Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church 2080 West Grand Boulevard Detroit, Michigan 48208 Pastor Nathan Johnson, D.D., Senior Pastor Pastor s Bible Study A Bible Study Series Based on the book "Revelation Four Views" by Steve Gregg Lesson 1 Revelation -- Four Views What Manner of Book is This? It should be observed that Revelation, like most of the books of the New Testament, this written in the form of an epistle. It has the traditional opening and close common nearly all of the biblical epistles. After a brief introduction, which speaks of John in third person (1:1-3), we find the true beginning of the epistle: John, to the seven Churches which are in Asia. This resembles, in form, the opening of every one of the Pauline Epistles, as well as those of James, Peter, and Jude. That the book was a letter intended for a specific contemporary audience is seen, for Example, in 1:11: What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea. What Manner of Book is This? Thus the first step toward gaining a correct understanding of Revelation is to recognize that it is an epistle to a particular group of Christians, aiming to address their specific needs at the time it was written. This requires that we should seek first to discover how it applied to and would have been understood by its original readership, as we would seek to do with any other biblical epistle. Only secondarily do we transfer truths to our own modern circumstances. This is how responsible readers approach 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, James, or any other New Testament book, and it is also the most responsible way to approach the epistle known as The Apocalypse of Jesus Christ. What Manner of Book is This? Unlike other biblical epistles, Revelation is a prophecy, as it repeatedly affirms itself to be (1:3; 22:7,10,18,19). Other epistles contain prophecies, but only this book identifies itself as a prophecy. The function of prophecy in the New Testament is to speak edification, encouragement, and comfort to men (1 Corinthians 14:3). These aims are accomplished through the related factors of preaching and prediction, or as some put it, through forthtelling the word of the Lord for the present and foretelling future events. Chapters 2 and 3 of Revelation give the word of the Lord concerning the contemporary situations of the seven churches of Asia Minor. It has been noted Page 1 of 10
that these chapters contain the only letters in the Bible dictated directly by Jesus. Like most prophetic preaching (e.g., in the Old Testament), their message is one of comfort to the afflicted righteous and a call to repentance to the straying. The predictive element is prominent in chapters 4 through 22, which are concerned with events to occur after these things. What Manner of Book is This? Revelation was written as apocalyptic literature, a style of writing popular in John s time, but obscure to modern readers. Nelson s New Illustrated Bible Dictionary points out that the word apocalypsis is a Greek word meaning revelation.... Apocalyptic literature is a special kind of writing that arose among Jews and Christians to reveal certain mysteries about heaven and earth, humankind and God, angels and demons, the life of the world today, and the world to come. 1 No other book of the New Testament was written in this style, but between 200 b.c. and a.d. 100, Jewish writers produced a large number of noncanonical books which, because of their similarities to this book, are now referred to as apocalyptic (e.g., The Book of Enoch, The Apocalypse of Baruch, The Book of Jubilees, The Assumption of Moses, The Psalms of Solomon, Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, The Sibylline Oracles, etc.). The canonical Book of Revelation is both similar to the other apocalyptic writings and different from them in important ways. Ways Revelation Is Similar To Other Apocalyptic Writings Like the other books of its genre, Revelation was written during a time of intense persecution of believers. Suffering has been a recurrent feature of the history of the people of God. Some scholars have referred to apocalyptic works in general as tracts for hard times. Revelation was clearly written at just such a time of difficulty for Christians. The author describes himself as his readers companion in the tribulation (1:9). One of the recipient churches had lost a member to martyrdom (2:13), and others were warned of impending tribulation, imprisonment, and testing (2:10; 3:10). One of the main themes of the predictive portion of the book is that great suffering lies ahead, and martyrdom is a recurring theme. Ways Revelation Is Similar To Other Apocalyptic Writings Another obvious similarity between the canonical Apocalypse and its uninspired counterparts is the use of vivid images and symbols (monsters and dragons, symbolic numbers and names, etc.) in depicting the conflict between good and evil. A failure to take full account of this feature has led to some of the most outlandish teachings on this book by some whose rule of interpretation is literal, unless absurd. Though this is a good rule when dealing with literature written in a literal genre, it is the exact opposite in the case of apocalyptic literature, where symbolism is the rule, and literalism the exception. Page 2 of 10
