1. 1. REVELATIO 1 COMME TARY Written and edited by Glenn Pease I TRODUCTIO MY OTES, Jesus is the author, but John is the writer. Jesus is both the one revealed and the revealer of what is to be. The goal of the book is not to see the future, but to see Him who is Lord of the future and all time. It is more important to know who holds the future than to know what the future holds. Jesus is both the agent and the content of the Revelation. It has no ultimate value if it does not lead you to focus on Him. The revealing of Jesus or the unveiling enables us to see mysteries in a light we could never know without revelation. We cannot discover these things by study and research, but only by the revealed Word of God. From the outset, we are given the most important truth about the Book of Revelation: it does show us the Antichrist, it does show us God's judgment, it does show us calamity on the earth, it does show us Mystery Babylon and all it entails - but most of all, it reveals Jesus Christ to us. If we catch everything else, but miss Jesus in the book, we have missed the book must soon take place.These are not probable things, but things that must take place, and soon. The futurists point out that soon to God can be a long time, for a day is like a thousand years to Him, and so they see this as long range and not in the life time of the first hearers of the revelation as the preterists feel. But the fact is it is a simple statement, and does fit the view that the early Christians had that the end would be soon. See Rom. 13:12 and 1Pet. 4:7 Dr. Ray Summers of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary writes, "I do not believe that any interpretation of Revelation can be correct if it was meaningless and if it failed to bring practical help and comfort to those who first received the book. To start from any other viewpoint is to follow the road which leads away from the truth of the book..." You can spot a lot of foolish ideas easy when you have this perspective. Barclay writes, "As John saw it, the events in it were working themselves out in the immediate happenings and events which were coming upon the world." This little word has been a big issue of debate. Is it God's soon or man's soon? If it is soon for man, then the revelation is primarily for the first century Christians. If it is soon for God, then it can be for any generation, and probably for the last generation of Christians. So the Preterists and the Futurists debate the meaning of this word. It is likely that the books was meant for all Christians. It has to mean something to those who received it first, that is the Christians of the 7 churches. The soon had to be relevant to them or it is meaningless. John is just saying here what his fellow Apostles have already said. Paul writes in Rom. 13:2, "The night is far
2. 2. gone, the day is at hand." Peter in IPet. 4:7 writes, "The end of all things is at hand." In the third verse here, John says the time is near. So it is wise to see the Preterist viewpoint, for something had to happen that fits this revelation to the original readers of it would be false prophecy. This does not mean it has no meaning to all other generations, however, for as George Eldon Ladd says, "It is the nature of Biblical prophecy to make it possible for every generation to live in expectancy of the end." Every generation could be the last and so it is always relevant. THE SEVE CHURCHES. This is the first of 54 sevens in the book. Seven is the number of completeness and wholeness and so the 7 here refers to all churches. The seven are symbolic of the total for all time. But they are real and literal churches. But just as the letter to the Galatians and Ephesians were to literal churches, the message was for all churches for all time. We are reading others peoples mail in reading the ew Testament, but God meant it that way. There were other churches in Asia not mentioned, such as Troas in Acts 20:5-12, Colosse in Col. 1:2 and Hierapolis in Col. 4:13. But all are included in the 7. Paul also wrote letters to just 7 churches:Rome,Corinth,Galatia, Ephesus,Philippi,Colosse,Thessalonica EVERY EYE WILL SEE HIM Has there ever been an event in history that every eye has seen. Time Magazine carried two references to Christ's "second coming" during the epic summer of 1969. One was in the account of man's landing on the moon. It asserted that the only event which could command larger worldwide headlines would be "the second coming." " o man will forsee it, and all men will see it." The second coming is not hidden and obscure like the first coming, but open and public to all the world. There is no secret coming in the Bible, but all references to the second coming are public and universal. 1. Apocalypse: Definitions and Related Terms Prof. Felix Just, S.J. - Loyola Marymount University Preliminary Description of "Apocalypse": In popular terminology today, an "apocalypse" is a catastrophic event (e.g., nuclear holocaust). In biblical teminology, an "apocalypse" is not an event, but a "revelation" that is recorded in written form:
3. 3. it is a piece of crisis literature that reveals truths about the past, present, and/or future in highly symbolic terms; the revelation often comes in dreams or visions, and usually needs to be interpreted with the help of an angel; it is usually intended to provide hope and encouragement for people in the midst of severe trials and tribulations. Caution: "The Apocalypse" is an alternate name (used esp. by Protestants) for "The Book of Revelation" in the New Testament. Also, "The Little Apocalypse" or "The Apocalyptic Discourse" are names sometimes given to Mark 13 (and the parallel passages in Matt 24 and Luke 21), containing the teachings of Jesus about the future of Jerusalem and the end of the world. 2. Technical Definition of "Apocalypse" (from SBL "Apocalypse Group"; published in J. J. Collins, Semeia 14 [1979] 9): " Apocalypse is a genre of revelatory literature with a narrative framework, in which a revelation is mediated by an otherworldly being to a human recipient, disclosing a transcendent reality with is both temporal, insofar as it envisages eschatological salvation, and spatial insofar as it involves another, supernatural world." Definition addition regarding the genres purpose, incorporating suggestions of Hellholm (1982) & Aune (1986): "intended to interpret the present, earthly circumstances in light of the supernatural world and of the future, and to influence both the understanding and the behavior of the audience by means of divine authority." Subdivisions or Types of Apocalypses: Apocalypses can be classified according to features in their CONTENT: Some apocalypses contain "Otherworldly Journeys" (e.g., the seer is purportedly taken on a tour of heaven) Others do not contain "Otherworldly Journeys" (e.g., while seeing heavenly things, the seer stays on earth) Apocalypses can also be classified according to their primary REFERENTS: Some apocalypses deal with Personal Eschatology (the death and after- life of individuals) Others focus more on Ethnic or ational Eschatology (the end of a nation or empire) Many others contain Cosmic Eschatology (the ultimate end of the whole world) Related Terminology: Apocalyptic (adj.) - originally referred to anything revelatory; now usually refers to catastrophic violence or disasters. Apocalypticism - a world view with strong apocalyptic expectations; social movements that expect the end of the world. Eschatology / Eschatological - any teaching about the end times and/or the future
4. 4. world beyond the end of normal time. Prophecy - not foretelling the future; but speaking & acting on behalf of God about past, present or future truths. Revelation - an uncovering of something which has always been true, but previously hidden or unknown to humans. Day of the Lord / Judgment Day - a cosmic event expected in the future, but the specific expectations vary. Parousia - the coming or arrival of any important figure, esp. of Jesus at the end of time, in early Christian expectations. Rapture - a fairly new term for the expectation that faithful Christians will be taken off the earth to live with Jesus, while all other people are not; based on an overly literal misinterpretation of 1Thess 4:15-17. Tribulation - in fundamentalist expectations, a 7-year period of great suffering and turmoil before the Second Coming of Christ; but exactly when the rapture is to occur in relation to the tribulation is disputed among such believers: Pre-Tribulation Rapture - non-believers have to endure the 7-year tribulation, but believers are raptured first; Mid-Tribulation Rapture - believers must endure 3 years of tribulation before they are raptured; Post-Tribulation Rapture - believers must endure the entire 7-year tribulation before they are raptured. Dispensationalism - the belief that world history is divided into a certain number of eras or "dispensations," which usually also implies the belief that one is living in the last (or next-to-last) dispensation before the end of the world and/or the beginning of God's Kingdom. Armageddon / Harmagedon - the place (Megiddo) where the final battle is to occur, according to Rev 16:16 Millennium - any one-thousand year period; or more specifically the thousand year period of peace of Rev 20:1-6. Millennialist / -ism - religious groups that expect Rev 20 to occur literally, and often try to calculate exact times. Cautions: not every Apocalypse is purely eschatological (they may also interpret past or present events, not only the future) not all Eschatology is apocalyptic (some show a future that is peaceful, not violent). 2B. EBC, THE PROLOGUE The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show unto His servants, even the things which must shortly come to pass: and He sent and signified it through His angel unto His servant John; who bare witness of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, even of all things that he saw. Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of the prophecy, and keep the things which are written therein: for the season is at hand (Rev_1:1-3). THE first chapter of Revelation introduces us to the whole book, and supplies in great measure the key by which we are to interpret it. The book is not intended to be a mystery in the sense in which we commonly understand that word. It deals indeed with the
