Book of Revelation a summary

Notes on the book of Revelation

Comments

The follwing are my thoughts, comments and notes taken while reading and studying the book of Revelation.  This isn't intended to be exaustive but rather one man's notes.  Don't take my words as the final authority, but rather read and study the Word of God for yourself.


Ch 1
In the very first verse, the Bible explains that God is going to show some things to his servants (not the whole world) and make them easy to understand.   In vs 11 the Bible mentions 7 churches which at the time were actual, real congregations. Some will shy away from Revelation because they think it’s too hard, but right in the beginning, the Lord explains he is going to show us these things.  Those that do not know Jesus as Lord and Saviour, they will likely look at these things as foolishness, I Corinthians 2:14 “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” Verse 7 (behold he cometh with clouds)is the key to understanding the book of Revelation.  Reference I Thessalonians 4,5, II Thes 2:1-2, Mark 13, Luke 21 and Acts 1 where Jesus is coming in the clouds. Also in Matthew 24, esp vs 21, 28,29,30,31 where these events eg. Day of the Lord, are also mentioned in the Old Testament books of Isaiah & Joel. When we get to ch 6 we see events being mentioned of the sun and moon being darkened, which must be the same events we read about in Matthew 24 and Luke 21. After the 6th seal is opened is now after the tribulation. What's in store from there on out is God pouring out his wrath. These things are all occuring during a time period known as Danie's 70th week. In Matthew 13:21 we see the 1st use of the word tribulation.

Ch 2
This and the next chapters are messages for the churches mentioned in ch1. Starts off with the church at Ephesus, commends them for their work but commands them to do the first works - soul winning.  In vs 7 the we see the phrase “he that overcometh” which is used over and over.  We see who it is in I John 5:3-5.  In vs 9 the Bible mentions those that say they are Jews but are not.  Why is this here?  See Romans ch 2 esp vs 28,29, also Phillipians ch 3.  Who else goes to a synagogue and say they are jews, but jews? In I John 2:21,22 those that deny Jesus are liars and antichrists. Some say that those that practice judaism today or those that claim to be jews still worship the same god as Christians, just not His son,  are wrong, see I John 2:23 as they are looking for another messiah that is not Jesus and have not the Father.  Some use the term “judeo-christian” religion, but why? Some say the jews still believe the first 5 books of the Bible but not the new testament.  That’s wrong too. Jesus told them in John 5:45-47 that if they had believed Moses, they should believe him because Moses spoke of him.  Some go to Genesis 12 where the GOd tells Abraham He will bless them that that bless him and curse those that curse him.  That promise was made to Abraham and his seed and that seed was Christ.  The Bible tells us in Galatians 3 that if we are in Christ then we are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.  Are those that practice judaism in Christ?  Read I Thessalonians 2:14-16 and ask yourself if the jews that reject Jesus are still being blessed by God, or are under his wrath?  See John 3:35,36
Some say that the book of Revelation is all about the Jews, but the only time the jews are referred to directly is in ch 2 & 3.  Now what is the significance of mentioning the 10 days of persecution that the church at Smyrna? There is a symbolic meaning as well, if we go back to Leviticus ch 23 and the 7 feast days.  The spring feast days were passover, unleavened bread and first fruits, then pentecost, then the fall feasts (blowing of trumpets, day of atonement and feast of tabernacles). Jesus fulfilled all the spring feasts and was the passover lamb (John 1:29).  Jesus was the bread of life fulfilling the feast of unleavened bread (John 6:35).  Jesus fulfilled the first fruits (I Corinthians 15:20), being literally killed on the 14th day of the first month (Matthew 26:2) and rose again on the day that was the feast of the first fruits.  Pentecost was fulfilled in Acts ch2.  In Matthew 13 we read that the harvest is the end of the world.  These 3 fall feasts are to be fulfilled when Jesus comes again.

Ch 3
Continuation of ch 2.  Also mentions the seven spirits of God. What are they - see Isaiah ch 11:1-2
Those that believe a pre-tribulation rapture will say that this is the last time the church is mentioned.

