Book of Revelation
Book of Revelation: About
About the Book of Revelation
Revelation is the last book in the Bible. It includes many ideas that we can find in other books in the Bible. It tells us about all the future events from John's time, until now, and until the end of this world. Revelation tells us that all Christians will have troubles during their lives on earth. So they will need to be patient and strong. We think that John wrote this book down about AD 95. That was more than 60 years after Jesus Christ lived on this earth. (But some people think that he wrote it before AD 70.)
It is a letter that Jesus told John to write to Christians. At that time, things were very difficult for Christians. The king of Rome ruled many countries and he was causing a lot of trouble for Christians. His soldiers were killing many of them. John was in a prison because he was a Christian. Rome is the capital of the country that we call Italy now.
Jesus appeared to John, as in a dream. Jesus also sent an angel (a *being from God's home above the earth) to John. The angel showed John many future events that surprised him. These things made John afraid. Jesus told John to write down what he saw. Jesus wants us to know about things that will happen during the last days of the earth. He wants us to be ready.
John wrote Revelation to 7 churches (groups of Christians). These churches were in a place that people called 'Asia' at that time. This place is the south and west part of the country that we call Turkey now. In Chapters 2 and 3, there are separate messages from Jesus to each of these different churches. These messages tell us what is most important for Christians. We must continue to love and obey Jesus Christ. We must believe him, even when there is trouble.
'Revelation' means 'to show things that people could not see before'. This book describes many strange events. These events are difficult for us to understand. They are like pictures. They show us an idea of what will really happen. But Jesus wants us to think about these pictures. He wants us to understand as much as we can. He wants everyone to know what will happen, not only clever people.
One day God will destroy this earth and this sky. And he will make a new earth and a new sky. He will not let any bad people live there. But before that time, bad trouble will come to the whole world. Christians should be ready for things to be very difficult. Other people may do bad things to them. They will need to be strong. In many countries today, it is not easy to be a Christian.
But Jesus is the *Lord and he will return to this earth. He will beat all his enemies in the end. He will make everything right that is wrong. And all those who love him will live with him always. Then nothing will ever hurt them or make them sad again. Revelation tells us to remember all this. It teaches us to wait patiently.
Word List
angel ~ *spirit *being. Good angels come from God’s home above the earth. They are God’s servants and they bring messages from God to people. In chapters 2 and 3 of Revelation, ‘angel’ may mean the human person who read the letter aloud to the *church.
being ~ a person or animal that is alive.
cart ~ a thing to carry people in - horses usually pull a cart.
chain ~ a strong metal line that people use to tie someone who is going to prison.
church ~ a group of Christians who meet together. A church is not just the building that they meet in. It can also mean all the Christians in the world.
crown ~ a special hat that a king or queen wears on their head. A king’s crown is often gold. Sometimes they also give crowns to people who win.
Devil ~ the bad *spirit who wants to be God. He is the ruler of bad *angels and of all that is bad. He is the enemy of Christians.
harp ~ an *instrument with strings (lines) across it. People pull the strings with their fingers to make music.
harvest ~ the time when people pick all the fruits that are ready to eat. It may also be the fruits themselves.
hate ~ to strongly or completely not like something or someone. To hate is the opposite of when you love something or someone.
heaven ~ the place above the earth where God and Jesus Christ live.
horn ~ thing like a stick with a point at the end, that grows on the top of some animals’ heads, like cows and some sheep.
incense ~ material that makes a nice smell when it burns. The *Jews burned incense in God’s house to *worship him.
instrument ~ something that people use to make music.
Jew ~ a person who is born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
lamb ~ young sheep.
lampstand ~ thing that holds a light.
lion ~ a big wild cat that kills other animals and eats them.
lock ~ something that fastens something else and keeps it shut.
Lord ~ master. Another name for God. It means that he is greater than everyone else.
magic ~ when people get bad *spirits to do things for them. The *spirits do things that people cannot usually do.
olive ~ a tree with small fruits that people use to make oil. They use the oil to cook food.
pearl ~ a little white ball of hard material that shines. It is very valuable. A small, soft animal that lives inside a shell (a hard thing round it) makes pearls. This animal lives in the sea.
priest ~ a person that God chooses to be his special servant. Other priests *serve false gods.
prophecy ~ messages (from God), that often tell about future events.
prophet ~ someone who speaks messages (from God), sometimes about future events.
punish ~ to hurt someone, or to cause trouble for them, because they have done bad things.
purple ~ a dark blue-red colour.
Satan ~ another name for the *Devil.
serve ~ to work for someone and obey them.
spirit ~ a *being that is always alive, even without a body. A person’s spirit is the part of them that will always be alive. It will be alive even after their body is dead. There are good spirits, like God’s Spirit and his *angels. And there are bad spirits, like *Satan and his *angels.
sulphur ~ a yellow material that burns things.
sword ~ a long metal knife. Soldiers used swords to fight.
throne ~ a special, big chair where a ruler sits.
trumpet ~ a metal pipe with a wide end. People hold it in their mouths to make music.
wine ~ a drink that contains alcohol. People make it from small, sweet fruits called grapes.
wing ~ birds and *angels use their wings to fly with. Aeroplanes also have wings.
witness ~ someone who has seen or heard something. Then they tell other people about it.
worship ~ to love and thank someone (God) more than anyone else.
Book List
A. Marshall ~ The Interlinear Greek-English New Testament
R. H. Mounce ~ The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Book of Revelation
D. E. Aune ~ Word Biblical Commentary Volume 52: Revelation
M. Wilcock ~ The Bible Speaks Today: The Message of Revelation
G. B. Caird ~ Black’s New Testament Commentaries: The Revelation of St John
R. C. H. Lenski ~ The Interpretation of St John’s Revelation
J. D. Pawson ~ Unlocking the Bible: New Testament Book III: Through Suffering to Glory
R. G. Bratcher and H. A. Hatton ~ A Handbook on the Revelation to John
© 1999-2003, Wycliffe Associates (UK)
This publication is written in EasyEnglish Level A (1200 words).
March 2003
Visit our website: www.easyenglish.info
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