Berean Bible Study
The Seven Letters to the Seven Churches
Introduction
Today we’re starting a new series – the seven letters that Jesus
dictated to the seven churches in the book of Revelation. The letters are all in
chapters two and three, but to get there, we need to start at chapter 1.
To get the most out of this Bible study, you’re going to need to do
some work. It is not my intent to tell you what the Bible says. It is my hope
that I will teach you how to study it for yourself. As a good Berean, you take nothing to heart without checking it out
for yourself.
Who wrote the book? (Eusebius, Church
History, Book III, Chap. 23 “Narrative Concerning John the Apostle, 6, --Nicene
and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol. 1, p.150)
NARRATIVE
CONCERNING JOHN THE APOSTLE.
AT that time the apostle and evangelist
John, the one whom Jesus loved, was still
living in Asia, and governing the churches of that region,
having returned after
the death of Domitian from his exile on the island. And that he was still alive at
that time may be established by the testimony of two
witnesses. They should be
trustworthy who have maintained the orthodoxy of the Church; and
such indeed
were Irenaeus and Clement
of Alexandria. The former in the second book of his
work Against Heresies, writes as follows: “And all the
elders that associated
with John the disciple of the Lord in Asia bear witness
that John delivered it to
them. For he remained among them until
the time of Trajan.” And in the third
book of the same work he attests the same thing in the
following words: “But the
church in Ephesus also, which was founded by Paul, and where
John remained
until the time of Trajan, is a faithful witness of the
apostolic tradition.” Clement
likewise in his book entitled What Rich Man can be saved? indicates the time,
and subjoins a narrative which is most attractive to those
that enjoy hearing
what is beautiful and profitable. Take and read the account
which runs as
follows: “Listen to a tale, which is not a mere tale, but a
narrative concerning
John the apostle, which has been handed
down and treasured up in memory. For
when, after the tyrant’s death, he returned from the isle
of Patmos to Ephesus,
he went away upon their invitation to the neighboring
territories of the Gentiles,
to appoint bishops in some places, in other places to set
in order whole
churches…”
There are lots of things you can track down if you want to, but it
would seem that the weight of evidence is on the Apostle John, the beloved
disciple, having been the “John” of Revelation. Those that want to prove
someone else wrote it have to prove that the very early church fathers,
including Irenaeus, were wrong. Irenaeus
was the disciple of Polycarp, who was the disciple of John the Apostle.
When was
the book written?
This is where the arguments start to get fierce, because some methods
of interpretation depend heavily on the date that Revelation was written. There
are those who say that Revelation was written around 65 A.D., and that John was
exiled during the reign of Nero. There are others who say that Revelation was
written around 95 A.D., and John was exiled under Domitian. Irenaeus,
who should know, said this in his book “Against Heresies: Book V/Chapter XXX”,
which you can read here:
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Ante-Nicene_Fathers/Volume_I/IRENAEUS/Against_Heresies:_Book_V/Chapter_XXX.
We will not, however, incur the
risk of pronouncing positively as to the name of Antichrist; for if it were
necessary that his name should be distinctly revealed in this present time, it
would have been announced by him who beheld the apocalyptic vision. For that
was seen no very long time since,
but almost in our day, towards the end of Domitian’s
reign.
In this paper, VIEWS OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION by A. Ralph Johnson,
http://www.preacherstudy.com/pdf/revelation.pdf,
it says:
EARLY DATE
Those contending for the early date place
it before the destruction of Jerusalem in
70
A.D., in the reign of the emperor Nero who died in 68 A.D.
Clement, Bishop of Alexandria, Egypt,
wrote that John went from the island of
Patmos
back to Ephesus “after the tyrant’s death.” 1
Clement does not name the “tyrant.”
Those who accept the early date believe he
was Nero. Because Clement’s
description of the events of John’s ministry after
leaving Patmos seem unlikely for a man who would then be over
90 years old,
Preterists consider the late date unlikely. The time factor
especially centers on a young
man who John entrusts to a bishop’s care who afterwards
renounced his faith and
joined a band of outlaws. After some time, John returned on
business and sought out
the man and brought him back to Christ. It is claimed that
there would not have been
time for all of this to take place if John wrote around 95
AD.
