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Over the next several pages, I
am entrusted with the task of
giving an introductory overview
of the book of Revelation. Un
doubtedly, it is the most difficult
book in the Bible. It has been said
that wherever you find five
co=entaries
on the book
of
Revelation, you will find six
different views. To make matters
worse, many
of
the
co=entaries
are like a black hole - they are
so dense that no light can escape
from them. In fact, Ambrose
Bierce wrote what he called The
Devil's Dictionary. In his defini
tion of Revelation
we
read:
A
famous book in which st. John
concealed all that he
knew. The revealing is done
by
the co=entators, who know
nothing.
are the two basic positions held
by evangelical scholars today.
I fmnly believe that the
evidence from within Revelation
demands the early-date view.
Although there are numerous lines
of
evidence in this direction (see
my Before Jerusalem Fell , two
particular internal indicators
strongly suggest the correctoess
of the early-date view.
When you read the book of
Revelation, you find that the
temple is standing in JeruSalem
(cf. 11:1,2). Thus,
as
John
writes, the temple stands un
harmed in Jerusalem. That being
the case, Revelation must have
been written prior to A.D. 70. If
John wrote 25 years later, this
would be a most anachronistic
seven mountains, the natural
interpretation would be the seven
hills of Rome.
We
have then a
clear geographical reference to
the ancient city
of
Rome.
But who then are the seven
kings? John seems to be inform
ing us that these are emperors
of
the Roman Empire, particularly
the first seven: Julius Caesar,
Augustos, Tiberius, Gaius,
Claudius, Nero, and Galba. The
angel tells us that the first five
have fallen and that the sixth ,
one is. As a matter of historical
fact, Nero was the sixth in the
line of the emperors
of Rome. This demands that Nero
is alive when John writes and that
the composition of the book must
In this overview I
cannot deal with all the
details of this very perplex
ing book. I do, however,
want to highlight some
n
Overview o he Book
o Revelation
KenGenny
have,been prior to June 8
A.D. 68 the day Nero
committed suicide
as
Rome
erupted into civil war.
portions that I think will be
helpful as keys or tools to open
up
the book of Revelation to you.
I want us to focus on two big
issues: the date of the writing of
Revelation and the theme of
Revelation. These will provide
helpful keys to the correct
interpretation of the book.
Evidence for
an
Early
Dating of Revelation
In evangelical circles there are
two basic schools of thought on
when John wrote Revelation.
They are called the late-date
view, that says John wrote
in A.D. 95-6, toward the end of
the reign of the Emperor
Domitian. There is also the early
date view, that claims that John
wrote just prior to the destruction
of Jerusalem and the temple in
A.D. 70. According to this view,
Revelation was written sometime
between A.D.
65
and
70.
These
and confusing statement for his
original audience.
We also find evidence for an
early dating in John's discussion
of the seven kings. In Revela
tion,17:1-6, we have a vision of a
seven-headed beast. We find in
this visi(m evidence that Nero
Caesar, that infamous persecutor
of the church, is still alive.
In verses 9 and
10
the angel
gives John wisdom. As he does
so, he shows him that the book
cannot, be interpreted
literalistically. The angel interprets
this seven-headed beast
as
repre
senting seven mountains, and also
as pictoring seven kings. Five of
these kings have fallen, one is
(present tense), and one more will
corne and remain for only a little
while. The book of Revelation
was written sometime during
Imperial Rome's oversight. When
the angel interprets for John the
seven heads as representing
36 - THE COUNSEL ofChalcedon - October/November, 1999
The angel then says,
remarkably, the other is
not yet corne and when he comes
he will remain a short while.
After Nero died, the next Emperor
was Galba, who ruled from June
to January, a period of six
months. Thus, after the 13
y,
years of Nero's reign, we have
the extremely short reign of
Galba.
These two lines
of
evidence
strongly indicate that Revelation
was written prior to the destruc
tion of the temple (A.D. 70) and
the death of Nero (A.D. 68).
The Expectation
of
Revelation
We need to ask the question:
What did John expect in writing
this revelation? Consequently, it
is vitally important to understand
the original audience and how
they would read this book. Three
factors will emphasize the
historical circumstances
of
John's
original recipients of this glorious
composition.
