The key to bible interpretation, especially for the book of revelation, is to have a consistent hermeneutic. The book of revelation is strikingly different from the rest of the new testament. Book of revelation explained scripture by scripture. The greek name of the bible book of revelation, apoka. This name indicates the meaning of revelation it uncovers matters that had been hidden and discloses events that would happen long after it was written. He sent an angel to present this revelation to his servant john nlt. The first mention of anything related to babylon is found in genesis 10. Summary of the book of revelation this summary of the book of revelation provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of revelation.
Book of revelation for dummies cheat sheet dummies. The book deals with the afflictions, tribulations and ultimate salvation of gods people and emphasizes that gods vengeance will come upon his enemies. If youre befuddled by the book of revelation in the bible, dont fret. Key personalities include adam, eve, noah, abraham, sarah, isaac, rebekah, jacob, and joseph. Book of revelation overview insight for living ministries. The book of revelation is the final book of the new testament, and consequently is also the. As with all prophecies the revelation also is not easily understood. The last book of the new testament is also called the prophecy book and the revelation of jesus christ.
Youll find four major interpretive approaches to the book of revelation that can help you read, understand, and figure out the apocalyptic letter of john. The book of revelation in the bible is one of the more difficult books of the bible to understand. The discipleapostle john, who followed jesus christ. In this view, the book contains neither historical allusions nor predictive prophecy. So, the divine author of revelation is jesus christ and the human author is the apostle john. Both testaments can be divided into history instruction prophecy revelation is the only book of prophecy in the new testament. It is a revelation that was received by the apostle john while he was in romanimposed exile on the island of patmos in the eastern mediterranean around 90 a. Revelation then becomes merely a collection of stories designed to teach spiritual truth.
The rise and fall of the antichrist appendix four a brief overview of the book of revelation. Book of revelation explained a testimony of jesus christ. The book of revelation contains messages to the ancient churches in which the messages equally apply to the churches of the past two thousand years and up to the churches of today. Book of revelation read, study bible verses online. In fact, a lot of people find it both confusing and frightening, heavily accentuated as it is with allegory and terrifying visions of locusts with a sting like a scorpions and teeth like the teeth of. When one dates the book will certainly have a bearing upon ones interpretation of the book, especially if one follows the preterist view.
The book of revelation starts with this is a revelation from jesus christ, which god gave him to show his servants the events that must soon take place. The literary genres of the book of revelation are an apocalypse, a prophecy, and an epistle or letter. In other words, it is the way you interpret scripture. Take a look at the basic structure of the book of revelation. The real meaning of the bibles book of revelation is a popular, ongoing debate. The book of revelation is one of the most difficult books in the bible. Apocalypticism was not a new phenomenon among christians. John the divine is an example of apocalyptic writing a form that delivers a message using symbols, images and numbers. The old testament books of ezekiel and zechariah contain long apocalyptic segments. Revelation is the last book of the bible and is a prophetic book of the end of the age and the return of christ.
In order to understand it, you need to know a lot of the book of daniel, which is another very difficult book. Andy is the senior pastor of sugar land bible church. Revelation 21 and revelation 22 provide a view that is not widely written of concerning the eternal future for every person whose name is written in the lambs book of life. In the book of revelation, the apocalyptic hopes of the early christian community find their clearest and most complete expression. The apostle of jesus and the author of the gospel of john and the three letters of nt. He was a first cousin of jesus and was exiled to the greek island of patmos because of his faith. The book of revelation book summaries, test preparation. The book of revelation, or the apocalypse as it is also called, is the last book of the bible. Forwardsources summary of the old testament summary of the new testament keypoints of the old testament keypoints of the new testament old testament notes bookbybook.
The book of revelation starts with a warning to the seven churches scattered. The book of revelations, it must be admitted, is perhaps not the lightest read in the bible. The revelation of jesus christ is communicated by an angel to a. A brief overview of the book of revelation the rise and. The angel gives a man named john the book of revelation.