Ways Revelation Is Similar To Other Apocalyptic Writings As in other apocalypses, certain numbers in Revelation convey concepts more than merely count units. The most evident of these is seven the number of completeness or perfection (compare Deut. 28:7, 25; Ps. 12:6; 119:164; Prov. 9:1; 24:16). In Revelation, there are seven churches, seven seals, seven trumpets, seven bowls, seven thunders, seven beatitudes, etc. Fractions like one-third and multiples of twelve (24,144,000) are used in ways that transcend their value as mathematical units. Also, it seems unwise to press for literal interpretations of time periods in many cases. Very arguably, 1000 years means a very long time (as in Ps. 90:4 and 2 Pet. 3:8), contrasted with passages where 10 days (2:10), one hour (17:12), and the indefinite a little while (20:3) would seem to convey the concept of a short time in equally nonspecific terms. Key Ways Revelation Is Different From Other Apocalyptic Writings Unlike other Jewish apocalyptic books, however, Revelation claims to be inspired by God as a prophecy. The Christian church has recognized God s inspiration of this book and has, for that reason, recognized it as part of the complete canon of Scripture. Other apocalyptic writings have not been so recognized by the historic Christian church. Revelation also identifies by name its true author, while other apocalyptic authors generally adopted pseudonyms, claiming to have been written by famous persons of previous centuries, such as Enoch or Solomon. Key Ways Revelation Is Different From Other Apocalyptic Writings Revelation actually predicts the future, while noncanonical apocalyptic writings merely appear to do so. When, for example, they use as a pseudonym a famous figure like Solomon, they write from the perspective of that figure s own time. From that time, the apocalyptic book appears to write about the future, leading up to the actual time in which that book was actually produced. Actually, the predictions are a retelling of recent history. The Book of Revelation, however, actually is what it claims to be: an epistle in the apocalyptic mode that predicts events of the future under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Who Wrote It? There was no dispute among the apostolic fathers as to the authorship of the Revelation. The author identifies himself four times simply as John (1:1, 4; 21:2; 22:8). The earliest fathers e.g., Justin Martyr (d.165), Irenaeus (c.180), Clement of Alexandria (d. 215), Tertullian (d. 220) unanimously identified this author with John, the son of Zebedee, one of the twelve apostles, and the beloved disciple of Christ, to whom the writing of the fourth Gospel and three epistles is also attributed. Page 3 of 10
Date & Historical Setting To understand any New Testament book, it is valuable to establish the time it was written and to sketch pertinent features of its historical and cultural context. In deciding among the various possible approaches to Revelation in particular, such considerations can be altogether determinative. As mentioned above, the Book of Revelation was written during a time of persecution and trial for the recipient churches. It seems to have been written with a mind to encourage the believers that, though they may be called upon to suffer, or even die, for their faith, yet their vindication (and the doom of those who persecute them) is sure and not far off. Date & Historical Setting The book would be a useful encouragement regardless when it was written, since the church has often been called upon to suffer, and the vision of the reigning Lamb and the vindicated martyrs transcends local, contemporary situations. Most commentators believe that the magnitude of the crisis described in Revelation requires that we identify it with one of the Imperial persecutions of the Roman emperors. Date & Historical Setting Altogether, there were ten emperors who are believed to have persecuted Christians. Only two of them, however, did so within the lifetime of John namely Nero, who reigned from a.d. 54 to 68, and Domitian, who reigned from A.D. 81 to 96. Most modern scholars appear to favor a later date in the time of Domitian for the writing of Revelation, placing it at about A.D. 96. There have been many advocates of note, though, who have defended an earlier date in the reign of Nero. Many evangelicals taking the preterist approach to Revelation favor the earlier date, since that would make the book predate the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. This leaves the possibility open that the book may be predicting that event. However, not all who have defended the early date (pre-a.d. 69) have been preterists. There seem to be impressive arguments and impressive advocates for both dates. Analysis of the Four Approaches The four historic approaches to interpreting the book of Revelation may be defined as follows: (1) There is the Preterist Interpretation of the Revelation, (2) the Historicist interpretation, (3) the Idealist/Spiritual interpretation, (4) the Futurist interpretation of the Revelation. The Preterist Interpretation of the Book of Revelation A. Description of this Approach Page 4 of 10