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(I) Audience Relevance. John
wrote to seven historical
chnrches, and he knew
those churches quite well. There
. are subtle indicators that John
was familiar with detailed aspects
of their culture, social standing,
and historical circumstances in
the first century world.
We
also
notice that he wrote
in
order to be
understood (cf. 1:3). The idea of
hearing the words of the
prophecy of this book is not
simply receiving audible intona
tion, but hearing with discernment
so
that they can keep what he
has commanded them.
Therefore, Revelation must be
seen as directly relevant to the
first century church. He did not
write Revelation as directly
relevant to a church 2,000
years later. John wrote to a
particular historical audience.
Notice that this audience is
already in tribulation (cf. 1:9).
In chapters 2 and 3,
he
highlights
some growing problems they are
facing. Some of them are being
killed. Many are facing the
onslaughts
of
Satan.
He
is dealing
with real Christians with their
sandals firmly planted in the first
century. He is not taunting them
about cobra helicopters. He is
telling them about events that deal
with their specific circumstances.
Since they are in tribulation, they
need to know what will become
of them and the faith to which
they have committed themselves.
(2) Contemporary Expectation.
The interpretation ofRevelation
must begin in the first chapter.
John clearly expects the events
of
which he is writing to begin
occurring soon. He uses two
different terms, strategically
placed, to make this point.
In verse I, he writes that these
things must shortly take place.
Shortly is a translation of the
Greek word tachos. It most
definitely means what all
the translators affirm: the events
are shortly to take place. The
word also occurs at 2:6; 3:11;
22:6, and in its adverbial form in
22:7,
12 and 20. John also adds
for the time is near, literally, at
arm's length. This word occurs at
22:
10
as well.
Clearly, the temporal impres
sion that the original audience
nnder tribnlational affliction
would have received from this
book is that John expected these
events
to
occur very soon
because the time is
at
hand. Not
only does he utilize these two
different terms for this temporal
expectation, but he also places
them strategically in the book, at
the beginning and conclusion of
the book. Before one arrives at all
the difficult imagery
of
the book,
a very straightforward didactic
portion indicates the immediacy
of
John's expectation.
The Theme o Revelation
Behold, he is coming with
clonds, and every eye will see
him, and they also who pierced
him, and all the tribes of the land
will monrn because of him (Rev.
I :7). This theme statement
sounds like the Second Advent.
And there is indeed a relationship
between A.D. 70 and the final
glorions coming of Christ, just as
there are similarities between the
language here and the destruction
of
Babylon in Isaiah
13
and
Idumea in Isaiah 34. These are
activities of God in the realm of
Inen so we can expect silnilarities
of language.
Yet I believe that this verse
points to the judgment of God
upon Jerusalem and her temple in
A.D. 70. As we consider this, the
theme verse of Revelation, we
must be alert to the fact that four
verses prior to it, John
states that these things are near.
Six verses prior, he warns that
these things are shortly to come
to pass. This should alert us to
the fact that he is not speaking of
an event thousands of years
distant.
But how can we claim that this
refers to A.D. 70, and not to the
Second Coming of Christ? Let me
provide you with three lines of
evidence that indicate Revelation
1:7 teaches that Christ is coming
in judgment upon the temple.
(I) He speaks of his coming
with clouds. This is apocalyptic
language drawn from Daniel 7:13,
a heavenly vision of Christ being
given the keys of the kingdom at
his ascension, i.e., his being given
the right to rule over the world.
The cloud-coming metaphor is
common language among the
poetically inspired prophets
of
the
Old Testament. t speaks
of
divine
visitation upon historical nations
who set themselves against God.
When a nation falls, God is
judging. God has come into the
experience and realm
of
that
nation. Jehovah God has come to
judge that nation.
Isaiah 19:1 is a good parallel to
Revelation 1:7. There we learn
that God will ride a swift cloud
into Egypt. No sane commentator
will affirm that God hopped on a
cloud, taxied down to Egypt,
became visible, and began laying
it waste. They all agree that it is
an apocalyptic reference to Egypt
being
destroyed in a particular war.
If, therefore, apocalyptic
language will allow us to under
stand a divine judgment in history
as a cloud coming, then the
possibility is open to us in
Rev,?lation 1:7. This is significant
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for our interpretation of this
passage. John says that these
events are near at hand. Christ
will come upon a cloud in judg
ment soon.
