John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne . 8. Corrections? (8:67), Second Trumpet: Something that resembles a great mountain, burning with fire, falls from the sky and lands in the ocean. Early-date advocates hold that Revelation was written by John prior to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in A.D. 70. Admonished to repent for allowing a "prophetess" to promote sexual immorality and to eat things sacrificed to idols. [17], The predominant view is that Revelation alludes to the Old Testament, although it is difficult among scholars to agree on the exact number of allusions or the allusions themselves. "[68] The three angels of Revelation 14 represent the people who accept the light of God's messages and go forth as his agents to sound the warning throughout the length and breadth of the earth. (21:28), Description of the New Jerusalem. 1, p. 491. [109] Thus, the letter (written in the apocalyptic genre) is pastoral in nature (its purpose is offering hope to the downtrodden),[112] and the symbolism of Revelation is to be understood entirely within its historical, literary, and social context. Clement of Alexandria (A.D. 150 215) confirms that John had been on the Island of Patmos. Tradition has considered this person to be John the Apostle, the son of Zebedee. No other author in the New Testament spoke in this manner of his personal relationship with Jesus as John did! Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believe that the warning contained in Revelation 22:1819[80][non-primary source needed] does not refer to the biblical canon as a whole. Proud member [113], Much of Revelation employs ancient sources, primarily but not exclusively from the Old Testament. [9][13], The book is commonly dated to about AD 95, as suggested by clues in the visions pointing to the reign of the emperor Domitian. (6:34), Third Seal: A black horse appears, whose rider has "a pair of balances in his hand", where a voice then says, "A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and [see] thou hurt not the oil and the wine." It states that John, "bore witness to the word of God, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to all things that he saw.". The book gives a picture of what will happen as we close the doors on human history as we know it and we look forward with anticipation to Jesus second coming. It is important to recall that he was the disciple whom Jesus loved (John 13:23; 20:2; 21:7, 20). The Book of Revelation was written sometime around 96 CE in Asia Minor. Persecution of Christians reached a peak during Emperor Domitians reign (A.D. 81-96). Revelation is a pastoral letter written to the church at large to real people then living (1:4, 11). First, we will address the question, Who wrote the book of Revelation? The internal evidence of the book of Revelation is very important since the Word of God is without error and is the only source of truth. 187, 191, 193. [citation needed]. Some scholars suggest that the influence of this event is not captured in one instance in Johns gospel account. 1. "[101], Recently, aesthetic and literary modes of interpretation have developed, which focus on Revelation as a work of art and imagination, viewing the imagery as symbolic depictions of timeless truths and the victory of good over evil. ), "Collected New Essays in Comparative Religion", S Moyise p. 13 reports no work whatsoever done between 1912 and 1984, Ian Boxall The Revelation of St John London: Continuum & Peabody MA: Hendrickson (2006) p. 254, G. K. Beale John's use of the Old Testament in Revelation Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press (1998) p. 109, Brandon D. Smith, "The Trinity in the Book of Revelation: Seeing Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in Johns Apocalypse" (IVP Academic, 2022), Historicist interpretations of the Book of Revelation, Historicism (Christianity) Seventh-day Adventists, Apocalypse of John dated astronomically, Textual variants in the Book of Revelation, "Letter of Innocent I on the Canon of Scripture", "Tertullian: Decretum Gelasianum (English translation)", "Eccumenical Council of Florence and Council of Basel", "Church Fathers: Council of Carthage (A.D. 419)", "Pope Benedict: Read Book of Revelation as Christ's victory over evil International Catholic Online", Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States, "Seventh-day Adventist 28 Fundamental Beliefs", "The Final Consummation: American Bah's, Millerites and Biblical Time Prophecy", "Bah' Reference Library - Some Answered Questions, Pages 45-61", "Bart Ehrman Discusses the Apocalypticist", "The Book of Revelation: Plagues as Part of the Eschatological Human Condition", Journal for the Study of the New Testament, Safety of high-energy particle collision experiments, Existential risk from artificial intelligence, Self-Indication Assumption Doomsday argument rebuttal, Self-referencing doomsday argument rebuttal, List of dates predicted for apocalyptic events, List of apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Book_of_Revelation&oldid=1152475333, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles containing Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2015, All articles containing potentially dated statements, All articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases, Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases from September 2021, Articles with unsourced statements from June 2015, Articles with unsourced statements from October 2016, Articles incorporating a citation from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia with Wikisource reference, Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from The American Cyclopaedia, Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from The American Cyclopaedia with a Wikisource reference, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0. John was persecuted because he was fulfilling his mission, preaching the gospel and making disciples. This list mentions it as a part of the New Testament canon. The sun and sky [are] darkened by the smoke from the Abyss" (9:2). Apparently Jesus wanted John to write letters to the seven churches in the Roman province of Asia (Rev 1:4) that were literal churches at the time John wrote this. John wrote down what he saw in Jesus' Revelation whilst he was on Patmos. [28], Dionysius (AD 248), bishop of Alexandria and disciple of Origen, wrote that the Book of Revelation could have been written by Cerinthus although he himself did not adopt the view that Cerinthus was the writer. In this interpretation the primary agenda of the book is to expose as impostors the worldly powers that seek to oppose the ways of God and God's Kingdom. The Seven Spiritual Figures. Finally, dating Revelation during Neros reign does not allow time for Johns ministry in Asia Minor to reach the point at which the authorities would have felt the need to exile him.