Biblical study on the Apocalypse (how to understand its meaning)

Biblical study on the Apocalypse (how to understand its meaning)

Revelation is the biblical book that brings the revelation of Jesus Christ about the end times. It is the last book of the Bible and was written by the apostle John, probably between the years 93 and 96 AD, while he was in exile on the island of Patmos.

The word "Apocalypse" means revelation. It is a prophetic book, of the apocalyptic genre and contains the inspired books of the New Testament.

The revelation of future events was given by God to His servants:

Revelation of Jesus Christ , which God gave him to show his servants what will soon happen. He sent his angel to make it known to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw, that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.- Revelation 1:1-2

How to understand Revelation

Firstly, we need to have the humility to accept that this is a book that is difficult to interpret. We will probably have difficulty identifying strange symbols or figures that appear in the book of Revelation. To better understand Revelation, we need to read it in light of the other books of the Bible. Furthermore, it is necessary to consider the type of text and the context in which it was written to better understand its purpose.

Secondly, we need to understand that Revelation portrays the final outcome of God's revelation to man. It's not about what we want it to be, but about what God has allowed us to know. It describes how everything will culminate and about God's sovereignty in controlling history, closing the general biblical picture started in Genesis.

In general, it is important to know that:

• The Apocalypse, like the entire Bible, is centered on Jesus Christ.

• The purpose of the book is to show the sovereignty of Christ and bring a response of hope and comfort to God's people.

• There is a real warning to unbelievers about judgment and eternal damnation (for those who do not believe or repent).

• The book brings readers (in all times) a final warning to repentance and perseverance in Christ.

• The prophecies are being fulfilled and the time of the end is approaching.

Contextualization and structure of the book of Revelation

Who was it written for?

The immediate recipients of the book of Revelation were the seven churches of Asia Minor (present-day Turkey). Christians faced hostile persecution at that time from pagans, Jews, and Emperor Domitian. The apostle John himself had been banished to Patmos, an island that served as a penal exile, due to intense religious persecution. The author's objective was to bring encouragement to believers who were daily confronted in their faith.

In the first chapters (2 and 3) we can see some of the problems that churches faced locally. But, in general, the Church of Christ was troubled on all sides. Thus, God transmits to John a message of hope and encouragement: the harbinger of final victory against all evil.

Message characteristics

It is a message of hope and confidence for those who are faithful to Christ. However, the Apocalypse is considered a book that is difficult to understand, as it contains certain symbols, figures and codes, so common to the apocalyptic genre. John, inspired by God, uses this type of text to describe the wonderful revelation that Jesus gave him.

It was certainly not the intention to accurately describe the chronological order of future events. But to describe the visions and testimony of Christ revealed to the Church.

Through this record, believers since the first century have been comforted with the expectation of victory and eternal life with God. The children's pain will be rewarded in Christ's final and definitive intervention against his enemies, in his eternal kingdom. Christ will return with power and glory to seek His redeemed ones, fulfill His judgments and establish His Kingdom eternally.

God's sovereignty is highlighted here in the prior announcement of the defeat of the Evil One, sin and suffering. This is not a clash, the end of which is unknown. Jesus' revelation anticipates that the Lamb of God is eternally victorious and will put an end to all the forces of evil.

In addition to these points, Revelation is a book that communicates hope for God's people. He shows us that no matter what happens, God's children will be safe in the Lord and will, through the grace of Jesus Christ, have eternal life.

Structure of the book Revelation

The last book of the Bible can be divided into three parts:

1. Introduction and greeting by the apostle John ; foreshadowing of the vision he had of the glorified Jesus Christ (Chapter 1)

2. Seven Letters to the Seven Churches in Asia Minor . These letters exhorted about the condition of the churches in John's time, but they also prefigure the condition of the Church today (Chapters 2 to 3).

3. Visions about the end (several images about the great tribulation, the triumphal Kingdom of Christ, the vengeance of the Lamb, the destruction of the beast and the false prophet, the Final Judgment, the new heaven and new earth). Six visions of John that outline a kind of parallelism. They cover events that are revealed throughout the story until everything is consummated in the grand finale. Many of these events have different interpretations (Chapters 4 to 22:5). Conclusion (22:6-21).

It is likely that the prophecies described in Revelation contain two interpretative possibilities: a near and a distant element. In the first case, referring to events in John's time, and the last element portraying future events.

