referring to the anti-god government of Rome where the emperor was demanding that his subjects worship him as God. However, while 17:9 initially refers to first century Rome, the government that was persecuting the Christians, it also refers to any government that sets out to oppose God and to persecute believers. The former Soviet Union was a good example of this woman in the twentieth century. While we in the western world are accustomed to a more scientific type of prose we also have forms of speech which are not meant to be interpreted literally. A figure of speech is a good 3 Morris, Revelation, 36 4 Morris, Revelation, 36 5 Morris, Revelation, 37 6 Mounce, Revelation, 21 5

6 example of this. I can clearly remember a time when I was very young and my grandmother came to visit us. During the course of the afternoon she said to my father, I think I will lie down and have forty winks. This incident has stuck in my mind because I was perplexed as to what she meant. I had visions of her lying down on the bed and winking her eyes forty times. It wasn t until I was much older that I realised that having forty winks was a figure of speech and wasn t meant to be taken literally. (Having having forty winks means that a person will lay down for a rest and close their eyes. Maybe they will go to sleep or maybe they won t but they hope to get up in an hour or so feeling refreshed.) Furthermore, in order to interpret Revelation properly we need to interpret the symbol as a whole and not try to dissect it looking for further meanings. I believe William Hendriksen is correct when he writes, One must not begin to press the details [of the symbol]. One must not ask, in the symbol of the locusts that came out of the abyss (9:1-11), what is the separate meaning of their hair, teeth, breast-plates, etc.? We must not pluck the symbol apart and lose the unity. 7 In addition, we shouldn t expect the various scenes that John presents to follow a perfectly consistent pattern. For example, in 9:4 (the fifth trumpet) the locusts are told not to hurt the grass of the earth but earlier in 8:7 (the first trumpet) we read that all the green grass had been burnt up. How can the locusts not harm the grass if it has already been burnt; there would be no grass left to protect? We have another example of this inconsistency in chapters 20 to 22. In 21:1 John begins to describe the new heaven and new earth but he does so using the symbol of a city; the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven. John describes its majesty using symbols; this time precious jewels, gold and pearls. He then goes on to tell us in 22:15 that those who enter the city are blessed, for outside, are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. What is interesting about this statement is that John previously told us in 20:14-15 that everyone whose name was not written in the Lamb s book of life had been thrown into the lake of fire. How can there be people outside the Holy City when the eternal state has begun? Everyone whose name was not written in the book of life would already be in hell; they would not be outside the city. To ask these questions and to expect this degree of consistency is to misunderstand the nature of apocalyptic literature. It is not scientific prose which is concerned with accuracy; rather it uses graphic pictures to convey an overall truth. For example, in chapters 21 to 22, John is using the symbol of the ancient city to convey his point that those who live in the new heaven and new earth are blessed beyond description; they are safe and secure for nothing can harm them. To try and understand the symbol of the Holy City - with its dogs and immoral people outside its gates - as scientific prose is to misunderstand the nature of apocalyptic literature. This is what makes Revelation so difficult for the western mind to grasp; we are not accustomed to this style of writing and many try to interpret it in the same way as they would Romans or First Corinthians. We should not do that. However, dispensationalism, the system that I was taught in my earlier years, interprets the book of Revelation literally. For example, they would say that 8:12 The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark - is to be understood literally and not symbolically. This is one reason why they place the prophecies of Revelation into the future, for disasters of this magnitude have not yet occurred in recorded history. 8 If we believe that Revelation is written in an apocalyptic style 7 Hendriksen, More than Conquerors, 39. Italics in original. 8 Ryrie, Revelation, 9, writes, "The label 'futurist' is derived from the fact that this interpretation sees the book from chapter 4 to the end as yet to be fulfilled. If one follows the plain, literal, or normal principle of interpretation, one concludes that most of the book describes what is yet future. No judgments in history have ever equaled those described in chapters 6, 8, 9, and 16." Note also Walvoord, Revelation, 97, The view that the book of Revelation beginning with 4:1 is future, from the standpoint of the twenty-first century, is a broad conclusion growing out of the lack of correspondence of these prophecies to anything that has been 6