[12]. 81. John was one of the twelve disciples, but he was also part of the inner circle along with Peter and James. Here is how it happened in Johns words: On the Lords Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, which said: Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea (Revelation 1:10-11). [110] For example, narrative critics examine characters and characterization, literary devices, settings, plot, themes, point of view, implied reader, implied author, and other constitutive features of narratives in their analysis of the book. (12:34). John of Revelation was one of the 12 disciples of Jesus. The internal evidence states that John is the author of the entire book of Revelation. The only other clue to the author's identity is that he states he received his visions while on the island of Patmos (Rev. The author of the first letter is not identified, but the writer of the second and third calls himself "presbyter" (elder). Where Did John Write Revelation? John was persecuted because he was fulfilling his mission, preaching the gospel and making disciples. Letters of John, abbreviation John, three New Testament writings, all composed sometime around 100 ce and traditionally attributed to St. John the Apostle, son of Zebedee and disciple of Jesus. Even in A.D. 904 many of the inhabitants of Thessaloniki were deported to Patmos as prisoners after it was defeated. He is the author ofThe Pursuit of Purpose which will help you understand how God leads you into his will. One of these he called "the sovereignty of the intellect"[105] which he saw in a technology-based totalitarian society. . The curse of sin is ended. (19:1121), The Dragon is imprisoned in the Bottomless Pit for a thousand years. Athanasius (AD 367) in his Letter 39,[34] Augustine of Hippo (c.AD 397) in his book On Christian Doctrine (Book II, Chapter 8),[35] Tyrannius Rufinus (c.AD 400) in his Commentary on the Apostles' Creed,[36] Pope Innocent I (AD 405) in a letter to the bishop of Toulouse[37] and John of Damascus (about AD 730) in his work An Exposition of the Orthodox Faith (Book IV:7)[38] listed "the Revelation of John the Evangelist" as a canonical book. These then belong among the accepted writings [Homologoumena]. That person was John. I hold that Revelation was produced prior to the death of Nero in June, A.D. 68, and even before the formal engagement of the Jewish War by Vespasian in Spring, A.D. 67. .[3]. Prophecy with political implications, like that expressed by John in the book of Revelation, would have been perceived as a threat to Roman political power and order. Imagine if you lived in the 1930s and you had to describe at that time the internet, smartphones or even drones. However, sometime after the child is born, he is caught up to God's throne while the Woman flees into the wilderness into her place prepared of God that they should feed her there for 1,260 days (, A Beast (with seven heads, ten horns, and ten crowns on his horns and on his heads names of blasphemy) emerges from the Sea, having one mortally wounded head that is then healed. Praised for holding "fast to My name", not denying "My faith" even in the days of, Admonished to repent for having held the doctrine of. This external evidence supports the internal evidence that the apostle wrote the book of Revelation while he was imprisoned on the Island of Patmos. A Zoroastrian influence is completely plausible". The book of Revelation was written around AD 95. In Oxford Handbook of Biblical Narrative, ed. Christian tradition has considered the Book of Revelation's writer to be John the Evangelist (himself identified as John the Apostle ), purported author of the Gospel of John. Historicist interpretations see Revelation as containing a broad view of history while preterist interpretations treat Revelation as mostly referring to the events of the Apostolic Age (1st century), or, at the latest, the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century. Among such offenses were the practices of magic and astrology. Others have pointed to aspects of composition which have been ignored such as the similarities of prophetic inspiration to modern poetic inspiration, or the parallels with Greek drama. prematurely. 10. He's the same John who wrote the Gospel of John and the Epistles of 1st John, 2nd John and 3rd John in the New Testament. In the first chapter, the risen and exalted Christ is speaking to John. Consequently when the author speaks of Jesus as the One who loves us, it is a clue that this is the apostle John. When you read Revelation, nowhere in the book does it state that John is in exile or imprisoned. Among the rejected [Kirsopp. The Revelation of Jesus Christ is communicated to John through prophetic visions. God has nothing but the best planned for those who love him. [87] Various Christian anarchists, such as Jacques Ellul, have identified the State and political power as the Beast[88] and the events described, being their doings and results, the aforementioned 'wrath'. The tradition of John's exile was started by Augustine about 200 years after John lived. Notice that in the following quote Eusebius states that to do the same thing that the latter did refers to Nero. Tertullian also has mentioned Domitian in the following words: Domitian also, who possessed a share of Neros cruelty, attempted once to do the same thing that the latter did. Revelation has been approached from Hindu philosophy and Jewish Midrash. The obscure and