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Revelation Bible Study

Introduction 2

1. Symbolism in Revelation
a. Revelation is full of symbolism
b. People, nations, and spiritual beings are depicted like animals
i. Jesus = lamb
ii. Devil = dragon
iii. Swarm of locusts = probably demons (others say armies)
iv. Beast with 7 heads and 10 horns that rules the world = something
c. Two Women / Two Cities
i. Bride / Jerusalem
1. Revelation 21:1-2 a clear reference to something which is
symbolically called both a bride and the new Jerusalem
2. Revelation 21:9-10 the new Jerusalem is identified as the wife of the
lamb
3. If the lamb is Jesus, His Bride would be the church so clearly both the
image of the bride and the image of the new Jerusalem are the church,
the people of God
ii. Harlot / Babylon
1. Revelation 17 woman riding on a beast with 7 heads and 10 horns
2. Revelation 17:5 shes identified as Babylon
3. Revelation 17:18 shes identified as the great city that has dominion
over the kings of the earth
4. Clearly the harlot and Babylon are a symbol for something but what?
iii. These images are not literal cities nor literal women one is clearly the
church, and the other is clearly something
d. People and places are given symbolic names
i. A woman at Thyatira is referred to as Jezebel this is likely a symbol and
not her real name. She is called Jezebel because shes similar to Jezebel,
not because thats her real name
ii. Revelation 11:8 - The city where the Lord was crucified (Jerusalem) is
spiritually called Sodom and Egypt
iii. Babylon isnt the literal city of Babylon
iv. New Jerusalem is a symbolic name for the church
e. Frequent references to cosmic and geological disruptions
i. Example: earthquakes, stars falling from the sky, sun going dark, heavens roll
up like the scroll
ii. Similar images used commonly in Old Testament to refer to political
upheavels
1. Isaiah 13:10 In describing Babylon falling to the Medes and Persians
(539 BC), Isaiah says, The sun will be darkened, the sun wont give its
light, the stars will fall
a. Obviously the stars didnt literally fall and theres no record for
the sun not giving light that day its a symbol for political
upheaval
iii. Original readers, familiar with apocalyptic literature and imagery, would have
understood these images as symbols for something else, not meant to be
understood literally
iv. Stars falling to the earth (Revelation 6:13, Revelation 9:1-2, etc.)

1. This is not a physical possibility (stars are bigger than the earth and
incapable of falling into the earth)
2. One of these stars has a key to open a bottomless pit (Revelation 9:12) obviously, a literal star cant have a literal key to open a literal
bottomless pit its a symbol for something
f. Numbers are Symbols
i. 7 = totality, completeness
1. Old Testament used very often symbolically to mean completeness,
perfection, something total (Psalm 12:6, Psalm 119:164, Proverbs
24:16)
2. Jesus likely used it to mean completeness in talking about forgiveness
(Luke 17:4)
3. Revelation
a. 7 judgments means total judgment
b. Jesus as a lamb with 7 eyes means he sees everything
c. Jesus as a lamb with 7 horns means hes all-powerful
i. In the Old Testament, a horn is a symbol of power (Psalm
18:2, Psalm 148:14, etc)
d. The 7 churches in Asia Minor are a symbol for all churches the
letter is addressed to them but it applies to everyone
e. Others: 7 spirits of God, 7 angels of the 7 churches, 7 seals on
the scroll, 7 trumpets, 7 thunders, 7 bowls of wrath, 7 kings 7
Beatitudes (statements that begin with blessed are the)
ii. 1/3 = a significant minority (the largest whole fraction thats less than a half)
1. Old Testament used often to symbolize a large minority of something
(Zechariah 13:8-9, Ezekiel 5:1-12)
2. Revelation The trumpets each affect 1/3 of something (the sea, the
river, mankind, etc.)
3. 1/3 shouldnt be thought of as a literal number when elsewhere in the
Bible its clearly meant to be symbolic
iii. 12 = Gods people
1. Old Testament the sons of Jacob, the tribes of Israel
2. New Testament Jesus had 12 Apostles
3. Revelation
a. 24 elders (12 + 12)
b. 144,000 people who take the mark of God (Revelation 7:4) (12 x
12,000)
c. New Jerusalem has 12 foundations with the names of the 12
apostles
d. 12 gates of the city
g. Times (like numbers) are symbols
i. 1 Hour a very short time
1. 10 kings give their authority to the beast for 1 hour, but it would be
unreasonable to think this means a literal 60 minutes
2. Likely, an hour represents a short time
ii. 10 days a time thats long enough to notice but not unbearably long
1. Church in Smyrna will have tribulation for 10 days (Revelation 2:10)
2. Most likely, this means simply that the church will not have literally 10
days of tribulation, but a time of tribulation thats uncomfortable but
will end before too long
iii. 1000 years a very, very long time, generations and generations
1. Revelation 20 Millennial Reign of Christ