A footnote in the Nicene &
Ante-Nicene Fathers by the translator, Dr. Arthur
McGiffert,
suggests this may not be authentic. Such stories commonly grow up around
important people. In any case, we do not know the strength of
John at this time.
Some outstanding commentators holding the
early view: Robert Young (who wrote
Young’s Concordance), Wescott
and Hort, J.B.Lightfoot, Sir
Isaac Newton and Moses
Stuart.
LATE DATE
Those who favor the late date maintain
that John wrote about 95 A.D..
IRENAEUS, Bishop of Lyons, France [120-202 A.D.] who was a
disciple of
Polycarp,
a disciple of the Apostle John.
“We will not however, incur the risk of
pronouncing positively as to the name of
Antichrist; for if it were necessary that
his name should be distinctly revealed in
this present time, it would have been announced by him who
beheld the
apocalyptic vision. For that was seen no very long time since, but
almost in our
day, toward the end of Domitian’s reign.”2
This is also recorded by Eusebius around
325 A.D., in his Church History, Book 3,
Chap.
18, “The Apostle John and the Apocalypse.”
3
EUSEBIUS [260-340 A.D.]
: Book 3, Chapter 23
1 Eusebius, Church History, Book III,
Chap. 23 “Narrative Concerning John the Apostle, 6, --Nicene and Post-
Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol. 1,
p.150
Also, Clemens Alexandrinus,
“Who Is The Rich Man” #42 – Ante Nicene Fathers, Vol.
2.
2 --Irenaeus, “Against Heresies,” Book 5, Chap. 30, 3, in his
discussion of the number and name of the Antichrist.
Anti-Nicene
Fathers, Vol. 1, p.559-560.
(Ages Digital Library, p.1122)
3 Nicene & Post-Nicene Fathers,
Series 2, (Ages Digital Library 233).
NARRATIVE
CONCERNING JOHN THE APOSTLE.
AT that time the apostle and evangelist
John, the one whom Jesus loved, was still
living in Asia, and governing the churches of that region,
having returned after
the death of Domitian from his exile on the island. And that he was still alive at
that time may be established by the testimony of two
witnesses. They should be
trustworthy who have maintained the orthodoxy of the Church; and
such indeed
were Irenaeus and Clement
of Alexandria. The former in the second book of his
work Against Heresies, writes as follows: “And all the
elders that associated
with John the disciple of the Lord in Asia bear witness
that John delivered it to
them. For he remained among them until
the time of Trajan.” And in the third
book of the same work he attests the same thing in the
following words: “But the
church in Ephesus also, which was founded by Paul, and where
John remained
until the time of Trajan, is a faithful witness of the
apostolic tradition.” Clement
likewise in his book entitled What Rich Man can be saved? indicates the time,
and subjoins a narrative which is most attractive to those
that enjoy hearing
what is beautiful and profitable. Take and read the account
which runs as
follows: “Listen to a tale, which is not a mere tale, but a
narrative concerning
John the apostle, which has been handed
down and treasured up in memory. For
when, after the tyrant’s death, he returned from the isle
of Patmos to Ephesus,
he went away upon their invitation to the neighboring
territories of the Gentiles,
to appoint bishops in some places, in other places to set
in order whole
churches…”4
VICTORINUS, [300 A.D.] bishop of Petau, Commentary on Revelation chapter
17:10.
“And there are seven kings: five have fallen, and one is, and the other is
not yet come; and when he is come, he will be for a short
time.” The time must be
understood in which the written Apocalypse was published, since
then reigned
Caesar Domitian; but before him had been Titus his brother, and
Vespasian,
Otho, Vitellius, and Galba. These are the five who have fallen. One remains,
under whom the Apocalypse was written — Domitian, to
wit. “The other has not
yet come,” speaks of Nerva; “and
when he is come, he will be for a short time,”
for he did not complete the period of two years. 5
JEROME, [400 A.D.]
John…saw in the island of Patmos, to
which he had been banished by the Emperor
Domitian as a martyr for the Lord, an Apocalypse containing the
boundless mysteries of
the
future.6
So, again, you can study this more if you wish. I’m personally
convinced that the later date is the only one that works – somewhere around 95
AD.
