Revelation

Composition

The book of Revelation is a work of apocalyptic literature that was likely written about the year 95. Its author identifies himself as John, but his true identity remains a mystery. Many early Christian scholars believed that John was the apostle John, one of the twelve companions of Jesus and the author of the Gospel and epistles bearing his name. Christian tradition holds that John was the only one of the twelve apostles to avoid martyrdom and die of natural causes. Some accounts say he lived to the age of ninety-five, which would have made it possible for him to compose Revelation.

However, modern scholars doubt that John the apostle was the author of the work. The John of Revelation says that he wrote his prophecy while on the Greek island of Patmos. He never indicates that he was an apostle of Jesus, which was something scholars believe he would have mentioned if he was an apostle. For example, in the Gospel of John, the author refers to himself as the “disciple whom Jesus loved,” or “the disciple who is testifying about these things.” In Revelation, the author refers to himself only as “John, your brother and companion.” In addition, the writing style, grammar, and vocabulary in Revelation differs significantly from the writing in the gospel.

The John of Revelation is often believed to be another early Christian teacher named John the Elder. This John was likely from the Greek city of Ephesus and may have preached about the same time as John the apostle. Some scholars even believe that John the Elder used the fame of John the apostle to promote his own reputation, which may have further blurred the identity of the two men in the historical context. If John the Elder wrote Revelation, he may have left his identity vague intentionally to invite speculation that the book was written by the apostle John.

Another theory holds that the Revelation was written by an author who used the pen name “John.” The author wrote with some authority to the early Christian churches, suggesting that he may have been a figure of some importance, possibly even a disciple of John. It is also possible he used the name to invite a connection to the apostle.

Summary

Revelation opens with John claiming that he received a vision while banished on the island of Patmos. He sees the resurrected Jesus who tells him to write letters and send them to the seven churches of Asia Minor. In the letters, Jesus warns Christians to follow his law and praises those who have endured persecution.

The author then sees a vision of a heavenly throne, upon which a radiant figure sits holding a scroll with seven seals. Only Jesus, who appears as a slain lamb, can open the scroll. The lamb takes the scroll and breaks the first seal, releasing a rider on a white horse who goes forth as a conqueror. The second seal unleashes a red horse, whose rider is war. The third brings forth the black horse of famine, and the fourth the pale horse of death.

Upon the opening of the fifth seal, John sees the souls of the martyred Christians crying out for justice. The sixth seal brings a deadly cataclysm, causing a great earthquake and the sun to turn black, the moon to turn blood red, and the stars to fall from the heavens.

When the seventh seal is opened, Heaven goes quiet. Afterwards, seven angels are given seven trumpets. As each trumpet sounds, additional disasters befall Earth. Fire and hail fall from the sky, the oceans turn to blood, the sun, moon, and stars become dark. Additionally, Earth is covered with locusts and angels are released to kill a third of humanity.

After the seventh trumpet is sounded, John has more visions. Among them is a pregnant woman about to give birth and a large red dragon with seven heads and ten horns. As the dragon waits to devour the woman’s newborn, the child is taken up by God. Then, a great war begins in Heaven between God’s angels and the dragon, but the dragon and his servants are defeated and cast down to Earth. At that point, John sees a great beast rise from the sea. The beast has seven heads with ten horns and resembles a leopard with the feet of a bear and mouth of a lion.

The dragon gives the beast authority over humanity and allows it to wage war on those faithful to God. John then sees another beast appear from Earth. This beast has two horns like a sheep but speaks the words of the dragon. This creature uses false prophecy and wonderous signs to trick humanity into worshiping the first beast. It also forces everyone to have the beast’s name imprinted on their hands or forehead. This “mark of the beast” is a name representing a man. John says that it is represented by the number 666.

Seven angels then appear carrying seven bowls filled with God’s wrath. As the angels pour out their bowls, plagues are inflicted on the followers of the beast. Then, demonic spirits gather the kings of Earth for a final battle against God’s forces. The site of the battle is a place called Armageddon.

When the seventh angel pours out his bowl, the world is shattered by a great earthquake that destroys whole cities and levels mountains. John then has a vision of Jesus riding a white horse leading a divine army against the forces of evil. Jesus and his army slaughter their enemies and defeat the beast and his servant, throwing them both into the lake of fire.