Moreover, the parallel in
Matthew 21 :40ff makes the
J ernsalem reference certain. This
passage is interpreted by even
Dispensationalist scholars as a
reference to A.D. 70. Christ says
that when the owner
of
the
vineyard arrives, he will destroy
those wicked men miserably. In
verse 43, Christ affirms that the
kingdom of God will be taken
away from the Jewish nation.
Matthew 21 uses coming
language for the destruction
of
Jerusalem. The scribes and
Pharisees perceived his point: he
was speaking of their judgment.
John is utilizing the same com
ing language in Revelation 1 7.
(2) Christ is coming against
those who pierced him. Who are
those who pierced Christ? It is
especially the fIrst-century Jews.
They cried out for his death.
They refused to allow Pilate to let
him go, even though Pilate
protested vehemently against their
treachery. They called the curse
of his blood upon. themselves. In
short, the Jews of the first
century demanded Christ's
crucifixion; and his blood did
come down upon them and their
children in that generation.
Throughout the New Testa
ment record, the primary cov
enantal onus
of
Christ's death
falls upon the Jews. In Acts 5:30
Peter blames his Jewish kinsmen
for crucifYing Christ (cf. 2:36;
3:13-15; 7:52; 1 Thess. 2:14,15).
The responsibility for the death
of
Jesus Christ, according
to
the
biblical records, falls upon the
Jewish nation. They demanded it. .
This fits nicely with our exposi
tion
of
Revelation 1:7 which
speaks of his coming against
those who crucified him.'
(3) All the tribes of the land
will
mourn. The Greek word for
earth (Gk., ge) can either mean
earth or land. The land is
a
famous designation
for
Israel's
land, the promised land. The idea
of
the land is something pre
cious to the Jews. When you
think
of
Israel, you think
of
its
division into the twelve tribes. So,
what John is saying is: Jesus
whom you crucified is coming
to
judge you, and al1 the tribes will
mourn as a result of the judg
ment. His judgment will be a
public event
of
great and grievous
1?foportions.
Thematic Characters
in
the
ook of
Revelation
Revelation is a drama. It is
written in vivid, terrifYing imag
ery. Before we can trace the
movement of Revelation, we
should consider two major
characters we encounter there:
the beast and harlot.
The
Beast
of
Revelation
Audience relevance tells us
that these people were living
during the time of Rome, and that
the image must refer to something
in their own historical time frame.
We must understand John's beast
imagery both generically in terms
of
its corporate reality, and its
specifically, as an individual
representative
of
the corporate
entity.
Generical1y, the beast repre
sents Rome. The beast has seven
heads and has seven mountains or
hills, which is clearly an historical
description of the city of Rome.
The beast arises out of the sea.
Rome and its soldiers will come
across the Mediterranean Sea
from Rome. The crowns on the
8
-
THE
COUNSELofChalcedon - October/November, 1999
beast's head represent political
power, with which Rome was
well-endowed.
As
al1
commentators - even
dispensationalists such
as
Walvoord recognize - the image
of
the beast shifts between this
corporate, national power and a
specific representative
of
that
power. One
of
the heads, or
kings, is. The one that is is
the sixth emperor
of
Rome, Nero.
Nero fits the facts in many
remarkable ways.
In 13:18 the number of the
beast is the number of a
man,
666 (six hundred sixty-six).
Hebrew, John's native language,
does not have a separate number
ing system. They used the letters
of
the alphabet
to
represent
numbers, 1-10, then
lOs
then
100s. When you add up the first
century Hebrew letters
of
the
characters that make up the
Hebrew render
of
'Neron Kaiser,
you fmd that
it
adds up to 666.
Furthermore, Nero was the
first imperial persecutor of the
Christian Church. Persecution
broke out in November ofA.D.
64 and did not cease in finality
until June of A.D. 68, a period of
roughly 42 months. In 13:10 we '
read of the sword death of the
beast. Nero committed suicide by
slitting his own t1rroat with a .
sword. \
In 13:3 we have further proof
for the Neronic identity
of
the
beast. Revelation's beast has a
head thai dies, causing the beast
to crumple to its death. But,
surprisingly, the beast rises again
to the amazement of the world.