7 then we understand "a third" in 8:7-12 (the first four trumpets) as being a symbol of God's partial judgment on humankind rather than a literal percent destruction of the item mentioned. 9 If we believe that Revelation is written in the apocalyptic genre then it would be wrong to interpret it in a literal sense. This would be similar to someone from a different culture insisting that the incident of my grandmother lying down for forty winks must be taken literally; meaning that she laid on the bed, literally winked her eyes forty times, and then arose and went back to the family. I also believe that John received the vision in its apocalyptic form and wrote down what he had seen. I do not believe that he received prophetic insight which he then translated into an apocalyptic document using his knowledge of the Old Testament and other ancient literature. A working knowledge of the Old Testament, especially the apocalyptic portions of Daniel and Ezekiel, will help us to understand the book more fully but what we have in Revelation is what John saw in his vision Methods of Interpretation. Before I discuss how to interpret the Book of Revelation let me first discuss how we would interpret one of the more straight forward books such as First Corinthians. We would approach the book on the understanding that it was written to the church in Corinth in the first century and that it addressed issues that the church faced at that time. From that basis we would endeavour to understand what the letter meant to the people who first read it in Corinth. How did they interpret it? In order to help us answer this question we would try to glean as much information as we could about the situation which existed in the church at the time. What were the problems that caused Paul to write the letter? What was the culture at the time? What did the various Greek words mean? These, and other facts, help us to determine how the church at Corinth understood what Paul was saying. First Corinthians, for example, focuses on problems that existed in the church when Paul wrote the letter; divisions among the believers, believers taking each other to court, sexual immorality, whether to marry or not, instruction on the proper observance of the Lord s Supper, proper use of spiritual gifts in the church. In Chapter 15 Paul discusses the resurrection of Christ and the resurrection of the dead. The latter was future but Paul used it to address the claim by some that there was no resurrection of the body. Paul deals with the future because such a discussion is applicable to the situation the church was facing. While First Corinthians was written to a local church in the first century, the principles discussed in the book are applicable to all believers of all time. It is just as applicable now as it was during the Medieval period or during the time of the Early Church. The bible is God s inspired word and is therefore our supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct. With the above background let us examine the four methods of interpreting the Book of Revelation. (a) The idealist view. The idealist believes that the whole book deals with ideas and principles. It does not specifically refer to the church in the first century but gives us concepts that tell us how fulfilled. A natural interpretation of this section that understands these prophecies as literal events would require that they be viewed as future. 9 I must commend Robert L. Thomas for his graciousness towards the other authors in: Pate, Four Views on The Book of Revelation, 179. He writes, "The other group are those who do not embrace a dispensational view, particularly the other three contributors to this work. I respect them and their interpretations and do not want any of the following remarks to be construed as impugning them personally or otherwise." This is in stark contrast to the teaching I received in my early years when anyone who didn't interpret Revelation literally in a futurist manner was seen to reject the bible as the inspired Word of God. It is a welcome sign of maturity when people can respect others who hold to the full inspiration of Scripture but who interpret it differently. 10 Mounce, Revelation, 303, writes, "The position of this commentary is that the descriptions themselves are not John's creative attempt to portray eschatological truth in apocalyptic terminology but the faithful transmission of what he actually saw in authentic vision (1:11). 7

