Revelation: Introduction and Structure Ryan McAdams

Main purpose of the Book of RevelationJesus wants to encourage the faithful with the details of His war plan to defeat evil and establish Himself as the Davidic King of kingsand righteous ruler over the whole earth.

"The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord, and of His Christ/Messiah; and He will reign forever and ever." Revelation 11:15

AuthorThe apostle John is widely accepted as the author of the book of Revelation. John clearly states that he is the author (1:2, 9) and there is clear internal and historical evidence that this was the case.

Date and Historical ContextThe logical and accepted date of the book is the late decade of the first century, about 95 A.D., during the reign of Domitian. Early church historian Eusebius wrote that Domitian organized excessive and cruel treatment and executions of Christians. The Emperor was a type and picture of the anti-Christ. Domitian was the first emperor to have himself officially titled in Rome as “God the Lord.” He insisted that other people hail his greatness with acclamations like “Lord of the earth,” “Invincible,” “Glory,” “Holy,” and “Thou Alone.”Jews and Christians would not bow to these requests, resulting in severe persecution. John was sentenced by Domitian to be boiled in oil and when John was miraculously preserved they banished him to the island 0f Patmos to work hard labor. Though there were many who continued to stand for Christ and righteousness the Church at this time was generally in a time of spiritual decline and doctrinal apostasy.

"The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to make known (“signify”) to His bond-servants, the things which must shortly take place; and He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond-servant John, who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near." Rev 1:1-3

Title -"The Revelation of Jesus Christ"The word "Revelation" is the Greek word "Apocalypse" and means the "taking away" (apo) of a "cover" (calypse) - or the disclosure of something that has been hidden. God has inspired Jesus to given this revelation to John, to disclose information to the Church of the unfolding events concerning His second coming and the coming Kingdom.

The Content - "the things that must take place"This key phrase in the book is quoted in Daniel 2:28. More than any other book, Revelation alludes to many Old Testament scriptures and prophecies - particularly Daniel, Isaiah, Ezekiel and the Psalms. Of the 404 verses in the book of Revelation, 279 allude to passages in the OT.

Revelation is called a "prophecy" (Rev 1:3; 22:7, 10, 18, 19) and the information in the book is symbolically communicated through visions. “To make known” is the greek word which means to signify, which means “to show by a sign” (see Daniel 2:28-29). The message God is communicating is not abstract, but pictoral in its nature. The prophecy is real information communicated in visions. It is not only an exhortation and encouragement to the Church (1 Cor 14:3), but also a prophecy predicting future events - in fulfillment of many Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messianic King and Kingdom, and the judgment of the wicked. The prophecy of four kingdoms in Daniel 2 clearly predicts the eventual establishment of God's Kingdom on the earth over all other kingdoms.

"There is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar the things that must take place at the end of days." Daniel 2:28

Jesus uses this same phrase in the Gospels in His Olivet Discourse speaking of "the things that must take place" in the future at the end leading up to His second coming (Matt 24:6; Mk 13:7; Lk 21:9). Jesus unfolds in the Revelation the long-awaited details of those things He prophesied in the Gospels about the coming Kingdom. Like other prophecy the details given are to be treated as objectively meaningful and historical – outlining the end-time events, players and circumstances and their relationship to one another. Revelation is to be taken literally, unless otherwise indicated in the text (see Rev 11:8).

“Write therefore the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall take place after these things.” Revelation 1:19

Jesus instructs John to write down the visions he has seen: (1) “the things which are” describes the 7 letters and messages given to churches at the time of John; and (2) “the things which shall take place after these things” describes the prophecies that follow concerning the 3 Numbered Judgment Series (Seals, Trumpets, Bowls) which will take place before the Lord returns in glory.

This phrase "the things that must take place after these things" occurs again in Rev 4:1 at the beginning of the section of the book that is particularly dealing with apocalyptic future events, and also in Rev 22:6 at the end of those events. Thus, Rev 4:1-22:6 serves as a framework for the book and clearly marks out for us what comprises "the things that must take place", so that everything that precedes is essentially preliminary, and all that follows is the conclusion.The Revelation of Jesus Christ is bringing to climax the expectation of Daniel 2 and the outworking of God's program and purpose to bring forth the King of Kings and the everlasting Kingdom that will replace and subdue all other earthly and wicked kingdoms.

Simple Outline of Revelation:

Rev 1 Intro and Commissioning of John Rev 2-3 Exhortation to 7 churches Rev 4-5 Heavenly Court and 7-Sealed Scroll Rev 6 Seals (1st Numbered Judgment Series) Rev 7 1st Parenthetical Section Rev 8-9 Trumpets (2nd Numbered Judgment Series) Rev 10-14 2nd Parenthetical Section Rev 15-16 Bowls (3rd Numbered Judgment Series) Rev 17-19 3rd Parenthetical Section Rev 19:11-21 Second Coming and Armageddon Rev 20-21:8 Millennium, Judgment and Eternal City Rev 21:9-22:6 4th Parenthetical Section Rev 22:7-22:21 Final Exhortation

  • The main end-time prophetic content starts in Rev 4:1 and ends in Rev 22:6.
  • There are 3 Numbered Judgment Series (Seals, Trumpets, Bowls)
  • There are 4 Parenthetical Sections. These are interludes in the chronology where theological perspective and explanation is given about what is happening in the judgment series.

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