5. 5. future, the details of which must always be dark to us; and it does this by means of figures and symbols and modes of speech far removed from the ordinary simplicity of language which marks the New Testament writers. But it is not on that account designed to be unintelligible. The figures and Symbols employed in it are used with perfect regularity; its peculiar modes of speech are supposed to be at least not unfamiliar to the reader; and it is taken for granted that he under stands them. The writer obviously expects that his meaning, so far from being obscured by his style, will he thereby illustrated, enforced, and brought home to the mind, with greater than ordinary power. The word Revelation by which he describes to us the general character of his work is of itself sufficient to show this. "Revelation" means the uncovering of that which has hitherto been covered, the drawing back of a veil which has hung over a person or thing, the laying bare what has been hitherto concealed; and the book before us is a revelation instead of a mystery. Again, the book is a revelation of Jesus Christ; not so much a revelation of what Jesus Christ Himself is, as one of which He is the Author and Source. He is the Head of His Church, reigning supreme in His heavenly abode. He is the Eternal Son, the Word without whom was not anything made that was made, and who executes all the purposes of the Father, "the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever."l He is at the same time "Head over all things to the Church."2 He regulates her fortunes. He controls in her behalf the events of history. He fills the cup which He puts into her hand with prosperity or adversity, with joy or sorrow, with victory or defeat. Who else can impart a revelation so true, so weighty, and so precious? (1 Joh_5:19; Heb_13:8; 2 Eph_1:22) Yet again, the revelation to be now given by Jesus Christ is one which God gave Him, the revelation of the eternal and unchangeable plan of One who turneth the hearts of kings as the rivers of water, who saith and it is done, who commandeth and it stands fast. Finally, the revelation relates to things that must shortly come to pass, and thus has all the interest of the present, and not merely of a far-distant future. Such is the general character of that revelation which Jesus Christ sent and signified through His angel unto His servant John. And that Apostle faithfully recorded it for the instruction and comfort of the Church. Like his Divine Master, with whom throughout all this book believers are so closely identified, and who is Himself the Amen, the faithful and true witness,* the disciple whom He loved stands forth to bear witness of the word of God thus given him, of the testimony of Jesus thus signified to him, even of all things that he saw. He places himself in thought at the end of the visions he had witnessed, and retraces for others the elevating pictures which had filled, as he beheld them, his own soul with rapture. (* Rev_3:14.) Therefore may he now, ere yet he enters upon his task, pronounce a blessing upon those who shall pay due heed to what he is to say. Does he think of the person by whom the apostolic writings were read aloud in the midst of the Christian congregation? then, Blessed is he that readeth. Does he think of those who listen? then, Blessed are they that hear the words of the prophecy. Or, lastly, does he think not merely of reading and hearing, but of that laying up in the heart to which these were only preparatory? then, Blessed are they that keep the things which are written therein, for the season, the short season in which everything shall be accomplished, is at hand. The Introduction to the book is over; and it may be well to mark for a moment that tendency to divide his matter into three parts which peculiarly distinguishes St. John, and to which, as supplying an important rule of interpretation, we shall often have occasion to refer. There are obviously three parts in the Introduction, - the Source, the Contents, and the Importance of the revelation: and each of these is again divided into three. Three persons are mentioned when the Source is spoken of, - God, Jesus Christ,
6. 6. and the servants of Jesus; three when the Contents are referred to, - the Word of God, the Testimony of Jesus, and All things that he saw; and three when the Importance of the book is described, - He that readeth, They that hear, and They that keep the things written therein. "John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace to you, and peace, from Him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before His throne; and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. Unto Him that loveth us, and loosed us from our sins in His blood; and He made us to be a kingdom, to be priests unto His God and Father; to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. Behold, He cometh with the clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they which pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth shall wail over Him. Even so, Amen. I am the Alpha and the Omega, saith the Lord, God, which is and which was and which is to come, the Almighty (Rev_1:4-8)." From the Introduction we pass to the Salutation, extending from ver. 4 to ver. 8 (Rev_1:4-8). Adopting a method different from that of the fourth Gospel, which is also the production of his pen, the writer of Revelation names himself. The difference is easily explained. The fourth Gospel is original not only in its contents but its form. The Apocalypse is moulded after the fashion of the ancient prophets, and of the numerous apocalyptic authors of the time; and it was the practice of both these classes of writers to place their names at the head of what they wrote. The fourth Gospel was also intended to set forth in a purely objective manner the glory of the Eternal Word made flesh, and that too in such a way that the glory exhibited in Him should authenticate itself, independently of human testimony. The Apocalypse needed a voucher from one known and trusted. It came through the mind of a man, and we naturally ask, Who is the man through whom it came? The enquiry is satisfied, and we are told that it comes from John. In telling us this St. John speaks with the authority which belongs to him. By-and-by we shall see him in another light, occupying a position similar to ours, and standing on the same level with us in the covenant of grace. But at this moment he is the Apostle, the Evangelist, the Minister of God, a consecrated priest in the Christian community who is about to pronounce a priestly blessing on the Church Let the Church bow her head and reverently receive it. The Salutation is addressed to the seven churches which are in Asia. On this point it is enough to say that by the Asia spoken of we are to understand neither the continent of that name, nor its great western division Asia Minor, but only a single district of the latter, of which Ephesus, where St. John spent the later years of his life and ministry, was the capital. There the aged Apostle tended all those portions of the flock of Christ that he could reach, and all the churches of the neighborhood were his peculiar care. We know that these were in number more than seven. We know that to no church could the Apostle be indifferent. The conclusion is irresistible, that here, as so often in this book as well as in other parts of Scripture, the number seven is not to be literally under stood. Seven churches are selected, the condition of which appeared most suitable to the purpose which the Apostle has in view; and these seven represent the Church of Christ in every country of the world, down to the very end of time. The universal Church spreads itself out beneath his gaze; and before he instructs he blesses it. The blessing is, Grace to you, and peace; grace first, the Divine grace, in its enlightening, quickening, and beautifying power; and then peace, peace with God and man, peace that in the deep recesses of the heart remains undisturbed by outward trouble, the peace of which it is said by Him who is the Prince of peace, "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be fearful."* (* Joh_14:27). The source of the blessing is next indicated, the Triune God, the three Persons of the
7. 7. glorious Trinity, the Father, the Holy Spirit, and the Son. Probably we should have thought of a different order; but the truth is that it is the Son, as the manifestation of the Godhead, who is mainly in the Apostles mind. Hence the peculiarity of the first designation, Him which is, and which was, and which is to come, a designation specially applicable to our Lord. Hence also the peculiarity of the second designation, The seven Spirits which are before His throne; not so much the Spirit viewed in His individual personality, in the eternal relations of the Divine existence, as that Spirit in the manifoldness of His operation in the Church, the Spirit of the glorified Redeemer, not one therefore, but seven. Hence, again, the peculiar designation of Christ, Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth; not so much the Son in His metaphysical relation to the Godhead, as in attributes connected with His redemptive work. And hence, finally, the fact that when these three Persons have been named, the Seer fills up the remaining verses of his Salutation with thoughts, not of the Trinity, but of Him who has already redeemed us, and who will in due time come to perfect our salvation. Now, therefore, the Church, reflecting upon all that has been done, is done, and shall be done for her, is able to raise the song of triumphant thanksgiving, Unto Him that loveth us, and loosed us from our sins in His blood, and He made us to be a kingdom, to be priests unto His God and Father; to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. In these words the possession of complete redemption is implied. The true reading of the original is not that of our Authorized Version, "Unto Him that washed," but "Unto Him that loosed" us from our sins. We have received not merely the pardon of sin, but deliverance from its power. "Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowler; the snare is broken, and we are escaped."* The chains in which Satan held us captive have been snapped asunder and we are free. Again, this loosing has taken place "in" rather than "by" the blood of Christ, for the blood of Christ is living blood, and in that life of His we are enfolded and enwrapped, so that it is not we that live, but Christ that liveth in us. Once more they who are thus spoken of are "a kingdom, priests unto His God and Father," the former being the lower stage, the latter the higher. The word "kingdom" has reference, less to the splendour of royalty than to victory over foes. Christians reign in conquering their spiritual enemies; and then, in possession of the victory that overcometh the world, they enter into the innermost sanctuary of the Most High and dwell in the secret of His Tabernacle. There their great High Priest is one with "His God and Father," and there they also dwell with His Father and their Father, with His God and their God. (* Psa_124:7) The statement of these verses, however, reveals not only what the Christian Church is to which the Apocalypse is addressed; it reveals also what the Lord is from whom the revelation comes. He is indeed the Saviour who died for us, the witness faithful unto death: but He is also the Saviour who rose again, who is the firstborn of the dead, and who has ascended to the right hand of God, where He lives and reigns in glory everlasting. It is the glorified Redeemer from whom the book of His revelation comes; and He has all power committed to Him both in heaven and on earth. More particularly, He is "the ruler of the kings of the earth." This is not a description of such honour as might be given by a crowd of loyal nobles to a beloved prince. It rather gives expression to a power by which "the kings of the earth," the potentates of a sinful world, are subdued and crushed. Lastly, the Salutation includes the thought that He who is now hidden in heaven from our view, will yet appear in the glory that belongs to Him. He is the Lord who "is to come"; or, as it is expanded in the words immediately following the doxology, Behold, He cometh with the clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they which pierced Him; and
