Revelation Study 2

Review the context

Written by John the apostle

Written from Patmos

Written to the 7 Churches

Around 90 AD

Style is apocalyptic, divine perspective on human history

Uses allusions to OT, as well as signs and symbols, current and past

Purpose, to stand firm and not cave, God is in control, to give in to seductions and/or persecution

2 Cities, 2 visions, 2 sets of values

Trade guild and emperor worship intertwined

Buy and sell, allegiance to Caesar

Domatian was the Caesar

Demanded godlike worship

Temples, statues, son of god, savior etc.

What is John saying to the Churches in this time?

How does there life in “Babylon” resemble ours?

Symbolic #’s, 7 12 144

Given by God, about Jesus, to his servant, to the angel, Jesus, so John can pass it on.

Blessed is the one who reads aloud, who hears, and who keeps

What are the ramifications of reading this aloud?

What about keeping it?

Part 1 Revelation 1:4-8

Revelation 1:4–8 ESV

John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

We’ve already talked about v4a, John in writing this letter to the 7churches in the province of Asia.

Doubtful there were only 7 churches in the province of Asia, so what is John saying? These are the 7 major churches and also the 7 emblematic churches of all the others.

Grace and Peace—typical greeting in first Greek and then Hebrew, Charis and Shalom

From—who is the ultimate source of this letter? God the Father, who else? God the Holy Spirit, and?? God the Son, Jesus.

How is God defined? The One who is, who always was, and who is still to come. This is similar to God’s revelation of Himself to Moses at the Burning Bush, how did He refer to Himself? I Am Who I Am, or I Will Be Who I Will Be.

Chronologically, how should this read? Rev 1:4b

Who was and is and is to come, right? Thats how it reads in 4:8

Revelation 4:8 ESV

And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”

So why does John write, who is, who always was, and who is still to come? What might the people be struggling with in the midst of this “Babylon” they are living?

Who is—He is, the eternal present One, He is sovereign now even in the midst of this struggle. He sees, He knows, He is there.

Who always was—before Rome was, God. Before Romes power, God, who is omnipotent,

Who is still to come—not who will be, but is still to come. It’s what they needed to hear. He’s coming back, Rome is not the end, God will intervene in history again, Eden, the flood, Jesus birth and death, Jesus return, all ended something and began something.

Grace and Peace from the “seven spirits” or the sevenfold Spirit—So what is significant about this designation? Remember symbolism, the # 7, symbolically a number of completion, 7 days of creation. The complete and perfect Spirit who comes from the Father and from the Son.

Again, in apocalyptic literature there are allusions to OT and symbols, lets look at Isaiah 11:2, a verse read and owned by Jesus.

Isaiah 11:2 ESV

And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.

To this list the Jews added godliness, that makes 7

lets also look at Zechariah 4:1-14 and look for symbols.

Zechariah 4:1–14 ESV

And the angel who talked with me came again and woke me, like a man who is awakened out of his sleep. And he said to me, “What do you see?” I said, “I see, and behold, a lampstand all of gold, with a bowl on the top of it, and seven lamps on it, with seven lips on each of the lamps that are on the top of it. And there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.” And I said to the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?” Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.” Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he shall bring forward the top stone amid shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’ ” Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also complete it. Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you. For whoever has despised the day of small things shall rejoice, and shall see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. “These seven are the eyes of the Lord, which range through the whole earth.” Then I said to him, “What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?” And a second time I answered and said to him, “What are these two branches of the olive trees, which are beside the two golden pipes from which the golden oil is poured out?” He said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.” Then he said, “These are the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.”

Revelation 11 speaks of 2 olive trees and 2 lampstands, for future reference.

Revelation 1:5–6 ESV

and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

And from Jesus Christ—He is the Faithful Witness—He is the ultimate example of Faithful Witness.

What does it mean to be faithful? Trusting, pertaining to belief that trusts and also trustworthy, pertaining to being reliable.

What is a witness? The Greek word for witness is “martys”, where we get our word Martyr. First, this just meant witness, one who told what he saw, but as many were being killed for their witness, the word took on another meaning-- a person who is killed because of their religious or other beliefs. The word is now associated with death, because of Jesus and His early followers.