The word "Preterist", if used as a noun, describes means one who is chiefly concerned with the past. When the word preterist is used as an adjective, it describes something that is focused on the past. A Preterist interpretation of the book of Revelation holds that most of the prophecies of the book have already been fulfilled, that they were fulfilled shortly after the writer, John, first penned them. In a sense, one might say that there is an element of futurism, in that it truly was future to John, but from our perspective, it relates to history. Hence, we might say, in a technical sense that preterism is futuristic to John, yet historical to us. The Preterist Interpretation of the Book of Revelation B. Examples of Interpretation from a Preterist Approach Preterists take literally the words of Revelation 1:1, "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified [it] by his angel unto his servant John." They would say the same of Revelation 22:10, which reads: "And he said to me, "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near." Some preterist interpreters believe that the prophecies of the book of Revelation were largely fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem that occurred in AD 70. The Preterist Interpretation of the Book of Revelation C. Strengths and Weaknesses of the Approach 1. Strengths: They are able to interpret literally, what seem to be quite clear statements about the soon fulfillment of prophecies as taught by the Lord Himself and His Apostles. The interpretation of the Revelation from a Preterist standpoint is able to demonstrate an immediate relevance for the original readers, i.e. the churches of Asia Minor. I cannot overstate this point. I believe that any interpretation of the Revelation has to have made sense to the original readers for whom the book was written. The Preterist Interpretation of the Book of Revelation The interpretation of the Revelation by Preterists reflects many parallels with non- Christian historic records of the first century. Josephus was a Jewish man who was loyal to Rome. He was an eyewitness of the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. The book of Revelation can be shown to have foretold details that are strikingly parallel with Josephus account. A Preterist interpretation of the book is able to show that it parallels the prophetic words of our Lord in His Olivet discourse in Mark 13, Matthew 24, and Luke 21, in which He foretold of the soon destruction of Jerusalem and the Jewish temple. Some have suggested that the fact that the Olivet discourse was Page 5 of 10
not included in the Gospel of John because we have an expanded version of it here in the book of Revelation. In addition, as some suggest, the various outpourings of the wrath of God we see in the book are reminiscent of the curses of the covenant found in the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy. I will be exploring that element in a future work. The Preterist Interpretation of the Book of Revelation 2. Weaknesses The primary weakness of the position is that it depends completely on Revelation having been written before AD 70. D. The Current Standing of this Position The Preterist approach to interpretation of the Revelation is growing in number and influence. Do be aware that there has arisen in recent times a form of preterism, one that many call heretical. This group believes that all prophetic elements including the second coming of Christ and the resurrection occurred with the events of 70 AD. This unorthodox view is also called "full preterism." Historicist Interpretation of the Book of Revelation A. Description of this Approach A Historicist approach to interpretation of the Revelation sees the book prophesying events that transpire over the course of the entire church age. The book of Revelation, they would say, is a foretelling of all history from the time of the first coming of Christ unto the end of the age. Historicist Interpretation of the Book of Revelation B. 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. Historicist Interpretation of the Book of Revelation Strengths and Weaknesses of the Approach 1. Strengths This has been the most predominant approach to interpreting the Book of Revelation by Bible believers down through history. Essentially all of the Reformers and evangelical leaders used this approach until toward the end of the last century. Page 6 of 10