8. 8. all the tribes of the earth shall wail over Him. Even so, Amen. It is of importance to ask what the glory is in which the glorified Lord is thus spoken of as coming. Is it that of one who shall be the object of admiration to every eye, and who, by the revelation of Himself, shall win all who behold Him to godly penitence and faith? The context forbids such an interpretation. The tribes "of the earth" are like its kings in ver. 5 (Rev_1:5), the tribes of an ungodly world, and the "wailing" is that of Rev_18:9, where the same word is used, and where the kings of the earth weep and wail over the fall of guilty Babylon, which they behold burning before their eyes. The tones of that judgment which is to re-echo throughout the book are already heard: "Give the king Thy judgments, O God, and Thy righteousness unto the kings Son. He shall judge the people with righteousness, and Thy poor with judgment"; "Verily there is a reward for the righteous: verily, He is a God that judgeth in the earth."1 (1 Psa_72:1-2; Psa_58:11) And now the glorified Redeemer Himself declares what He is: I am the Alpha and the Omega, saith the Lord, God, which is and which was and which is to come, the Almighty. It will be observed that after the word "Lord" we have interposed a comma not found in either the Authorized or the Revised Version.1 On various other occasions we shall have to do the same, and the call to do so arises partly from the connection of the thought, partly from St. Johns love of that tripartite division of an idea which has been already spoken of. The former does not lead us to the Father; it leads us, on the contrary, to the Son. He it is Who has been described immediately before, and with Him the description which follows is to be occupied. No doubt the thought of God, of the Father, lies immediately behind the words. No doubt also "the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He seeth the Father doing"; yet "what things soever He doeth, these the Son also doeth in like manner."2 By the Son the Father acts. In the Son the Father speaks. The Son is the manifestation of the Father. The same Divine attributes, therefore, which are to be seen in the Father, are to be seen in the Son. Let us hear Him as He seals His intimations of coming judgment with the assurance that He is God, who has come who is and who is to come, the Almighty. (1 Compare the Greek text of Westcott and Hart; 2 Joh_5:19) "I John, your brother and partaker with you in the tribulation and kingdom and patience which are in Jesus, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. I was in the Spirit on the Lord s day, and I heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, saying, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it to the seven churches; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamum, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea. And I turned to see the voice which spake with me. And having turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; and in the midst of the candlesticks one like unto a Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about at the breasts with a golden girdle. And His head and His hair were white as white wool, white as snow; and His eyes were as a flame of fire; and His feet like unto burnished brass, as if it had been refined in a furnace; and His voice as the voice of many waters. And He had in His right hand seven stars: and out of His mouth proceeded a sharp two-edged sword: and His countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as one dead. And He laid His right hand upon me, saying, Fear not; I am the first and the last, and the living One; And I became dead, and behold, I am alive for evermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades. Write therefore the things which thou sawest, and the things which are, and the things which shall come to pass hereafter; the mystery of the stars which thou sawest upon My right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches; and the seven candle sticks are seven churches (Rev_1:9-20)." After the Introduction and Salutation, the visions of the book begin, the first being the
9. 9. key to all that follow. The circumstances amidst which it was given are described, not merely to satisfy curiosity, or to afford information, but to establish such a connection between St. John and his readers as shall authenticate and vivify its lessons. I John, he begins, your brother and partaker with you in the tribulation and kingdom and patience which are in Jesus, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. It is no longer only the Apostle, the authoritative messenger of God, who speaks; it is one who occupies the same ground as other members of the Church, and is bound to them by the strong deep tie of common sorrow. The aged and honoured Evangelist, "the disciple whom Jesus loved," is one with them, bears the same burden, drinks the same cup, and has no higher consolation than they may have. He is their "brother," a brother in adversity, for he is a partaker with them of the "tribulation" that is in Jesus. The reference is to outward suffering and persecution; for the words of the Master were now literally fulfilled: "A servant is not greater than his lord. If they persecuted Me they will also persecute you;" "Yea, the hour cometh, that whosoever killeth you shall think that he offereth service unto God."* The scorn, the hatred, the persecution of the world! for such as were exposed to these things was the Apocalypse written, by such was it understood; and if, in later times, it has often failed to make its due impression on the minds of men, it is because it is not intended for those who are at ease in Zion. The more Christians are compelled to feel that the world hates them, and that they cannot be its friends, the greater to them will be the power and beauty of this book. Its revelations, like the stars of the sky, shine most brightly in the cold, dark night. (* Joh_15:20; Joh_16:2). "Tribulation" is the chief thing spoken of, but the Apostle, with his love of groups of three, accompanies it with other two marks of the Christians condition in the world, the "kingdom" and "patience" that are in Jesus. St. John therefore was in tribulation. He had been driven from Ephesus, we know not why, and had been banished to Patmos, a small rocky island of the gean Sea. He had been banished for his faith, for his adherence to "the word of God and the testimony of Jesus," the former expression leading our thoughts to the revelation of the Old Testament, the latter to that of the New; the former to those prophets, culminating in the Baptist, of whom the same Apostle who now writes tells us in the beginning of his Gospel, that they "came for witness, that they might bear witness of the light;"1 the latter to "the true light, even the light which lighteth every man coming into the world."2 Driven from the society of his friends and "children," we cannot doubt that St. John would be drawn even more closely than was his wont to the bosom of his Lord; would feel that he was still protected by His care; would remember the words uttered by Him in the most sublime and touching moment of His life, "And I am no more in the world, and these are in the world, and I come to Thee. Holy Father, keep them in Thy name which Thou hast given Me";3 and would share the blessed experience of knowing that, on every spot of earth however remote, and amidst all trials however heavy, he was in the hands of One who stills the tumults of the people as well as the waves of the sea beating upon the rock-bound coast of Patmos. (1 Joh_1:7; 2 Joh_1:9; 3 Joh_17:11) Animated by feelings such as these, the Apostle knew that, whatever appearances to the contrary might present themselves, the time now passing over his head was the time of the Lords rule, and not of mans. No thought could be more inspiring, and it was the preparation in his soul for the scene which followed. I was in the Spirit on the Lord s day, and I heard behind me a great voice, as of a
10. 10. trumpet, saying, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it to the seven churches; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamum, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea. The Lords day here referred to may have been the Sunday, the first day of the Christian week, the day commemorative of that morning when He who had been "crucified through weakness, yet lived through the power of God."l If so, there was a peculiar fitness in that vision, now to be granted, of the risen and glorified Redeemer. But it seems doubtful if this is the true interpretation, Proof is wanting that the first day of the week had yet received the name of "The Lords Day," and it is more in accordance with the prophetic tone of the book before us, to think that by St. John the whole of that brief season which was to pass before the Church should follow her Lord to glory was regarded as "The Lords Day." Whichever interpretation we adopt, the fact remains that, meditating in his lonely isle upon the glory of his Lord in heaven and the contrasted fortunes of His Church on earth, St. John passed into a state of spiritual ecstasy. Like St. Paul, he was caught up into the third heavens; but, unlike him, he was permitted, and even commanded, to record what he heard and saw.2 (1 2Co_13:4; 2Compare 2Co_12:4) And I heard behind me, he says, a great voice as of a trumpet, saying, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it to the seven churches; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamum, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea. We need not dwell now upon these churches. We shall meet them again. They are "the seven churches which are in Asia" already spoken of in ver. 4 (Rev_1:4); and they are to be viewed as representative of the whole Christian Church in all countries of the world, and throughout all time. In their condition they represented to St. John what that Church is, in her Divine origin and human frailty, in her graces and defects, in her zeal and lukewarmness, in her joys and sorrows, in the guardianship of her Lord, and in her final victory after many struggles. Not to Christians in these cities alone is the Apocalypse spoken, but to all Christians in all their circumstances: "He that hath an ear, let him hear." The Apostle heard. And I turned to see the voice which spake with me. And having turned I saw seven golden candlesticks; and in the midst of the candlesticks one like unto a Son of man. It was a splendid vision which was thus presented to his eyes. The golden candlestick, first of the Tabernacle and then of the Temple, was one of the gorgeous articles of furniture in Gods holy house. It was wrought, with its seven branches, after the fashion of an almond tree, the earliest tree of spring to hasten (whence also it was named) into blossom; and, as we learn from the elaborateness and beauty of the workmanship, from the symbolical numbers largely resorted to in its construction, and from the analogy of all the furniture of the Tabernacle, it represented Israel when that people, having offered themselves at the altar, and having been cleansed in the laver of the court, entered as a nation of priests into the special dwelling-place of their heavenly King. Here, therefore, the seven golden candlesticks, or as in ver. 4 (Rev_1:4) the one in seven, represent the Church, as she burns in the secret place of the Most High. But we are not invited to dwell upon the Church. Something greater attracts the eye, He who is "like unto a Son of man." The expression of the original is remarkable. It occurs only once in any of the other books of the New Testament, in Joh_5:27, although there, both in the Authorized and Revised versions, it is unhappily translated "the Son of man." It is the humanness of our Lords Person more than the Person Himself, or rather it is the Person in His humanness, to which the words of the original direct us. Amidst all the glory that surrounds Him we arc to think of Him as man; but what a man! Clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about at the breasts with a golden girdle. And His head and His hair were white as white wool, white as snow; and His