Ch 4
Trumpet like voice says to John come up hither. Scenes in heaven. John sees 24 elders and 4 beasts (same or similar as in Ezekiel 1?).  This is where the pre-tribulation rapture doctrine says that the rapture occurs, when John is told to “come up hither”.  Up to this point, we have been given letters being addressed to churches that existed at that time.  Yes, those churches and the things said about them are relevant and symbolic of the churches today.  However, since the next few chapters cover the visions that John is being given and is no longer addressing the churches specifically, does that imply the church is missing and has been raptured?

Ch 5
A book with 7 seals. The lamb is the only one worthy to open the book and the seals.

Ch 6
The lamb begins to open 6 of the 7 seals.  At the opening of the 6th seal, the sun and moon are darkened. The events of the seals line up with passeges in Matt 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21.  Also, the entire book of Daniel needs to be considered when studying Revelation, but especially Daniel 9 and 12.

Ch 7
The 144,000 from each of the 12 tribes of Israel get the seal of God in their forehead. Great multitude is seen from all nations that have come out of great tribulation.

Ch 8
The 7th seal opened.  Silence for about ½ hour.  The 7 angels get 7 trumpets. Trumpets 1-4 sound. (1st) hail and fire mixed with blood (2nd) great burning mountain cast into sea with ⅓ turned to blood. (3rd) star called wormwood falls to earth. (4th) A third of the sun, moon and stars darkened.

Ch 9
The beginning of 3 woes which are the last 3 trumpets to sound.
5th - A star falls from heaven and the bottomless pit opened. The angel that has the keys to the pit is called Abaddon (Hebrew) and Apollyon (Greek) see Rev 20, seems like the same angel.
6th - The 4 angels bound in the Euphrates are loosed

Ch 10
7th trumpet - An angel with a rainbow in his forehead had a little book open told to seal up those things and time should be no longer, meaning the end of days has arrived.

Ch 11
John given a reed to measure the temple but not the court because the Gentiles will trod it under foot for 42 months (3 ½ years).  Two witnesses are seen that prophesy for 1260 days (42 months or 3 ½ years or exactly half-way through the 7 year period. Are these two witnesses, Moses and Elijah ?  They do similar things as Moses and Elijah, but also see Matthew 16:28 and 17:1-5 and Mark 9. The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord - beginning of the battle of Armageddon and the 1000 year reign.

Ch 12
Woman with a crown of 12 stars to deliver a man child.  Red dragon with 7 heads, 10 horns and 7 crowns (See Daniel 7:7). The child will rule all nations with rod of iron.  A war in heaven - see Daniel 12:1.


Ch 13
A beast rises out of the sea with 7 heads, 10 horns and 10 crowns. The beast continues 42 months. Another beast comes out of the earth having 2 horns as a lamb but spoke as a dragon. Image of the beast and his number.

Ch 14
The 144,000 again.  Babylon falls. Winepress of God’s wrath trodden down with blood to the depth of a horse’s bridle. The lamb stands on mt zion and then 3 angels, 1 has the gospel to preach to those on the earth, another says Babylon is fallen, the 3rd warns that if any worship the beast or receive his mark, the same will drink of the wrath of God. Then a white cloud with the Son of Man sitting, having a crown and a sharp sickle to reap the harvest of the earth. Rapture here? Then another angel, also with a sharp sickle to reap the earth, but the vine of the earth is cast into the great winepress of God’s wrath. See also Psalms 58

Ch 15
Then 7 angels with the 7 plagues. The song of Moses is sung, see Deut 31,32. One of the 4 beasts gives the 7 angels, 7 vials of God’s wrath

Ch 16
The angels start to pour out the vials of God’s wrath. These things that start to take place are very similar with what happens with the trumpets. God remembers Babylon. Hail weighing a talent. The greatest earthquake in history and all cities fall and Jerusalem divides in 3 parts. Angels bound in the river euphrates are loosed (ref also Gen 3 & 4)

Ch 17
One of the angels with the 7 vials, shows the judgement of the great whore. The beast which was, is not and yet is has 7 heads which are 7 mountains. The horns of the beast make the whore desolate.

