REV-01 The Background of Revelation

When Jesus died, many of his disciples and admirers believed that he had experienced his final defeat. Some even believed that all his teachings and miracles were for nothing. What his disciples didn’t understand until the third day was that Jesus’ death wasn’t the end of the story. In fact, his resurrection proved that his death was actually his victory. His resurrection allowed his disciples to understand Jesus’ ministry, suffering and death from a completely new perspective. And when John wrote the book of Revelation, his readers needed this new perspective too. The early church faced persecution from the powerful Roman Empire. And many Christians began to view this as a defeat. But John encouraged his readers to find both comfort and confidence in the victory that Jesus achieved at his resurrection. He wanted them to understand that even if their lives ended in martyrdom, that wouldn’t be the end of their story either. Eventually, Jesus would consummate his kingdom, and every believer that had ever lived would share in his victory.

This is the first lesson in our series on The Book of Revelation, sometimes called The Apocalypse, or The Apocalypse of John. We’ve entitled this lesson “The Background of Revelation.” In this lesson, we’ll see that Revelation’s context and setting can help us understand its original meaning, and apply its message to our own lives in the modern world.

This lesson on the background of Revelation will divide into three parts. First, we’ll explore the historical background of the book of Revelation. Second, we’ll discuss its theological background. And third, we’ll consider its literary background. Let’s begin with the historical background of Revelation.

The book of Revelation has fascinated both believers and unbelievers ever since it was written. But different interpreters understand the symbols and imagery of the book in very different ways. The strange creatures, the cosmic battles, the plagues and judgments — some interpreters find these images so confusing that they lose all hope of understanding this part of Scripture. But the truth is that much of this confusion stems from our unfamiliarity with the historical context of the book. So, in order to learn how to interpret and apply Revelation rightly, it helps to understand something about its history.