11. 11. eyes were as a flame of fire; and His feet like unto burnished brass as if it had been refined in a furnace; and His voice as the voice of many waters. And He had in His right hand seven stars; and out of His mouth proceeded a sharp two-edged sword: and His countenance was as the sun shineth in His strength. The particulars of the description indicate the official position of the Person spoken of, and the character in which He appears, (1) He is a priest, clothed with the long white garment reaching to the feet that was a distinguishing part of the priestly dress, but at the same time so wearing the girdle at the breasts, not at the waist, as to show that He was a priest engaged in the active service of the sanctuary. (2) He is a king, for, with the exception of the last mentioned particular, all the other features of the description given of Him point to kingly rather than to priestly power, while the prophetic language of Isaiah, as he looks forward to Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, language which we may well suppose to have been now in the Seers thoughts, leads to the same conclusion: "And I will clothe him with thy robe and strengthen him with thy girdle, and I will commit thy government into his hand."* The "Son of man," in short, here brought before us in His heavenly glory, is both Priest and King. (* Isa_22:21; comp. also Isa_22:22 with Rev_3:7) Not only so. It is even of peculiar importance to observe that the attributes with which the Priest-King is clothed are not so much those of tenderness and mercy as those of power and majesty, inspiring the beholder with a sense of awe and with the fear of judgment. Already we have had some traces of this in considering ver. 7 (Rev_1:7): now it comes out in all its force. That hair of a glistering whiteness which, like snow on which the sun is shining, it almost pains the eye to look upon; those eyes penetrating like a flame of fire into the inmost recesses of the heart; those feet which like metal raised to a white heat in a furnace consume in an instant whatever they tread upon in anger; that voice loud and continuous, like the sound of the mighty tea as it booms along the shore; that sword sharp, two-edged, issuing from the mouth, so that no one can escape it when it is drawn to slay; and lastly, that countenance like the sun in the height of a tropical sky, when man and beast cower from the irresistible scorching of his beams, all are symbolical of judgment. Eager to save, the exalted High Priest is yet also mighty to destroy. "Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potters vessel. Be wise now, therefore, O ye Kings; be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and ye perish from the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him."* (* Psa_2:9-12). The Apostle felt all this; and, believer as he was in Jesus, convinced of his Masters love, and one who returned that love with the warmest affections of his heart, he was yet overwhelmed with terror. And when I saw Him, he tells us, I fell at His feet as one dead. In circumstances somewhat similar to the present, a somewhat similar effect had been produced upon other saints of God. When Isaiah beheld the glory of the Lord he cried, "Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts."1 When Ezekiel beheld a vision of the same kind, he tells us that he "fell upon his face."2 When the angel Gabriel appeared to Daniel in order to explain the vision which had been shown him, the prophet says, "I was afraid, and fell upon my face."3 Here the effect was greater than in any of these instances, corresponding to the greater glory shown; and the Apostle fell at the feet of the glorified Lord as one "dead." But there is mercy with the Lord that He may be feared; and He laid His right hand upon me, adds St. John, saying, Fear not: and then follows in three parts that full and gracious declaration of what He is, in His eternal pre-existence, in that work on behalf of man which embraced not only His being lifted on high upon the cross, but His Resurrection and Ascension to His Fathers
12. 12. throne, and in the consummation of His victory over all the enemies of our salvation, - 1. I am the First and the Last, and the Living One; 2. And I became dead, and behold, I am alive for evermore; 3. And I have the keys of death and of Hades. (1 Isa_6:5; 2 Eze_1:28; 3 Dan_8:17) A few more words are spoken by the glorified Person who thus appeared to St. John, but at this point we may pause for a moment, for the vision is complete. It is the first vision of the book, and it contains the key-note of the whole. As distinguished from the fourth Gospel, in which Jesus clothed as He is with His humanity is yet pre-eminently the Son of God, the Saviour while here retaining His Divinity is yet pre-eminently a Son of man. In other words, He is not merely the Only Begotten who was from eternity in the bosom of the Father: He is also Head over all things to His Church. And He is this as the glorified Redeemer who has finished His work on earth, and now carries it on in heaven. This work too He carries on, not only as a High Priest "touched with the feeling of our infirmities," but as One clothed with judgment. He is a man of war, and to Him the words of the Psalmist may be applied: "Gird Thy sword upon Thy thigh, O Mighty One, Thy glory and Thy majesty. And in Thy majesty ride prosperously, Because of truth and meekness and righteousness: And Thy right hand shall teach Thee terrible things. Thine arrows are sharp; The peoples fall under Thee; They are in the heart of the Kings enemies."* (* Psa_45:3-5) Yet we cannot separate the body of Christ from the head, who is Son of man as well as Son of God. With the Head the members are one, and they too therefore are here contemplated as engaged in a work of judgment. With their Lord they are opposed by an ungodly world. In it they also struggle, and war, and overcome. The tribulation, and the kingdom and patience "in Jesus,"1 are their lot; but living a resurrection life and escaped from the power of death and Hades, salvation has been in principle made theirs, and they have only to wait for the full manifestation of that Lord with whom, when He is manifested, they also shall be manifested in glory.2 (1 Rev_1:9; 2 Col_3:4) Thus we are taught what to expect in the book of Revelation. It will record the conflict of Christ and His people with the evil that is in the world, and their victory over it. It will tell of struggle with sin and Satan, but of sin vanquished and Satan bruised beneath their feet. It will be the story of the Church as she journeys through the wilderness to the land of promise, encountering many foes, but more than conqueror through Him that loved her, and often raising to heaven her song of praise, "Sing unto the Lord, for He hath triumphed gloriously, the horse and his rider He hath cast into the sea."* (* Exo_15:1) Now then we are prepared to listen to the closing words of the glorious Person who had revealed Himself to St. John, as He repeats His injunction to him to write, and gives him some explanation of what he had seen: Write, therefore, the things which thou sawest, and the things which are, and the things which shall come to pass hereafter; the mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest upon My right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches; and the seven candlesticks are seven churches. The golden candlesticks and the stars, the churches and the angels of the churches, will immediately meet us when we proceed to the next two chapters of the book. Meanwhile it is enough to know that we are about to enter upon the fortunes of that Church of the Lord Jesus Christ in the world which embraces within it the execution of the final purposes of the Almighty, and the accomplishment of His plans
13. 13. for the perfection and happiness of His whole creation. R A Taylor, The interpretation of Revelation. Goldsworthy clarifies the principles of interpretation that pertain when we come to obscure passages in Revelation. i. We must allow the clearer texts to take precedence over the more obscure. ii. We cannot allow a point of doctrine to be established on an apocalyptic vision against clear statements to the contrary in the epistolary material of the NT (i.e. the letters). iii. He also insists that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the key to the interpretation of the whole Bible. In some ways interpreting Revelation is like a jig-saw, we must first find the corner pieces, an obvious example is the Lamb and the rider on the white horse in chapter 19 who is the exalted Christ, then there are other symbols which are defined in the book such as the lampstands and the dragon. From these we go on to more obscure symbols but which are clearly based on parts of the OT such as the seven trumpets and bowls which are modelled on the plagues on the Egyptians and the beast out of the earth which is based on Daniels visions. It is clear then that it is possible to make a framework from the less obscure within which we can fit the more obscure. It is unlikely that we can complete the whole jig-saw but if the framework is correct we should at least grasp a portion of the whole picture. This commentary assumes that the keys to its interpretation lie in the OT and NT scripture, but that an NT interpretation is required. It assumes that it is symbolic unless clearly meant to be literal. It assumes that the books author is God and that it is written to the church throughout the ages from the writing of the letter to the Second Coming. The content primarily concerns the fate of the church and of her enemies. The symbology allows it to be interpreted in the light of the current historical situation throughout church history without being specific to a particular event, although there are specific events recorded such as the birth of Christ and the second coming. Many of the events recorded in the book are parallel with other events in the book. The book can be viewed from the point of view of events in the past, current events and future events, all are meaningful. 3.1. The four schools of interpretation: There are four schools of interpretation. i. The preterist: that it describes in veiled language events of John's own time, and until the end of the Roman Empire or at least the conversion of Constantine. This has the disadvantage in that it is only meaningful then but to us it is not as relevant. The beast is seen as only the Roman empire and Babylon is Rome, however there are clear references to the Rome of Johns time and it is helpful to know the circumstances of John's time in interpreting the book. In Rev 1: 11 John is told "Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea." hence in some ways it is similar to Paul's letters to the Romans, Corinthians, Colossians, Ephesians and Thessalonians. In both Johns and Paul's letters God has chosen these to be preserved for His church throughout the centuries. Just as the letter to the Corinthians addresses specific problems they had then it also deals with these problems for future centuries. In the same way Revelation deals with the problems faced by the seven churches in Asia, but it also has a great deal to say to future generations. Because John uses symbolic imagery Revelation is not tied down to only the Roman Empire but may also be used to describe successive persecuting tyrannies down through the centuries. Examples of the preterist view are Morris, Hailey and Barclay. Chilton identifies the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 as the main focus of Revelation.
