How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth, Revelation: Images of Judgment and Hope

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MARK STRAUSS: We come in this session
to the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation.
While most of the literary genres we've encountered so far
are quite familiar to modern readers, things like letters
and narratives, history and law, when we get to Revelation,
it's like entering a foreign country, or even
another planet.
We suddenly come to a world full of strange images and symbols:
angels and other strange angelic creatures,
lampstands and trumpets and bowls,
beasts and dragons and a bottomless pit.
We believe this book, too, is the Word of God,
yet we don't know quite what to make of it.
While sometimes the symbols of Revelation
are quite straightforward--
for example, an earthquake clearly
represents God's judgment--
other times they're really obscure.
What are these locusts that rise from the bottomless pit,
with faces like human beings?
Is this meant to be taken literally or is it
symbolic of something else?
If it's symbolic, does it represent
an actual historical event, or is it
symbolic of a general truth, such as the power of evil?
If it's meant to symbolize an actual event,
is this an event that has happened in the past,
or is it something that will still happen in the future?
The challenges of interpreting the book of Revelation
center especially on two questions.
What's the significance of the symbols and images,
first of all?
And secondly, do they relate to the past, the present,
or the future?
In our short session-- and we won't
be able to answer these questions in great detail;
instead, I'd like to examine the nature of Revelation
and develop some principles, some basic principles,
for how to read and interpret it.
One thing, however, should encourage us.
Although the book of Revelation is probably
the most difficult book in the Bible
to understand in terms of its specifics,
in terms of its central theme, its overall message,
it's crystal clear.
This theme is that God is the sovereign Lord of history,
and that he wins in the end.
That should be a message of great comfort to us
as we face trials, as we face suffering.
No matter how bad things get in this world,
God is the Lord of all, who will bring us safely through.
No book in the Bible teaches that message
as clearly as the book of Revelation.
The book ends with God's victory over all evil,
and the establishment of his eternal kingdom, a new heaven
and a new earth where we will live with God in peace
and safety forever and ever.
That's a message of great assurance.
That's a message of great hope.
Let's look, first of all, at the nature
of the book of Revelation.
As with all books of the Bible, the first thing we need to do
is identify its genre, or literary form.
The book of Revelation is particularly complicated,
since it's made up of at least three distinct literary forms:
epistle, or letter, prophecy, and apocalyptic.
Two of these three, epistle and prophecy,
are already familiar to us.
Let's start, then, with them.
First, the book of Revelation is an epistle, or a letter.
John begins the book in the style of a letter.
He says in Verse 4, "John, to the seven
churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you."
This is a typical greeting found in a letter.
Then, in chapters 2 and 3, seven letters
are addressed to seven historical churches.
Not only do these letters confirm
that one of the key genres of Revelation is epistle,
but they also remind us that, as an epistle,
the book has a specific historical context--
a place, a time, and an occasion.
As we've seen, a fundamental principle of exegesis
is to interpret a document within its historical context.
The place and time of the book of Revelation
is first-century Asia Minor.
The occasion is John's exile on the island of Patmos,
off the coast of Asia Minor, which is modern western Turkey.
John has been exiled there by the Roman emperor.
While there, he has an extended vision of the resurrected
Christ, and of God's ultimate victory over evil.
The seven letters sent to seven churches
address specific needs and concerns within these church
communities.
While these churches have experienced some persecution,
their greatest problem is not yet suffering,
but complacency, the danger of giving
in to the ways of the world, especially
pagan worship and the cult of emperor worship.
It's essential to read and interpret
the book of Revelation within this first-century
cultural and religious context.
The second literary form of the book of Revelation is prophecy.
John calls his book "this prophecy"
in 1:3 and in 22:18-19.

He also says, "The testimony about Jesus
is the spirit of prophecy" (19:10).
.
As prophecy, the book is meant to be a prophetic word
to the church, addressed to their present situation,
calling them to respond.
As we've discussed already, prophecy
is not primarily foretelling the future, though it can be that,
but it is, first and foremost, forthtelling, or proclaiming
God's Word to God's people.
The book of Revelation is a prophetic word
written to seven historical churches
in Asia Minor in the first century,
but with a message of relevance to us today.
The third literary form that comprises
the book of Revelation is called apocalyptic.
It is certainly the most challenging
of the genres of Revelation.
The primary reason apocalyptic literature is so difficult
to understand is because we really
don't have anything quite like it in our day today.
Apocalyptic literature arose and flourished
as a literary form in Judaism and in early Christianity
for about 400 years, from about 200 BC to about 200 AD.
Several important features of apocalyptic literature
should be noted if we're going to understand
the book of Revelation.
First of all, although apocalyptic literature arose
in the second century BC, it has its roots much earlier,
in the Old Testament Prophets, especially
in sections of the books of Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel,
and Zechariah.