Key to understanding commentaries on revelations is knowing the position of the commentator. It has been used by false teachers and prophets to lead people into doomsday cults. The book of revelation is perhaps the most mysterious book in sacred scripture. The revelation to john new international version the prologue 1. Revelation closes with a vision of the future restored paradise in the new heavens and the new earth where righteous dwell securely forever. In revelation, johns visions reveal that jesus has overcome evil by. The book of revelation, often called the book of revelations, revelation to john, apocalypse of john, the revelation, or simply revelation, the revelation from jesus christ from its opening words or the apocalypse, is the final book of the new testament, and therefore also the final book of the christian bible. Christs letters to churches in sardis, philadelphia and laodicea. This view also ignores revelations prophetic character and, if carried to its logical conclusion, severs the book from any connection with actual historical events. End time notes of reference as to where we are now in the book of revelation. This book was written to record gods creation of the world and. The book of revelation is by far one of the most challenging books in the bible, yet well worth the effort to study and comprehend.
The book finishes with a call for all to obey the message of the book and a warning to those who reject what is taught. Following is a fairly detailed summary of the major turning points and events of the book of revelation. The antichrist destroys the evil city called babylon. The apostle john wrote the book of revelation around the year ad 95 from his exile on the island of patmos. Parts of the old testament, particularly in the book of daniel, are also written in the apocalyptic genre. Hes just a mildmannered christian guy living in exile whenpow. A brief overview of the book of revelation the rise and fall of the. Revelation with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. It also describes the world that will come into being after this earth is destroyed. The discipleapostle john, who followed jesus christ and witnessed his crucifixion, authored it. The genre of genesis is a narrative history, and genealogies. Revelation is filled with obscure and fantastic symbolism, and it teems with mystical references. Very important we note this and realize we cannot study revelation in the same way we study the book of romans. John is told to write down everything god shows him, and boy is god going to show him some strange things.
The punishment of babylon, and the reaction of different groups of people. Supporting scriptural evidence is provided via the respective chapters in revelation for the wise, a detailed scriptural look at revelation the following is intended to assist you in your own reading of revelation and to provide a framework to help you understand it. It is the first book that many new to the bible want to study, while it is often neglected by mature christians. So begins the book of revelation, one of the most challenging books in the bible. This is why it is sometimes called the book with seven seals and is much neglected by many christians.
In the book of revelation, the apocalyptic hopes of the early christian community find their clearest and. The following is the forward and a portion of a chapter from a forthcoming book which, in my view, falls in. A testimony of jesus christ is a commentary that explains some of the mysteries of revelation. Short summary of the book of revelation prophecy talk. The book of revelation also called the revelation of john or the revelation of st. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant john, 2 who testifies to eve rything he sawthat is, the word of god and the testimony of jesus christ. For this reason we will conduct a micro study of babylon from the book of revelation. Watch our overview video on the book of revelation, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. Christs letters to churches in ephesus, smyrna, pergamum and thyatira. Stylometric analysis, a process which analyses an authors style of writing, shows that the book of revelation and johns gospel display more. God hits him with a doozy of a revelation hey, thats not a bad idea for a title.
Nimrod was the first king of babylon, yet it had not been named so yet. The lord jesus christ began opening the seals shortly after he went into heaven to sit with his father on the throne. And there has been much speculation about it some of it bordering on offthewall, but some of it serious and scholarly. It is a revelation that was received by the apostle john.
The book of revelation, a prophecy of warning and hope. In fact, the opening passage contains a blessing to everyone who reads, hears, and keeps the words of this prophecy. The entire book of revelation is devoted to the end of the world and details gods judgments unleashed upon the earth plague by plague. There are some passages in scripture that look forward to this time, but not in the quantity as other topics such as the millennial reign of christ, the tribulation, of. Revelation summary the literary genres of the book of revelation are an apocalypse, a prophecy, and an epistle or letter. The revelation is a very solemn book speaking much about divine judgments but it is also a wonderful book in which we find the completion of gods ways up to eternal glory. Dating when the book was written is not without controversy. Three times, each at a critical break in the sequence of events described in the book of revelation, christ gives more detail to john for clarification. While revelation offers many details on the tribulationeven if they are often couched in the mystery of symbolic languageit is the final four chapters that dictate the overall message of the book. In our previous studies we have seen that revelation chapter 1. A summary of each chapter in the book of revelation. The events of revelation are the events that occur in the book of revelation of the new testament. Revelation 1922 portrays christs future triumph over the forces of evil and his recreation of the world for the redeemed.