The dragon is captured and imprisoned in the abyss for one thousand years. During this time, those who have been killed because they refused to follow the beast are resurrected and reign with Jesus. When the thousand years end, the dragon will suffer a final defeat and all the world’s dead will be raised to face a last judgment.

The wicked are cast into the lake of fire while God rewards the righteous with a new Heaven and a new Earth. John sees a new city of Jerusalem, shining like a beautiful jewel as it comes down from Heaven. Death, suffering, and sadness do not exist in this new paradise.

The book ends with a warning from John that the events he has described are imminent. He cautions people to be on guard and prepare for Jesus’s return, which he says will occur soon.

Themes

Revelation is an example of apocalyptic literature, a style of writing heavily steeped in symbolism and that seems to foretell events concerning the end of the world. Modern readers of Revelation often interpret the book as a prophetic “blueprint” for future events. However, scholars caution against this thinking. They point out that Revelation was aimed at an early Christian audience who would have been uniquely familiar with the writing style and symbols used by the author. The Christians would easily have been able to “decode” Revelation, whereas modern readers often struggle with the text.

Many of the images from Revelation are drawn from other apocalyptic books from the Old Testament. For example, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse—conquest, war, famine, and death—were first mentioned in the books of Zechariah and Ezekiel. The seven-headed horned beast that rises from the sea is a reference to the four beasts from the book of Daniel. These were a lion with the wings of an eagle, a bear, a winged leopard, and a creature with ten horns. Daniel’s beasts were meant to represent four great empires of the ancient world. The seven heads on the beast in Revelation are believed to represent Roman emperors. John’s reference to the beast’s number as 666 has been interpreted as representing the emperor Nero, who persecuted Christians until his death in the year 68. In ancient Hebrew, each letter had a corresponding numerical value. When the Greek name for Nero Caesar was translated into Hebrew, its value adds up to 666. Some scholars interpret the “mark” of the beast to be the image of the Roman emperors who were stamped on the empire’s coins.

Numbers as symbols are also very important in Revelation. The number seven appears numerous times in the book—seven churches, seven trumpets, seven seals, etc. In the ancient world, the number seven was symbolic of perfection. The reference to the seven heads of the beast could also refer to the seven hills of the city of Rome.

Much of Revelation deals with the themes of persecution and justice. The book was written at a time when early Christians had just endured Nero’s persecution. Their faith was often questioned and disparaged by many Romans. Christians also believed that when Jesus promised to return, he would do so in their lifetimes. However, sixty years after his death, Jesus had not returned.

Scholars believe that John wrote Revelation as a sign to Christians to remain steadfast in their faith and endure persecution. The book is meant to remind Christians that Jesus will return one day in glory, vanquish evil, and punish those who have been persecuting the faithful. Ultimately, John says that God’s justice will triumph over the forces of Satan and those opposed to Christianity.

Bibliography

Chilton, Brian. “The Mark of the Beast: A Biblical and Theological Approach.” Cross Examined, 25 Jan. 2021, crossexamined.org/the-mark-of-the-beast-a-biblical-and-theological-approach/. Accessed 15 Apr. 2022.

Koester, Craig, ed. The Oxford Handbook of the Book of Revelation. Oxford University Press, 2020.

“Revelation 1.” Bible Gateway, www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%201&version=NIV. Accessed 15 Apr. 2022.

“Revelation.” United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2022, bible.usccb.org/bible/revelation/0. Accessed 15 Apr. 2022.

“Revelation 21-22: A New Heaven & A New Earth.” BibleProject, 2018, bibleproject.com/blog/new-heaven-new-earth/. Accessed 15 Apr. 2022.

“7 Tips for Understanding Revelation.” Zondervan Academic, 29 Sept. 2017, zondervanacademic.com/blog/how-read-revelation. Accessed 15 Apr. 2022.

Smith, Kenan. “Who was John, the Elder?” Eyes To See The Revelation, 14 Sept. 2021, eyestoseetherevelation.com/who-was-john-the-elder/. Accessed 15 Apr. 2022.

White, L. Michael. “Understanding The Book of Revelation.” PBS, 2014, www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/apocalypse/revelation/white.html. Accessed 15 Apr. 2022.