2. Theologians have disagreed about this from the beginning, some


saying its a literal 1000 years and others not
3. We have no reason to assume its a literal number
a. Other numbers in Revelation are clearly symbolic
b. Other references in Bible to 1000 are clearly symbolic
i. Psalms - 1000 may fall at your side, God owns the cattle
on 1000 hills, a day is as 1000 years, etc.
ii. Deuteronomy God keeps covenant to 1000 generations
iii. 2 Peter a day is like 1000 years and 1000 years like a
day
c. If 1000 years means a literal 1000 years in Revelation, that
would be very surprising

2. Parallelism
a. This is a major part of the Spiritualist view
b. 7 Parallel Sections (many of them with 7 subsections)
i. Ch. 1`-3 7 letters to 7 churches
ii. Ch. 4-7 7 seals
iii. Ch. 8-11 7 trumpets
iv. Ch. 12-14 Persecuting dragon
v. Ch. 15-16 7 bowls of wrath
vi. Ch. 17-19 Fall of Babylon
vii. Ch. 20-22 Spread of Gods Kingdom
c. Parallels in the 7 sections
i. Each refers to Jesus second coming
ii. Spiritualist view says each of these sections shows the whole age of the
church, but using different symbols (churches, seals, trumpets, etc.)
iii. 7 trumpets and 7 bowls of wrath each affect the same things
iv. Ch. 12 (the birth of Jesus) and 20 (Beginning of the Church) are very similar
v. Ch. 11 (blowing the 7th trumpet) and 19 (rider on the white horse) are similar

3. Revelations Relationship with the Rest of the Bible


a. Revelation is the only book in the New Testament that does not directly quote the
Old Testament
b. However, Old Testament imagery and allusions are everywhere, more than any
other book, creating the very fabric of Revelation
i. 79 allusions to Isaiah
ii. 53 allusions to Daniel
iii. 48 allusions to Ezekiel (some commentators say twice as many)
iv. 43 allusions to Psalms
v. 27 allusions to Exodus
vi. 22 allusions to Jeremiah
vii. 15 allusions to Zechariah
viii. 9 allusions to Amos
ix. 8 allusions to Joel
c. Revelation uses images from other parts of the Bible in creative new ways
i. One commentator called Revelation a rebirth of images
ii. Two Witnesses (Revelation 11) John says these witnesses represent two olive
trees that stand in the presence of the Lord, a clear allusion to Zechariah 4
and the two anointed ones who stand in Gods presence and are called olive
trees

