the revelation of st. john the divine · 2020. 11. 21. · verses 1-2 the revelation of jesus...

THE REVELATION OF ST. JOHN THE

DIVINE

A TEACHING GUIDE FROM MISSIONARY BIBLE MINISTRIES

November 2020 In accordance with the Great Commission, Matthew 28:19-20, all information is free for use and distribution.

All scripture is taken from the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible.

Jason Laufenberg Missionary Bible Ministries 3415 W. 34th St. Rd. Greeley, CO 80634 baptistteaching.org

http://baptistteaching.org

REVELATION: A TEACHING GUIDE MISSIONARY BIBLE MINISTRIES

CHAPTER ONE This commentary is meant to be a little different than the narrative style formats that most commentaries are written in. Instead, these extended notes are meant to help you quickly see connections within the Book of Revelation and the rest of the Bible. Part of this Bible study is digging beneath the surface of the text, following the themes and use of different phrases, and understanding the meaning of the words in both English and the Greek. Altogether, this should enable us to pull back the curtain of Revelation and give us a clearer picture of the destiny that awaits the saved, the lost, and what God has in store for this planet.

Key words are in purple and small caps to help them stand out from the explanation. Bible verses that contain the words of Christ are in red.

May God bless you in your study of His word and His story.

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VERSES 1-2

The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.

✤ “REVELATION” is apokalypsis, which in the Greek means a disclosure or revealing of truth. This is not to be confused with apocrypha, or things that are hidden.

✴ Apocrypha is often associated with the Roman Catholic church. The Catholic canon of scripture includes the books of Tobit, Judith, the Wisdom of Solomon, Ecclesiasticus (also called Sirach), Baruch (also called 1 Baruch), the Letter of Jeremiah, 1 Maccabees, and 2 Maccabees. In addition, they include additions 2 Esther and Daniel (the Prayer of Azariah and the Three Young Men, Susanna, and Bel and the Dragon). (https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/apocrypha/)

✴ Like the Roman Catholic Church, the Greek Orthodox Church includes apocrypha and adds the books 1 Esdras, Psalm 151, the Prayer of Manasseh, and 3 Maccabees are part of their scriptures, while 4 Maccabees is in the appendix.

✴ Finally, the Russian Orthodox Church adds 1 Esdras, 2 Esdras, Psalm 151, and 3 Maccabees to their canon. (https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/apocrypha/)

✤ The phrase “OF JESUS CHRIST” means that Jesus is both the revealer of revelation and the object of it in this book.

✤ “SHORTLY COME TO PASS” goes with “FOR THE TIME IS AT HAND” (in verse 3).

✴ “AT HAND” means near or imminent. In other words, the time is near, nearer than when we first believed.

✴ “SHORTLY” is the ancient Greek phrase en tachei, which means ‘quickly or suddenly coming to pass,’ meaning that once the events of Revelation begin, they will move quickly/suddenly from one event to the next.

✴ If we need any more proof at the suddenness with which things can change, look at the recent events with Covid and the change that has occurred within our society.

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https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/apocrypha/

https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/apocrypha/


Notes/Questions:

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VERSES 3-4

Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand. John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;

✤ “BLESSED IS” begins the first of the seven beatitudes in Revelation (1:3; 14:13; 16:15; 19:9; 20:6; 22:7; 22:14).

✤ “HE” and “THEY” reflect the blessing that is possible on both an individual and a church level. For example, churches can get blessed for heeding and obeying the words of Christ in the Book of Revelation (or judged for disobeying or ignoring). And, similarly, individuals can be blessed or judge as well.

✤ “ASIA” is not the continent of Asia, but the Roman province of western Asia Minor, which is today Turkey.

✤ “FROM HIM WHICH IS, AND WHICH WAS, AND WHICH IS TO COME” is the perfect description of God in His eternal nature existing outside of time. The great I AM (YHWH).

✤ The “SEVEN SPIRITS” is a reference to the Holy Spirit in Isaiah 11:2.

✴ “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 of the fear of the LORD;”

✴ These are characteristics (of perfection), not different spirits.

Notes/Questions:

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VERSE 5

And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,

✤ The “FIRST BEGOTTEN OF THE DEAD” is first not just incident, but by priority. For example, the Feast of Firstfruits commemorates Christ as the firstfruits of the resurrection from the dead.

✴ “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Rom. 8:29).

✤ “UNTO HIM THAT LOVED US, AND WASHED US FROM OUR SINS IN HIS OWN BLOOD,” hearkens back to Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.

✴ Present circumstances may be difficult for you, but don’t let satan cause you to forget Jesus’ greatest sacrifice and example of His love for you—the cross.

✤ “WASHED” speaks of the dirt and defilement that our sins cause, making us unworthy to approach the King of Kings.

✴ A holy God can only be approached in holiness, which is something we can do because of our justification in Christ.

✦ “And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Cor. 6:11).

✦ “Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him” (Rom. 5:9).

Notes/Questions:

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VERSE 6

And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

✤ In the Greek, “KINGS” is basileus, which means a king; leader; prince.