8 God acts throughout human history. It is a theological poem that shows the ongoing struggle between the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of light. I have never personally met anyone who held to such a view and I have to confess that I don t fully understand why anyone would hold to such teaching in its purest form. 11 For the idealist, the battle of Armageddon is a symbol rather than a reference to one specific battle that will occur in history when Christ returns. Mantra writes: "Armageddon, then, is a symbol of every battle in which Satan gathers his troops against the church. Then Christ suddenly and dramatically appears to deliver his people and defeat the enemy. Battles at Armageddon may take place throughout the history of the world, though the final one coincides with Satan's day of judgment." 12 The advantage of the idealist interpretation is that it reminds us that Revelation teaches profound spiritual principles. It shows that God is sovereign over the events in the world and that Christ will be victorious. Revelation reminds us of the truth of Romans 8:28; God is at work and he will take whatever Satan throws at us and turn it around for our good. However, while I think there is secondary value in this method of interpretation, I believe that Revelation refers to specific historical events which confronted the early church rather than general ideas. Therefore, I reject this method as being the primary way we should interpret the book. (b) The historicist view. This view understands Revelation as a prophecy that forecasts the history of Western Europe from the first century up to the coming of Christ. The symbols in the book are said to give us a sketch of the various popes, the Protestant Reformation, the French revolution and individual leaders such as Charlemagne and Mussolini. One of the main flaws with this view is that the book seems to be structured using a form of parallelism and recapitulation rather than employing the continuous chronological approach. The seals, trumpets and bowls seem to run parallel with each other and cover a similar period of time. (Refer section 1.6 for a more in-depth discussion of this topic.) Another major problem is that the symbols are so vague and subjective that no two advocates of this theory seem to agree as to what they mean. However, there are other objections as well; why would John write a letter to churches in the first century who were about to face persecution and give them an historical sketch of what was going to happen in Europe over the pursuing two millenniums or more? It is not uncommon to come across people in Australia who hold to a form of this teaching. I can remember a couple of years ago when I was lecturing on eschatology and discussing the signs of Christ s return, one of the senior men said, Surely, all we have to do is to discover where we are in the book of Revelation and see how far that is from the coming of Christ. Behind this statement was the belief that Revelation is written in a chronological form that outlines history, usually that of Europe, from the time of the early Church until the return of Christ. If we are shown to be presently in chapter 12 then we know that Christ s return is a long way off but if we are in the latter part of chapter 18 then we know that Christ s coming is getting very near. I do not hold to the historicist view because of the above factors. (c) The Futurist view. I grew up under strong classical dispensational teaching which holds to a futurist view. This teaching maintains that everything after 4:1 is future and takes place after the rapture. One needs to note that the dispensational view separates the return of Christ into two events with a span of 7 years between them; although some believe it is three and a half. The first part of Christ s return is known as the rapture when Christ comes for the saints and the second part is the revelation or appearing when he comes with the saints to commence his millennial reign on earth. During the intervening period the saints are in heaven with Christ enjoying the Marriage Supper of the Lamb while those who are left behind are confronted with the Antichrist and 11 Pate, Four views on Revelation, 95. Hamstra claims that William Hendriksen is in the idealist tradition and refers to his book, More than Conquerors, as typical of this thinking. Maybe, I am more of an idealist than I think because I have found a great deal of helpful insight from Hendriksen's book. 12 Pate, Four views on Revelation, 116 8

9 everything else described between 4:1 and the return of Christ in Chapter 19. There are a number of disadvantages with this system. Firstly, I find it impossible to see from the rest of the New Testament that the return of Christ is in two separate stages separated by a period of time. Secondly, I cannot see how Revelation 4:1 can be interpreted as relating to the rapture of the church. Surely, it refers to John who, in his vision, was taken into heaven and given a picture of what was happening, or going to happen, from a heavenly perspective. Charles C. Ryrie, who holds to a premillennial dispensational (futurist) view, notes that while 4:1 doesn t specifically teach the rapture of the church, this is where it would occur. 13 John Walvoord, another prominent futurist, seems to teach that the rapture of the church occurs sometime between the end of chapter three and the beginning of chapter 4. He wrote: From a practical standpoint however, the rapture may be viewed as having already occurred before the events of chapter 4 and following chapters of Revelation unfold. 