1. In Zechariah 4, these anointed ones / olive trees are seen to represent


Zerubabel and Joshua, post-exilic leaders in Israel
2. In Revelation, its clear these witnesses are two different people
d. Images from the Exodus
i. Revelation 1:5 earliest and most accurate manuscripts say, Christ freed us
from our sins by His blood, which clearly draws up images of the Passover
ii. Revelation 11:8 Jerusalem is equated with Egypt
iii. Revelation 12:3 The dragon persecuting the woman is like Egypt
persecuting the Hebrew slaves (in Ezekiel 29:3 and Psalm 74:13, Egypt is
even called a dragon)
1. The woman has a crown of 12 stars (like the 12 tribes of Israel)
2. The dragon chased the woman into the wilderness (like the Exodus),
where God sustained her (like God sending mana), and where the earth
opened up (like in Korahs rebellion)
iv. Revelations plagues are repetitions of Egypts plagues (darkness, hail,
locusts, boils, frogs, water turning into blood)
1. We should be cautious to say these are literal events (Revelation is
apocalyptic and uses symbolism, and the allusions to the Exodus are
very clear)
v. Those saved sing the song of Moses and the Lamb (Revelation 15:3) is like
Exodus 15 and the rescued Hebrews singing the song of Moses
vi. Most of the tabernacle furniture God told Moses to make appears at some
point in Revelation
vii. John is making a clear connection between what is happening in Revelation
and what happened in the Exodus
e. Images from the fall of Babylon and return of exiles (2 nd Exodus)
i. The Babylonian Exile resembles the Hebrew bondage in Egypt (only twice in
Israels history was the entire population slaves in a foreign land and then
later returned to Israel)
1. Both the Babylonian Exile and return and the Exodus are Old
Testament types to describe what Jesus has done for us
ii. Babylon appears a number of times as an enemy of God
iii. The exclamation Babylon is fallen! (Revelation 14:8, 18:2) is from Jeremiah
51 and the prophets prediction that Babylon would fall and Israel would be
delivered
iv. Euphrates River drying up and kings from the east march on Babylon
(Revelation 16)
1. This is an echo of exactly how Babylon fell in history Cyrus, king of
Persia (from the east), invaded Babylon. The city was surrounded by
thick, impenetrable walls that had one weakness - the Euphrates River
ran into the city under the walls. So Cyrus ordered the river diverted,
which dried it up and created a road under the city walls for his army
to march in and conquer.
v. Like the Exodus, the fall of Babylon represents another time in Israels history
that God destroyed the enemy and released His people from bondage
1. Revelation isnt talking directly about either the Exodus or the Fall of
Babylon but about some future event that resembles those two, some
judgment on the enemy and deliverance of Gods people
f. Images from the life of Jesus (the two witnesses)
i. The images of the two witnesses contain clear allusions to the life of Jesus
ii. They minister for 3 years, have a miraculous ministry, are persecuted, are
put to death in Jerusalem, are dead for 3 days, rise up, and ascend to heaven

iii. Whoever these two witnesses are, they contain incredible parallels to the life
of Jesus

4. Date of Writing
a. Next week, were gonna look in depth at each of the four schools of thought
regarding Revelation. One of those schools depends on an accurate dating of the
book, so lets cover the date now
i. Preterist Revelation is about the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, so if the
book was written after 70 AD, its not about the destruction of Jerusalem
b. Two Opinions
i. Late date: near the end of Domnitians reign, somewhere near 96 AD
1. Most modern scholars hold this view, as did most of the church fathers
ii. Early date: near the end of Neros reign, somewhere before 68 AD
1. Most scholars in the 1800s as well as a number of very early church
fathers held this view
c. Internal verses External Evidence
i. Internal evidence: Statements within the book itself that give us clues to its
date. This is the more authoritative evidence because its from the Bible itself
and without errors.
1. Internal evidence generally supports an early date (Nero)
ii. External evidence: Statements from the early church that give us clues to its
date. This evidnce is open to error, as its not contained in the Bible.
1. External evidence general supports a later date (Domnitian)
d. Evidence for a Late Date (Domnitian)
i. Most well-respected modern scholars hold to a late date for Revelation
ii. Revelation 13 describes emperor worship, which was not an issue until the
time of Domnitian
1. Weakness: John is prophesying, the whole book of Revelation is
prophecy, so it would not be unlikely that he would see something from
the future that was not yet a reality
iii. Extent of Persecution during Neros day, the persecution was only in the city
of Rome, but Johns audience is in Asia Minor it wasnt until Domnitian that
there was persecution of Christians throughout the empire
1. Weakness: Revelation itself never mentions an empire-wide
persecution, which you would expect it to do if it were happening, nor
do the 7 churches addressed seem to be under a universal persecution
(Smyrna and Philadelphia are persecuted by local Jews, Pergamum is
persecuted by local Roman authorities, and several arent persecuted
at all)
iv. The state of the 7 churches how the 7 churches are described doesnt fit
with an early date
1. Laodicea is wealthy
a. In the early 60s, there was an earthquake in Laodicea that
completely destroyed it, so how could John describe them as
wealthy if it was written so quickly after the earthquake?
b. Weakness: Laodicea could have rebuilt quickly even if they
havent rebuilt, whats being discussed is their attitude of pride
and wealth and ease, which may not have changed even with an
earthquake John doesnt specify that hes discussing physical