Ch 18
Babylon is fallen and her judgement comes in one hour. Come out her my people. Death, mourning and famine and burned with fire.  The antichrist still reigns.  See also Jeremiah 50,51.

Ch 19
This is the only chapter in the Bible that uses the word Alleluia, meaning praise God.  The ancient hebrew name for God was JAH, see Psalms 68:4, hence All-elu-ia(jah).  The time period of this chapter seems to be the same as chapter 11 and the end of Daniel’s 70th week.  Now the 7th vial is opened. Marriage of the lamb is come. Armageddon vs 17-19. The millennial kingdom is about to begin. The beast and false prophet cast alive into the lake of fire.  Many modern-day “prophecy experts” talk about Gog and Magog as if its about to start in the middle-east.  The Bible says this war is at the END of the 1000 year reign.

Ch 20
An angel comes down having the key of the bottomless pit and throws the devil in where he is to stay for 1000 years. First time the devil goes to hell. See ch 9 for the identity of the angel who casts the devil into the bottomless pit. The kingdom of our Lord begins. After the 1000 years, the devil is loosed , then comes the battle of Gog and Magog, camp of the saints (see Ezekiel 38 & 39, esp in reference to unwalled cities, Israel is nothing like that today).  Also in Ezekiel 38:22 & 39:6 fire and brimstone are mentioned, just as in Rev 20:9. The devil is cast into the lake of fire where the beast and false prophet are already (see previous chapter) and stay forever. The great white throne of judgement is seen.

Ch 21
Great white throne of judgement. The dead are being judged.  New earth, no sea (see also II Peter 3), no more hell as it is now (in the center of the earth), because it was cast into the lake of fire in ch 20. The bride is the new heavenly city coming. There are still nations and kings (see vs 24).


Ch 22
Throne and lamb of God. So now, the kingdom that Jesus has ruled over for 1000 years becomes the kingdom of God (see I Cor 15:24).
River and tree(s) of life.  Believers will see the face of God the father. See also Rev ch 14, Ex 33, John 1:18.  Here we also see a curse for anyone that intentionally tampers with God’s word.  Their name is taken OUT of the book of life.

Daniel’s 70th week

War in heaven, the antichrist confirms the covenant for 1 week. In “the midst” of the week, the abomination of desolation is set up.
Daniel is told in ch 12 that “Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days.”, that he will rest but will stand in his lot at the end of the days (the 1335 days).  When do these days begin?  Seems to me they begin at the start of the 7 year period, which nobody will know when it begins, as this final week (7 year) period begins when the antichrist makes a "deal" to confirm the covenant.

The 7 Seals

starts in ch 5
1st White horse
2nd Red horse
3rd Black horse
4th Pale horse
5th Souls of those slain for Christ
6th earthquake, sun & moon darkened, islands moved. Days of wrath is come
7th Silence for ½ hour, the angels then get 7 trumpets

Note on the trumpets and vials

If one looks at the things happening in each of the trumpets and vials, they are very similar.  For example, the 6th trumpet and 6th vial both involve the Euphrates river. This is more evidence that things covered in chapters 1-11 are seen again and expanded in chapters 12-22.  The same thing can been seen in the book of Daniel.  Chapter 2 we see king Nebuchadnezzar's dream of a image that represents his current kingdom and the succeeding kingdoms that will follow.  In later chapters there is more detail about some of these kingdoms, but many of the same things are bought up and gone over again.

