Author of the book of revelation

In sharp contrast, the book of revelation provides ample internal evidence. 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. Patmos was a quarry mine for the roman empire, and was home to many political and religious prisoners or slaves. Some general comments about the book of revelation and its uniqueness. Who wrote the book of revelation and the fourth gospel. 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. Because we know in revelation chapter one jesus tells john specifically who to address the letters to, the seven jewish christian churches in asia now called turkey. This 1919 book serves as a study guide for the book of revelation, the bibles prophetic final chapter. The book of revelation is hard to understand if you have not read it and studied it. John the divine, although the godgiven title is at the very beginning of the text, the revelation of jesus christ, which god. Someone recently asked me if the same author could have written both the book of revelation and the gospel of john. The author of the book of revelation identifies himself only as john. It is the only book of the new testament classified as apocalyptic literature rather than didactic or historical, indicating thereby its extensive use of visions, symbols, and allegory, especially in.

Johns title for the book is the revelation of jesus christ 1. Having contrasted the followers of the lamb with the men that pay homage to beast, the book presents the reader with a definitive choice with two very different everlasting consequences revelation 14. The seven churches of revelation click to watch video. Book of revelation overview insight for living ministries. Most people know what i mean when i say john is the author of the book of revelation.

Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. The church does not have an official stance on who the author is. 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. The revelation of jesus christ was given to john by god to show his servants what must soon take place. Tradition has long held that john the apostle, whom we have seen penned the fourth gospel and the three letters attributed to him, wrote. Apr 16, 2011 obviously, god is the ultimate author of the book of revelation. 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. Just finished reading this book had an advanced copy.

Other church fathers such as dionysius of alexandria, eusebius. The writer of revelation identifies himself as john. This is the holy book of revelation, known as the revelation of st. The book of revelation is one of the most complicated books of the bible, even for christians who have spent a lot of time reading the bible. Justin martyr, irenaeus, clement of alexandria, tertullian, cyprian, and hippolytus came to that conclusion. Jan 01, 2019 the book of revelation presents its author as john. The theology of the book of revelation edition 1 by richard. 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 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. The revelation of jesus christ is a book of prophecy on the end times and comprises the final book of the new testament and of the bible. Of the new testament works, only revelation names its author explicitly as john. 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.

Book of revelation read, study bible verses online. John was one of the 12 disciples special students of jesus, who later became the apostles the first. The two preceding paragraphs presented two different groups. The word apocalypse means unveiling and thats exactly what the book of revelation isit is a prophetic book that discusses the unveiling of what is going to happen in the nearing end times and what will come with the final revelation of jesus christ. The book of revelation was likely written between a. The revelation is the only book in the nt mentioning john as author. Later writers, such as clement of alexandria, origen, victorinus who wrote one of the earliest commentaries on revelation, eusebius, and jerome affirm the domitian date.

The author of revelation mentioned his name, john, four times throughout the book revelation 1. Revelation with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. The author of the book of revelation calls himself john rev. Whoever that john was has been a subject of debate. Revelation is often described as a the revelation of john meaning the revelation to john 1. While revelation holds mysterious and frightening images of the endtimes, the book of revelation was written to be an encouragement to christians of all times.

Dec 10, 2015 who wrote the bibles book of revelation. The last book of the new testament is also called the prophecy book and the revelation of jesus christ. Todays post looks at the evidence for and against john being the author of the book of revelation. The book of revelation is the revelation of jesus christ to apostle john thus to us christians. But, who was it that penned the word of revelation. Jul 04, 2016 this post starts a series through the book of revelation. An expository journey through the book of revelation. The author of the book of revelation identifies himself as john, and the book has been traditionally credited to john the apostle. He begins by saying that god sent the visions he is going to relate to his servant john rev. The greek name of the bible book of revelation, apoka. The two periods most often mentioned are the latter part of neros reign a.

Unlike most books of the bible, revelation contains its own title. The apostle of jesus and the author of the gospel of john and the three letters of nt. The book was written around 96 ad by apostle john when titus domitian was the emperor of the roman empire. So, the divine author of revelation is jesus christ and the human author is the apostle john. Early tradition unanimously identified him as john the apostle, author of the fourth gospel and three epistles. The bulk of traditional sources date the book to the. 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. 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. The book of revelation the smart guide to the bible.

This revelation was given to him by god the father, and it was communicated to the apostle john by an angel 1. The literary genres of the book of revelation are an apocalypse, a prophecy, and an epistle or letter. Book of revelation explained scripture by scripture. While the internal evidence of john the apostle being the author. John insists that everything in his book came from christ.

John was the youngest disciple of the twelve disciples of jesus who became an apostle of the church. The apostle john is the author of the book of revelation. He begins the body of his book by saying that it is from john to. The elder, the seer, and the apostle bible odyssey.