14. 14. The next three methods of interpretation deal with the value of Revelation to future generations in different ways. ii. The historicist: that it is a chart of the whole of history from Christ's first coming to his second, and beyond. In this method people will try to make sections of Revelation fit in with specific historical events. The beast is seen as the current manifestation of the beast such as the papacy in the time of the reformation. This position is untenable because there will be a wide variation of interpretations through the ages. But because the principles are valid to all generations, as the idealist would suggest, each generation should be able to identify the characters portrayed by Revelation. Therefore the historicist's view should not be disparaged, it has provided comfort in times of persecution throughout church history. The most important of the historical interpretation from the 12th century to reformation times makes the papacy the beast and Rome or the Roman church is Babylon. However to make Revelation a chart of the whole of human history and therefore to use it to predict when the end will come is wrong and is not how John intended Revelation to be read, but to use it to strengthen Gods people undergoing particular trials is a valid use. iii. The idealist: that between messages for the first century and prophecies of the far future it deals chiefly with principles that are always valid in Christian experience. The beast is the Roman Empire of Johns day but also a succession of ungodly empires leading to the last empire from which the antichrist will come. Because Christians have been persecuted throughout the generations, each generation should be able to identify who their beast is. The main example is Hendriksen, see also Beale and Wilcock. iv. The futurist: that it is largely a prophecy of events still to come, especially just prior to the return of Christ. This is the normal interpretation of someone reading the book for the first time because its imagery looks so fantastic. It means that the book will be especially relevant for those in the last generation. The beast is seen as the antichrist who emerges from a revived Roman empire. It is clear that the Second Coming features prominently throughout the book and therefore there is truth in the futurist view, but this view tends to overlook spiritual truth that is of value today. However note that John is told not to seal up the book (Rev 22:10) because the time is near, although Daniel was told to seal up the vision until the end times (Dan 12:4), this means that the book is about to start its fulfilment. The book of Revelation was written initially to the seven churches in Asia, and hence the preterist view. However the book will reach it final fulfilment when the last antichrist appears and Christ returns this is the futurist view. Ladd divides the futurist views into two kinds, the moderate and the extreme view known as dispensationalism. The latter makes a sharp distinction between Israel and the church. The letters to the seven churches deal with seven ages of church history. Chapter 7 onwards concerns Israel because the church has been raptured by this point so that it does not suffer in the great tribulation, which occurs during the last 3 and a half years of history. This view is widely held in America, the best exponent of this view is Walvoord. The futurist will argue that the preterist interpretation is wrong because Revelation concerns the end times, but during the time of the Roman Empire the preterist interpretation was the end time. A similar comment could be made of the historicist interpretation during the Reformation. The idealist interpretation is probably the most relevant today, to meet todays needs during hard times when Christians are under pressure and it certainly does not discount a future fulfilment either. I would strongly question the idea that Revelation only has a future fulfilment. The problem for anyone trying to interpret the book is that on reading the text one can find support for all these views, which is why there is such a wide variety of interpretations and indeed disagreements. In a sense they are all correct, the futurist sees the beast as the future antichrist, the historicist sees the beast of history, the
15. 15. preterist sees the beast in Roman times and the idealist sees a succession of beasts leading up to the antichrist. The futurist writes from the point of view of a church not undergoing persecution now but expects it in the future particularly from the antichrist. The historicist writes from the point of view of current persecution or recent persecution as historical events and finds these in Revelation. The idealist looks to past periods of persecution and sees general principles within Revelation that can explain these. The preterist writes about how Revelation explains the persecution under the Roman Empire. They are all correct, but they all see truth from a different perspective. This commentary is written mainly from a futurist and idealist viewpoint because this interpretation will be most useful to the church in this generation in the West. While the church in the West is not undergoing persecution, war is still being waged against it in the form of false doctrine and the seduction of worldly values. Mounce points out that 'John himself could without contradiction be preterist, historicist, futurist and idealist. He wrote out of his own immediate situation, his prophecies would have historical fulfilment, he anticipated a future consummation, and he revealed principles, which operated beneath the course of history. The interpretive problem grows out of the fact that the End did not arrive on schedule.' If the author of the Revelation is the author of the fourth gospel, then he certainly expected to be alive when Christ returned, John 21:21-24. If we read Johns first letter, 2:18 indicates that he considered himself to be living in the last hour. Rev 1:3 tells us that there is a blessing for the one who reads the words of this prophecy and takes to heart its message because the time is near (see also 22:10). From this we are assured that the contents are relevant now, just as our Lords Second Coming is relevant now just as much as it was 1,900 years ago. To the writers of the NT the time of the Lords coming is always near, Phil 4:5, Jam 5:8, 1 Pet 4:7. Jesus warns us to be ready for His return because He is coming at an hour we do not expect (Mat 24:44). Therefore Revelation warns us to be ready now because the events it depicts can occur at any time. Therefore any interpretation that puts the events either in the distant past or future is misleading because its purpose is to prepare our hearts now for what is coming soon. Just as there is a blessing for those who take to heart the message of this book at the start of Revelation, so at the end (22:7) there is a blessing on those who keep the words of the prophecy of Revelation together with a reminder that Jesus is coming soon. Part of the message of Revelation is to prepare His people for His second coming and the events preceding it. Ladd talks at some length about the two fold nature of prophecy which has an immediate fulfilment as well as a distant fulfilment, an example of this being the Olivet discourse which concerned the historical judgement of Jerusalem at the hands of the Romans in AD 70 (Luke 21:20 ff.) and the eschatological appearance of the antichrist (Mat 24:15 ff.). In the same way Revelation had its immediate fulfilment with the series of Roman persecutions on the Christians until Constantine in AD 313 as well as the appearance of the antichrist in the distant future. Therefore the correct interpretation is a blend of both the preterist and futurist views and including any tribulation that the church experiences between these two periods. While much of it can be interpreted to describe events at the end of the age, this follows a succession of events that leads to the climax of history. It is a fact of history that throughout the gospel age there have been political and religious empires that have persecuted the church, the book of Revelation is written to those saints as well as those in the reign of the antichrist. The idea that the church will not be on earth when the antichrist is revealed is not to be found within Revelation and this idea does a great disservice to believers today. This commentary uses a combination of
16. 16. approaches, much of the book incorporates the circumstances of Johns time which must form the basis of any interpretation, because it was written for the seven churches in Asia. It describes what is going to happen soon, in the near future, but it also looks into the distant future, it describes the end times as well so a combination of preterist, futurist and idealist are used. The approach used will depend on the text. To the preterist the beast is the Roman Empire and its emperor, but to the idealist a succession of tyrannical empires throughout history who persecute the saints, but to the futurist these all find their greatest fulfilment in the kingdom of the antichrist, there is truth in all these views. The fact that the book does leave sufficient ambiguity for all these views to be true is probably deliberate so that each generation can benefit from the book. Its symbolism also means that Revelation cannot be used to predict the future, which is always veiled from man (cf. seven thunders 10:3-4). Its purpose is to prepare us for the future, especially for the consummation of all things when Christ is revealed. 3. ARGUME TS FOR THE SYMBOLIC I TERPRETATIO Verse 1 of the first chapter of Revelation tells us that it is "SIG IFIED". All of the Greek reference works that I have been able to obtain describe the word which is translated "signified" as meaning to put forth in "sign" form. Since a "sign" is an indication of something and not the thing itself, then Revelation is written in "sign" language or prophetic imagery which depicts events in the spiritual realm by using descriptions of things which are literal or physical. For example, a SIG which says "GROCERY STORE" is not where you buy the groceries. It is not the store itself, but rather an indicator pointing to the place where the groceries are for sale. Also, a STOP sign "signifies" that you should STOP, but it is not the act of stopping. It does not actually stop as it was not moving in the first place. It only indicates that a "stop" should take place. Even so, the "pictures" painted by John in writing down the Revelation are not the actual events portrayed, but rather symbolic indicators of the actual events (signs). (A) If Jesus starts us out in this book of Revelation by SHOWI G US that some of these things are symbolic, is it possible that he is giving us a key to the interpretation of the entirety of the book? (B) If: "seven stars" symbolize "angels" (Greek = messengers or Pastors), "seven golden candlesticks" symbolize the seven churches,