Literary type and genre

The Apocalypse is a Prophetic book and its genre is Apocalyptic. And this must be clear to the reader before starting to study the book. Certainly, the Apocalypse should not be read as a journalistic, essay or novel genre text, for example. The apocalyptic genre flourished in the period between the Old and New Testaments and has particular characteristics, which are:

• the use of figurative language

• wealth of symbols and images

• report of visions and dreams

• symbolic use of numbers, colors and other enigmatic elements

• impactful futuristic speech

This literary genre had its peak between 200 BC and 200 AD. In the Jewish context, the apocalyptic genre expanded during the exile of the people of Israel in Babylon. In the inter-testamentary period, several apocalyptic (apocryphal) writings were written with the aim of encouraging and announcing the end of suffering in the arrival of a new time in which the Messiah would come in a glorious kingdom of peace.

In the Bible there are other books that present some trace of an apocalyptic style, such as: Daniel, Ezekiel, Isaiah and Zechariah. But without the predominance found in Revelation. Many emblematic linguistic resources were used to transcribe the glorious and transcendent vision that John had. Taking into account the literary style, we must be careful not to make all the symbols and images that appear in the text literal.

Fulfillment of apocalyptic prophecies

The prophecies given in God's revelation about the end times have already begun to be fulfilled but have not yet ended. In the understanding of many, the prophecies are fulfilled over time until the return of Jesus. In this understanding, the symbols had historical references for John's contemporaries, they also have them in our days and will have them in the future.

A good example of this is the figure of the "beast". In John's time, the "beast" could easily be associated with Emperor Nero (or Domitian); in the 20th century he could be considered the Nazi Hitler. Currently, the "beast" could be associated with corrupt political systems, or other personalities and, in the future, there may be a more specific reference.

Despite the different interpretations about the fulfillment of apocalyptic prophecies, the fact is that this book is timeless. Speak to the Church of Christ in all times. The letters to the seven churches in Asia, for example, warned the churches of that time but continue to exhort believers in churches throughout the world for years to come, until today.

Covered or revealed?

We note that the book of Revelation, while revealing, also seems to hide certain details from the reader. Not all the details of our curiosity will be completely resolved. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't study it profitably. Its mysterious character should sharpen our desire to know God more and our goal of being with Him eternally.

Even for Bible scholars and commentators, some portions of Revelation are considered veiled or mysterious. The inspired author himself was warned to gloss over certain details of what he saw in the vision (Revelation 10:3-4). Some of what John heard was "sealed" and not written down.

The references to the revelation that John received from the Lord Jesus may not be consensual in Christian circles today. In many moments, he transcribes symbols that were easily recognized by his first readers but that need to be contextualized by readers of our times.

Some passages are quite emblematic, like chapter 20, for example. Some details cause tremendous discussions due to the different interpretations and readings that can be made of them.

The main interpretations of Revelation

There are many interpretations of the book of Revelation. But this book should always be read in light of other biblical books. In interpreting the Bible, clearer passages always illuminate obscure passages.

There are four different ways to interpret Revelation: Preterism , Futurism , Historicism and Idealism . These are the main eschatological schools that outline different positions regarding the final events, described in the book of Revelation.

There are those who defend:

1. that prophecies have already happened in the past (preterists).

2. that everything will be fulfilled in the future (futurists).

3. that the prophecies of the Apocalypse occur throughout history, until they culminate in the coming of the Lord (historicists).

4. that the Apocalypse speaks of general principles, constant in the fight between good and evil, which will be fulfilled spiritually (idealistic).

There are many discussions about the possible interpretations of the Apocalypse. The choices or methods of interpretation were developed based on different studies and analyzes throughout the history of Christianity. These ways of understanding the text should not be taken as dogmatic (absolute or arbitrary) for the Bible reader. But they can serve as allies for a better understanding of the book.

1. Preterist

Line of interpretation that believes that the prophecies of the Apocalypse already had their fulfillment in the first century, with the destruction of Jerusalem (70 AD) and the fall of the Roman Empire.

2. Futuristic

This line understands that the prophecies in the book of Revelation will be fulfilled at the end of time. Therefore, most of the events in the book (as well as other eschatological biblical passages) will still be fulfilled in the future.