wealth, so he could be talking just as easily about spiritual


wealth
2. Smyrna didnt exist during Pauls life
a. Paul died in 67 AD, and we have some possible evidence that
the church in Smyrna didnt exist in his lifetime, so it seems
unlikely that it would be planted so quickly and then included in
a book written before 70 AD
b. Weakness: that doesnt make sense couldnt someone plant
the church in 68 or 69 AD?
i. Difficult Evidence a letter from Polycarp (elder at
Smyrna, disciple of John) written to the church in Philippi
(from 2nd century)
1. Polycarp writes, Among you the blessed Paul
labored for concerning you he boasts in all the
churches who then alone had known the Lord, for
we had not yet known Him.
2. Some say Polycarp is saying that Smyrna didnt yet
know the Lord during Pauls life
3. Others say hes saying Smyrna didnt yet know the
Lord while Paul wrote Philippians and spread the
letter around to the other churches, which would
mean the church in Smyrna was planted sometime
after 61-62 AD, plenty of time before an early
writing of Revelation
3. Spiritual decline in the churches
a. Ephesus left its first love, Sardis lost real life, Laodicea is
lukewarm
b. Scholars ask, How could a church go bad so quickly, if the book
was written before 70 AD? The churches were planted in the
late 50s, early 60s, so they say that wouldnt be long enough to
decline.
c. Weakness: Its foolish and contrary to evidence in the Bible and
the real world to think churches cant decline quickly
i. Only a few weeks after Paul was in Galatia, the churches
abandoned the Gospel for a counterfeit one
ii. The church Paul planted in Corinth, in his lifetime, began
to reject the resurrection of the dead and to accept incest
and other gross sins
v. External Evidence
1. Most early church fathers seemed to believe the book was written
during Domnitians reign
2. Irenaeus a disciple of Polycarp, who was a disciple of John
a. In discussing the mark of the beast in 185 AD, he wrote, Now
since this is so, and since this number 666 is found in all the
good and ancient copies [of revelation] and since those who had
seen John face to face testify and reason teaches us that the
number of thename of the beast appears according to the
numeration of the Greeks by the letters in it, we will not
however incur the risk of pronouncing positively as to the name
of the antichrist. For if it were necessary that his name should be
distinctively revieled in the present time, it would have been

