Revelation is often described as a the revelation of john meaning the revelation to john 1. Patmos was a quarry mine for the roman empire, and was home to. Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it. Some modern scholars characterize revelations author as a putative figure whom they call john of patmos. The book of revelation starts with this is a revelation from jesus christ, which god gave him to show his servants the events that must soon take place. He sent an angel to present this revelation to his servant john. Tradition states that john the apostle served as the pastor to the churches in. John was one of the 12 disciples special students of jesus, who later became the apostles the first leaders of the christian church. The author names himself as john, but modern scholars consider it unlikely that the author of revelation also wrote the gospel of john. Mar 19, 2019 the book of revelation starts with this is a revelation from jesus christ, which god gave him to show his servants the events that must soon take place. The book written within and without, and sealed with seven seals, revelation 5. Bauckhams book will guide you into a richer understanding of the symbolism and their significance and literary art of johns prophetic imagination. He begins the body of his book by saying that it is from john to the seven churches in asia rev.
Nov 20, 2015 the author the book of revelation isnt really the apostle johns revelation but jesus christs, the author of life itself acts 3. The revelation of jesus christ was given to john by god to show his servants what must soon take place. This book is filled with mysteries about things to come. The book of revelation was written to warn the jews in israel and throughout the middle east what was going to happen to them during the end times age which started at the resurrection of jesus christ, and really starts ramping up in 70 ad when rome levels jerusalem, as jesus speaking about the jews foretold in matthew chapter 24.
Finally, while there is little to commend the notion that a shadowy figure named john the elder wrote the book of revelation, there is ample evidence that it was written by john the apostle. The revelation is the only book in the nt mentioning john as author. He begins by saying that god sent the visions he is going to relate to his servant john rev. Four times the author identifies himself as john 1. The author of the book of revelation christopher l.
Bible prophecy for everyone paperback october 22, 2019. The only other clue to the author s identity is that he states he received his visions while on the island of patmos rev. The author of revelation in this post i want to explain why it is almost universally thought that the same author did not write the fourth gospel and the book of revelation, and then to show why the latter author was almost certainly not john the son of zebedee, jesus close disciple. A number of ancient church fathers, notably irenaeus, believed that the author of revelation was also the author of the gospel of john, and the epistles of 1,2 and 3 john. The first blessing is in the first chapter of revelation in verse 3. The crowned conqueror on the white horse armed with a bow, revelation 6. The book itself suggests that the crisis was ruthless persecution of the early church by the roman authorities. Todays post looks at the evidence for and against john being the author of the book of revelation. John was one of the 12 disciples special students of jesus, who later became the.
Apr 16, 2011 the author of the book of revelation identifies himself as john, and the book has been traditionally credited to john the apostle. While there were skeptics, even early on, about the authorship of the text most likely due to the apocalyptic nature of the book, the general consensus was that john the apostle was the author. The book of revelation presents its author as john. The author of the book of revelation calls himself john rev. The text of revelation states that john was on patmos, a greek island where, by most biblical historians, he is considered to be exiled as a result of antichristian persecution under the roman emperor domitian. Justin the martyr around 100 to 165 ac, irenaeus around 140 to 220 ac and the muratori canon end of 2 nd century confirm that the apostle john is the author. Absolutely stunning visuals with breathtaking colors is what this book is all about. The author of the book of revelation the lord jesus christ the book of revelation a study of the last prophetic book of holy scripture by clarence larkin author of the great book on dispensational truth self published philadelphia, pa. John was one of the 12 disciples special students of jesus, who later became the apostles the first. Meraj mohiuddin is an american physician and writer.
Christians throughout history have given almost unanimous affirmation to the identity of the books author as john the apostle, who had been exiled to the island of. So when the author of the book of revelation sat down to write, there was a very strong paradigm of what revelation literature should look like and sound like. The main debate centers on who authored the writings, and which of the writings, if any, can be ascribed to a common author. The bulk of traditional sources date the book to the. In sharp contrast, the book of revelation provides ample internal evidence. Book of revelation read, study bible verses online. While many associate the word apocalypse with great disaster, the book of revelation begins and ends by saying that those who read, understand, and apply its message would be happy for doing so. The author was probably a christian from ephesus known as john the elder.
The very fact that the author of the apocalypse simply calls himself. The church does not have an official stance on who the author is. The book of revelation lions leopards and bears oh my. Since the roman era, christians and historians have considered the book of revelations writer to be the apostle john, author of the gospel of joh. Nov 14, 2017 2 the author of the book clearly had a strong connection with the seven churches of asia minor as evident in revelation 2. The very fact that the author of the apocalypse simply calls himself john is a dead giveaway that he was well known throughout the churches in asia minor. He wrote it when he was about 92 years old, while a prisoner of rome on the remote desert penal colony of patmos, an island in the aegean sea. Tradition has long held that john the apostle, whom we have seen penned the fourth gospel and the three letters attributed to him, wrote. The author of the revelation i the revelation was written by a man called john. Before starting in revelation 1 i want to give plenty of explanations for the authorship, textual design, interpretation, date, themes, and outlines for the book of revelation. The author of the book of revelation, saint john the divine, offers a transcription of seven letters and later describes strange beasts, visions of judgments, governments, demonic battles, heaven, and a new world order a prophetic. The author of revelation mentioned his name, john, four times throughout the book revelation 1. Jul 04, 2016 this post starts a series through the book of revelation. So, the divine author of revelation is jesus christ and the human author is the apostle john.