14 I do not find these arguments at all convincing, especially since they seem to be arguing from silence; which is a very dangerous practice. The letters to the seven churches are often held to represent successive periods of church history that lead up to the rapture of the church in 4:1. I was raised under this teaching and I can remember preacher after preacher telling us that we were in the final days because the church of today was wealthy but luke-warm; we were the church at Laodicea. This theological system seemed to produce continual criticism of the church and we were constantly warned that God was going to spew us out of his mouth. As I look back on this teaching, it was all very sad; especially when one considers that the church in China was going through some of the most intense persecution that had ever been unleashed on the church in any era, and, as a consequence of this, has become strong and vibrant. In the 1980's a "variation" on the classic dispensational view emerged called, "progressive" or "modified" dispensationalism. It is a major rethink on the older view and eliminates many of the problems that I had with dispensationalism in general. I agree fully with a number of the major changes, although it seems to be so radical that I wonder how it can still keep the "dispensational" name tag. 15 However, the progressive view still hangs onto the concept of a two phase return of Christ with a space of seven years between the rapture and the return of Christ to begin his millennium reign on earth. As already mentioned, I cannot see this sequence of events taught anywhere in Scripture. I do not believe that the futurist view, either as taught by Classic Dispensationalism or Progressive Dispensationalism, is the right approach. (d) The Preterist view. This view teaches that the book was written to seven actual churches in Asia Minor to strengthen and encourage them as they faced the certainty of intense persecution. The Preterist view comes in two distinct forms. The first is the full preterist view which maintains that everything which is written in the Book of Revelation was fulfilled in the early church. This includes the last few chapters which describe the victory of God over evil and the introduction of the New Jerusalem. They would see the return of Christ as referring to AD 70, or the collapse of Rome in the fifth century, when Christ came in judgment on his enemies. 16 It is true that history 13 Ryrie, Revelation, He writes, "The words 'come up here' indicate John's personal transferral from earth to heaven. They do not specifically teach the Rapture of the church, although in the pretribulational understanding of prophecy the Rapture would occur at this point in the book. In support of this is the absence from this point on of any mention of churches, suggesting that believers of this church age are absent from the earth because of a pretribulational Rapture. 14 Walvoord, Revelation, Pate, Four views on Revelation, 180. Thomas, in his essay, "A Classical Dispensationalist View of Revelation", makes a similar comment: "Progressive dispensationalism, on the other hand, represents a significant change in principles of interpretation, so that the name 'dispensationalism' does not apply to that system." 16 Pate, Four views on Revelation, 81. Concerning Revelation chapter 19, Kenneth L. Gentry Jr writes, "Though the imagery of this passage suggests to many the Second Advent (and there certainly are many 9

10 shows that Rome did collapse and that the church was victorious but that doesn t seem to do justice to the complete destruction of evil that we see in chapters 19 to 22. This is the main flaw with this method of interpretation. The other Preterist form is known as the Moderate Preterist view. It is similar to the full version in that it maintains the book was written to the seven churches and that most of the book was fulfilled in the life of the early church. However, it assigns the last few chapters to a time in the future when Christ will visibly and powerfully return and when Satan and his followers will be thrown into the lake of fire. This will result in the believers living forever with God in the new heaven and new earth. As I will discuss more fully in the following paragraphs, I believe that the Moderate Preterist view is the best way to interpret the Book of Revelation. (e) The author s view. I hold to a Moderate Preterist view combined with some of the concepts behind a moderate idealist view; if I may use that term. I understand that the book was written to the seven churches in the first century which were located in the seven geographical locations named in 1:11. The majority of the book deals with the issues that the believers faced as a result of the demands of the Emperor to worship him as God. Symbols such as the mark of the beast and the number 666 are dealing with first century issues. The beast from the sea and the beast from the land, otherwise known as the false prophet, find their initial fulfilment in first century Rome. The beast from the sea is Rome, both the Emperor and the government, while the false prophet represents the Roman religion. In chapter 13 we discover that the beast (Rome) gets its power and authority from Satan, the red dragon. However, the book of Revelation wouldn