On one hand, some believe that the Book of Revelation was the message from Jesus Christ’s which was sent directly to Christians of the first century to comfort them in a time of conflict and struggle. On the other hand, some comprehend the book of Revelation in another way—They argue that the Revelation was not written only for Christians in first century, and the original purpose was not to console their pain. It’s also important to explore these different approaches to interpret the Revelation. The first kind of view which I hold is called the Preterist view. And the other view which considers Revelation to be fulfilled in past history is called the Historicist view. Historicists would “see Revelation as predicting the major movements of Christian history, most of them have been fulfilled up to the time of the commentator.” According to this description, the historicist interpreters regard the purpose of the Book of Revelation as predicting a part of the future (which in this case means after the1st century). Different commentators in different time interpreted the Book of Revelation in different ways, but all of them only considered the history before the time when they studied it. But if Jesus Christ was to show the future, why did he just show a part of it rather than the whole Christian history? To answer this question, a new school called the futurist view emerged. “The futurist view
Approaches to Interpreting the Book of Revelation Josie Nicolato Regent University Approaches to Interpreting the Book of Revelation The book of Revelation was written by the apostle John, in an apocalyptic literature style. It consists of a series of prophecies about the end times, when Jesus will return and triumph over all the evil residing in the world. Its purpose is to bring hope and encouragement to Christians so that they will continue watching for the return and victory of Jesus Christ, but it is also a warning of the Final Judgment that nonbelievers will endure. The depiction of the cosmic battle that takes place both in heaven and on earth, symbolic language, and introduction of surreal
This essay will argue that the eschatology of the Book of Revelation forms an integral part of John’s attempt within the pages of his book to form a literary world in which the forms, figures, and forces of the earthly realm are critiqued and unmasked through the re-focalization of existence from the perspective of heaven. It will attempt to show that, in response to the social, political, religious, and economic circumstances of his readers, the Book of Revelation forms a counter imaginative reality. Through drawing upon an inaugurated sense of eschatology and evocative imagery, John is able to pull the reader in and show them the true face of the imperial world and consequences of its ideology, forcing the reader allegiance to fall
Comparing and contrasting different written works is a key aspect to discovering truths about the Christian Bible. When we compare and contrast canonical books, we can learn many things about the theology and context in which these books were written. Today, we will be comparing two books from the New Testament: Hebrews and Revelation. While Hebrews is often referred to as an epistle, it is actually more similar to a sermon. Revelation is a book that describes a supposed “vision” from the author John. John wrote this vision down on the instruction of a heavenly figure. While we compare these books, we will specifically focus on their relation to Judaism and their positions on Judaism. We will examine three major difference and/or similarities: Their views on the relevance of Jewish History, the superiority of Christ, and, the Second coming of the Messiah.
This prophecy got concerned and when Jesus was alone with the disciples on the Mount of Olives in verse 3, they asked him, "Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" What follows in Matthew 24–25 refers to the future, seven-year tribulation period and the second coming of Christ at the end of the tribulation. During that time, God will complete His chastisement and purification of Israel and after the judgment of the whole world (Daniel 9:24-27; Revelation 6–19).
A big part of the end of the world in the Christian faith is something called the rapture. The rapture is when Jesus returns to take all those who believe in Him up to heaven and away from the earth. Those left on the earth are the people that rejected God and/or are part of different religions. When the rapture occurs, the Holy Spirit, God’s believed spirit that resides on the earth, will leave the earth and there will be nothing holding back evil. The time at which the rapture will occur is a subject of conflict among the Christian churches. The first and most popular theory is the “Pre-Tribulation” theory; the people in this group believe the rapture to occur right before the Tribulation. In this theory the rapture itself is sort of the “starting pistol” for the Tribulation. Next is the “Mid-Tribulation” theory, these people believe that Christians will have to suffer three-and-a-half years or halfway through the Tribulation. They believe that Christians are exempt from the wrath of God but are not exempt from the sufferings of the Tribulation. Similar is the “Post-Tribulation” theory; in this belief Christians are not raptured until the end of the Tribulation for much the same reasons as the “Mid-Trib” theory. Some also believe that even though Christians’ sins have been atoned for they still have to be punished with suffering in the Tribulation. The last and least commonly heard of theory is the “Pre-Wrath” theory. This group
Comparing and Contrasting Preterist and Futurist Interpretations of Revelation Introduction The purpose of this paper is to research and analyze the preterist and futurist views of interpreting the Book of Revelation and determine which view provides the most accurate Biblical interpretation. As Richard L. Mayhue states, the "word 'preterist' comes from the Latin term praeteritus which basically means 'past' in regard to time." A preterist interpretation of the Book of Revelation, therefore, asserts that incidents described therein have already come to pass. A futurist interpretation, on the other hand, suggests the opposite namely, that Revelation is a prophecy of things to come.