The authorship of the johannine works the gospel of john, epistles of john, and the book of revelation has been debated by scholars since at least the 2nd century ad. Ironically, it is the only book of the bible that says you are blessed for reading it. The writer of revelation identifies himself as john. The author of the book of revelation is the disciple of jesus. Although he never claims to be john the apostle, whose name is attached to the fourth gospel, he was so identified by several of the early church fathers, including justin. The book of revelation was written sometime around 96 ce in asia minor. A lot of people are scared of the book of revelation, or at least hesitant to read it. The only other clue to the authors identity is that he states he received his visions while on. John of patmos could be the author named as john in the book of revelation, the apocalyptic text forming the final book of the new testament. Is this the same john who wrote the gospel account and three letters.
Some writers, however, have advanced the preterist from a latin word meaning that which is past view, contending that the apocalypse was penned around a. John mentions his name four times in the book revelation 1. Book of revelation is actually a christian prophecy book filled with old testamentstyle language and imagery narrating events and descriptions like the mark of the beast, the battle of armageddon, the binding of devil, the rule of the lord, the great white throne of judgment and the finally the nature of the eternal city of god. Tradition states that john the apostle served as the pastor to the churches in ephesus. Speaking of the apocalypse from the previous post giving that odd video. The traditional view holds that john, the apostle, was the author of revelation. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. Its meaning is positive, not fearful or terrifying to those who serve god.
A downtoearth guide to understanding the most mysterious book of the bible by tim lahaye and timothy parker jul 15, 2014 4. John of patmos also called john the revelator, john the divine, john the theologian, and possibly john the apostle. Other church fathers such as dionysius of alexandria, eusebius. The very fact that the author of the apocalypse simply calls himself john is a dead giveaway that he was well known throughout. Revelation a study guide about the book of revelation.
Endorsements testimonials faq events contact buy now the author. Patmos was a quarry mine for the roman empire, and was home to many political and religious prisoners or slaves. Reading the book of revelation can be challenging the storyline twists and turns and isnt strictly chronological. Traditionally, both books have been identified as coming from the same person, john the son. Like daniel and other apocalypses, it was composed as resistance literature to meet a crisis. This post starts a series through the book of revelation. Whoever that john was has been a subject of debate. John recorded the message but is not the true author of the book. While the internal evidence of john the apostle being the author.
The book of revelation, a prophecy of warning and hope. The book of revelation was likely written between a. It is a fair statement to say that evidence that this letter was written by. Four reasons exist as to why one should accept johannine authorship of revelation. The only other clue to the authors identity is that he states he received his visions while on the island of patmos rev. Christians throughout history have given almost unanimous affirmation to the identity of the books author as john the apostle, who had been exiled to the island of patmos by the authorities for preaching the gospel in asia. This distrust of the book of revelation persisted in the east through the 15th century. The name revelation comes from the first word of the book in koine greek. The book itself reveals that the author was a jew, well versed in scripture, a church leader who was well known to the seven churches of asia minor, and a deeply religious person fully convinced that the christian faith would soon triumph over the demonic forces at work in the world. On what the book of revelation says about the new world its striking that the author sees nothing of the present world surviving except the people who are dead come back to.
However, the true author of revelation is god and jesus christ is the one who have the revelation to an angel to give to john. This answer quotes a passage from eusebius that seems to call the book of revelation s authorship into question. The apostle john is the author of the book of revelation. Traditionally, the book of revelation has been dated near the end of the first century, around a. Oct 29, 2012 a lot of people are scared of the book of revelation, or at least hesitant to read it.
Revelation with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. This summary of the book of revelation provides information about the title, author s, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of revelation. The book of revelation cannot be adequately understood except against the historical background that occasioned its writing. The was the title given to the book in the latin vulgate 3. However, the prophecies concerning the future are scattered throughout the books of the bible, and the book that focuses the most on future prophecy revelation was not easily understood due to the symbolism and the peculiar way in which its prophecies are presented. Useful bible studies revelation commentary study guide. The text of revelation states that john was on patmos, a greek island where.
Paul spilsburys book is a close runnerup for my go to book for an introduction to revelation. The author of the book of revelation identifies himself as john, and the book has been traditionally credited to john the apostle. The book of revelation is the only book in the bible, that i know of, that has a blessing associated with it for those who will read itnot once but twice. The apocalypse, or revelation to john, the last book of the bible, is one of the most difficult to understand because it abounds in unfamiliar and extravagant symbolism, which at best appears unusual to the modern reader. Justin martyr, irenaeus, clement of alexandria, tertullian, cyprian, and hippolytus came to that conclusion. Apr, 2011 finally, while there is little to commend the notion that a shadowy figure named john the elder wrote the book of revelation, there is ample evidence that it was written by john the apostle.
Dionysius 248 ad, bishop of alexandria and disciple of origen, wrote that the book of revelation could have been written by cerinthus although he himself did not adopt the view that. The son of indian immigrants, he was raised on the east coast with a strong emphasis on sports and education. Jan 01, 2019 the book of revelation presents its author as john. Victorinus late third century, author of the earliest commentary on the book of revelation, wrote. Someone recently asked me if the same author could have written both the book of revelation and the gospel of john. From as early as justin martyr in the second century a. Book of revelation overview insight for living ministries.