Why does anyone actually believe in the book of Revelations?

Question

John (the guy that wrote that chapter) was banished to an island 13 square miles in area, a barren rock on a lonely sea. Little to eat, and little to drink, he spent the last of his days writing revelations in a cave.

True biblical scholars know very well that the violent imagery is directed at the Roman empire (Nero in particular), which is understandable since they're the ones that put him there. The "scholars" that disagree with this, are ignorant of the history of the Roman empire at that point in time.

Also, the fad in Rome during those years was to cook in lead pots, and eat on lead plates. I invite you believers of Revelations to do the same for a while and see if you have all you mental faculties afterwards.

Revelations needs to be removed from the bible. It is NOT the word of God.

If you ignorant fools would read a little history, you'd understand that preachers have been interpreting predictions about Revelations since...well since Jesus died. They do it with the advent of every war, conflict, epidemic, etc...

But since you all are ignorant of this, you choose to be led around by the nose by false teachers that prey on your fear to collect the tithe.

How can you NOT see this?

Answer 1

The first two posts are quintestential believer responses. Although you are undeniably correct to anyone who bothers to do any research at all, the believers will simply refuse to do that research, or even read what you read and will brainlessly regurgitate whatever their pastors told them.

You can't win using reason against unreasonable people. You have to use emotional appeals.

Answer 2

The Revelation of John deserves a place in the canon.

I agree with you completely that those who try to interpret the book (not just a chapter, I think there's 21 of them) are doing the text an injustice. John was obviously writing about the Roman Empire, just as the author of Daniel (no, it WASN'T Daniel) was writing about the mighty empires of his day in his apocalyptic text.

Apocalyptic literature is important, though. Apocalyptic literature arose out of the longing of the Jews after the Babylonian Captivity to understand why many of the prophecies of the time had been unfulfilled. Apocalypses - visions of a future fulfillment of long-ago prophecies - attempted to reconcile the unavoidable fact that the promises of the past had not come to fruition.

A similar unfulfilled prophecy faced John and the Christian believers of the late first century: why hadn't Jesus returned to Earth? Where was he? Were they enduring mistreatment, persecution, and death for a falsehood? Enter John's apocalypse, in which he bolsters his fellow believers' faith in Christ's return with a highly symbolic and stylized account of Christ's victory over Babylon (read: Rome - and isn't it interesting that Babylon, the city that first smashed the dreams of the Jews, is referenced in the Revelation?).

It's an important text for us today, 2000 years removed from the growth pangs and violent persecution of the early church. We ought to take care to read the descriptions of the seven churches at the beginning and strive to remain a holy and faithful people as we wait for Christ's return. And whether there really are four horsemen or seven seals or an Antichrist or a final battle between God and Satan doesn't matter - what matters is our hope that someday, Christ's kingdom will come to pass here on Earth, and there will be no more weeping or gnashing of teeth.

Answer 3

True Biblical Scholars
are those who
through years of study
have discovered
that God is a revealer
of secrets

Matthew 13:11-12

He replied, "The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.

1 Corithians 2:13-15

When we tell you this, we do not use words of human wisdom. We speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit's words to explain spiritual truths. But people who aren't Christians can't understand these truths from God's Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them because only those who have the Spirit can understand what the Spirit means. We who have the Spirit understand these things, but others can't understand us at all.

Revelations 1:1-3

This is a revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him concerning the events that will happen soon. An angel was sent to God's servant John so that John could share the revelation with God's other servants. John faithfully reported the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ--everything he saw. God blesses the one who reads this prophecy to the church, and he blesses all who listen to it and obey what it says. For the time is near when these things will happen.

It is God's wisdom I seek
not my own

Proverbs 3:5

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

Will you accept the entire Word of God today?

Answer 4

That seems like a pretty amazing claim to me. As a preacher's daughter, who's father attended 3 years of Bible training and I have a brother in law who completed 6 years of Bible Training would definitely disagree with your viewpoint on this. Yes, they are aware of the history of the Roman Empire including the cruelty of the Roman guards. In fact, I've heard many preachers preach on this issue. Whether the Apostle John actually ate on a lead plate or not to me doesn't account for the factors in that book.

As I've read Revelations, I have to look at current events unfolding at this time. If what you say is true, there are a lot of amazing coincidences going on almost 2,000 years later that were predicted in this book. Coincidence on current events proclaimed in Revelations? I doubt it.

Answer 5

God's prophetic word isn't restricted to a unmarried fulfillment. evaluate the tribulations in Revelation with the plagues of Exodus, and also you'll see many parallels. evaluate the man and behaviour of Pharoah with antichrist and also you'll also see many similarities. God also comes (both cases) in ability and glory, to keep his human beings, and then he conducts (a number of them) into the Promised Land. a lot of what changed into written interior the e book of Revelation HAS already come to pass, with the destruction of Jerusalem, and the fifth century fall of the Roman empire. The Church loved a excellent and effective one thousand twelve months (millenial) reign, between the time of the initial conversion of Rome and the upward push of the protestant reformers. It does no longer recommend this stuff can not take position lower back, or perhaps on an stronger scale.

Answer 6

There are many Bible prophecies that have come true. This is verified by many valid historical and archaeological sources, and it verifies the validity of the Bible. Especially the books of Daniel and Revelation.

There are many Bible prophecies that are coming true right before our very eyes!

There are only a few Bible prophecies left that have not yet come true, and they deal with end time events. It's very exciting!

If you would like to learn more about Bible Prophecy and End Time Events, click on the link below and watch the FINAL EVENTS docudrama online! The special effects are outstanding and the Biblical truth is eye-opening. After you do that, take their free online Bible Prophecy studies! They are FASCINATING! While you are there, check out the article entitled “What Left Behind Left Behind” for the truth on the rapture and final events.

Answer 7

You, obviously believe in the preteristic model of the end times.

I have a simple, historical question for you:

If Nero was the Antichrist, how do you explain the Middle Ages?

Check world history. In the Middle Ages, people were killed for their faith just as they were killed in Nero's time. The methods used may be different, but, the result was the same. People were killed for having just a few written pages of the Bible! Read about the Waldenses.

It would benefit you if you studied the other two end time models: historicism and futurism.

Answer 8

Revelations is confirmed by many Old Testament Writings. Many Scholars have studied this and still believe at least part of it has yet to Come.

Just because YOU don't like it doesn't make it not the Word of God. Christianity is not a democracy where we vote on how we want God to behave.

Answer 9

My dear Stormtrooping friend-

You cannot accept the Book in bits and pieces as you see fit. The Book has context that cannot be removed from the picture and that context is the Church.

The various Scriptures were written by men IN the Church FOR the Church and were organized into the present day Book of collected works known as the Bible BY the Church. If you refuse to submit yourself to what the Church gives you then you can take from or add to the Bible as much as you want as long as you personally find it intellectually justifiable. This road leads nowhere but away from the very God that Scripture represents to us on its pages.

Answer 10

Then why are the prophecies in Revelation being fulfilled today? You should judge a book, especially one included in the Holy Bible, on its own merits, not the conditions of the person who wrote it.