Interestingly, After Nero died,
Rome had a rapid succession of
emperors, four in one year. The
empire was in catastrophic
turmoil. Its tributary nations
attempted to escape Roman
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authority.
t
looked
to
all as
if
eternal Rome were
dying.
Contemporary Roman historian
Tacitus wrote (Histories 1:11):
"This was the condition of the
Roman state when Galba
entered upon the year that was to
be for Galba his last
and
for the
state almost the end."
Rome in that she relies
on
imperial
Rome to get at Christianity.
Remember how the Jews relied
upon the Roman judicial apparatus
to
crucify Jesus? This is the
"sitting" John mentions
in
Revela
tion 17. Several lines of evidence
unite
to
suggest that the harlot is
Jerusalem.
(1) In Revelation 14:8, Babylon
is
called the "great city." But what
is this "great city"? It is first
mentioned in Revelation
11
:8.
There we learn that it is "the
place where Jesus was crucified,"
i.e., Jerusalem.
woman's dress is described in
imagery reminiscent of the Old
Testament high priest and the
temple decoration (cf. Ex.
28:5,6). This was a dramatic
feature of the ritnal dress
of
the
high priest. TIle harlot's colors
were precisely those that decked
the priesthood and the temple.
John
is
picking up on temple
imagery to portray the harlot.
(4) The harlot has something
written on her forehead. This
reminds us (though negatively)
that in Exodus 28:36, the high
priest has something written on
his forehead, "Holy to the Lord."
But what happens? The beast
revives Suetonins,
the
second
centnry Roman historian, tells us
in Vespasian, chapter
1,
"The
empire which for a long time had
been nnsettled and drifting
throngh the nsurpation and violent
death of three emperors, was at
last taken in hand and given
stability by the Flavian
"Revelation is the
most
Old Testament
flavored
book
in
the
entire
New
Testa
ment. I cannot be understood apart
from this
background.
family." Vespasian lays hold
of
the reins of the kingdom,
revives it, and the empire
lives again. The whole world
John focuses in on the high
priest because he represents
the temple, which stands at
the heart
of
Jerusalem and
Israel. Readers in that day
would have made associa
tions with the temple.
as
snrprised at the radical
change
of
circnmstances.
Josephus reports: "So upon this
confirmation
of
Vespasian's entire
government, which
was
now
settled, and npon the unexpected
deliverance
of
the Romans from
ruin. Roule's civil war was so
rninous that everyone was sur
prised by her recovery.
Thns, the evidence suggests
the beast was first century entity:
the Roman Empire ruled over by
the evil Nero Caesar.
This
fits
well with the temporal
indicators and the thematic
statement in Revelation
1:7.
Tbe Harlot of
Revelation
(17:3,5)
Many wonld tell
ns
tbat tbis
woman seated upon the beast is
Rome, the city itself, because
Rome is, after all, seated on seven
hills (cf. 17:9). The beast, how
ever, is already Rome, and this
identification would
be
rednndant.
I believe this woman
is
Jerusalem.
She sits on tbe seven hills of
(2) The Babylonian harlot is
"fnll
of
the blood
of
the saints"
(16:6; 17:6; 18:24). Certainly,
Rome had recently begun perse
cnting the saints. The evidence
suggests, however, that Jerusalem
is a better identification of the
harlot at this point, for the follow
ing reasons:
(a) Throughout Acts, Jerusa
lem is shown to be the persecntor
of
Christianity (cf. 4:3; 5:18; 8:1).
(b) The theme of Revelation is the
judgment upon Israel
1
:7). The
judgment or execution
of
the
theme is in chapters 17 and
18.
If
the theme pertains to Jerusalem,
so does the judgment that fnlfills
the theme. ( c) The slain Lamb
appears twenty-seven times in
Revelation. The Lamb is seeking
vengeance upon his slayers. In
Matthew 27:35, the Jews
as
sumed the guilt of the Lamb's
blood. They called down a
covenantal curse upon themselves.
(3) In Revelation 17:4 the
(5) In Revelation
17
and 21,
John compares two women: the
harlot (which I am arguing is the
city of Jerusalem) and the Bride,
which is definitely called the
new and heavenly Jerusaleln.