t be complete if it didn t go on to describe the final defeat of all antichristian governments and dictators (19:20) as well as the final captivity of Satan in hell (20:10). Chapters 21 and 22 describe the new heaven and new earth which is the final dwelling place of the believer. Chapters 19 to 22, as well as a portion of chapter 18, are future. We noted earlier that First Corinthians was written to the first century church in Corinth but the principles contained in that letter are applicable down through the ages. The same applies to Revelation. Down through the centuries the state, represented by the beast, has often tried to destroy the church. The former Soviet Union is an example of this in the twentieth century. However, we need to understand that behind these governments urging them forward in their hostility against the church is Satan (the Dragon). But, just as the first century beast in Revelation was destroyed and Rome collapsed, so the same fate awaits any other beast who tries to destroy the people of God. If anyone would have told us back in the late fifties that the Soviet Union, who at that time seemed to be the greatest power in the world, would cease to exist by the turn of the century, we would have laughed and said it was not possible; but with God everything is possible. His word can be trusted. In conclusion, I believe that the book is full of symbols that are not meant to be interpreted literally but are to be seen as representing historical events or various principles. For example, the woman who sits on seven hills (17:9) is first century Rome or any other government that sets out to persecute the church. The mention of "one third" in connection with the seven trumpets (8:6-13) is a symbol of a partial out-pouring of God's wrath and not a literal destruction of per cent of the item mentioned. Similarly, the 144,000 is a symbol of the true "Israel of God" - the church, those who have the faith of Abraham whether they are Gentiles or physical Jews - and not 12,000 literal Jews from each of the literal 12 tribes that are listed The Structure of the Book. The next question we need to ask is, How is the book of Revelation structured? Should we interpret it in the same way as we do other New Testament books or should we adopt a different approach? In Romans, for example, Paul develops his teaching in a systematic way as he moves from one idea to the next. One Corinthians is similar. In these books there is a logical development correspondences), it more likely refers to AD 70, which is a distant adumbration [a foreshow or type] of the Second Advent." 10

11 of thought. Is this how we should understand Revelation or do we need a different approach? Let me examine various possibilities. (a) Continuous Chronological Development. There are those who feel that one subject follows upon another and each introduces a new thought. This is similar to Romans and First Corinthians. This line of thinking tells us that the seven seals (6:1-8:1) cover one period of time which is then followed chronologically by the seven trumpets (8:2-11:19). The book continues to unfold in a similar fashion until we reach the final victory of good over evil and the new heaven and new earth. The historicist view, which usually understands Revelation as a prophecy that forecasts the history of Western Europe from the first century until the return of Christ, is based on the continuous chronological approach. I personally don t think that Revelation is structured in this manner, for as we examine the book we discover a degree of repetition where John mentions a subject in the earlier chapters and then returns to develop the idea later in the book; maybe mentioning it again somewhere in the middle. For example, the Second Coming of Christ is mentioned briefly in 16:15-16 and then developed in more detail in chapter 19. The final judgment (the wrath of the Lamb) is introduced in 6:12-17, then developed in 14:14-20, and finally explained in detail in 20: The new heaven and new earth follows a similar pattern; we get a glimpse of it in 14:1-5 but we have to wait until chapters 21 and 22 until we get a more complete description. It seems clear to me that the vision John recorded contains a large degree of recapitulation and that we should not understand it as describing events which follow one another in a continuous chronological fashion. (b) A systematic parallelism. However, we need to ask the question; How structured is this recapitulation? To my way of thinking there are two possibilities; a systematic parallelism or a more spontaneous recapitulation. Let us now examine the former concept first. Hendriksen in his book, More than Conquerors, maintains that there are seven definite sections in the book which run parallel to each other. Each starts with the first coming of Christ and each goes through to the return of Christ in judgment; although the last section moves beyond that and describes the new heaven and new earth. He lists the seven divisions as: 17 Christ in the midst of the seven golden lampstands (chs.1-3). The book with seven seals (chs.4-7). The seven trumpets of judgment (chs.8-11). The woman and the Man-child persecuted by the dragon and his helpers (the beast and the harlot) (chs.12-14). The seven bowls of wrath (chs.15-16). The fall of the great harlot and of the beasts (chs.17-19). The judgment upon the dragon (Satan) followed by the new heaven and earth, New Jerusalem (chs.20-22). Hendriksen writes, The book of Revelation consist of seven sections. They are parallel and each spans the entire new dispensation, from the first to the second coming of Christ. 