The witness is the noun form, but if it were a verb, witness or a word we already saw in Revelation 1:2, testimony, is in Greek Martyria, to give witness or testimony.

To see, to believe, to know, to faithfully live and to testify meant to die. It did for Jesus, it did for the apostles, it did for many in the early Church, it might for those living in the 7 Churches.

So where does John go in describing this faithful witness? To what He has done and who He is.

Let’s look at the 6 things John credits to Jesus.

1. The first to rise from the dead—Why is this significant to the 7 Churches? Persecution because of our testimony, as a witness, may lead to death, but Jesus conquered death, He rose, He is supreme, the first to have a resurrection body, and many will and have followed after Him. So if their witness were to lead to death, they can be confident that their faithful witness will lead to their rising from the dead.

2. The ruler of all the kings of the world—Jesus is the King of kings, none are greater, all kings rise and fall under God’s watchful and sovereign eye.

“Rome didn’t replace local elites with direct rule, instead, it co-opted local leaders. It made them Roman so it could claim to be the rule of the kings of the earth. Kings across the world owed allegiance to Rome.” Tim Chester, Revelation for You, pg.22

Jesus says He is the ruler of the kings of the earth, including Rome, He is the true and ultimate King, Psalm 89

3. All glory to Him to who loves us, how? By living and dying for us.

4. Who freed us from our sins, 5. by shedding His blood for us—Remember what Jesus has done for us. He has taken care of our biggest problem, our sin and separation, so He will take care of us through our current problems. If He was willing to shed blood for us, won’t He help us in our need.

6. He has made us a Kingdom of priests for God His Father—what is a priest? A physical representation of and intermediary between God and man and man and God. That is who we are regardless of if that’s how we feel, regardless of the danger, the risk, the potential loss of life. They and we have been called to be a witness and made to testify to who Jesus is and what Jesus has done

So if that’s who we are, the noun, how come that’s not what we are doing, the verb, Martyr. The question being posed to them as well as us.

Revelation 1:7 ESV

Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.

This verse is the combination of two OT verses, Daniel 7:13 and Zechariah 12:10b

“And behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, They will look on me whom they have pierced and mourn for Him as for an only son.”

He’s coming back, every eye will see Him, even those who killed Him, all peoples will wail and mourn because of who they now see Him to be.

Revelation 1:8 ESV

“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

Verse 8 is a bookend with verse 4, God is the beginning and the end, the eternal God who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.

God and Jesus are interchangeable here with this phrasing, and that is the point. Jesus is God the Son, the representation of God, He is God. God is the Alpha and the Omega, Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega, God is coming back as Jesus

Part 2 Revelation 1:9-20

Revelation 1:9–11 ESV

I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet saying, “Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”

John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom—partner in the tribulation, is the tribulation happening then or is it to come? Yes, remember John is literally writing to a real audience dealing with a real situation. That doesn’t mean it can’t apply to other time periods, like ours. These people were either suffering or compromising in order to avoid suffering, that’s why he reminds them of his partnership.

Was is John’s intention to write prophecy, predicting future events? Depends on what you mean by future, the immediate or the distant. Immediate yes, distant no.

These people were dealing with great persecution and living under a brutal system of the enemy, John is addressing their current situation. But, God’s word is timeless, so it also applies to us today. The details might be similar in that John is writing about life as a Jesus follower in the midst of a hostile society, a godless society crafted by the enemy.

Partner in the kingdom, the priesthood, following Jesus, loving God and loving people.

Patient endurance that are in Jesus—not just to survive, not just to get through, but to endure what is to come, without demanding relief, a quickening, or help from some source outside of Christ.

John was exiled to Patmos because of His faith and bold testimony of Jesus and is worshipping the Lord. All of Revelation is to be seen in worship of the Lord.

Remember, as his audience is surrounded by all that is Rome, Babylon, John is given a counter vision of a second King, a second city, a second set of values.