17. 17. the "sun" symbolizes Jesus' light or TRUTH (John 1:9, Malachi 4:2), "sharp two-edged sword" symbolizes the WORD OF GOD...Hebrews 4:12, "kings and priests" symbolize SPIRITUAL positions (1 Peter 2:5), then is it not possible that the other things that we have underlined in the text are also symbolic, and the Bible provides the scriptural keys that will help us to find out WHAT those symbols represent I TRUTH? (a) Revelation 17:1, "waters" symbolize "peoples, multitudes, nations, tongues"...Revelation 17:15. (b) Revelation 17:9, "seven heads" symbolize "seven mountains" and "seven kings"...Revelation 17:9-10. (c) Revelation 17:12, "ten horns" symbolize "ten kings" (verse 12). (d) Revelation 5:8, "golden vials full of odours (incense)" symbolize the prayers of "saints" (God's children). (e) Revelation 4:6-10, the "four beasts" and "four and twenty elders" symbolize the children of God who have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus...Revelation 5:9-10. (f) Revelation 12:14, the "time, and times, and half a time" symbolize the same period as the "thousand two hundred and threescore days"...Revelation 12:6 (same events described). (g) Revelation 19:8, the "fine white linen" symbolizes the "righteousness of saints". (h) Revelation 21:10 the "heavenly Jerusalem" symbolizes the "bride" of Jesus Christ, the TRUE CHURCH (Ephesians 5:22- 33)...Revelation 21:2 and 9. As a final means of showing the symbolic nature of the book of Revelation, I would ask the reader to prayerfully consider the POSSIBILITY of the following uses of symbols. I am not going to take the time to expound I DEPTH the proof texts, but only ask you to CO SIDER the POSSIBILITY of the following: (A) "Winds" such as we see described in Revelation 7:1 symbolize doctrines (religious teachings) of which O LY O E WI D is the TRUTH (the O E narrow way mentioned in Matthew 7:13-14) and the
18. 18. others are FALSE (blowing from and towards the wrong directions) as we see described in Ephesians 4:14; 4:14 That we [henceforth] be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, [and] cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; (B) The "woman" in Revelation 12 pictures the TRUE CHURCH as the SPIRITUAL MOTHER of those who have the "testimony of Jesus Christ (Rev. 12:17)". otice the following scriptures found in Galatians 4:26; But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the MOTHER of us all. (caps mine) In the context Paul is contrasting the people of God under the OLD COVE A T (LITERAL Israel and Jerusalem) with the people of God under the EW COVE A T (SPIRITUAL Israel and SPIRITUAL Jerusalem). Whereas LITERAL Jerusalem was the center of the worship and the administration of the Word of God under the Old Testament (i.e. covenant...same meaning), SPIRITUAL JERUSALEM or the TRUE CHURCH was the center for the worship of God and the administration of the Word of God under the ew Testament (covenant). Every true CHILD OF GOD is conceived (begotten) by God (James 1:13), and is "brought to birth" by the SPIRITUAL MOTHER, the church (even as we see typified or symbolized in the LITERAL HUMA process which God "created"). Matthew 12:50; For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and MOTHER. (caps mine) For a more complete study of this "type", please study our booklet called "THE CHALLE GE", which teaches the symbolism pictured by the literal VIRGI BIRTH of Jesus Christ, and the symbolic picture of the "MOTHER" position of the church. (C) The "EARTH" mentioned in Revelation 12 which helps the "woman" is also symbolic, and represents something which we shall cover in detail in a chapter of this book. (D) If the "earth" is symbolic, then it is possible that the term "heaven" (which in the Greek from which this is translated means a HIGH PLACE) is also used in a symbolic sense in this context. (E) If the "earth" and "heaven" are symbolic here, then the
19. 19. "sun" which would shine in this "heaven" (Jesus...Malachi 4:2), and the "stars" which shine as lesser lights in this "heaven" (God's messengers or MI ISTRY...Revelation 1:20, Matthew 5:14, Daniel 12:3, 1 Corinthians 15:41, Galatians 4:14, etc.) would ALSO be symbolic. (F) If the things mentioned in "C", "D", and "E" are symbolic, (and we will deal with them more in this booklet), then is it possible that the "GREAT RED DRAGO " mentioned in Revelation 12, and spoken of as being "called" the "devil" and "satan", IS ALSO a symbolic picture? IS IT POSSIBLE THAT THE DEVIL (BEELZEBUB), THE "GOD OF THIS WORLD" A D "PRI CE OF DARK ESS" IS OT LITERALLY A BEAST WITH SEVE HEADS A D TE HOR S A D SEVE CROW S UPO HIS HEADS? A chapter in this booklet will cover the TRUTH of this subject. Please OTICE that even after he is cast "to the earth", he is STILL able to persecute the "woman" who is in "heaven". Revelation 12:13, And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child. The context shows that the "woman" WAS OT cast out of "heaven", but rather provided for by God. (G) The "blood...unto the horse bridles" in Revelation 14:20 is shown in the context to be GRAPE JUICE if you literalize the text. Obviously, to literalize the text is to teach error. 14:16 And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped. 14:17 And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. 14:18 And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. 14:19 And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast [it] into the great winepress of the wrath of God. 14:20 And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand [and] six hundred furlongs. Other scriptures in the Bible refer to the "BLOOD of the GRAPE":
20. 20. Genesis 49:11 "BLOOD of grapes" Deuteronomy 32:14 "BLOOD of the grape" In order to understand what the "blood" represents, we must consult the context for more information. This shows us that the grapesare produced by the "vine of the earth". We must determine from the scriptures WHAT this vine symbolizes before we can know more about the "blood of the grapes" which come from the vine. Jesus used a very simple parable or symbolic "type" in John 15:1 when he said that he was the "TRUE VI E". This statement implies that there is also a FALSE VI E. In order to determine which of these is shown in Revelation 14, we need only to notice two things: (a) Jesus is the vine from heaven and not of this earth. (b) In Revelation 14, the "vine of the earth" is cast into the "great winepress of the wrath of God". Although some people might want us to believe that this pictures when Jesus went to the cross and bore our sins, the entire context of Revelation 14 shows events which can be proven to take place AFTER CALVARY. Therefore, the vine of the "earth" cannot be a picture of Jesus as he will never again experience the "wrath of God". Since we can rightly and Biblically symbolize Jesus as the VI E of heaven, and TRUE CHILDRE OF GOD ARE THE "BRA CHES" OF THE VI E, then we must surely see that the "vine of the earth" is just the opposite. The "vine of the earth" is the FALSE "JESUS" that Paul the apostle spoke of in 2 Corinthians 11: 11:2 For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present [you as] a chaste virgin to Christ. 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 11:4 For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or [if] ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with [him]. 11:13 For such [are] false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. 11:14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an
21. 21. angel of light. 11:15 Therefore [it is] no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works. Even as the TRUE VI E and its branches produce "grapes" of the TRUE WORD OF GOD, even so the "vine of the earth" produces "EARTH" gospel or fleshly religion which is designed for the "natural man" since he cannot understand the things that are SPIRITUAL which are the TRUE "BLOOD" of the "TRUE VI E". 1 Corinthians 2:14 says: "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." If you are enjoying this study, you may access the next chapter (filename =REVSTUDY.TXT or .ZIP in Library "A") using the password: "PURE". This helps us to present the studies in a manner so they will be less confusing. You need thefoundations laid in the earlier chapters to understand the latter ones. Since the "natural man" or non-spiritual (lost) person cannot understand the TRUTH, the devil produces his own "grapes", and God WA TS them to be "pressed" so the "blood" can go forth from false churches and false preachers in order to deceive those who do not LOVE the TRUTH. otice 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12; 2:9 [Even him], whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, 2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 2:11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: 2:12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. For this reason WE DO OT BELIEVE I TRYI G TO PREVE T THE WORK OF FALSE CHURCHES, but rather we strive to warn HO EST HEARTS (GOD'S TRUE ELECT) so they will not be deceived. "Wine" (grape juice or "blood") is used to symbolize the word of God in Isaiah 55:1-2. Jesus referred to the grape juice which he and the disciples drank
22. 22. at the "LAST SUPPER" (passover; Luke 22:15) as "the new testament in my blood". He was therefore speaking of the blood of the grape as representative of his blood which he taught in John 6:53-63 was symbolic of his "WORDS", or in other words, THE WORD OF GOD. Obviously, if the "blood" of the grapes produced by the "vine of the earth" is symbolic in Revelation 14, then the horses and their "bridles" are ALSO symbolic. Therefore, this helps us to see that symbolic consistency requires that the four horses in Revelation 6 also be symbolic. We will deal with those symbols in another study. Everyone who professes to be a Christian today believes that they are getting the TRUTH preached to them in their churches and that they are therefore "drinking" of the "blood" of the "vine" from heaven; Jesus Christ. However, as the scriptures have shown us, the devil (Beelzebub) "transforms (the Greek word means "disguises") himself and his "ministers" do the same. They PRETE D to be preachers of "righteousness" (see text already quoted from 2 Cor. 11:13-15). They do not go around trying to get people to take drugs, to drink liquor, to commit adultery, to murder, to steal, etc. They stand in the pulpits of the churches of the land and PREACH RIGHTEOUS ESS. You might ask, "but how can we know who are true preachers of the TRUE WORD OF GOD"? There are several characteristics that the Bible pictures which can help us to know for certain if we are hearing the TRUE WORD OF GOD. I will only list them for now, as there is not enough room in this booklet to detail and prove them all. However, we do have other study booklets which cover each of these subjects in detail. (a) True God sent preaching will be centered on the study of the scriptures and OT just some well presented "good words and fair speeches" which tickle the "ears" and entice the natural mind, but do not "feed" and bring spiritual understanding to the spirit. Such false preaching will USE the Bible to "read from", yet will not expound its depths. Romans 16:18 says: 16:17 ow I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. 16:18 For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.