The 7 Trumpets

starts in ch 8
1st hail and fire mingled with blood, cast upon earth Rev 8:7
2nd: third part of sea turned to blood
3rd Burning star falls to earth
4th Third part of sun, moon & stars darkened
5th (beginning of the 3 woes). An angel who has the keys to the bottomless pit and locusts come out. The angels name was Abaddon (hebrew) Apollyon (greek)
6th Loose the 4 angels bound in the river euphrates who were prepared to slay ⅓ of men. The army numbers 200,000,000.
7th Thunderings, earthquake and hail (Rev 11:15-19)

The 7 Vials

starting in ch 16
1st poured upon earth. Rev 16:2
2nd things in the sea die
3rd rivers become blood
4th The sun causes men to be scorched
5th poured out on the seat of the beast.
6th poured out on the Euphrates river to make way for the kings of the east. 
7th voice says it is done. Greatest earthquake in history. All cities fall and Jerusalem divides in 3 parts. Hail weighing a talent (approx 60lbs)

Side by side Chapters 1-11 vs 12-22

In chapters 1-11 we see mostly the same events as in 12-22.  Each group of chapters seems to cover the same time period. Those being tribulation, rapture, God’s wrath, Jesus defeating the devil, establishing His kingdom on earth for 1000 years, and finally after the devil is loosed for a season, a final battle where the devil is cast into the lake of fire and believers get to see the face of the Father himself.




Chapters 1-11
1 John on the Isle of Patmos
2 Messages to the churches of that day
3 Messages to the churches of that day
4 scenes in heaven
5 scenes in heaven
6 Antichrist, wars, famine, believers martyred. 6 of the 7 seals opened.
7 not going to hurt the earth until the 144,000 sealed.  A great multitude in heaven appears that have come out of great tribulation
8 The 7th seal opened, God begins to pour out his wrath.  Trumpets 1-4 sound. Water to blood, burning up the trees and grass, locusts from hell
9 5th and 6th trumpet sound
10 the angel that will blow the 7th and final trumpet
11 The 2 witnesses.  The 7th trumpet sounds. The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord. The millennial kingdom begins?

Chapters 12-22
12 Birth of Christ. War in heaven
13 Tribulation.  Mark of the beast. See Daniel 7
14  The 144,000.  Jesus comes in the clouds.  Is this not the rapture?
15 The 7 angels receive 7 vials of God’s wrath.  Song of Moses sang in heaven, which covers many of the same things. See Deut 32.
16 The 7 vials are poured out. Battle of Armageddon.
17 The judgement of the great whore
18 Babylon’s plagues come in one hour
19 Voice of many people in heaven. Armageddon. Beast and false prophet cast into lake of fire. Millennial kingdom begins
20 Devil bound for 1000 years.  The dead live not till the 1000 years over. Camp of the saints. Gog and Magog. Devil cast into lake of fire. Great white throne. Book of life
21 New heaven and earth. Tabernacle of God now with men. Great white throne of judgement. Bride of Christ = new heavenly Jerusalem
22 River of life with the tree of life on either side. Believers see the face of God the Father.

Book of Daniel a summary

Overview

Born during the reign of Jehoiakim.  Jesus refers to his prophecy of ch 9 in Matthew 24.