✴ The newer translations (i.e. NIV, NLT, ESV, etc.) incorrectly change “KINGS” to “kingdom” (such as “a kingdom and priests” in the NIV)

✴ “KINGS” indicates dominion, which we have to a lesser extent now, over the earth and over the resources God has given unto us, but it also speaks of a royal position that God’s children will possess in the future millennial reign of Christ where our faithfulness today will open doors to greater service in the future.

✦ “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord” (Mt. 25:21).

✴ “PRIESTS” indicates a role of leading God’s people in worship and in the service of God; it could also mean a teaching position for those who are learning about the Lord and His ways/word.

✦ With people dying at the “young” age of 100 years during the millennial reign of Christ (“There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.” Is. 65:20), the population of the earth will quickly increase.

๏ Therefore, the need for kings and priests will be far greater than ever during the millennial reign of Christ. Christ is looking for faithful servants now, so that they can be found ready for greater tasks later.

✤ In the Old Testament, kings could not be priests (and vice versa).

✴ Remember what happened to Saul when he made this mistake and took upon himself the office of priest? Samuel said to him,

“Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the Lord thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the Lord have established thy

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kingdom upon Israel for ever. But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the Lord hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the Lord hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the Lord commanded thee” (1 Sam. 13:13-14).

✦ Sin always has consequences.

✦ Interestingly, King Uzziah did not know his history and committed the same sin as Saul (combining the roles of priest and king). Uzziah’s consequence was leprosy until the day he died, with his son Jotham reigning in his stead (2 Chr. 26:16-23).

✤ “GLORY AND DOMINION” will lead to a climax of praise later in the book. ✤ Revelation 4:11 has 3 attributes of praise to Christ (“GLORY AND HONOR AND

POWER”).✤ Revelation 5:13 has 4 attributes (“BLESSING, AND HONOR, AND GLORY, AND

POWER”).✤ Revelation 7:12 has 7 attributes (“BLESSING, AND GLORY, AND WISDOM, AND

THANKSGIVING, AND HONOR, AND POWER, AND MIGHT”).

Notes/Questions:

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VERSES 7-8

Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

✤ “CLOUDS” relates to God’s presence and His shekinah glory.

✴ Since believers and angels will be with Jesus when He returns in His shekinah glory (1 Ths. 3:13; Rev. 19:14), the inference is that we also will reflect Christ’s glory, creating quite a scene for those witnessing it from the earth.

✤ “PIERCED...WAIL BECAUSE OF HIM” is a reference to the coming fulfillment of Zech. 12:10,

“And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.”

✤ The phrase the “ALPHA AND OMEGA, THE BEGINNING AND THE ENDING” means from before time, as it says in Micah 5:2, “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.”

✴ “WHICH IS, AND WHICH WAS, AND WHICH IS TO COME” speaks of the eternality of Christ, similar to “the great I AM” (YHWH).

✴ “ALMIGHTY” is in the New Testament 10 times and in Revelation 9 times. It means the ruler of all; omnipotent.

Notes/Questions:

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Verses 9-10

I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet,

✤ PATMOS was the volcanic island reserved for Roman prisoners who had been exiled from their home and were banished to work on the quarries there. Rocky and treeless,

it was about 7.5 miles long from north to south and 6 miles at its widest point. It was located in the Aegean Sea between Athens and Turkey.

✤ John was apparently sent there in 95/96 AD by Emperor Domitian for preaching in Ephesus; tradition has it that he was released in 96/97 AD by Emperor Nerva. He then returned to Ephesus and set the church in order there.

✤ “IN THE SPIRIT” is not a reference to walking in the Spirit (Gal. 5:16), but to an out of body experience that allowed John to receive a supernatural revelation from Christ.

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Source: bible.cc

Location of the Island of Patmos

Source: Bible Atlas: A Manual of Biblical and Geography History


✴ This is similar to an experience Paul shared in 2 Cor. 12:2-4.

✦ “I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven. And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.”

Notes/Questions:

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VERSES 11-12

Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea. And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;

✤ These “SEVEN CHURCHES” weren’t

the only seven churches in existence at the time (see Paul’s letters to the Corinthians, for example), or even the

only seven churches in Asia at the time (Colosse, Col. 1:2; Hierapolis, Col. 4:13), but these churches had specific traits that relate to churches, individuals, and specific time periods in history.

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Source: Bible Atlas: A Manual of Biblical and Geography History


✴ The Apostle Paul also wrote to seven churches: Rome, Corinth, Galatia, Ephesus, Colosse, Philippi, and Thessalonica.

✤ “CANDLESTICKS” are defined in verse 20 as the “SEVEN CHURCHES.”

Notes/Questions:

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VERSES 13-16

And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters. And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

✤ Christ is our unchanging High Priest.

✴ Hebrews 7:25 says, “Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.”

✤ Note the 7 descriptions of Christ here: His head and hair, eyes, feet, voice, hand, mouth, countenance/face.

✤ His “EYES WERE AS A FLAME OF FIRE” is a simile that could refer to how Christ will judge our works (1 Cor. 3:13) with His knowledge of our heart, motivation, and sacrifice.

