The Book of Revelation (PDF)

Book of Revelation Contents Introduction Background Chapter 1 John’s Introduction to His Vision Chapter 2 Letter to the Seven Churches Chapter 3 Letter to the Seven Churches Chapter 4 Vision of the Majesty of God the Father Chapter 5 The Book Sealed with Seven Seals Chapter 6 Opening of the Six Seals Chapter 7 Who Shall Be Able to Stand? Chapter 8 Opening of the Seventh Seal ─ Seven Angels with Trumpets Chapter 9 Fifth and Sixth Angels Sound Their Trumps Chapter 10 John Sees a Visions of a Book Which He Eats. Seventh Angel Pronounces Destruction Complete Chapter 11 Two Prophets in Jerusalem Chapter 12 The Church in the Meridian of Time and the Great Apostasy Chapter 13 Two Beasts ─ The World’s Wicked Governments Chapter 14 The Lord and His Righteous Followers Will Endure Chapter 15 Seven Angels Prepared to Pour Out Seven Judgments Chapter 16 Seven Angles Pour Out Seven Plagues Chapter 17 Abominations of Babylon Established Throughout the World Chapter 18 Destruction of Babylon Chapter 19 Final Destruction of Evil ─ Marriage Supper of the Lamb Chapter 20 The Millennium Chapter 21 Earth Attains Celestial Glory Chapter 22 Saints Shall Reign in Celestial Glory Conclusion Doctrine and Covenants Section 77 Book of Revelation Introduction The world’s biblical scholars have seemed to be frustrated and confused by the book of Revelation. This fact notwithstanding, the Prophet Joseph once said: “The book of Revelation is one of the plainest books God ever caused to be written” (TPJS, 290). Obviously, Joseph, through the Spirit, had caught the secret of the book, and he loved it! While even today the book remains difficult to interpret, we in the Church do have a considerable advantage over the rest of the world. Modern revelation has given us considerable insight into the meaning of the book. This revealed material includes sections 77, 88, 130, and 131 of the Doctrine and Covenants, 1 Nephi 14:10-27, Ether 4:16 in the Book of Mormon, Joseph’s inspired revision of the King James Bible, and some sermons of the Prophet’s which are recorded in his History of the Church, volume 5, pages 298, 336- 37, 339- 45 and volume 6, pages 363-67. In addition, we will draw upon the helpful work by Dr. Richard D. Draper, Opening the Seven Seals: The Visions of John the Revelator (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1991). Brother Draper introduces his book with a provocative keynote statement: John’s invocation upon all those who receive the revelation is rendered by the King James translators: “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” (Revelation 1:3). The last phrase, “for the time is at hand,” is what urges me. The Greek (ho gar kairos eggus) can be translated as the King James Version does it, but I fear that with that rendering we are likely to misunderstand John’s thrust ─ the sense is that time is limited, or that time presses. This captures the idea of how the inner tempo, the spiritual vigor of the age, will escalate as mankind enters the apocalyptic era. As the earth prepares for the coming of her Lord, time becomes laden with force, charged with an irresistible destiny. The Greek does not employ the ordinary word for time (chronos) but speaks of the Kairos ─ time that has matured; time that has found fulfillment. Closely connected with the thought is a phrase repeated three times near the end of the book: “Behold, I come quickly” (Revelation 22: 7, 12, cf. 20). The Lord is not telling the early Christians to expect him at any moment. Rather, the phrase characterizes a dynamic quality of time. The Lord is saying that he comes in the pressing, the urgent time ─ the time bearing within it a measureless spiritual hastening that moves to crescendo upon a humanity unmoved, unrepentant, and unprepared. One scholar said, “That Christ comes quickly can very well mean that He comes ‘too quickly’ for an unprepared and sleeping humanity. That the time is ‘near’ may mean that it is ‘short’; that it is actually too short considering the slowness and laziness of human souls” (Emil Bock, The Apocalypse of Saint John, trans. Alfred Heidenreich, Edinburgh: Floris Books, 1951, 17) (Draper, 9). The following notes will hopefully create a background framework that will make your reading and studying the book of Revelation more fun and meaningful in the future. Background Numerous prophets have been privileged to see panoramic visions that sweep through time, but to John was given the privilege of recording the