Certain passages in these Prophets
have the same kind of symbolic images
we find in apocalyptic literature,
and more specifically, in the book of Revelation.
They also have similar themes related
to the coming judgment of the wicked,
and salvation for God's people.
Apocalyptic literature generally arose in the context of crisis,
when God's people face great trials, and even
the threat of annihilation.
Its message is to hold on, to persevere,
to remain faithful to God, because he is soon
coming to deliver his people.
He will judge the wicked and will save the righteous.
While apocalyptic literature shares
much in common with prophetic literature,
a second characteristic distinguishes it
from the Prophets.
While the writings of the prophets
generally began as spoken oracles
and were later written down, apocalyptic literature
was apparently written down from the beginning.
In other words, apocalyptic was a form of literature,
rather than a form of oral speech.
In Revelation 1:19, John is told to write down
what he has seen and heard.
A third characteristic of apocalyptic literature
relates to those strange symbols and images we find here.
These images tend to be from the realm of fantasy
rather than reality.
For example, while Jesus often used similes and metaphors
to teach, these were images from real life, such as salt,
or light, or a fig tree, or yeast in bread,
or dogs, or vultures.
Many of the images from Revelation
and other apocalypses by contrast,
are from the realm of fantasy.
A beast with seven heads and ten horns rises from the sea.
Locusts with scorpion's tails and human heads
come forth from the abyss.
A woman appears in the sky who is clothed with the sun
and has a crown of twelve stars.
These are mysterious images-- highly symbolic, and often
difficult to interpret.
A fourth feature of apocalyptic literature
also relates to symbolic language,
but here it's the symbolic value of numbers.
In the book of Revelation, for example, the number seven
is used again and again, probably representing
completeness or perfection.
There are seven churches, seven lampstands, seven seals,
trumpets, and bowls, seven last things, seven spirits,
et cetera.
The number twelve is also significant,
often representing the nation Israel.
In apocalyptic literature, chronological periods
and events are often set in organized patterns
and numbered.
Symbolic numbers are used to chart the history of the world,
or the chronology of the end times--
for example, the chronological period of 3 1/2 years,
also identified as 42 months, and 1,260 days,
both of which represent the same amount of time.
That number is used again and again
in the book of Revelation.
This time period is probably drawn
from Daniel 7:25, which speaks of the persecution of God's
people for "time, times, and half a time."
"Time" is one, "times" is two more, and "half a time"
is a half: 3 1/2.
So, numbers are significant in apocalyptic literature.
A fifth feature of apocalyptic literature
is that it is generally pseudonymous.
This means it is written in the name
of an ancient biblical figure, even though that person did not
actually write it.
Two of the most important Jewish apocalypses
are attributed to Enoch and Baruch.
There are also apocalypses that claim
to be written by Adam, by Abraham, by Daniel, and others.
The pseudonymity gives the literature a feel of antiquity,
coming from ancient times.
Sometimes the author is told to seal up
the prophecy until the latter days, or until the end times.
The book of Revelation has all the features
of apocalyptic mentioned here except this last one.
The book is not pseudonymous.
It names its author as John.
And that's an attribution that most scholars
accept as authentic.
Now, which John this is is sometimes debated.
Is it the apostle John or is it another John?
But the name itself is accepted as authentic.
Furthermore, John is explicitly told
not to seal up the words of the prophecy of the scroll,
because the time is near.
That's Revelation 22:10.
This message was an urgent one for his churches to hear,
not a mystery for future generations.
To summarize, the book of Revelation
is at the same time epistle, prophecy, and apocalyptic.
As an epistle, it has a specific historical context, a time
and a place, and must be interpreted
within that first-century context.
As prophecy, it represents a prophetic word
to the church that must be heeded.
That word is to stand firm in the face of persecution,
to resist cultural pressures to conform
to the pattern of this world.
Finally, it's apocalyptic, and so its strange symbols
and images must be interpreted carefully,
in line with the nature of apocalyptic literature.
We move now from the genre of Revelation,
and its historical context, to its literary context,
meaning the flow or structure of the book.
Let's just take a few minutes to summarize the book's contents.
There are various ways to outline the book,
but we'll divide it very simply into three parts.
First is introductory material, in chapters 1-5,
introducing the Revelation.
Secondly are the judgments of God, in chapters 6-18.
And finally, third, the ultimate victory of God, in chapters
19-22.

While this is certainly overly simplistic,
it helps us to get the big picture of Revelation.
So let's look a bit closer.
Chapter 1 introduces us to the main characters of the book.
First, there is John himself, who
is in exile on the island of Patmos
because of "the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus."