✤ It also points towards Christ’s omniscience, omnipresence, and judgment.

✴ As God, Jesus sees all. (Job 28:24; Ps. 90:8; 94:9; 139:23; Pro. 15:3)

✦ “Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do” (Heb. 4:13).

✴ He is in all. (Job 34:22; Ps. 139:7; Jer. 23:24; Amos 9:2)

✴ He will judge all. (1 Cor. 3:15; 2 Cor. 5:10; Heb. 4:13)

✤ Hair that is “WHITE” is not referring to old age, but purity and the shekinah glory of God.

✤ The reference to “BARE FEET” should not be a surprise since Levitical priests ministered in bare feet. We know this because their clothes are described in detail, but

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no coverings are described for their feet. Furthermore, the Bible is clear that when in the presence of God, one must remove one’s sandals.

✴ This happened when Moses and Joshua had to take off their sandals because they were on holy ground. See Ex. 3:5; Josh. 5:15.

✤ “FINE BRASS” is mentioned twice, here and in Revelation 2:18. It refers to an alloy of silver and gold, having a brilliant luster (Strong’s).

✤ The “SHARP TWOEDGED SWORD” is “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Eph. 6:17).

✴ “And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges” (Rev. 2:12).

✴ “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Heb. 4:12).

✦ “TWO EDGES” is the same word in Greek as it is in Heb. 4:12 and Rev. 1:16.

✦ “SWORD” is a large broadsword. This word occurs 7 times in the New Testament, but only once outside of Revelation (Lk. 2:35).

✤ “HIS COUNTENANCE WAS AS THE SUN SHINETH IN HIS STRENGTH.”

✴ Jesus showed His glory briefly before at the Mount of Transfiguration: “And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light” (Mt. 17:2).

✦ Along with Peter and James, John was there for that, so he would remember!

Notes/Questions:

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Verses 17-18

And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.

✤ “FELL AT HIS FEET AS DEAD” is the same reaction that Daniel had upon seeing Christ (Dan. 10:5-9).

✤ “THE FIRST AND THE LAST” = Jehovah Witnesses don’t believe that Jesus is God (they believe that Jesus was created by God and was Michael the archangel before He came to earth), yet Jesus very clearly states that He is God in this title that He gives to Himself, a title that is familiar to the Old Testament (and attributed to God!). Moreover as eternal God, Jesus has no beginning and no end, that is why He is called “the first and the last.”

✴ Who is speaking in Is. 41:4? “Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the LORD, the first, and with the last; I am he.”

✴ Who is speaking in Is. 44:6? “Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.”

✴ Who is speaking in Is. 48:12? “Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I am he; I am the first, I also am the last.”

✦ Now look at Rev. 1:11, 17; 2:8; 22:13 and tell me, who is speaking.

๏ What title is mentioned seven times here?

✤ “HELL AND DEATH” are hades and thanatos (one for place for the soul, one place for the body).

Notes/Questions:

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VERSES 19-20

Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter; The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.

✤ “WRITE.”

✴ John had to write the things he “HAST SEEN” (vv. 12-18), which was Christ in all His glory and power.

✴ He will have to write the things that “ARE”, when Christ gives His letters to the 7 churches (ch. 2-3).

✴ And John will have to write the things “HEREAFTER”, when he has to detail the account of the tribulation and beyond (ch. 4-22).

✴ Therefore, in one verse, Jesus gives us a clear outline of the Book of Revelation!

✤ Candlesticks are an important symbol in the Bible. In the Old Testament, the candlestick (menorah) was prominent inside the tabernacle and Temple. In Revelation, the candlesticks represent the church, bearing the light of Christ to the world (the seven branches signifying the sevenfold work of the Holy Spirit, Isaiah 11:2). Even today, the menorah is the national emblem for Israel.

✤ The admonitions to the “SEVEN CHURCHES” have different levels of application, including a

✴ local application, at the time of the writing of Revelation;

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National Emblem for Israel


✴ church application to all churches throughout the church age (“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches…”);

✴ personal application to you and I. It is not just the church at Ephesus that can leave its “first love” (Revelation 2:4). As individuals, we can be in danger of this as well.

✴ These letters are also prophetic (if these letters are in any other order, this could not be true).

✦ As we’ll see in the coming chapters, each church possesses the characteristics of its age. For example, the church of Philadelphia (which had only commendations from Christ) corresponds to the age of revival of the 1700s to the early 1900s. The lukewarm church of Laodicea (which had no commendations) corresponds to the apostate church of today.

✴ Finally, churches that thought they were doing well weren’t; churches that thought they were not doing well, were. This dictum can pass to us as individuals as well and begs the question: how are you doing in your walk with Christ?

Notes/Questions:

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A LOOK AHEAD TO CHAPTER 2

✤ In chapters 2-3, the 7 church letters will have 7 elements to them.

1. Name of the church2. Title of Christ (relates to health of church)3. Commendation4. Concern5. Exhortation6. Promise for the overcomer7. Close (“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches…”)

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