3. Historicist

It is the interpretative line that outlines, to a large extent, the evangelical position (it was the position of Luther and other Protestants). Understands that the Apocalypse symbolically describes the different phases of human history, as well as the eras of the Church, from the New Testament to the end of time. This line of interpretation predominantly followed Protestantism until the 19th century, when futurism gained space in Pentecostal circles.

4. Idealist or Eclectic

Understands apocalyptic prophecies spiritually and not in a literal sense. He does not assertively assert the details of the mysterious visions, nor does he consider that events narrated in Revelation will happen historically and literally. He understands and assimilates the truths represented through the clashes between good and evil.

There are still different interpretative schools related to the Millennium and the Great Tribulation:

Millennium Interpretations: chapter 20

Chapter 20, especially verses 1 to 10, generates a lot of interpretative controversy. In this section,Revelation 20:1-10, mention is made of the Millennium - a period of time (literal or not, depending on the interpretation), in which Christ reigns and Satan will be arrested, unable to deceive the nations. Regarding this thesis, there are three positions:

Amillennialism

Denial of the Millennium theory. He states that there are not sufficient grounds for us to expect the visible government of Christ in just a millennium (a limited period of time of a thousand years). Consider that the Kingdom of God will take place definitively and gloriously after the end of this era, at the return of the Lord. It was the most accepted position among early Christians and also later in Reformed circles.

Premillennialism

They hope for a millennium in the future and believe that the second coming of Jesus will be before the millennium. Currently this belief is related to Dispensationalism.

Postmillennialism

They believe that the second coming of Christ will be after the millennium. Thus, they hope that society will gradually improve (since the first coming of Christ) and that the millennium will reach its peak. After that, the Lord would return.

Interpretations of the Great Tribulation

The great tribulation is an (indeterminate) period of time that will precede the second coming of Christ. This terrible period of history is mentioned in Revelation and other books of the Bible (Matthew 24:21). This time of tragedies will be marked by :

• wars, famines, earthquakes

• apostasy from faith

• cooling of love

• appearance of false prophets and false Christs

• persecution of Christians

• imposition of great suffering on those who are loyal to Christ.

Regarding this time, there are also different interpretations:

Pretribulationism

They believe that the secret rapture of the church will take place and that the second coming of Christ will take place before the great tribulation. They argue that Jesus' return will be in two stages: first in the rapture of the church and after the seven years of the Great Tribulation, to destroy the Antichrist's empire.

Mid-tribulationism or Meso-tribulationism

They also expect that a secret rapture will take place, and that the second coming will take place in the midst of the great tribulation. During this period, supposedly lasting seven years, the Antichrist will take power, after the departure of believers from the earth.

Post-Tribulationism

Proponents of this thesis believe that the rapture will occur at the end of the great tribulation, and that the church will not be removed from the earth during that time. They believe that believers will go through tribulations, over time, increasingly intense until the Second coming of Jesus.

Within these schools of interpretation there are more extreme or moderate positions. However, we understand that beyond human preferences or inferences, the Bible interprets itself. Hence the importance of reading and studying the Holy Bible completely to better understand the Apocalypse.

Conclusion

The book of Revelation is a prophecy sent by God to His people. It is also a pastoral book that encourages, exhorts and warns everyone about the latest events in this world. Despite the persecutions and tribulations that the Church has faced, there is certain victory, consolation and eternal glory alongside Christ.

For non-believers there is an invitation to repentance and faith, but also a warning about the risk of eternity away from God.

The Apocalypse is an invitation to know Christ more, witness Him to the world and be prepared for His coming. We have in the Holy Bible, the precious revelation of the Father and everything we need to know about the end times.

In general terms, the book of Revelation assures us that :

• God is sovereign over the universe and has a plan for His creation

• Jesus has control over all of human history

• we can be sure of the victory of Christ and His people against evil

• God knows the suffering of His Children and promises to reward them

• God's judgment will be manifested in history - the oppressors will be judged

• evil (sin, the devil and demons) will be destroyed and punished eternally

• the new heaven and the new earth will be the new reality for the children of God

In this glorious security, we can detach ourselves from this world, having clarity about everything that God has revealed and be blessed by future hope with Christ. To do this, we must dedicate ourselves to a contextualized and sober reading of the Apocalypse, paying attention to the interpretation that the Bible itself gives of itself.

The Apocalypse combined with other biblical references enlighten us about the end times.