18 He also notes that the seven sections may be grouped into two major divisions. The first division (chapters 1-11) shows the church persecuted by the world whereas the second major division (chapters 12-22) shows the spiritual battle that is behind this persecution. 19 I am a great admirer of Hendriksen s work and I think his approach has much going for it. However, I believe that the parallelism that we find in Revelation is not as structured as he maintains. 17 Hendriksen, Revelation, Hendriksen, Revelation, 22. Italics in original. 19 Hendriksen, Revelation, 23 11

12 (c) A more spontaneous recapitulation. When we examine the book of Revelation we find that it contains a great deal of parallelism where various events, such as the seven seals and seven trumpets, run parallel to each other rather than following one another in a chronological fashion. However, it is not a precise recapitulation that one would find in the work of a logical scientist but is a more spontaneous recapitulation that befits an artist as he splashes various colours across the canvas to reinforce what he was trying to convey. I like what Mounce has to say on the matter. Had the author intended a precise chronology of the last days, he undoubtedly would have made that plain. At times he moves ahead quickly to the eternal state in order to encourage the redeem with a vision of the bliss that awaits them. At other times he returns to the past to interpret the source of the hostility being experienced by the church in the present time. He is bound by neither time nor space as he moves with sovereign freedom to guarantee the final destruction of all evil and the vindication of those who follow the Lamb. There is progress in the book, but it is more a progress that moves the reader to a fuller experience of the divine plan for final victory than it is a progress which ticks off the minutes on an eschatological clock. Each new vision intensifies the realisation of coming judgment. Like a mounting storm at sea each new crest of the wave moves history closer to its final destiny. 20 This is a good description of the structure of the book Summary of this chapter. Revelation is unlike any other book in the New Testament and is therefore open to many and varied interpretations. The "method of interpretation" (section 1.5 above) that one thinks is correct and the "structure of the book" (section 1.6) that one chooses, will determine how one interprets the book. I believe that the moderate preterist view is the most appropriate. This means that the bulk of the letter deals with issues that the churches in Asia Minor faced during the latter part of the first century. However, I also believe that there is merit in a moderate idealist approach and that Revelation contains spiritual principles which will help us to live a more godly life in the twenty first century; or whatever period of time we may find ourselves. I believe that the book was written by the apostle John around AD during the reign of the Roman emperor Domitian when he was beginning to demand that his subjects regard him as God and worship him as such. Anyone refusing to do so would be severely punished or even put to death. Some like John, who had been exiled to the Isle of Patmos, or Antipas, who had been martyred, had already felt the wrath of Domitian s fury. The book was written to assure the believers that God was in control of the situation and that they should remain loyal to him even in the face of martyrdom. Revelation is written in the style of apocalyptic literature with its vivid visions and bizarre symbols. We should not try to understand it as we would a book of prose like I Corinthians but see it more like an artist conveying an overall message by passionately splashing colour and shapes upon a large canvas. We should not interpret the symbols literally for that is not how one is meant to understand apocalyptic writing. Rather the pictures should be interpreted symbolically. As we read the book of Revelation we should not expect the events to follow one another in a systematic chronological manner. In fact it seems that many of the scenes run parallel to each other. Sometimes John describes events from an earthy perspective but at other times he looks at what is happening in the spiritual realm; showing that the persecution on earth is simply the outworking of a greater conflict in the spiritual world between God and Satan. I believe that the bulk of the book of Revelation - primarily chapters 1 to 18 - addresses issues that the church faced at the end of the first century. The beast from the sea, the false prophet, the number of the beast 666, are all referring to the situation which confronted the early church during the persecution initiated by the Emperor Domitian. However, while the book was written to encourage first century believers it is also applicable to followers of Christ in every century. Satan, the dragon of Revelation 12, will continue his persecution of the church by using anti-god governments (the beast from the sea) and false religions (the false prophet) to achieve his goals. 20 Mounce, Revelation, 46 12