The Book of Revelation is still confusing to me and I will not even attempt to say I have it mastered, but I am now less afraid of this book, believing it’s a book of hope, not destruction. This was important for me because the concept of the rapture always seemed very solid in Christianity, but at the same time seemed misplaced in my understanding of Christianity. Reading this book allowed my understanding of Revelation not to be completely controlled by mainstream media and the opinions of friends. I felt lied to and now my eyes were finally open to new ideals. This book not only challenged and disproved what I had thought originally, but it spoke of another subject that I was wondering
Written in a culture divergent and foreign to modern audiences, the Book of Revelation is a challenging text to interpret. With rich symbolism and visions, which were intrinsic to the first hearers, this book is classified under the label of an Apocalypse. Apocalyptic literature, often ornamented with intricate visions, symbolism and numerology, is a classification of cataclysmic Jewish writings which incorporate impressions of heaven. The term Apocalypse is translated into ‘revelation’ or ‘unveiling’ (Keener 31). Composed of numerous allusion to the Old Testament, the Book of Revelation was originally sent to the seven churches in Asia Minor to be read in the context of liturgy concerning the imminent future (Filho, 214). That being said, it is important to understand the book of Revelation not only through the historical perspective but also as a liturgical context as it contains many hymns and other liturgical elements (Filho, 214). This paper will explore Revelation 4:1-11 in terms of context, Old Testament allusions, liturgical symbolism and modern significance, as it is a beautiful depiction of earth joining perpetual heavenly worship. According to Keener, the central message of the book of Revelation is the encouragement of Christians facing persecution in Asia Minor (Keener 39).
The book of Revelation, written in c. 95 A.D. by John the apostle, was written to Christians who were facing increasing hostility from the Roman Empire, which was beginning to enforce the cult of emperor worship. John had been exiled to the island of Patmos for his activities as a
The rapture, anti-chirst, marking of the beast, and the tribulations are just a few things that come to mind when I think of the book of Revelation. I have personally read the book a few times. My church has also taken an a large amount of time to break down
During my research into the viewpoints concerning the book of Revelation, I have come away with the knowledge that while there are a variety of differing views with various degrees of merit knowing which is correct is highly improbable. And that the pursuit of greater understanding continues to strengthen my
Your worldview on life after death goes to the heart of what you believe. Revelation 21:1-10 shows us that these are literal places, and we chose by the way we live our lives. As a Christian heaven is our ultimate destiny and Romans 3:28 lets us know what is required
Analysis of Prophecy in the New Testament Introduction As Lewis Chafer notes, continuity in the Bible is best shown through the fulfillment of prophecy (164). Christ is the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies. And the Second Coming of Christ is the expected fulfillment of the New Testament prophecies. In both cases, and throughout the Old and the New Testaments, "highways of prophecy" are directed towards Advents of Christ.
The Book of Revelation is conceivably the most fascinating of all the books in the Bible. It is a book that prophesies about the signs pointing to the world’s conditions just before the return of Jesus Chris, and how each stage prepares for this up-and-coming event. Because prophecy is a large percentage of the Bible, people say that the Old Testament is the New Testament concealed, and the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed . Through the prophets, Scripture reveals a redeemer and the name of Messiah. They foretell about Christ’s birth, death and resurrection in the Old Testament and the New Testament retells His real-life stories. Because of this, a large part of the prophecy in both the Old and New Testament--according to Christians--has been fulfilled. Yet, the Book of Revelation, the last book is a writing of indistinguishable forces and mystical powers at work in the world as Satan sets up the stages for the return of the Savior, Jesus Christ.