Paul likewise makes this compari
son between the earthly, literal
Jerusalem and the heavenly
Jerusalem of Christianity (Gal.
4:24). The writer
to
the Hebrews
utilized the same
imagery (Hebrews 12:24ff.).
Under the guise of two women,
John is setting Israel (Judaism)
against Christianity (the Church).
The following evidence strongly
suggests the comparison:
(a) The same angel comes to
John
to
reveal both the harlot and
the bride (Rev. 17:1 with 21:9).
(b) The two women have a
contrasting character, one is
negative, one positive (17:1 with
21:10). (c) The two women are
set in contrasting environments
(Rev. 17:3 with 21:10), which
bespeak their relationship but
difference.
October/November, 1999 - THE COUNSEL o Chalcedon - 39
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(6) In
Revelation, Jerusalem is
called
by
pagan
names. In 11:8
sheis
called
Sodom and Egypt.
She
apparently is also called
Babylon.
Each
of
these
city-states were enemies of God's
righteousness. John's moral point
is that as Jerusalem crucifies the .
Messiah and
persecutes his
followers, she is acting exactly
like
the
enemies
of
God from the
Old Testament era.
(7) Revelation is the most Old
Testament flavored book in the
entire New Testament. t cannot
be understood apart from this
background. In the old covenant
economy, Israel was God's bride
or
wife.
God
graciously married
this nat ion, i.e., entered into
covenant with
her. Accordingly,
in
eremiah God
rebukes his
faithless wife: Return, 0 back
sliding children, because I
married
you.
In
31:32, where the
new covenant is revealed, he
says,
They
broke my covenant
though I was a husband to them.
Israel, however, is an unfaith
ful
wife. She chases after foreign
gods. Accordingly, God sends his
lawyers, the prophets, to warn
her.
They
bring a case, a legal
brief, against
her
(cf. Hos. 4:1;
Mic. 6:2).
On
the basis
of
God's
law, God calls forth witnesses
against his faithless wife (Isa. 1:2,
21). The same problem existed in
the Old Testament as we encoun
ter
in
the
New
- marital infidelity
on
Israel's part.
All of this covenant imagery
and
the legal actions involved in
them
bear
upon the application
of
the judgments in Revelation upon
Israel. In Revelation 4, prior to
the
announcement
of
the judg
ment, John sees God seated on
his throne. Forty-seven
of
the
sixty-two times throne appears
in the New Testament are found
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in Revelation. Within Revelation is
found much language
of
judicial
judgments: judgement, wit
nesses, wrath, and
so
forth.
Why
is God seated
upon
the
throne and why is there so much
judicial imagery in the book?
Because he is legally divorcing his
wife, Israel.
He
intends to
take a new Bride, the Church.
The
scroll, therefore, in Revela
tion 5 is a bill
of
divorcement
against Israel. John is picking up
on
imagery that Jeremiah has
already utilized (3:3,8). Jeremiah
was writing about the original
Babylonian captivity. John is
writing
of a new Babylon that
once again causes the temple to
be destroyed: Jerusalem, the'
apostate wife
of
God.
The
seven
sealed scroll indicates a sevel1fold
judgment
upon his adulterous
wife. God will now capitally
punish her for her capital crime
(Rev. 6-19).
Having legally disposed
of
his
adulterous wife, God turns to a
new wife. So at the end
of
Revelation
we
turn to a vision
of
the
new
Bride.
In
Revelation
21 : I0 John sees the new city
coming down out
of
heaven. This
bride is a new Jerusalem, who
fills the
void
of the old Jerusalem
just judged. Therefore, Revelation
is teaching us of God's divorce of
Israel because they had commit
ted a final, horrible transgression
for which he must divorce and
punish her.
I do believe Israel will experi
ence a glorious renewal
in
the
plan
of God
when God at last
raises
her
dry bones from the
dead in conversion.
But
Revela
tion warns and explains
of
her
first century judgment, an histori
cal event about to occur in the
lifetimes of the original recipients
of
the book.
'Transcribed by
Chris Strevel
for The ounsel o halcedon
from the 1999 Ligonier National
Conference
4 - THE COUNSEL ofChalcedon - October/November, 1999
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