While there, he receives a vision of the glorified Christ,
the Son of Man, who tells him to write down the vision
he's about to see, and to send it to the seven
churches of Asia Minor.
The vision concerns "what is now and what
will take place later" (1:19).
It's a vision of God's ultimate salvation
and victory over Satan, sin, and death.
The next two chapters, then, contain seven letters
to seven churches of Asia Minor, chapters 2 and 3.
These churches are Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira,
Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.
The letters are from Jesus himself
and include both encouragement and warning.
Though some persecution has already
come upon these churches, more is coming.
And the church must prepare itself
for this test of faithfulness.
Chapters 4 and 5 round out the introductory material
and further set the stage for the revelation to come.
In chapter 4, there's a vision of God the Father
on his throne.
He's symbolically portrayed as precious jewels
in his perfection and holiness.
Angelic creatures surround him in praise and worship.
John then sees a scroll at God's right hand,
sealed with seven seals, representing
the future for creation.
John weeps because no one is found
worthy to open the scroll that's sealed.
Finally, an angel announces that "the Lion
of the tribe of Judah," the Messiah,
is worthy to open the scroll.
But when John turns, he sees not a lion, but a lamb,
standing as though it were slain.
The point is that the Messiah accomplishes
salvation, not first as a conquering lion,
but as a sacrificial lamb, suffering and dying
as a sacrifice for sins.

That's the introduction.
The second major section of the book
is the judgments of God, chapter 6-18.
It begins as the Lamb opens the seven seals on the scroll,
unleashing a series of judgments against the people
of the earth.
The bulk of these judgments are made up of three sets of seven.
There are seven seal judgments, which give way
to seven trumpet judgments, which give way then
to seven bowl judgments that are poured out as a bowl.
In each case, the first four judgments of each set
are closely linked together.
For example, the first four seals
are the four horsemen, the famous four horsemen
of the apocalypse, representing conquest, war, famine,
and death.
Periodically, the judgments are interrupted with an interlude.
These scenes serve to explain some great theological truth.
For example, after the first six seal judgments,
there's an interlude where 144,000 individuals, 12,000
from every tribe of Israel, are sealed with the mark of God.
Although the specific identity of these 144,000
is debated greatly, they clearly represent
God's faithful people.
A second interlude follows, in which
a vast multitude from every nation, tribe, and language
is standing before the throne, praising God.
The first interlude confirms God's protection of his people.
The second shows the inclusive nature of the kingdom of God.
Though it is nearly impossible to determine
the specifics of these visions, the "when,"
the "where," and the "how," their general meaning is clear:
God's judgment is coming.
He will make every wrong right.
After ten chapters of judgments and interludes,
the end draws near, but the judgments are not quite over
yet.
Chapters 17 and 18 describe the destruction of Babylon,
a code name for the Roman Empire and symbolic
of all earthly powers.
Babylon is condemned and destroyed for its role
in persecuting the people of God.
The third and last major section of the book
is the ultimate victory of God in chapters 19-22.
In chapter 19, Christ returns in victory on a white horse
to establish his kingdom.
Satan and all the enemies of God are defeated and judged.
Then, in chapters 21 and 22, the new heaven and the new earth
appear, and the new Jerusalem descends
from heaven in all its glory and magnificence.
This will be the eternal dwelling
place for the people of God.
The book ends with a joyful invitation:
"The Spirit and the bride say, 'Come!'
And let the one who hears say, 'Come!'
Let the one who is thirsty come; and let
the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life."
A beautiful picture of our final salvation.
Having looked at the basic content of Revelation, that
is the literary context, let's look at a few principles
of exegesis and hermeneutics.
Though our standard principles of interpretation
apply to the book of Revelation, its unique features
call for some further clarification.
First, as always, our goal is exegesis,
determining the author's intended meaning.
Since the book was written by a first-century author
to a first-century audience living in Asia Minor,
we must assume that they were in a better position
to understand the book than we are
in the twenty-first century.
Sometimes today, so-called "experts" in Bible
prophecy will claim to find modern images
in the book of Revelation, such as attack helicopters or credit
cards or nuclear weapons.
Yet these interpretations are highly questionable,
since they would have been incomprehensible
to the original audience.
While it's not impossible that God would have given John
a message that could only be understood centuries later,
this is an unlikely scenario.
To suggest it risks violating the most fundamental principle
of exegesis, which is to read the text in context.
And that context is the struggles
of the first-century church in relationship
to Judaism and to the larger Greco-Roman world.
The images of Revelation are best explained
in that context, rather than our own.
Second, and related to this, we must
be careful not to overuse the principle
of the "analogy of Scripture."
By this we mean we must not assume
that John's readers would have known
all of the end-time passages in the New Testament,
such as Matthew 24, and the passages in 1
and 2 Thessalonians.