13 When one government or religion is defeated, Satan will use another dictator or government to continue his attack on the people of God; for the beast keeps recovering from a "fatal wound" (13:3). For believers in the twenty first century, Revelation is not just a history lesson to show us what happened in the past, nor is it a prophetic jigsaw puzzle to enable us to debate the arrangement of future events, but a word from God for today. It helps us to understand why "bad things happen to God's people." It gives us an assurance that God is in control of the universe and that he does hear the prayers of his people. It reminds us of the truth of Romans 8:28 that God is at work in every situation for our good. Regardless of what Satan may throw at us, God is able to use it for our growth. Revelation calls us to be loyal to Christ and not to compromise with the demands of the world. It assures us that those who are loyal to him will be victorious; even if they suffer martyrdom in the process. Let me conclude this opening chapter by saying that I believe that the Bible is the inspired, infallible word of God and is without error in all it affirms. I also believe that the Idealist, Historicist, Futurist, and Preterist interpretations can all embrace a high view of the inspiration of Scriptures. One interpretation doesn t necessarily demand a higher view of Scripture than another. 13

14 Chapter 2. The Big Picture. There is a saying in English, They can t see the forest for the trees! In other words, such people spend so much time discussing minor issues that they miss the main point; they don t understand the big picture. I believe the same can apply to the Book of Revelation. We can spend a great deal of energy trying to work out the minor details as they relate to the individual seals, trumpets, bowls, plagues etc. but miss the overall theme. Let me illustrate what I mean by referring to the art world. I remember going to an exhibition in Sydney, Australia, of Monet and others from the Impressionists school, where I was particularly drawn to one painting of a field with poplars and red flowers. It was brilliant and there was no doubt what the artist had painted. However, when I looked closely at the painting it was nothing but strokes of colour which meant nothing. Up close, there was no form to it and I couldn t have told you what anything was - it was just blotches of colour. but from a distance it was very clear what the artist wanted to convey. When I looked at the big picture there was no ambiguity at all. It was an amazing work of art. I believe that this is how we are to understand Revelation. We need to look at the big picture and not try to get a meaning out of every part of every symbol or even from every symbol; such an approach would probably cause us to miss the point that John is trying to make. Remember, the book of Revelation was written to seven historical churches around the end of the first century to encourage them as they faced persecution due to the demands of the emperor Domitian to worship him as God. The church was a small insignificant group of people from various backgrounds who seemed to have little power to withstand the might of Rome. Why were they being oppressed? How could they be victorious in the face of such overwhelming odds? Where is God during these difficult times? Revelation gives us answers to these important questions. It tells us that Satan is behind the persecution of the church and that this harassment is simply a part of the wider spiritual conflict between him and Christ. It shows us that the church will be victorious and that governments which set out to destroy it will eventually be defeated. We learn that Satan will ultimately be captured and spend eternity in the lake of fire while the believer spends eternity with God in the new heaven and new earth. Revelation confirms that God is sovereign over the entire universe and that he has a strategy for the world and that it will come to fruition because Christ, the Lamb who was slain, has the authority and power to implement it Overview of Revelation. The following is an overview of Revelation. Chapter 1. The first thing that John receives is a vision of the risen Christ. He is no longer a human peasant who was despised and rejected of men but is the all-conquering, powerful, ruler of the universe. The early church needed to understand who Jesus is, because only then could they appreciate what he was going to do. Chapters 2-3. These chapters contain personal messages to the seven churches. The churches have not been forgotten, the Risen Christ knows all about them. He gives them warnings, words of encouragement, as well as promises to hold onto as they enter this time of persecution. He prepares them for what is to come. Chapters 4-5. In 4:1 John is taken up into heaven for it is important that he understands things from God s perspective and not man s. It is surprising how something can appear totally different depending on the perspective that we have. From this new vantage point John sees the Throne Room of heaven. This is the ultimate source of power in the universe. Rome may appear to be all powerful from a human perspective but in the ultimate scheme of things it can t do anything without the approval of heaven. God is sovereign. 14