The apparent evidence of its legitimacy. History has seemed to parallel some of the descriptions of events found within Revelation. Historicist Interpretation of the Book of Revelation 2. Weaknesses If the book of Revelation were to be seen in this way, it would mean that the book had little or no meaning to the churches of Asia Minor to whom it was first written and sent. The subjective nature of assigning meaning to the symbols is unavoidable. No two, independent Historicists can agree on the meaning of the symbols from the text alone. There is the tendency to see the culmination of history in one s own time. There was a tendency to see the fulfillment only from Western European church history. D. The Current Standing of this Position It is an approach that is not currently popular, although there has been a resurgence of a newer form of historicism recently that awaits the coronation of a future naming of the 3rd and final antichrist pope. Idealist/Spiritual Interpretation of the Book of Revelation A. Description of this Approach This method of interpreting the Revelation does not look for individual or specific fulfillment of the prophecies of the book; rather, the Revelation is perceived to contain spiritual lessons and principles that may find recurrent expression in history. What is being conveyed in the book of Revelation, it is claimed, is the reality of spiritual warfare that is always being waged. Major themes are to be seen in which the Christian may receive assistance and encouragement. Idealist/Spiritual Interpretation of the Book of Revelation B. Examples of Interpreting Passages from an Idealist/Spiritual Approach The beast rising out of the sea (Rev. 13:1) signifies satanically-inspired political opposition to the church at any time in history, whether it is Rome toward the churches of Asia Minor, or the Soviet Union toward Christians during its power. The beast from the land (Rev. 13:1) signifies the opposition of pagan or corrupt religion to true Christianity. The harlot is representative of all apostate or heretical Christianity. Idealist/Spiritual Interpretation of the Book of Revelation C. Strengths and Weaknesses of the Approach 1. Strengths In this way, the message of the book could be applicable to believers of any period of history. It circumvents the problem of having to identify specific fulfillment to individual visions. Idealist/Spiritual Interpretation of the Book of Revelation 2. Weaknesses The book of Revelation specifically says that it deals with specific historic events that would soon take place: Rev 1:1, "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God Page 7 of 10
gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified [it] by his angel unto his servant John." And again, in Rev 22:6, "And he said unto me, these sayings [are] faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to show unto his servants the things which must shortly be done. Idealist/Spiritual Interpretation of the Book of Revelation D. The Current Standing of this Position Most commentators, even those who use the other three approaches, resort to mixing this method with their own. One would have to use this method if the book of Revelation is to be used legitimately to encourage struggling and persecuted Christians in every historical period and situation. A. Description of this Approach The Futurist approach to interpretation of the Revelation sees the book prophesying events that are largely future to all but those living just before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. The book of Revelation, they would say, is for the most part a foretelling of events that will not begin to transpire until the end of the current age shortly before the Second Coming of Christ. Futurists divide the book's contents based on their understanding of Revelation 1:19, in which John is told: "Write the things (1) which thou hast seen, and (2) the things which are, and (3) the things which shall be hereafter." They go on to say that Revelation 1 records the things that John had already seen. Revelation 2 & 3, that contain the seven letters to the seven churches, are "the things that are." "The things which shall be hereafter" begins with 4:1 and continues to the end of the book. Their view holds that the book was written so that the prophesied events are recorded in chronological order. B. Examples of Interpreting Passages from a Futurist Approach Revelation 4:1 is viewed as a future rapture of the church. The bulk of the Revelation from chapter 4 onwards speaks of a final seven year tribulation period from which Christians have escaped. This time will culminate in the Second Coming of Christ in which He will judge the world, set up an earthly 1,000 year kingdom on earth in which a renewed state of Israel will be pre-eminent. Virtually all the details of the book are to be taken literally. There will be hail storms in which hail stones will weigh 100 pounds. One third of the oceans will turn to blood. A third of the fish will die and a third of the ships will sink. There will be literal locusts that sting like literal scorpions. There will be required at sometime in the future a literal mark on every forehead or hand of everyone that desires to buy anything. Now, I will not say that these things will not happen, but this position says that it must happen in just this way. Page 8 of 10
