The three prevailing millennium views in revelation. If you would like to stay on the olive tree views website and complete your product purchase, click the x in. As i read the four views, the preterist view fascinated me. Revelation books four views on the book of revelation edited by marvin pate, the revelation of jesus christ by john walvoord, the book of revelation by clarence larkin, revelation revealed by jack van impe, keys to understanding the book of revelation by arthur bloomfield, wrath and glory by david reagan, revelation unveiled by tim lahaye, a commentary on the revelation of john by george. Here michael pearl uses the book of revelation poster, available at. This is being aired by permission of the holder litchfield associates, all rights. The book of revelation is a fascinating book, and the debate regarding its interpretation will continue. Clavis apocalyptica 1627, a commentary on the apocalypse by joseph mede. 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.
Some people see it primarily as a political statement. Consequently, much of the book had little direct relevance for those persecuted believers to whom the book was originally addressed. Jun 07, 2017 the book of revelation there is no s on the end. Thus, it occupies a central place in christian eschatology. Buy a cheap copy of four views on the book of revelation by anonymous. The interactive counterpoints forum allows each author not only to present his view, but also to offer brief commentary on other views presented. 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. Four views on the book of revelation zondervan academic.
Is one of the most difficult to understand due to its intense use of symbolic imagery. It was refreshing to read a book about how to approach revelation in its entirety. So, the divine author of revelation is jesus christ and the human author is the apostle john. Most churches today teach the futurist interpretation of the book of revelation. I spoke of my view as a redemptivehistorical, modified idealist approach to the interpretation of the book of revelation. Anacrisis apocalypseos 1705, a commentary on the apocalypse by campegius vitringa.
Postmillennialism is an interpretation of chapter 20 of the book of revelation which sees christs second coming as occurring after the millennium, a golden age in which christian ethics prosper. The assignment was to write a paper that explains the four major interpretive views of the book of revelation and explains their strengths and weaknesses. The greek name of the bible book of revelation, apoka. Is it a book of powerful imagery, with warnings and promises for the church throughout the ages. Feb 05, 2020 ever wonder how to study the book of revelation. November 7, 2010 biblical guy revelation chp 20 abundant peace, abyss, active faith. That book allowed the proponents of each of four different views to present an overall summary of their approach to the book of revelation. 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. Take a look at the basic structure of the book of revelation. In this section i will briefly summarize the different approaches as well as commenting briefly on my own approach to the book.
For example, the futurists are correct in pointing out that some events described in revelation have yet to be fulfilled 2nd coming of christ, final judgement in chapter 20, renewal of all things in chapter 21,22. The idealist approach mines the book of revelation for timeless theological truths that. Mar 01, 2020 the book of revelation is the final book of the bible in which john the apostle outlined his visions of the end times. A preterist view of revelation, kenneth l gentry, jr. This school of thought interprets the book of daniel as referring to events that happened from the 7th century bc until the first century ad, while seeing the prophecies of revelation as events that happened in the first century ad. Chances are, they have never heard any other way to understand this book filled with strange beasts, symbolism and ominous signs of doom. If you would like to stay on the olive tree views website and complete your product purchase, click the x in the upper right corner of this box to close it. This is the prevailing view among modern scholars who arent aligned with orthodox christianity. Four views on the book of revelation counterpoints. The book of revelation offers encouragement for the believer, especially in times of hardship and trial. Apr 01, 1998 of all the books of the bible, few are as fascinating or as bewildering as revelation.
This book allows proponents of each of the four major interpretive views on revelation to present an overview from their perspective. Of all the books of the bible, few are as fascinating or as bewildering as revelation. Christ is the one who will come triumphantly to once and for all defeat his enemies and reign with his people. Four views on the book of revelation focuses specifically on the book of revelation and the primary ways in which it is read and understood today. The four views and their proponents are 1 the preterist view, by kenneth l. Its title is derived from the first word of the koine greek text. The book of revelation, a prophecy of warning and hope. This 250 page softbound book focuses specifically on the book of revelation and the primary ways in which it is read and understood today. Revelation books four views on the book of revelation. Explore the four traditional interpretations of the book of revelation in this indepth, versebyverse overview. Even though life may be difficult now, the result is assuredgod wins in the end. The literary genres of the book of revelation are an apocalypse, a prophecy, and an epistle or letter. It is now and again perplexing just to always be making a gift of tips and tricks which usually men and women could have been trying to sell. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading four views on the book of revelation counterpoints.
Or is it essentially an imaginative depiction of historical events in the first century. A redemptivehistorical, modified idealist approach to the. Is the book of revelation a blueprint for the future that needs decoding if we want to understand current events. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets.