15 As John looks at this scene in heaven he notices a scroll in God s right hand. This is God s will for the universe; God does have a plan and the universe is not haphazardly lurching from one crisis to another. However, the important question is, Who is worthy to open the scroll and to set God s plan into action?" As John looks around he starts to weep for he can t see anyone who has the qualifications for this task. Then, when he thinks all is lost, one of the elders tells him to stop weeping for the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David has triumphed. John then sees a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain (5:6). Christ has the power and authority to implement God s plan. The song that follows in 5:9-14 from the heavenly hosts contains, in my opinion, some of the most majestic verses in all of Scripture. The Lamb, who is also fully God, receives the worship of those present (5:14). These two chapters prepare John for what is to follow. They are designed to give him confidence that God is in ultimate control of the universe. God does have a plan for this world and the Lamb has the power to implement it. The church will survive this persecution, as well as future onslaughts, and will grow so that it becomes a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language (7:9). In the meantime, the believers are to remain loyal to Christ regardless of the consequences. Chapters 6-7. The first four seals remind us that both the believer and non-believer undergo difficult times because of sin in the world. The four horsemen represent war, internal rebellion, famine and death. God doesn t cause these things to happen but he does allow them within certain limits. The seals help us to understand why bad things often happen to God s people. Chapter 7 teaches that while the believers may suffer because of the consequences of sin (the four horsemen), they will never experience the wrath of God (the sixth seal, 6:12-17). They, the 144,000, are sealed and protected from God s anger. The 144,000 is a symbol of the true Israel, those who have the faith of Abraham regardless of whether they are Jews or Gentiles. They are the believers; they are the church. While they comprise a relatively small number in John s day, they are given the assurance that they will grow so that the church will become a great multitude which no one can number from every nation and language (7:9). Chapters 8-9. The trumpets are warnings from God calling people to repentance. Whereas the seals were the natural consequences of sin in the world, the trumpets are partial natural disasters caused by God in the hope that people will see the evil of their ways and turn to him. The trumpets are a sign of God s love for those who reject him. He really does what them to repent so that he can forgive and bless them. Chapters In chapter 10 Jesus calls his church to remain faithful to the great commission; they must continue to prophesy and call people to follow him. Revelation 11 gives us insight into the future of the early church. A time is coming when they will be persecuted to the point where people think the church has died, but they are not to despair because God will cause the church to come alive again so that it can continue towards its destiny of becoming a great multitude that no one can number. I believe that this prophecy was fulfilled in the first few centuries of the church s history. Chapter 12. Revelation 12 introduces a new main section in the book. Chapters 2-11 described events from an earthly view point but chapter 12 looks behind the scenes of world history to show us what is happening from a spiritual perspective. Why should an emperor set out to persecute a small group of peace loving citizens in his empire simply because they will not worship him as God? Is it simply his idea to receive this worship or is there a power behind him driving him forward in this direction? The answer is found in the latter. Chapter 12 introduces us to the dragon, who is Satan. He is the one who is behind this persecution of the church. He tried to destroy Christ when he was born but failed. Now he is after the church and directs all his evil power against those who follow the risen Christ. How can the church overcome Satan? The answer is spelt out in 12:11: They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. The blood of the Lamb refers to the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross. The cross wasn t a tragedy where a good man was unjustly put to death but it was the 15