23. 23. (b) True God sent preaching will not be short "sermonettes" of 20 or 30 minutes intended for the comfort and benefit of the "FLESH", but will consume however much time is necessary in order to detail the meaning of the scriptures that God desires to be brought with understanding for that particular time. Such spiritual "feeding" will often seem rather short to honest hearts (time passes quickly when you are enjoying yourself), yet will usually require an hour of more (sometimes several) in order to fully study into the depths of the subject which the Lord is leading the preacher to teach. (c) True preachers will not concern themselves with their "style" of delivery, but will only desire to bring the word in a manner so as to make it very clear and understandable to those who are spiritually capable of receiving it. They do not strive to appeal to those who have "itching ears", but only desire to "feed with knowledge and understanding" (Jeremiah 3:15). They have a God given task to expound the deep and hidden things of God so the people of God may receive SPIRITUAL nourishment from them. THEY ARE OT CALLED BY GOD TO SIMPLY PLAY O ME A D WOME 'S EMOTIO S TO MAKE THEM "FEEL" RELIGIOUS OR "SAVED". (d) Contrary to many people's beliefs or understanding, TRUE GOD CALLED A D SE T preachers ARE OT to preach so-called "evangelistic" sermonettes" that basically just admonish men and women to turn to God (i.e. "get saved"). Acts 20:28, 1 Timothy 4:11-16, and other texts show us that a true preacher must FEED the people of GOD; not just try to make them to become such. Since the "word of God" is the means of spiritual life (through "conception" spiritually...James 1:13), anyone who is honest hearted and comes into contact (spiritually) with the preaching of the "word" may be conceived without the preacher trying to "pry them toward Jesus" through some special "call" or "pull". However, for saved people to hear over and over these "calls to come to Christ", there is no benefit. They need "feeding" with SPIRITUAL U DERSTA DI G. (e) TRUE preaching of the word is just expounding the meaning of the text, but must also show the application of the meaning to our lives today. I do not just refer to the teaching of "DO" and "DO 'TS". I realize that we must have some teaching along the lines of how we should live and what we should and should not do. HOWEVER, the preacher must remember that I STRUCTIO is not FOOD no matter how true that it is. God's people need SPIRITUAL FOOD as well as instruction on Christian living. This should give the reader a basic idea as to the proper method of
24. 24. interpreting the Book of Revelation. In the next chapter, we will study how that using this method enables us to "rightly divide" some of the commonly misunderstood and erroneously taught portions of the book. PULPIT COMME TARY Introduction: the purport of the book. In commencing a series of sketches which shall furnish in outline a homiletic exposition of such a book as this, the writer may well feel borne down with a sense of the responsibility of the task he has undertaken. And yet such responsibility, great as it is, is prevented from being overwhelming through the infinite joy and comfort he has himself derived from a repeated study of ita study extending over some fifteen or twenty years, and now renewed for the special purpose of giving utterance to convictions of its value and glory, which deepen with each succeeding examination of its contents. Into the detailed opinions of the varied expositors as to whether the preterist, futurist, or historical interpretations are the most correct, it will neither be in his province nor to his taste to enter. There is another order of expositionthe spiritualwhich, accepting whatever can be verified in the other three, sees rather throughout the Apocalypse an unfolding of the principles on which the great Head of the Church will carry forward his own work, and a parabolic setting of the fortunes of his Church as she moves forward to the final consummation of all things. As Dr. Lee remarks, "the historical system assumes that single events, as they come to pass in succession, exhibit the full accomplishment of the different predictions of the Apocalypse," while "the 'spiritual' application is never exhausted, but merely receives additional illustrations as time rolls on." Hengstenberg's remarks are worthy of being remembered: "That the Christian may remain steadfast and fearless where he is, even though it should be in the midst of a falling world, this book is fitted to render for such a purpose a most important service. It has thus proved a blessing even to many who have very imperfectly understood it. For it is wonderful how the edifying power that resides in the book forces its way even through the most imperfect understanding of its contents, if only the soul that applies to it is hungry and thirsty, weary and heavy laden, if it only stands in living faith on the Divinity of Scripture and the glorious consummation of the kingdom of Christ." In full accord with the convictions of the value of the Apocalypse, thus admirably expressed by the great evangelical German divine, do we now commence for homiletic purposes to unfold its plan. Our first sketch must needs be like the first three verses introductory. Introductory, however, though the verses are, they are amazingly full of holy and blessed teaching. We have here I. THE NAME GIVEN TO THE BOOK. "The Revelation ( )" (verse 1). At the forefront of the book this is its avowal. It declares itself to be nothing less than the disclosure of what was behind a veil, and so invisible to mortal sight, until the veil was drawn aside and unseen things were thereby disclosed. That there are other realms than our globe, peopled with moral and spiritual beings, is again and again declared in Scripture; that there are mysterious forces of good and of evil in the distant places of creation is also told us. That there is many a contest over man in these far-off realms; that there is a Divine Being who watches over the conflict, and who will "bring forth judgment unto victory;" that the theatre on which the issue is to be fought out is this globe; and that at the consummation the direst enemies of the world and of man will be put to an utter shame;all this could no philosophy forecast, nor any science teach; all this lies behind an impenetrable veil. If we are to know these things, they must be revealed to us, and this can be done only by our God! Note: As this is declared at the outset concerning this book, as such it must be regarded; until its claims be disproved, they should be reverently accepted. II. THE METHOD OF THE REVELATION. The several steps are shown usthe terminus a quo and theterminus ad quem. We have: 1. Its origin. "God"God the Father. If God be the Father of all men, that he should let them know something about himself is most reasonable. To suppose that he cannot, is to suppose that a father would build a house for his children, of such a kind that they could never find out where their father was!