comprehensive vision of the earth from its beginning to its end. Joseph Smith on one occasion stated that John “saw the same things concerning the last days, which Enoch saw” (TPJS, 84). This statement may allude to the vision of Enoch recorded in Moses 7:41-67, which says in part, “The Lord showed Enoch all things, even unto the end of the world; and he saw the day of the righteous, the hour of their redemption, and received a fulness of joy” (verse 67). The brother of Jared in the Book of Mormon saw, like John, the entire history of the world (see Ether 3:25-27). The sacred revelation given to the brother of Jared was not to be shared with a faithless world. The Lord gave him explicit instructions: Behold, thou shalt not suffer these things which ye have seen and heard to go forth unto the world, until the time cometh that I shall glorify my name in the flesh; wherefore, ye shall treasure up the things which ye have seen and heard, and show it to no man. And behold, when ye shall come unto me, ye shall write them and shall seal them up. When the Lord had said these words, he showed unto the brother of Jared all the inhabitants of the earth which had been, and also all that would be; and he withheld them not from his sight, even unto the ends of the earth. And the Lord said unto him: Write these things and seal them up; and I will show them in mine own due time unto the children of men (Ether 3:21-22, 25, 27). Moroni’s translation of the vision of the brother of Jared was preserved as the sealed portion of the plates of Mormon. Joseph Smith was expressly forbidden to translate this sealed portion: “Touch them not in order that ye may translate; for that thing is forbidden you, except by and by it shall be wisdom in God” (Ether 5:1). That vision has remained sealed ever since. However, another saw and recorded the same vision. The sealed portion of the Book of Mormon “contains the same revelation which was given to John upon the isle of Patmos,” albeit Jared’s brother apparently wrote with a great deal more detail. The unique feature about John’s revelation is that the prophet was commanded not to seal it up. Indeed, John seems to be the only prophet commissioned to publish the vision up to this time. Daniel and Nephi also saw and wrote these things, but, like Jared’s brother, they were commanded to seal them up that they might later come forth in their purity (see Daniel 12:4, 9; 1 Nephi 14:25-26). Nephi was expressly forbidden to write what he saw (1 Nephi 14:28). Someday, the Lord has promised, the revelation recorded by the brother of Jared will be revealed. This will be in conjunction with the restoration of the gospel. Until then John’s record will have to fill the gap. Fortunately, this is far from being a burden. Unto Moroni the Lord stated, “And then [when Israel comes to accept the Savior] shall my revelations which I have caused to be written by my servant John be unfolded in the eyes of all the people. Remember, when ye see these things, ye shall know that the time is at hand that they shall be made manifest in very deed” (Ether 4:16). Reading and understanding Revelation can result in a sensitivity to the latter-day events as they unfold. The Revelation of St. John the Divine or the book of Revelation, as we commonly call it, portrays in a dramatic way the historical struggle between the forces of good (Jesus Christ and his adherents) and the forces of evil (Satan, the anti-Christ). John’s vision is often called the Apocalypse. This title is derived from the ancient Greek word apokalupt, which means to make bare, unveil, disclose, or uncover. In a religious sense, it carries the idea of disclosing divine secrets and making known holy mysteries. Some have felt, because of the difficult literary style of the book that much of what is written in the book seems to cover rather than uncover its meaning. Ancient Greek-speaking Jews and early Christians used the word to signify a vision with its interpretation, as opposed to a revelation or prophecy (see Romans 16:25; 2 Corinthians 12:1; Galatians 1:12). Thus, “The Apocalypse” is an appropriate title for John’s revelation. There are at least four schools of thought regarding the way in which the book ought to be interpreted: 1. Preterit ─ Everything in the book is in the past, that is, it took place before the book was written. 2. Allegorical ─ Everything in the book is simply symbolic – nothing is historical or literal or real.

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