Interpretation
methods
I can’t imagine another book of the Bible that creates more
disagreement than the Book of Revelation. As people consider the book, they
have come up with a number of ways of approaching it. The first is preterism, which means basically, fulfilled
in the past. Preterists believe that
some, most, or in the case of extreme preterism, ALL
of Bible prophecy was fulfilled at some time in the past. (Most people would
not agree with extreme preterism). Many
point to 70 AD and the destruction of the Jewish Temple, while others
see the fulfillment continuing to about 300 AD and the reign of the emperor
Constantine. Here's one of the places where they explain their view: http://www.lvcm.com/preterism/preterism.htm
Or,
here: What is Preterism? http://www.preterist.org/whatispreterism.asp
You can find many, many things to read on preterism
and specifically, the preterist view of Revelation by
doing an online search. Because they tend to see the Book of Revelation as
being fulfilled with the destruction of Jerusalem, that means Revelation had to
be written before 70 A.D. John would have been a younger man when he wrote it,
and the persecution he suffered was under Nero.
Historicism is another
interpretation view. According to one historicism web site, http://www.historicism.com/tour/tour2.htm,
historicism is the view that Bible prophecy, especially the Book of Revelation,
describes the events of the last two-thousand years. For example, the
prophecies concerning the Dragon, the Beast, the False Prophet, and the Whore
of Babylon, are references to the pagan Roman Empire, papal Rome (that is, Rome
under the rule of the popes), the Papacy, and the Roman Catholic Church. (Of
course, Catholic historicists would interpret those differently).
As
with preterism, there are different varieties of
historicism. Some historicists see fulfillment of biblical prophecy in specific
events, such as the spread of Islam, while others see fulfillment more
generally. Sometimes, that version is called “Idealism." In the words of
one idealist,
In this view the red
horse of (Revelation) chapter six is not a
symbol for any specific war, but a symbolic portrayal of every war that has
brought great tribulation to men; the black horse symbolizes not any specific famine
in the end times but every famine that has raised the price of food out of
reach. The smoke from the bottomless pit which obscures the sun in chapter nine
is not one specific heresy, but every false doctrine that obscures the light of
the gospel.
Many people are actually a combination of preterism and historicism, and individual people or churches may disagree on the details. Both of these views are contrasted with futurism, which usually holds that prophecy has been or will be fulfilled exactly as written. For example, most futurists would say that Isaiah 17:1, when Damascus will cease from being a city, is still future. They point to the fact that Damascus advertises itself as being the world's oldest, continuously inhabited city.
An easy way to contrast these views would be to look at passages describing the Tribulation. A preterist would likely say they were fulfilled in 70 AD. Historicists would say the passages describe tribulation throughout the last 2,000 years, while futurists believe say they are still future.
Apocalyptic
literature – different interpretation rules.
Many people say that because something belongs to the “apocalyptic” genre of literature, it has different rules of interpretation.
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http://www.biblicaltheology.com/Research/CarterJ08.pdf It was visitation night for our little
Baptist church. As the conversation with this “prospect” continued, it took
what for me was a very strange turn. “I am here to tell you, sir, that the
earth is NOT round, regardless of what you and your scientists say!”1 As a member of the scientific community and well-grounded the
natural sciences, I was astounded at this earnest statement from a very
committed Pentecostal-leaning Christian. He told me, “No, the earth’s not
round, and I can prove it. The Bible says, ‘I saw four angels standing at the
four corners of the earth.’ Since the Bible is true, the earth is not round.
It is a square.” His quote was accurate, taken from the
Revelation of John. And after these things I saw four angels standing on
the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind
should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea,
nor on any tree. (Rev, 7:1, KJV.) What was the error in this man’s
thinking? Certainly, there was nothing wrong with the faith of this man. In
fact, the innocent blindness of his faith in scripture seemed superior to
mine. His error was in his interpretation of the apocalyptic literature style utilized in the biblical text. Reading symbolic imagery as
literal and historical, he came away only with an incorrect description of
the physical earth and the location of four angels, substituting it for the
deep theological message that the author intended on conveying. Was that the error of the man’s thinking – that he
should have understood that “apocalyptic” literature had a different rule of
interpretation? One that said, “Do not take any of these things literally?”