extravagant imagery has led to a wide variety of Christian interpretations. His lasting contribution has been to show how prophets, such as the scribe of Revelation, are much more meaningful when treated as poets first and foremost. Christian Gnostics "believed in the Forgiveness of Sins, but in no vicarious sacrifice for sin they accepted Christ in the full realisation of the word; his life, not his death, was the keynote of their doctrine and their practice. Every mountain and island is moved out of place (6:14). They are given white robes and told to rest until the martyrdom of their brothers is completed. Knowing who wrote Revelation, the apostle John, knowing the message of Revelation that Jesus is coming soon, ask yourself now: Whats next? The tradition of John's exile was started by Augustine about 200 years after John lived. John wrote in this way not merely because the Lord Jesus had ascended and gone back to the glory. Her view that Revelation's message is not gender-based has caused dissent. The stars of heaven fall to the earth and the sky recedes like a scroll being rolled up (6:1314). The author of the book of Revelation calls himself John (Rev. [6]. . This clearly reveals that the person identified as John is the author of the book. John then refers to himself as I once again in verse 10. Early tradition says that John was banished to Patmos by the Roman authorities. Prophecy was viewed by the Romans as belonging to the same category, whether Pagan, Jewish, or Christian. Revelation is the final chapter. The angel showing John the vision of the Harlot and the scarlet Beast reveals their identities and fates (17:118), The people of the Earth (the kings, merchants, sailors, etc.) His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. Finally, he ends with the beauty of heaven and the wonderful things God has in store for those who love him. John describes in detail a period of tribulation that will come upon the earth, that will be unmatched when compared to any other time in human history. It was written in Aramaic." In light of this truth, the question that remains, that only you can answer, is how will you live your life? Those who claim that Nero and Domitian were interchangeable names for the same person have ignored the obvious. [59], Accordingly, they argue, the Book of Revelation should not be read as an enigmatic warning, but as an encouraging vision of Christ's definitive victory over evil. That means John referred to himself in the first chapters and the last chapter. The bulk of traditional sources date the book to the reign of the Roman emperor Domitian (AD 8196), which evidence tends to confirm.[9][d]. Doctrine and Covenants, section 77, postulates answers to specific questions regarding the symbolism contained in the Book of Revelation. Upon the cry of the angel, seven thunders utter mysteries and secrets that are not to be written down by John. The vision or it's account may or may not have been symbolic imagery. Those who hold this view say that the Temple's destruction (AD 70) had a profound effect on the Jewish people, not only in Jerusalem but among the Greek-speaking Jews of the Mediterranean. The substantiating evidence for any other author than John the Apostle, however, is almost entirely lacking. The name Revelation comes from the first word of the book in Koine Greek: (apokalypsis), which means "unveiling" or "revelation". Dating the Gospel of John to after AD 98: A. 2. During the 3rd century two rival sites at Ephesus claimed the honour of being the apostle's grave. When did John the Baptist write Revelation? "The universal church is composed of all who truly believe in Christ, but in the last days, a time of widespread apostasy, a remnant has been called out to keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. She says humanity is to look behind the symbols rather than make a fetish out of them. (6:56), Fourth Seal: A pale horse appears, whose rider is, Fifth Seal: "Under the altar", appeared the souls of martyrs for the "word of God", who cry out for vengeance. 1995. vol. What John also describes is what happens after that, and then ultimately the judgement of Satan and all who choose not to follow Christ. To learn more about his ministry please visit clarencehaynes.com. [e] Patience is the closest to perfection the human condition allows. Further, in the following quoteEusebius refers to Nerva as Domitians successor. The disputation can perhaps be attributed to Origen. What point of reference or imagery would you use to describe this flying spider looking thing. [69], By reasoning analogous with Millerite historicism, Bah'u'llh's doctrine of progressive revelation, a modified historicist method of interpreting prophecy, is identified in the teachings of the Bah' Faith. In the words of professor Adela Collins, "What ought to be was experienced as a present reality. It was at this time that the apostle John returned from his banishment in the island and took up his abode at Ephesus, according to an ancient Christian tradition.[9]. The message is that everything in Revelation will happen in its previously appointed time. You can read about it in Matthew 17, Mark 9, and Luke 9. [58], They believe the Book of Revelation provides insight into the early Eucharist, saying that it is the new Temple worship in the New Heaven and Earth. (16:3), Third Bowl: All fresh water turns to blood. Revelation to John appears to be a collection of separate units composed by unknown authors who lived during the last quarter of the 1st century, though it purports to have been written by an individual named Johnwho calls himself the servant of Jesusat Patmos, in the Aegean Sea. [citation needed], Yet, with Revelation, the problems might be judged more fundamental. (16:47), Fourth Bowl: The Sun scorches the Earth with intense heat and even burns some people with fire. "[93] Torrey showed how the three major songs in Revelation (the new song, the song of Moses and the Lamb and the chorus at 19: 68) each fall naturally into four regular metrical lines plus a coda. (1) The author identifies himself as "John" without any elaboration and was apparently known by the churches in the seven cities of chapters 2-3.