Revelation
Purpose
Revelation is the Bible's great book of the end, given to "show to his servants the things that must soon take place" and to reveal the sovereign triumph of God and the Lamb over all the powers that rage against his people. Written to seven real churches in Asia Minor by a prophet named John, exiled on Patmos "on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus," it opens with the risen Christ walking among the lampstands and dictating seven letters that diagnose each church's condition with searching accuracy — its love, its endurance, its compromise, its lukewarmness, its patient suffering. The visions that follow draw back the veil of history: the throne of God in heaven, the Lamb worthy to open the scroll, the seven seals, the seven trumpets, the woman and the dragon, the beast and the false prophet, the seven bowls of God's wrath, the fall of "Babylon the great," and the final defeat of every enemy at the appearing of the Rider on the white horse. The book is not a code to be cracked but a sustained call to faithful endurance: the saints conquer by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony, and the book closes with the new heaven and the new earth, the New Jerusalem coming down, the wiping away of every tear, and the prayer, "Come, Lord Jesus."
Author
John, exiled on Patmos, "a servant of Jesus Christ"; traditionally the apostle John
Time Period
Written c. 90-95 AD under Domitian (a date in the 60s under Nero is also argued)
Key Themes
- Christ triumphant
- The seven churches
- Judgement and the fall of Babylon
- The Lamb and the scroll
- Faithful endurance
- The new creation
Outline
Introduction and the letters to the seven churches (ch. 1–3): the risen Christ among the lampstands and the calls to conquer. The throne and the Lamb (ch. 4–5): the worship of heaven and the Lamb worthy to open the scroll. The seven seals and seven trumpets (ch. 6–11): the four horsemen, the sealed multitude, the seven trumpets, and the two witnesses. The great conflict (ch. 12–14): the woman, the dragon, the beast from the sea, the beast from the land, and the 144,000 with the Lamb. The bowls and the fall of Babylon (ch. 15–18): the seven last plagues and the lament and doom of Babylon. The final victory (ch. 19–20): the Rider on the white horse, the supper of God, the binding of the dragon, and the great white throne. The new creation (ch. 21–22): the New Jerusalem, the river of life, the invitation to come, and the promise, "Yes, I am coming soon."