There is no possibility that these things may have been symbolic of things that the first readers may have encountered under Roman persecution. These things are all seen to be yet future. C. Strengths and Weaknesses of the Approach 1. Strengths It is currently the most widely held approach of modern evangelicals. The position claims to take the book "literally", something that is certainly desirable when interpreting the Bible. 2. Weaknesses The futurist interpretation of the Revelation renders the bulk of the book as inapplicable to any Christian of any time. Since apart from chapters 1-3 the book records events after the church is removed, not only do the details of the book have no direct relevance for the churches of Asia Minor at the end of the first century, they have no relevance for us Christians as well, for according to their understanding we will be gone. There is the great danger of subjective interpretation. One can never refute even the most bizarre futurist assertions of what the book predicts will happen. Futurists over the past 150 years have been able to give interpretations of the book in the light of their own current events. The book is claimed to have prophesied Huey helicopters, a red Chinese army of 200,000,000 in number, the attack of Israel by Russia, which is made possible, by the way, of Russia recently building a dam at the headwaters of the Euphrates River. The book is said to prophesy the revival of the Roman Empire in the modern European Common Market. In this book, they claim, we can read of the prophecy of the computer chip, satellite technology, television, and a world-wide cashless economy. The Antichrist has been variously identified as Napoleon, Hitler, Mussolini, John Kennedy, Henry Kissinger, and Ronald Reagan. There is a refusal to see that any of the details of the Revelation may have already been fulfilled in the lives of the original recipients of the book. Everything is presumed unquestionably to be unfulfilled yet. Some reject the futurist approach on the basis of its origin. It was first introduced in 1585 by a Spanish Jesuit, Francisco Riberia. He originated the approach of placing the Antichrist as a future end-time individual who would yet rise to power. He did this in order to refute the Historicist teaching of the Reformers that the Pope was the Antichrist. From a theological perspective, there are both Christological and Covenantal issues that are unable to be reconciled. D. The Current Standing of this Position Page 9 of 10
This method is what drives the end-time book selling craze. There are hundreds of Christian books in print that each give their scenario of current events that "were predicted" in the Revelation. This position will remain the most dominant position for a long time to come because it has great popular appeal, it certainly lines the coffers, and it is supported by the majority of the most popular (modern) evangelical speakers and writers. Concluding Remarks; Interpretive Principles A. A legitimate method of interpretation must be one that arrives at conclusions that the original recipients of the letter would have found understandable and applicable. B. There should be an avoidance of subjective assigning of meaning to the symbols when one interprets the Revelation. One should be very cautious and skeptical before embracing someone's teaching about this book. Concluding Remarks; Interpretive Principles C. No one position is consistently "literal." And by the way, literal does not necessarily mean material. Some say (the Futurists) that they are the only position that interprets this book of the Bible "literally." Although they may take the book more literally than the other positions, they, too, do their spiritualizing (e.g. their teaching that Rev. 4:1 teaches the rapture of the church). In fact, they may be charged with hyper-literalization--taking literal what was intended by God to be understood symbolically. Concluding Remarks; Interpretive Principles D. Ultimately, however, all of the positions agree that the book of Revelation displays God as the Sovereign over all of His creation and that He has given the task to His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to bring history to its consummation. Through the power of God and the Second Coming of Christ, God's people will one day experience their full redemption. They will be vindicated for their faith and rewarded for their suffering. They will enjoy eternal life in an ideal new heavens and earth. On the other hand, all those who are unbelievers and are opposed to God's rule over them will suffer their fate of eternal punishment and banishment from God and His people. All interpreters agree that this is the teaching of this book. Page 10 of 10