It's highly unlikely that John expected his readers
to determine the meaning of Revelation
by piecing together snippets from sources
outside the book itself.
Again, sometimes so-called prophecy "experts"
will develop an elaborate system of the end times
by picking and choosing texts, often out of context,
from a variety of sources.
This process, again, can violate the fundamental principle
of reading the text in context.
A third principle of interpretation
relates to the symbols of Revelation.
This principle is to pay attention, first of all,
to the book's explicit interpretation
of these symbols.
When the book itself interprets a symbol,
we can have confidence about its meaning
and then use this as a starting point
for other interpretations.
For example, the Son of Man, the Lion and the Lamb,
are explicitly identified with Christ.
The seven lampstands are said to be the seven
churches of Asia Minor.
The great dragon is identified as Satan.
And the prostitute is the great city,
which almost certainly represents Rome,
as a symbol of the present evil world system.
So we start with these images that are made explicit,
and then use them to help us interpret
other more obscure images.
A fourth principle of interpretation,
also related to these symbols, is
to recognize the Old Testament as the primary source
of background for the book of Revelation.
The Old Testament: there are more
allusions to the Old Testament in Revelation
than in any other book in the New Testament.
Titles for Jesus, like "the Son of Man,"
"the Lion of the tribe of Judah," "the Root of David,"
and many more, come from the Old Testament.
John clearly expects his readers to see the Revelation
as the continuation and the consummation of the story that
began in the Old Testament.
Since the Old Testament is the context and background
for the book, it should be the primary codebook
for deciphering its difficult symbols.
To be sure, now, the symbols found in the book of Revelation
can differ at certain points from those
found in the Old Testament.
For example, in Daniel 7, four beasts
come out of the sea, portrayed as four different animals--
a lion, a bear, a leopard, and then
an unnamed terrifying beast.
In Revelation 13, a single beast comes from the sea,
with characteristics of three of these animals--
a leopard, a bear, and a lion.
Though the images are not identical,
they're similar enough that we can use Daniel's imagery
to inform our understanding of Revelation.
In Daniel, the beasts are a series
of empires arising in the ancient Near East.
In Revelation, the beasts must similarly
represent the evil powers of this world that
oppose God's purpose in Christ.
Yet there are also implications in the context of Revelation.
The beast may be an individual, perhaps a future world ruler,
known sometimes as the antichrist.
So in cases like this, the Old Testament
informs our understanding of Revelation,
even if it doesn't completely define it.
But the point is, the Old Testament
is our codebook for understanding
the key symbols in Revelation.
And that brings up the fifth and final principle
for the interpretation of Revelation.
This is to focus on the general, rather than the specific,
meanings, and to interpret the visions as wholes,
rather than trying to figure out every detail.
As we said earlier, though the Revelation is
by far the most difficult book in the Bible
to interpret with reference to its details,
its general message is crystal clear:
God is sovereign over human history.
It's the same with most of the individual images
and symbols of the Revelation.
Though the details are hard to decipher,
the general message is usually clear.
These visions portray God's judgment of the wicked.
They portray God's people suffering but becoming
victorious in the end.
Two words are particularly important to distinguish
in this regard.
Those words are "tribulation" and "wrath."
"Tribulation" refers to the suffering
that God's people will certainly endure.
But God's wrath is the judgment that God pours out
against the evil of this world.
Believers may experience tribulation and trials,
but they will be delivered from God's wrath.
This idea of drawing general conclusions, rather than
specific ones, also relates to interpreting the Revelation
with reference to current events.
I tell my students they should never
read the book of Revelation with a newspaper in one hand.
By this, I'm referring to the danger
of trying to identify events in Revelation
with specific historical events in our day.
For 2,000 years, everyone who has tried to do this
has been wrong, sometimes with disastrous results.
It's highly unlikely you're going to get it right.
Focus instead, on the general message of the book.
In summary, the book of Revelation
is not a video recording of precisely how the end
times are going to play out.
It's not a secret code that only those
with some esoteric knowledge can understand.
It's not an invitation to hunt down
the identity of the antichrist, or to identify credit cards
as the mark of the beast, or the locusts from the pit as Apache
attack helicopters.
It's, rather, a beautiful and symbolic description
of God's sovereignty over human history.
It's an affirmation that Christ's
life, death, and resurrection accomplished a decisive victory
over Satan, over sin, and over death.
It's a call to remain faithful in the face of suffering
and persecution.
And it's an assurance that no matter how bad things get here
on earth, God will be victorious in the end,
and he will welcome us into the heavenly Jerusalem, where there
will be no sorrow, no pain or death,
and where we'll live with him forever.
To that we can surely say, "Amen.
Come quickly, Lord Jesus."

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How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth, Revelation: Images of Judgment and Hope

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