“There was very little hope for the Christian if you looked around in the first-century Roman empire. The empire was full of imagery and symbols that dripped with enormous confidence. Everywhere you looked there were images fo power and authority—lions, eagles, gods. The Romans brought the children of conquered nations to Rome because they knew it would overwhelm them and win them over to Roman culture. It was part of the way they assimilated other cultures into their own. Maybe Christians felt like that. They saw the power and pomp of Rome, and found it intimidating or alluring. Maybe you feel the same way about some aspects of our own culture.” Tim Chester, Revelation for You, pg. 24

John is in the Spirit, another indicator that the Holy Spirit is involved in the process

V10 John hears a voice like a trumpet—in the NT a trumpet sounds the presence of the Lord (Heb. 12:19).

Also helps us to see that these are not just John’s dreams, they are visions given to him by the Lord.

V11, The 7 Churches, the order of the cities is in geographical order, tracing the route of a courier as he moves from the mother church in Ephesus along the major Roman road in a horseshoe pattern.

All of what John sees and hears is to be sent and read to all the churches, applies to them and to us.

Revelation 1:12–16 ESV

Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest. The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.

Then John tells us what happened after he heard the trumpet voice, to see from where the voice came, He sees

7golden lampstands, maybe in a circle or horseshoe. The lampstand for the Jew is significant, it is the menorah, a lampstand with 7 branches, 7 candles to be lit, the symbol of Judaism. This image also comes from Zechariah 4:2, 10, lampstand signified the eyes of the Lord that range throughout the earth and the context is the power to rebuild the temple. This is here not a 7 fold lampstand, but now 7 lampstands, the growing Church vs Judaism. These are beacons of light from Matthew 5:14-15 who are building the temple of God.

Matthew 5:14–15 ESV

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.

The lampstands are one thing, the 7 Churches, but who is in the midst of them? What does this signify? It’s Jesus, these churches are not alone, standing by themselves in this corrupt world, Jesus stands with them, He walks among them (2:1) and holds them in His right hand (1:16).

One like the son of Man, comes from the book of Daniel, again describing Jesus.

Let’s look at Jesus’ appearance and why

John will give us 8 images all tied to the OT and are intended to invoke awe and illicit worship as we contemplate them. The use of “like” and “as” let us know we are not to take this vision literally, but symbolically.

These are primarily images of Yahweh, God the Father, in the OT, but here are attributed to Christ, who is God.

Some of these images are drawn from the book of Daniel.

Daniel 10:5–6 ESV

I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, a man clothed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist. His body was like beryl, his face like the appearance of lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a multitude.

Long robe and golden sash—like dignitaries and rulers, long robe signifies authority and status, in the Roman army the longer your robe the higher your status. Because He’s in the midst of the Churches this is also like the robe of the ultimate High Priest. The golden sash is like the golden belt in Daniel.

White head and hair—Daniel 7:9 says the “Ancient of Days” was white like wool, which in ancient culture represented wisdom and dignity. Jesus’ incredible wisdom, purity, and splendor, white also symbolizes moral purity and absolute victory over evil, white like snow. In Daniel 7:10 the Ancient of Days sits as the judge in a courtroom.

Blazing eyes—Daniel 10:6, will recur in Rev. 2:18 and 19:12 where judgement is the thrust. Divine insight that penetrates and also judge who knows and acts against his enemies and also the warrior who wars against his enemies. This is also a message for the churches, Jesus is among them and sees and knows all, and this, as we shall see, will result in either blessing or judgment.

Bronze feet—bronze is a metal symbolic with judgement and the feet symbolize purpose and direction, but refined in the fire, His suffering and bearing judgement, now to bring judgement.

Powerful voice—Ezekiel 1:24, the wings fo the living creatures like the roar of rushing waters. 43:2, the voice of Yahweh and His coming like the roar of rushing waters.

Stars in His right hand—the right hand is scripture symbolizes power and authority and with Jesus holding the stars shows possession and protection. The stars represent the people, but this image also counters the claim of the empire. “Coins from the reign of Emperor Domitian show his heir (who died in childhood) as the infant Zeus, playing with the stars. The message was that, while the death of the emperor’s son meant he would never reign on earth, he was deified and reigning in heaven. By portraying Jesus holding the stars, John claims that Jesus is the true Son of God, who, having died, now reigns in heaven.”