Here’s another description of “apocalyptic literature”: The
book of Revelation is a special kind of prophecy called apocalypse (the first
word of this book in Greek is the word "apocalypse" often
translated "revelation"). Apocalyptic literature uses many
fantastic symbols and numbers to picture things for people - but things that
should not be taken literally. For example, in Revelation 21 the street of the heavenly Jerusalem was
made of pure gold and it was like transparent glass (v21b). Gold is not
transparent so Revelation itself shows us this description can't be
taken literally. Instead the description is meant to tell us that the street
will be unbelievably beautiful. Back to the first example. Here are some similar
verses: Mark
13:27 And then He will send His angels, and gather
together His elect from the four winds, from the farthest part of earth to
the farthest part of heaven. Isa
11:12 He will set up a banner for the nations, And
will assemble the outcasts of Israel, And gather together the dispersed of
Judah From the four corners of the earth. Rev 7:1 After
these things I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth ,
holding the four winds of the earth , that the wind should not blow on the
earth , on the sea, or on any tree. As you can see, there are similar ideas in the
Bible regardless of whether it is “apocalyptic” or not. In my opinion, a better
stance to have is to let the Bible sort out its own symbolism. Things that we
need to understand are explained somewhere else. For this man, with his idea
that the world was a cube, he just wasn’t understanding
that particular use of the language. Does the Bible say “four corners”
because it’s referring to compass points? Maybe. In any case, we understand
what’s meant – from every area of the earth – North, South, East, West. It is apparent to me that interpreting the Book
of Revelation from all these different viewpoints is
going to lead to different ideas of what it means, and of course, that’s
exactly what we have. That can be a problem, as God warns: 2 Peter
1:19 And so we have the prophetic word confirmed,
which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the
day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; 20 knowing this first,
that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation , 21 for prophecy never came by the will of
man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. Rev
22:18 For I testify to everyone who hears the words
of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to
him the plagues that are written in this book; 19 and if anyone takes away
from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part
from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are
written in this book. So, all of us need to be careful when we try to
interpret something. The best guide is to look throughout the rest of the
Bible and see how a symbol or word is used elsewhere. Revelation is the only book of the Bible that
actually promises a blessing for reading and hearing it. Those aren’t just
nice words. God is making a promise to you – to bless you for studying this
book and keeping the things written in it. We’ll get to that in a bit.
First, the name itself: Revelation. In Greek, it is Apokalypsis, from which
we get our word, “apocalypse.” In English, we tend
to think of “apocalypse” as a great disaster. It’s interesting, though, that
even the Webster’s Dictionary says: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/apocalypse 1 a: one of the Jewish and Christian
writings of 200 b.c. to a.d. 150 marked by pseudonymity, symbolic imagery, and the expectation of an
imminent cosmic cataclysm in which God destroys the ruling powers of evil and
raises the righteous to life in a messianic kingdom bcapitalized
: revelation 32 a: something
viewed as a prophetic revelation b: armageddon
3: a great disaster <an environmental apocalypse> |
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of Jesus Christ
Revelation 1:1
Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show
His servants--things which must shortly take place.
And He sent and signified it by
His angel to His servant John, 2
who bore witness to the word of God, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to
all things that he saw. 3
Blessed is
he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those
things which are written in it; for the time is near.
Revelation: Apokalypsis (ä-po-kä'-lü-psēs)
1) laying bare, making naked
2) a disclosure of truth, instruction
a) concerning things before unknown
b) used of events by which things or states or persons hitherto withdrawn from view are made visible to all
3) manifestation, appearance
This is the noun form. It comes from apokalyptō (ä-po-kä-lü'p-tō) which means:
1) to
uncover, lay open what has been veiled or covered up
a) disclose,
make bare
2) to make
known, make manifest, disclose what before was unknown
18 times –
Luke 2:32 A light to bring revelation
to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people
Israel."
Rom 2:5 But in accordance with your
hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in
the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God,
6 who "will render to each one according to his deeds":
Rom 8:18 For I consider that the
sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory
which shall be revealed (verb form) in us. 19 For the earnest
expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing (noun
form) of the
sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but
because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also
will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of
the children of God.
Rom 16:25 Now to Him who is able to
establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ,
according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the
world began 26 but now made manifest, and by the prophetic Scriptures made
known to all nations, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, for
obedience to the faith —
27 to God, alone wise, be glory through Jesus Christ forever.
Amen.