Ch 1 King Nebuchadnezzar finds Daniel, Hannaniah, Mishael and Azariah 10X better than all his magicians and astrologers.
Ch 2 Daniel tells the king his dream and its interpretation: the current kingdom and those to follow: Babylonian -> Medo-Persian -> Greek -> Roman and until finally at the bottom, the 10 toes which likely represent a still yet-to-be seen 10-part kingdom
Ch 3 Shadrach, Meshech and Abednego in the fiery furnace.
Ch 4 The king has a dream of a great tree that represents his kingdom and a watcher from heaven comes down to cut down the tree, yet the stump remains.
Ch 5 The king's son sees a finger writing a message on a wall.  Daniel interprets the writing.  MENE MENE TEKEL UPHARSIN, translated you have been weighed in the balance and found wanting.  Darius the Mede soon takes over the Babylonian kingdom.
Ch 6 Daniel in the lion's den.  Daniel's accusers end up being thrown into the lion's den along with their wives and children.
Ch 7 Daniel has a vision of 4 winds, the sea, 4 beasts and saints. Ancient of days. A lion (Nebuchadnezzar), a bear, a leopard, and a dreadful 4th beast with teeth of iron. This 4th beast has 10 horns which are 10 kings that will arise out of this 4th kingdom. Then there is yet another king that comes after the 10 that is diverse from the rest, who will speak great things against God. This king will wear out the saints until a time, times and a dividing of time (see ch 9) which will be 3 ½ years or 1260 days.
Ch 8 Daniel has a vision while at Sushan by the river Ulai, which the angel Gabriel helps him to understand.  A ram w/2 horns (Medo-Persia) and a he-goat (Greece) w/1 horn.  The sanctuary and the host are trodden under foot. The goat overtakes the ram but the goats horn is broken (Alexander the great) and 4 little horns come up in its place.  From history we know the kingdom was given to Alexanders 4 generals. The sacrifices were stopped when Antiochus Ephines sacked the temple in about 168 or 170 BC after making deals with the Hellenistic Jews.
Ch 9 During the reign of Darius.  He was reading the book of Jeremiah and understood the 70 years of desolation and mentions the words of Moses from Deut 29 & 30. Daniel asked the Lord to forgive his people. Then Gabriel touched him and tells him he is greatly beloved. Gabriel tells Daniel of the 70 weeks.  Restore and rebuild Jerusalem to Messiah 69 weeks, After 62 weeks, Messiah is cut off.  The people of the prince that comes will destroy during a war.  The prince confirms the covenant for 1 week, but in the middle, causes the sacrifices to cease. We know from history, the temple was destroyed in 70 AD during the 1st Jewish-Roman war from 66-73 AD. The people and the prince are the Romans. This is also a foreshadowing of a time to come when another antichrist will rise.  Other scriptures that refer to a week being 7 years, or 1 day being one year:  Numbers 14:34, Ezekiel 4:6, Leviticus 25:8-17, Nehemiah 6:15, Deut 16:9, Gen 29:18-30, Deut 31:10, Ex 20:8-11, Leviticus 23 & 25:8-17
Ch 10 An angel is sent to help Daniel understand the vision of what will happen to his people in the latter days. The angel mentions the prince of Persia fighting him but Michael one of the chief princes came to help this angel. These princes are not the kings, but are demons working behind the scenes. The vision is yet for many days = wont happen for a long time from then. The angel is to return and fight the prince of Persia and when he is done the prince of Greecia will come.
Ch 11 Under Darius the Mede.  Lots of back-and-forth between the various kings and kingdoms of Persia and Greece. Four kings of Persia rise up with the 4th being the richest and he stirs up all against Grecia.  A mighty king of Grecia stands up, who we know from history to be Alexander the Great.  This king falls and his kingdom is divided among those not of his family, and we know from history the Greek empire was divided among Alexander’s 4 generals. Among these, begins a struggle between the king of the north vs south.  One king rises up among these referred to as a “vile person”, who worships a strange god not of his fathers, causes the sacrifices to cease and makes deals with the “robbers of thy people”. This ruler is likely referring to Antiochus Epiphanes, which you can read plenty of history about. This is also a foreshadowing of the antichrist and how he will come to power in the last days.
Ch 12 A time of trouble and tribulation (see Matt 24, Joel 2).  Two resurrections - one to everlasting life (see Matt 24) and one to shame (see Rev 20 and Job 19:25-27.  Those who are written in the book are delivered. Michael the great prince stands up for believers. Daniel told to seal up the book until the time of the end. Knowledge will be great at this time. Two angels on either side of a river.  One tells the other how long until the end of these things - it shall be a time, times and have a time, or 3 ½ years, which is half of the 70th week period mentioned earlier in ch 9.  The wise shall understand (not all the saved) and none of the wicked. From the time the desolation, there will be 1290 days (last half of 70th week period), but blessed is he that cometh to the 1335 days.  Daniel is to rest and stand in his lot at the end of the days, the same 1335 days just mentioned.  This is a little (53%) past the ½ way point of the 70th week.  We won't know when this time starts however.  The tribulation begins with a battle in heaven between the devil and michael the archangel. Daniel’s 70th week starts with the antichrist confirming the covenant with many for one week.