announced by him who held the apocalyptic vision, for that was
seen no very long time since, but almost in our day, toward the
end of Domnitians reign.
b. Confusion in the statement that was seen
i. Does it mean the vision was seen in Domnitians reign?
ii. Does it mean John was seen in Domnitians reign?
1. This is more likely in my opinion
c. Evidence Irenaeus means John was seen in Domnitians reign
i. History shows that John clearly lived to the end of
Domnitians reign and would have been seen
ii. Earlier in his statement, Irenaeus refers to those who had
seen John, so its not unlikely that he would again be
referring to the same subject
iii. Iraneus refers to the early copies of Revelation as
ancient but to the end of Domnitians reign as almost
in our day
1. It would make no sense for the book to be written
in Domnitians reign (almost in our day) but also
called ancient
2. If the book was written in Neros day (before 68
AD), Iraneus (writing in 185 AD) could call the early
copies ancient and the end of Domnitians reign
almost in our day
iv. Elsewhere in this writing, Irenaeus has some serious
errors, leaving his credibility in question
1. For example, he says htat Jesus was crucified at 50
years old
vi. Summary: Internal evidence isnt very convincing, and the external evidence
could be interpreted either way but leans toward a late date
e. Evidence for an early date (Nero)
i. Many well-respected scholars hold to an early date
ii. Revelation 17:9-10 this is a reference to Nero reigning over the Roman
Empire
1. The verses describe the beast as having 7 heads which represent 7
kings 5 having fallen, 1 is, and the other will come in the future
2. This is very obscure and mysterious, but perhaps helpful
3. Perhaps this is a reference to Roman emperors, in which case John is
saying that 5 had already reigned, and currently a 6 th is reigning, which
would be Emperor Nero
4. Weakness this understanding assumes kings means emperors,
where elsewhere in the Bible (Daniel), kings means empires
iii. Revelation 11:1-2 He measures the Temple and doesnt include the outer
parts because theyll be given to the Gentiles, which seems to imply the
Temple is currently existing but will be destroyed, meaning the book had to
be written before 70 AD
1. Weakness: Its a vision, so theres no guarantee that its historically
accurate
iv. Situation between church and the Jewish community
1. Smyrna and Philadelphia are persecuted by the Jewish populations in
their towns

v.

vi.

vii.

viii.

2. After the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, it seems unlikely that the


Jews would be strong enough and motivated enough to be a force of
persecution but rather demoralized and weakened
Number of the beast (666) Caesar Nero in Hebrew numbers exactly to 666
1. Scholars unanimously agree that this is the numeric equivalent of a
mans name
a. Letters of alphabet in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin all double for
numerals (ie. Roman Numberals I = 1, V = 5, X = 10, etc.)
2. Names were often referred to by their number equivalents
a. Graffiti in Rome says, 387 loves 294
3. John says, This number of the beast is the number of a man, and his
number is 666, and he expects the wise among his readers will
understand
a. This would mean the beast is a person alive during their time.
How could even the wise calculate the number of the beast if
the beast wouldnt be born for another 2000 or 3000 years or
whatever?
4. Caesar Nero when translated into Hebrew and its letter values
calculated adds up to 666
a. This isnt true of Domnitian or any other emperor or known
Roman figure from the 1st century
b. The only contemporary person we know of whose name could be
666 is Nero
c. Why would we have to translate it into Hebrew to get the
number?
i. John doesnt want the Romans to realize its a reference to
the emperor. Because they would know Latin and Greek
but probably not Hebrew, he converted it to Hebrew first.
ii. John expects that his readers know at least some Hebrew
(some of them are former Jews plus, he uses Hebrew
words elsewhere in Revelation Armageddon, alleluia,
angel of bottomless pit has a name given in Greek and
Hebrew)
Persecution of the 7 churches is similar to what we see elsewhere in Neros
time
1. 1 Peter written to churches in Asia Minor before 64 AD, discusses
very similar persecution to what the churches in Revelation 1-3
experience (1 Peter 1:1-6, 4:12, 5:9)
2. Pauls experiences of persecution in late 50s and early 60s in the book
of Acts are very similar to what the churches in Revelation 1-3 are
experiencing (Acts 13:50, 14:5, 14:19, 17:5-8, 17:13, 18:12)
External Evidence
1. Some of the earliest versions of the New Testament place an early
date, before 70 AD (Syriac Version 2nd century, Muratorian Fragment
170-190 AD, Aramaic Peshitta, Monarchian Prologues)
Summary: Internal evidence for an early date is pretty convincing though
open to interpretation, and there is definitely some external evidence

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