1 Cor 1:4 I thank my God always concerning you for the grace
of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, 5 that you were enriched in
everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, 6 even as the testimony
of Christ was confirmed in you, 7 so that you come short in no gift, eagerly
waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8 who will
also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our
Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Cor 14:6 But now, brethren, if I come to you speaking with
tongues, what shall I profit you unless I speak to you either by
revelation, by knowledge, by prophesying, or by teaching?
2 Cor 12:1 It is doubtless not profitable for me to boast. I
will come to visions and revelations of the Lord: 2 I know a man
in Christ who fourteen years ago — whether in the body I do not know, or
whether out of the body I do not know, God knows — such a one was caught up to
the third heaven. 3 And I know such a man — whether in the body or out of the
body I do not know, God knows — 4 how he
was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not
lawful for a man to utter.
2 Cor 12:7 And lest I should be exalted above measure by the
abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to
me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure.
Gal 1:12 For I
neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation
of Jesus Christ.
Gal 2:2 And I went up by revelation,
and communicated to them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but
privately to those who were of reputation, lest by any means I might run, or
had run, in vain.
Eph 1:15 Therefore I also, after I heard
of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 do not
cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: 17 that the
God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit
of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him,
Eph 3:1 For this reason I, Paul, the
prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles —
2 if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which
was given to me for you, 3 how that by revelation (noun) He made known to me the mystery (as I have
briefly written already, 4 by which, when you read, you may understand my
knowledge in the mystery of Christ), 5 which in other ages was not made known
to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed (verb) by the Spirit to His holy apostles and
prophets: 6 that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and
partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel, 7 of which I became a
minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective
working of His power.
2 Thess 1:3 We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren,
as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every
one of you all abounds toward each other, 4 so that we ourselves boast of you
among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions
and tribulations that you endure, 5 which is manifest evidence of the righteous
judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for
which you also suffer; 6 since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with
tribulation those who trouble you, 7 and to give you who are troubled rest with
us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty
angels, 8 in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on
those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 These shall be
punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from
the glory of His power, 10 when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His
saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony
among you was believed.
1 Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us
again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away,
reserved in heaven for you, 5 who are kept by the power of God through faith
for salvation ready to be revealed (verb)
in the last time.
6 In this
you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been
grieved by various trials, 7 that the genuineness of your faith, being much
more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be
found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ,(noun)
1 Peter 1:13 Therefore gird up the loins of
your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be
brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
1 Peter
4:12 Beloved,
do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as
though some strange thing happened to you; 13 but rejoice to the extent that
you partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed,
you may also be glad with exceeding joy.
Matt
10:26 Therefore do not fear them. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed,
and hidden that will not be known.
Matt
11:25 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You,
Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the
wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. 26 Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. 27 All
things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no
one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the
Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.
Matt
16:17 Jesus
answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and
blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
Luke 2:33 And
Joseph and His mother marveled at those things which were spoken of Him. 34
Then Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His mother, "Behold, this Child
is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which
will be spoken against 35(yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also),
that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed."
Luke
10:21 In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, "I
thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things
from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so,
Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. 22 All
things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is
except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom
the Son wills to reveal Him."
Luke 12:1 In the
meantime, when an innumerable multitude of people had gathered together, so
that they trampled one another, He began to say to His disciples first of all,
"Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2 For there is nothing covered that will not
be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known. 3 Therefore whatever you have spoken in the
dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner
rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.
Luke
17:26 And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the
days of the Son of Man: 27 They ate,
they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that
Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. 28 Likewise as it was also in the days of
Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they
built; 29 but on the day that Lot went
out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them
all. 30 Even so will it be in the day
when the Son of Man is revealed.
John
12:37 But although He had done so many signs before them, they did
not believe in Him, 38 that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled,
which he spoke:"Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm
of the LORD been revealed?"
39
Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again: 40 "He has
blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, Lest
they should see with their eyes, Lest they should understand with their hearts
and turn, So that I should heal them."
41 These
things Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him.
Rom 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the
gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who
believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the
righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is
written, "The just shall live by faith."
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven
against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in
unrighteousness, 19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for
God has shown it to them.
Rom 8:18 For I consider that the
sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory
which shall be revealed (verb form) in
us. 19 For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing
(noun form) of the sons of God.
1 Cor 2:9"Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have
entered into the heart of man The things which God has
prepared for those who love Him."
10 But God
has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit
searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.
1 Cor 3:12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold,
silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one's work will become
clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed
by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is. 14 If
anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If
anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet
so as through fire.