Historicist interpretations of the book of revelation. Four views on the book of revelation counterpoints logos. Aug 02, 2016 most churches today teach the futurist interpretation of the book of revelation. It was only supposed to be 10 pages, and when i finished the first view, i was 6 pages in, so i cut it back a little bit and seriously scaled down the remaining three. My husband and i got very thrilled that jordan could do his inquiry because of the ideas he came across from your own blog. The nonprophets guide to the book of revelation book. Most christians dont even realize other interpretations exist, but there are actually 5 different approaches to interpreting the book of revelation, maybe you knew. The scripture reveals many terrible events that will supposedly precede the second coming of christ, including plagues, earthquakes and locust swarms. There have been many different interpretive approaches to the book of revelation. With a book like the book of revelation, you will inevitably have several central messages depending on the angle from which you look at them. I spoke of my view as a redemptivehistorical, modified idealist approach to.
Marvin pate, in his four views on the book of revelation 231 correctly states, i believe, that how one approaches revelation 1. 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. The plethora of views, however, can be distilled into essentially four main categories. At the very beginning of the book of revelation we are told explicitly when the prophesies contained in the book were to be fulfilled. The book of revelation is the only apocalyptic document in the new testament canon.
It talks about many things revealed to its author john of patmos. The four views discussed are the preterist, idealist, classical dispensationalist futurist, and progressive dispensationalist views. When christians discuss their millennial views, they are speaking of their interpretation of the much debated passage in revelation 20. The discipleapostle john, who followed jesus christ and witnessed his crucifixion, authored it. Jan 24, 2011 elements of the differing views can be incorporated beneficially into our understanding of the book. The book of revelation is the final book of the new testament, and consequently is also the final book of the christian bible. Dec 08, 2017 the book of revelation read by alexander scourby. For most the only question about eschatology that exists is whether you think the rapture is pre, mid, or posttribulation. He sent an angel to present this revelation to his servant john. Book of revelation explained scripture by scripture. Throughout church history, there have been four different views regarding the book of revelation. Patrick zukeran presents a summary of four of the major approaches to interpreting the book of revelation and its meaning for the end times. Encounter 72 of gods mighty angels from the book of revelation. If you would like to stay on the olive tree views website and.
Home the three prevailing millennium views in revelation. Notable and influential commentaries by protestant scholars having historicist views of the book of revelation were. Truths about him and his final victory, that the rest of scripture merely allude to, become clearly visible through revelation about jesus christ see historical and theological themes. Preterism, a christian eschatological view, interprets some partial preterism or all full preterism prophecies of the bible as events which have already happened. This book by gregg, on the other hand, is a detailed, versebyverse commentary, with the text divided into paragraphs, and each paragraph followed by four parallel. That there are differing views on the interpretation of the apocalyptic writings in the book of revelation is no secret.
The term subsumes several similar views of the end times, and it stands in contrast to premillennialism and, to a lesser extent, amillennialism. Four views on the book of revelation my give on things. The idealist view teaches that revelation describes in symbolic language the battle throughout the ages between god and satan and good against evil. It looks at four interpretations of revelation, and why those particular interpretations are held.
Four views on the book of revelation christian research. This book by gregg, on the other hand, is a detailed, versebyverse commentary, with the text divided into paragraphs, and each paragraph followed by four parallel columns. What this book reveals or unveils is jesus christ in glory. Many christian evangelists and conspiracy theorists believe these events are already. Four views on the book of revelation explores the four main views in which revelation is understood. The weakness of the futurist approach is that it views the bulk of the book of revelation as describing events in a distant future. The timing of the prophecies is the key to understanding revelation.
Heretofore, my discussions on the book of revelation have centered around the rapture if and when it will happen, the millennium, and who the antichrist is. How one sees the opening phrases like these things, will soon take place and. The author names himself as john in the text, but his precise identity remains a point of academic debate. The nonprophets guide to the book of revelation book quantity. So the book clearly is to all of gods people in every generation. Ask most people christian or nonchristian what they think the book of revelation is about, and chances are they will tell you it is a book about the end of the world. What are catholic views on the book of revelations. Then i saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. The book of revelation is the final book of the bible in which john the apostle outlined his visions of the end times. The prophecies have been fulfilled throughout history and are still being fulfilled.
Despite our various views, there are some common threads upon which christians agree. Book of revelation for dummies cheat sheet dummies. In all its uses, revelation refers to something or someone, once hidden, becoming visible. Preterist idealist classical dispensationalist futurist progressive dispensationalist the interactive counterpoints forum allows each author not only to present his view, but also to offer brief commentary on other views presented. Most prophecies in the book of revelation were fulfilled during the time.
This is a paper written for my seminary class be107 hebrews revelation. Revelation speaks of things that are already history. It shows how the various views interpret revelation as well as why. Nevertheless, i do believe that it is vital to understand that certain, historical events are referenced in the book of revelation. For each, he presents the basic approach, strengths of the approach and weaknesses of the approach. John wrote revelation while a prisoner on the island of patmos, approximately 8595 a. Four views is a comprehensive, evenhanded resource that offers a clear, fair presentation of four of the most important interpretations of the book, allowing you to evaluate.