Division One – The Things Which Thou Hast Seen
The Revelation of Jesus Christ
(Rev 1:1 KJV) “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:”
The book of Revelation is not the Revelation of Saint John the Divine, for there is only one Divine, Jesus Christ. The book of Revelation is the Revelation of Jesus Christ. Jesus was revealing His plan for the end-time to John.
Revelation – 602 ἀποκάλυψις apokalupsis {ap-ok-al’-oop-sis}
Meaning: 1) a laying bear, making naked 2) a disclosure of truth, instruction 2a) concerning things before unknown 2b) used of events by which things or states or persons hitherto withdrawn from view are made visible to all 3) manifestation, appearance
Origin: from 601; TDNT – 3:563,405; n f
Usage: AV – revelation 12, be revealed 2, to lighten + 1519 1, manifestation 1, coming 1, appearing 1; 18
Revelation means to unveil something hidden. Jesus was unveiling, or revealing, His plan for future events.
Signified – 4591 σημαίνω semaino {say-mah’-ee-no}
Meaning: 1) to give a sign, to signify, indicate 2) to make known
Origin: from sema (a mark, of uncertain derivation); TDNT – 7:262,1015; v
Usage: AV – signify 6; 6
The prophecies in Revelation are signified by the miraculous power of our Lord Jesus Christ, showing that these prophecies are true and from God.
(Rev 1:2 KJV) “Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.”
John was a witness to the ministry, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus. He wrote a gospel and four epistles – John, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, and Revelation.
(Rev 1:3 KJV) “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.”
A special blessing is promised to those that reads, hears, and keeps the book of Revelation. The book of Revelation should draw us closer to God and build our faith in His power over our lives. We should keep the message that Jesus will soon return and live our lives according to this promise. The book of Revelation gives us hope for the future.
This is the first of seven blessings in Revelation (the other six are: 14:13, 16:15, 19:9, 20:6, and 27:7, 14). Seven is God’s number of perfection and will occur throughout the book of Revelation.