1 Cor 14:26 How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each
of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation,
(noun) has an interpretation. Let all things be
done for edification. 27 If anyone speaks in a tongue, let there be two or at
the most three, each in turn, and let one interpret. 28 But if there is no
interpreter, let him keep silent in church, and let him speak to himself and to
God. 29 Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others judge. 30 But if
anything is revealed (verb) to
another who sits by, let the first keep silent.
Gal 1:15 But when it pleased God, who
separated me from my mother's womb and called me through His grace, 16 to reveal
His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not
immediately confer with flesh and blood, 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to
those who were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia, and returned again to
Damascus.
Gal 3:23 But
before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith
which would afterward be revealed.
Eph 3:1 For this reason I, Paul, the
prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles —
2 if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which
was given to me for you, 3 how that by revelation (noun) He made known to me the mystery (as I have
briefly written already, 4 by which, when you read, you may understand my
knowledge in the mystery of Christ), 5 which in other ages was not made known
to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed (verb) by the Spirit to His holy apostles and
prophets: 6 that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and
partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel,
Phil 3:13 Brethren, I do not count myself
to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are
behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward
the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Therefore
let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think
otherwise, God will reveal even this to you.
2 Thess
2:3 Let no
one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling
away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of
perdition, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or
that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself
that he is God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you
these things? 6 And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed
in his own time.
1 Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us
again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away,
reserved in heaven for you, 5 who are kept by the power of God through faith
for salvation ready to be revealed (verb)
in the last time. 6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little
while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 that the
genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes,
though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation
(noun) of Jesus Christ, 8 whom having not seen you love.
Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy
inexpressible and full of glory, 9 receiving the end of your faith — the
salvation of your souls.
10 Of this
salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of
the grace that would come to you, 11 searching what, or what manner of time,
the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified
beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. 12 To
them it was revealed (verb) that,
not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the
things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the
gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven — things which angels desire
to look into.
13
Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober,
and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation
of Jesus Christ; (noun)
1 Peter 5:1 The elders who are among you I
exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and
also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed:
of Jesus Christ
Revelation 1:1
Revelation
of Jesus Christ, which God
gave Him to show His servants--things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John, 2
who bore witness to the word of God, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to
all things that he saw. 3
Blessed is
he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those
things which are written in it; for the time is near.
Notice that this is the revealing, unveiling, showing forth of Jesus Christ. This whole book is about Jesus and how He will be unveiled. God gave it to Jesus, this understanding of His unveiling, so that He could tell us:
John 12:49 For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.
The servants referred to in verse 1 is doulos:
Servants: doulos 1) a slave, bondman, man of servile condition
a) a slave
b) metaph., one who gives himself up to another's will those whose service is used by Christ in extending and advancing his cause among men
c) devoted to another to the disregard of one's own interests
2) a servant, attendant
In other words, immature believers are going to have a hard time with Revelation. To be a doulos of Christ implies a measure of maturity.
That “shortly” come to pass is tachos:
Shortly: tachos
1) quickness, speed
It doesn’t mean “shortly” as in “soon from now.” It means when it happens, it will happen quickly. It will all happen very fast. It’s the same word that we get “tachometer” from, like here:
|
And saw
him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem: for
they will not receive thy testimony concerning me. |
The “keep” is tēreō:
Keep: tēreō
1) to attend to carefully, take care of
a) to guard
b) metaph. to keep, one in the state in which he is
c) to observe
d) to reserve: to undergo something
And prophecy is prophēteia pro-fā-tā'-ä
1) prophecy
a) a discourse emanating from divine inspiration and declaring the purposes of God, whether by reproving and admonishing the wicked, or comforting the afflicted, or revealing things hidden; esp. by foretelling future events
b) Used in the NT of the utterance of OT prophets
1) of the prediction of events relating to Christ's kingdom and its speedy triumph, together with the consolations and admonitions pertaining to it, the spirit of prophecy, the divine mind, to which the prophetic faculty is due
2) of the endowment and speech of the Christian teachers called prophets
3) the gifts and utterances of these prophets, esp. of the predictions of the works of which, set apart to teach the gospel, will accomplish for the kingdom of Christ
In other words, this is a real prophecy, meant to be understood as a prophecy.