The book of Revelation is usually in Bible reading plans. Maybe it’s a part of your “Read the whole Bible in a year” plan or something similar. But Revelation usually isn’t the first book most people choose to read. That’s because it often seems scary, or difficult to understand. Countless pastors and theologians have written their own thoughts and interpretations on what Revelation actually means. Some of the questions that come up are things like, ‘Are the events described in Revelation literal or figurative? When do they happen? Will we be alive to see them take place?’ and countless other points of discussion and speculation.
What is Revelation?
“The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw–that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.”
Revelation 1:1-3
Revelation is a Prophecy
First, let’s establish what the book of Revelation is and what it means. Revelation is a book of prophecy. A prophecy is like another word for “promise”. It’s something that will happen. When you make a promise, you say what you will do at some future time, and then when that time comes, you do what you promised.
Let’s say you make a promise to attend a friend’s birthday party in a couple of weeks. Would you make that promise if you didn’t intend to keep it? Of course not. When it’s the day of the party, you would go. Revelation is a promise made by God and Jesus, saying what they plan to do in the future.
The word “Revelation” itself means “to reveal and show”. So then we have to ask, what is shown and revealed? Simple answer, God’s plan.
Throughout the Bible, before God acts, He always shows His plan to His servants (Amos 3:7). In Revelation, God’s plan is revealed by Jesus, that’s why we see in Revelation 1:1, it says the revelation of Jesus Christ. Revelation is a prophecy that no one will know the meaning of until God gives it to Jesus to reveal at a specific time. The time when he returns. And the Bible describes Jesus’s return in great detail. But, it might not be as clear as we would hope.
Figuratively Speaking…
I’m sure you’ve spoken figuratively countless times throughout your life. We usually learn about similes and metaphors in school, both of which use figurative language. Phrases like, “The man was as strong as an ox,” and “You’re the apple of my eye” compare people to animals or something else in terms of how they act or some other characteristic.
The Bible uses similar language. In John 2:19-22, Jesus compares his body to a temple. But we know that Jesus’s body isn’t a literal building. Elsewhere in the Bible, we see a similar comparison of people being buildings in 1 Corinthians 3:16.
“Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?”
We know that a temple is the holy place where God dwells. Our bodies are referred to as temples for the Holy Spirit. So if Jesus’s body was a “temple,” then we can understand that it was the holy place where God’s spirit was dwelling (Matthew 3:16).
In Matthew 13, Jesus speaks about the kingdom of heaven in parables. One of the more well-known parables is the “Parable of the Sower”. Jesus uses the allegory of farming and growing crops to talk about how God “sows” his word and “grows” believers. And ultimately, those wheat-like believers are harvested and brought to the barn, while weed-like people are burned. Knowing that God and Jesus were the farmers, then we can understand that the barn is actually referring to heaven. And the weeds that are burned? You can probably guess what that’s referring to.
Why Does God Use Figurative Language in the Bible?
Have you ever wondered why prophecies are spoken about figuratively? God uses figurative language to help talk about events in the future that haven’t happened yet. He uses concepts or experiences from our lives that we have seen and can understand, even though we haven’t seen the actual fulfillment of the prophecy yet.
He also uses figurative language for another reason. God has a master plan for salvation. He wants all people to be saved, but doesn’t want the enemy, the devil, to know that plan. So God hides His plan using figurative language. In a war, armies communicate within themselves using coded language. They don’t want their enemies to figure out their plans.
Jesus, at the time of his first coming, told his disciples about the kingdom of heaven, and his return using figurative language. Jesus also showed John the events of Revelation as visions and John recorded them figuratively. In the gospels and Revelation, Jesus tells us signs to look for through figurative language. Even though we might not understand the full meaning, we should know the prophecies and how they’re described so that we can recognize them when they happen, and believe that it is God who is fulfilling it.
Why It’s Important for Us
If we don’t understand God’s true meaning, we are likely to misinterpret it. At the time of Jesus’s first coming, the Jews had added their own understandings, traditions, and thoughts to the prophecies God had made about the Messiah. So when Jesus came, they couldn’t recognize him as the Messiah or believe in him. When the prophecy was given, they were supposed to wait for the fulfillment to come like it says in Habakkuk 2:3.
For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks to the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.
The Importance of Knowing
Today, we need to know and understand the New Testament prophecies, which can be summed up in the book of Revelation. While the events described in that book may look or sound hard to believe on the surface, we must wait for Jesus to reveal their true meaning.
As a teacher, my job is not to make my students memorize words, phrases, and do bookwork. It’s to help my students understand what they are reading and learning. The textbooks won’t help the students learn anything unless I explain it to them in a way they can understand.
After Jesus rose from the dead, he appeared to his disciples and explained to them how the scriptures testify about himself (Luke 24:32). Without that explanation, the disciples wouldn’t have understood the true meaning of the prophecies of the Old Testament.
Understanding Will Come
Although Revelation and much of the four gospels are written figuratively, Jesus promised that at an appointed time, they would be explained plainly.
“Though I have been speaking figuratively, a time is coming when I will no longer use this kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father.”
John 16:25
We must wait for that time and be ready for it, so that we can receive the explanation we need to understand Revelation properly. If we don’t do this, do you think it would be possible to understand the true meaning on our own? Proverbs 3:5 says to not lean on our own understanding, but to trust in God. We can take hope that God is working to fulfill His words of promise. We need to know his prophecies (promises), so when the appointed time comes, we can recognize the realities of them, believe it, and in doing that prove that we love and have faith in God.
Written by Kenny
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Which Parts of the Bible Apply to Me?
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very good, thank you