25. 25. 2. Its channel. "Jesus Christ." God gave it to him. HE is the Medium, the Mediator between God and man; and the clearest disclosures of God and his purposes come to us through the everlasting Son. 3. Its agents. 4. Its mode. "He signified it." The word means "to signify by symbols." 5. For whom? "To show unto his servants," etc. The Word of God is committed as a trust to those who love and serve him. The faith was "once [for all] delivered to the saints." Why to these? (cf. Matthew 13:10Matthew 13:10 ,Matthew 13:11Matthew 13:11 ). Note: Here in outline is a wondrous sketch of how God reveals his truth. III. THE CONTENTS OF THE REVELATION. 1. Events. "Things which must shortly come to pass." 2. Such events as are necessarily involved in the bringing about of the Divine purposes. "Must" (verse 1). 3. Events which, in the prophetic forecast, are near at hand. "Shortly," i.e. in the reckoning of Heaven (cf.2 Peter 3:82 Peter 3:8 ). The next great crisis of the world is the second coming of the Son of God. He is on the way. But at what point of time the Son of man will be revealed it is not given to man to know. The series of events that prepare the way for the second coming began immediately after the first and are going on now.Not a moment is lost. Heaven's great harvest day is coming on. IV. THE USE TO BE MADE OF THIS REVELATION. (Verse 3.) Reading, hearing, doing. 1. It was to be read in the Churches. "He that readeth," equivalent to "he that reads it in the assemblies of the saints." The Word of God is not to be hid in a corner, but publicly read. It is not the preserve of the few, but the charter for the many. 2. The people are to hear. God's truth was to be set before men through the ear. The doctrine that it is more effective when set before the eye, finds in such a passage as this no support. 3. The hearers must keep the things written therein. Note: If the book is so obscure that no one can understand it, it is hard to say how men can keep the things that are herein written. The blessing pronounced on those who do keep them implies that they are sufficiently plain for that purpose. How, then, are we to "keep" these things? V. THE BLESSEDNESS OF THOSE WHO RIGHTLY USE THIS REVELATION. "Blessed is he," etc. (verse 3). It is not difficult to see in what this blessedness consists. 1. Such will have a good understanding; for they will know the meaning and plan of the world's course and destiny. 2. They will have a sure resting place in the absolute certainty of the final triumph of truth and righteousness. 3. They will have a good hope. "Looking for the mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life." 1 The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 1. Revelation is the word apokalupsis which is used 18 times in the ew Testament.
26. 26. Paul uses it 13 times as the main user. It means to uncover what is hidden. If you uncover a painting, that is an apokalypse. It is an exposure of what before could not be seen. When you come into the kitchen and smell something good and to see what it is you lift the cover on the pan and see what it is, that is a revelation. Jesus is the author, but John is the writer. Jesus is both the one revealed and the revealer of what is to be. The goal of the book is not to see the future, but to see Him who is Lord of the future and all time. It is more important to know who holds the future than to know what the future holds. Jesus is both the agent and the content of the Revelation. It has no ultimate value if it does not lead you to focus on Him. The revealing of Jesus or the unvailing enables us to see mysteries in a light we could never know without revelation. We cannot discover these things by study and research, but only by the revealed Word of God. 1B. WILLIAM BARCLAY, This is the revelation revealed by Jesus Christ, the revelation which God gave to him to show to his servants, the revelation which tells of the things which must soon happen. This revelation Jesus Christ sent and explained through his angel to his servant John, who testified to the word sent to him by God and attested by the witness borne by Jesus Christ everything which he saw. This book is called sometimes the Revelation and sometimes the Apocalypse. It begins with the words "The revelation of Jesus Christ," which mean not the revelation about Jesus Christ but the revelation given by Jesus Christ. The Greek word for revelation is apokalupsis (GSN0602) which is a word with a history. (i) Apokalupsis (GSN0602) is composed of two parts. Apo (GSN0575) means "away from" and kalupsis (compare GSN2572) "a veiling." Apokalupsis (GSN0602), therefore, means an unveiling, a revealing. It was not originally a specially religious word; it meant simply the disclosure of any fact. There is an interesting use of it in Plutarch (How to tell a Flatterer from a Friend, 32). Plutarch tells how once Pythagoras severely rebuked a devoted disciple of his in public and the young man went out and hanged himself. "From that time on Pythagoras never admonished anyone when anyone else was present. For error should be treated as a foul disease, and all admonition and disclosure (apokalupsis, GSN0602) should be in secret." But apokalupsis (GSN0602) became specially a Christian word. (ii) It is used for the revealing of God's will to us for our actions. Paul says that he went up to Jerusalem by apokalupsis (GSN0602). He went because God told him he wanted him to go (Gal.2:2). (iii) It is used of the revelation of God's truth to men. Paul received his gospel, not from men, but by apokalupsis (GSN0602) from Jesus Christ (Gal.1:12). In the Christian assembly the message of the preacher is an apokalupsis (GSN0602) (1Cor.14:6). (iv) It is used of God's revealing to men of his own mysteries, especially in the incarnation of Jesus Christ (Rom.16:25; Eph.3:3). (v) It is specially used of the revelation of the power and the holiness of God which is to come at the last days. That will be an unveiling of judgment (Rom.2:5); but for the Christian it will be an unveiling of praise and glory (1Pet.1:7); of grace (1Pet.1:13); of joy (1Pet.4:13). Before we remind ourselves of the more technical use of apokalupsis (GSN0602), we may note
27. 27. two things. (i) This revelation is connected specially with the work of the Holy Spirit (Eph.1:17). (ii) We are bound to see that here we have a picture of the whole of the Christian life. There is no part of it which is not lit by the revelation of God. God reveals to us what we must do and say; in Jesus Christ he reveals himself to us, for he who has seen Jesus has seen the Father (Jn.14:9); and life moves on to the great and final revelation in which there is judgment for those who have not submitted to God but grace and glory and joy for those who are in Jesus Christ. Revelation is no technical theological idea; it is what God is offering to all who will listen. Now we look at the technical meaning of apokalupsis (GSN0602), for that meaning is specially connected with this book. The Jews had long since ceased to hope that they would be vindicated as the chosen people by human means. They hoped now for nothing less than the direct intervention of God. To that end they divided all time into two ages--this present age, wholly given over to evil; and the age to come, the age of God. Between the two there was to be a time of terrible trial. Between the Old and the New Testaments the Jews wrote many books which were visions of the dreadful time before the end and of the blessedness to come. These books were called Apokalypses; and that is what the Revelation is. Although there is nothing like it in the New Testament, it belongs to a class of literature which was common between the Testaments. All these books are wild and unintelligible, for they are trying to describe the indescribable. The very subject with which the Revelation deals is the reason why it is so difficult to understand. THE MEANS OF GOD'S REVELATION Rev. 1:1-3 (continued) This short section gives us a concise account of how revelation comes to men. (i) Revelation begins with God, the fountain of all truth. Every truth which men discover is two things--a discovery of the human mind and a gift of God. But it must always be remembered that men never create the truth; they receive it from God. We must also remember that that reception comes in two ways. It comes from earnest seeking. God gave men minds and it is often through our minds that he speaks to us. Certainly he does not grant his truth to the man who is too lazy to think. It comes from reverent waiting. God sends his truth to the man who not only thinks strenuously, but waits quietly in prayer and in devotion. But it must be remembered that prayer and devotion are not simply passive things. They are the dedicated listening for the voice of God. (ii) God gives this revelation to Jesus Christ. The Bible never, as it were, makes a second God of Jesus; rather it stresses his utter dependence on God. "My teaching," said Jesus, "is not mine, but his who sent me" (Jn.7:16). "I do nothing on my own authority but speak thus as the Father taught me" (Jn.8:28). "I have not spoken on my own authority; the Father who sent me has himself given me commandment what to say and what to speak" (Jn.12:49). It is God's truth that Jesus brings to men; and that is precisely why his teaching is unique and final. (iii) Jesus sends that truth to John through his angel (Rev. 1:1). Here the writer of the Revelation was a child of his day. At this time in history men were specially conscious of the transcendence of God. That is to say, they were impressed above all things with the difference between God and man. So much so that they felt direct communication between God and man was impossible and that there must always be some intermediary. In the Old Testament story Moses received the Law directly from the hands of God (Exo.19-20); but twice in the New Testament it is said that the Law was given by angels (Ac.7:53; Gal.3:19).
28. 28. (iv) Finally, the revelation is given to John. It is most uplifting to remember the part men play in the coming of God's revelation. God must find a man to whom he can entrust his truth and whom he can use as his mouthpiece. (v) Let us note the content of the revelation which comes to John. It is the revelation of "the things which must quickly happen" (Rev. 1:1). There are two important words here. There is must. History is not haphazard; it has purpose. There is quickly. Here is the proof that it is quite wrong to use the Revelation as a kind of mysterious timetable of what is going to happen thousands of years from now. As John sees it, the things it deals with are working themselves out immediately. The Revelation must be interpreted against the background of its own time. SERVANTS OF GOD Rev. 1:1-3 (continued) Twice the word servant appears in this passage. God's revelation was sent to his servants and it was sent through his servant John. In Greek the word is doulos (GSN1401) and in Hebrew `ebed (HSN5650). Both are difficult fully to translate. The normal translation of doulos (GSN1401) is slave. The real servant of God is, in fact, his slave. A servant can leave his service when he likes; he has stated hours of work and stated hours of freedom; he works for a wage; he h