However, the true author of revelation is god and jesus christ is the one who have the revelation to an angel to. 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. John was one of the 12 disciples special students of jesus, who later became the apostles the first leaders of the christian church. Stylometric analysis, a process which analyses an author s style of writing, shows that the book of revelation and johns gospel display more differences to each other than any other two books in. The book of revelation presents its author as john. 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. 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. The book of revelation is the final book of the bible in which john the apostle outlined. The book of revelation, the final book of the new testament, has some of the most dramatic and frightening language in the bible. 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. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the book of revelation the smart guide to the bible series.

Irenaeus mentioned that john the apostle received the visions of revelation near the end of domitians rule. The traditional view holds that john, the apostle, was the author of revelation. The book of revelation was written sometime around 96 ce 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. Four reasons exist as to why one should accept johannine authorship of revelation. 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. The very fact that the author of the apocalypse simply calls himself. The author was probably a christian from ephesus known as john the elder. He begins the body of his book by saying that it is from john to the seven churches in asia rev. Books is from the hebrew, sefar word number h5609 in strongs concordance. The book of revelation the smart guide to the bible series kindle edition by nelson, thomas, richards, larry. The book of revelation is traditionally said to be written by john.

Revelation to john, also called book of revelation or apocalypse of john, last book of the new testament. And john does not identify himself as the author of the gospel account or the letters. The book of revelation, a prophecy of warning and hope. Some modern scholars characterize revelations author as a putative figure whom they call john of patmos. The book of revelation often called the revelation to john, apocalypse of john, the revelation from jesus christ from its opening words, the apocalypse, the revelation, or simply revelation is the final book of the new testament, and consequently is also the final book of the christian bible. 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. Reference to the apostles authorship is found as early as justin martyr, in his dialogue with trypho.

John mentions his name four times in the book revelation 1. It is a fair statement to say that evidence that this letter was written by. Complete overview of the book of revelation is less than 7 minutes. First, the inhabitants of the earth that render homage to the beast. This post starts a series through the book of revelation. The book of revelation may hold vital clues about the coronavirus epidemic if outrageous claims made by christian hardliners are to be believed. Revelation always implies the unveiling of something previously hidden, in. Larkin explains the concepts of the beast and the false prophet, the seven seals and the seven trumpets, and the importance of the book of daniel in understanding the rapture. Revelation was written when christians were entering a time of persecution. The book of revelation lions leopards and bears oh my. This web site explains the book of revelation, each individual scripture. The dominant trend in recent scholarship, however, has been to view the author of revelation as simply a christian prophet named john who is otherwise unknown to us. Useful bible studies revelation commentary study guide. It will prepare you for the rest of the material contained here.

The first verse in the book of revelation does not say exactly who that particular john is, but it is naturally assumed to be john the apostle since it was the apostles that were given the authority by god to write scripture. This summary of the book of revelation provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and. The only other clue to the authors identity is that he states he received his visions while on. This article will conclude our series titled who wrote the new testament. Close attention is paid both to the literary form in which the theology is. The discipleapostle john, who followed jesus christ and witnessed his crucifixion, authored it. This book is written as an aid for pastors who want to preach through the book of revelation it might make a good gift for your pastor or your church library. The only other clue to the author s identity is that he states he received his visions while on the island of patmos rev.

Although john wrote the book of revelation, the ideas in it were not johns ideas. 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. Traditionally, both books have been identified as coming from the same person, john the son. Larkin explains the concepts of the beast and the false prophet, the seven seals and the seven trumpets, and the importance of. One theory, revelation draft hypothesis, sees the book of revelation constructed by forming parallels with several texts in the old testament such as ezekiel, isaiah, zechariah, deuteronomy, joshua, exodus, and daniel.

Four times the author identifies himself as john 1. This name indicates the meaning of revelation it uncovers matters that had been hidden and discloses events that would happen long after it was written. Revelation is often described as a the revelation of john meaning the revelation to john1 b. 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 vision for the end of the world. Speaking of the apocalypse from the previous post giving that odd video. Then go into each of the twenty two chapters of the book of revelation one by one. 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. The book of revelation was written to, for and about the christian jews in israel.

Writing in the second century, irenaeus declared that revelation had been written toward the end of domitians reign. God talked to john in his dream and gave all the revelations he wrote in the book. And i saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. The author of the revelation i the revelation was written by a man called john.

Revelation greek apokalupsis means an uncovering, an unveiling, or a disclosure. Walter elwell of wheaton college in illinois, is less absolute but thinks the apostle is quite likely the author. However, johnsons book also serves as an excellent commentary and devotional book. Traditionally, this was often believed to be the same person as john, son of zebedee, one of the apostles of jesus, to whom the gospel of john was also attributed. The word apocalypse means unveiling and thats exactly what the book of revelation isit is a prophetic book that discusses the unveiling of what is going to happen in the nearing end times and what will come with the final revelation. Revelation a study guide about the book of revelation. He sent an angel to present this revelation to his servant john.