Sharp two-edged sword from His mouth—represents His power to judge (Isaiah 11:4, 49:2; Revelation 2:16, 19:15) though it is two-edged suggests it can both wound and heal, judge and save (Hebrews 4:12-13) and also Ephesians 6:17. The sword was the primary image of Roman might, “the law of the sword”. The message here is that it’s not Rome who is in control, but Jesus.

Christ’s face like the sun—alludes to Daniel 10:6, suggest Jesus is a warrior who fights on behalf of His people. It is also the exalted and glorified Christ, the Mount of Transfiguration and also Moses face glowing after spending days with the Lord. The sun in its full strength is overwhelming and can’t be looked at.

Revelation 1:17–18 ESV

When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.

John’s response and Jesus’ words

When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as though dead—John’s response or reaction here is the same as that of Daniel in chapter 10, strength gone, fall to the ground as if dead. What kind of fear and awe is this? The sun is good, but if you stare at it or get too close to it, it can do very bad things to us, we must fear it in a healthy way, same is the response here, fear to be so close so someone so pure and holy and powerful. It’s not Rome who needs to be feared, but God, He has the power and is in control.

What is the first thing Jesus does?

But Jesus laid His right hand on him—the hand of power, authority, and also fellowship. The touch of a friend, the One who heals, who has compassion and extends love, mercy and grace. This could also be seen as a symbolic investiture, Jesus placing John in a prophetic office and commissioning him to write and share these words from God and on behalf of God.

Jesus then says fear not—the words to all who are safe in Christ when they come into the presence of holiness. Do not be afraid, clearly indicating that all who are in this presence are very afraid.

What Jesus says about Himself and to John

I am the first and the last—the beginning and the end, the Alpha and Omega of V8, terms used to describe God the Father, the eternal One. God/Jesus are eternal, not Rome.

The living One—again this is a designation of God the Father, the One who has always been and will always be, but something is different for Jesus...

I died and behold I am alive forevermore—yes He died, but resurrected, He’s alive, forever, never to die again and to reign forever from His throne, He is the all-powerful ruler of the world, not Rome. I believe this is significant because this was the turning point in history, Jesus’ death and resurrection, His ascension began the end times, just like the kingdom, the end times is a current reality, not a future event. Yes, His second coming lies in the future, but we are encouraged to live as if it’s imminent.

I have the keys of Death and Hades—He holds the power over the cosmic forces and the power that can cripple us, death and the afterlife. He triumphed over death at His resurrection, and because He defeated death, for us, and rose from the dead, we have defeated death and will rise to be with Him. Rome doesn’t control death even though they may kill. Death and Hades were not a part of the original creation, no death and therefore no need for a realm of the dead. Hades is an OT designation for this realm and it had levels, the higher the better with a separation between the good levels and the bad ones, See rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16.

Revelation 1:19–20 ESV

Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this. As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

A restatement of the command in 1:11, but in light of who John has now seen Jesus to be. Verse 19 is a foundation for the book. How we understand v19 will determine how we interpret this book. What does Jesus mean by each?

Write therefore the things you have seen

those that are

those that are to take place after this

Recapitulation--an act or instance of summarizing and restating the main points of something.

I believe John is writing a series of parallel visions in which God expresses the same truths in different ways, from different perspectives, with different details and therefore not identical.

The various series of judgments are parallel descriptions of the same events. The pattern is identical with each series. Toward the end of each series, there is a description of judgment followed by a depiction of salvation.

repeated phrases, ex. it is done, it is finished,

Situation of believers and unbelievers, 6:12-17, 9:13-11:13 and 16:12-16.

final punishment of the lost, 14:14-20, 16:17-21, 20:11-15

So, the things you have seen—John is to write what he has seen and will soon see in these visions.

Those that are—the current events and states of the Church in the midst of the Roman empire

and those that are to take place after this—all that John will see that will soon take place, for the original audience.

Prophecy has its place in time, it was word from God to a prophet to be declared to the people, admonition, encouragement, warning, a call to stand firm, to not give in, to resist, to not stray, etc.

That being said, prophecy can be timeless and can apply to future events as well. The things that are can also be describing the current status of the Church in America and the world. The things that will soon take place can also be what is soon to happen in our world.

Revelation 1:20 ESV

As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

Some definitions for us from Jesus, like in His parables.