Revelation 1:1-3
1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:
We begin with verse one.
1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, …
The Greek word translated “Revelation” is the word from which we have the English word ‘apocalypse.’ Unfortunately, over the years the understanding of this English word has slipped into something like: ‘a great disaster: a sudden and very bad event that causes much fear, loss, or destruction.’[1]
In reality it simply means ‘an unveiling.’ It literally speaks of something being revealed that has not been fully seen previously. This is extremely important because it clearly suggests how easy it is to ‘get off on the wrong foot’ when interpreting this book. The book is NOT revealing ‘a great disaster: a sudden and very bad event that causes much fear, loss, or destruction.’ It is revealing Jesus Christ.[2] To begin with an errant understanding of these very first words will always result in deviating immediately from what God is seeking to reveal. What we have before us is a great unveiling of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
The first aspect of that deepening Revelation of Jesus Christ is in the usage of his name and title being combined: Jesus Christ. The name ‘Jesus’ refers to his human name, while the title ‘Christ’ refers to the prophetic revelation concerning the God-ordained Messiah that was to come. Combing them makes it clear that the first thing that is being established about him is that Jesus of Nazareth (who had been crucified by the Romans about thirty to thirty-five years previously just outside Jerusalem) was (and is) the Promised Christ of God. As we shall see more later on, this attaches everything to be revealed in this book to all that has previously been revealed[3] about that man, Jesus of Nazareth and his role in the divine plan of worldwide redemption.
Since God Himself identifies His preset perspective for all that follows, we can avoid a lot of uncertainty or confusion by simply sustaining His predetermined theme. In order to do so, we will simply keep posing and seeking to answer the following question:
How does this portion of the Truth given by God in the book of Revelation help me to better see and understand The Revelation of Jesus Christ?
1…which God gave unto him, …
We immediately notice that God gave this extensive revelation of Jesus Christ directly to him. Rather than speculate about exactly what this might mean, we do well to ‘stick with what is clear.’[4] What is clear is that in this staggering expansive revelation of Jesus Christ, He and God the Father are fully committed to the unveiling.[5] An important aspect of this early declaration is that the man, Jesus of Nazareth, is not alone in claiming that he and the Father are ‘one’ in this grand redemptive plan. It is no merely human claim, made by some kind of religious zealot, as the scribes and Pharisees had asserted.
1…to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass…
The Greek word translated ‘servants’ is doulos.[6] Its literal meaning is ‘a freed slave that has chosen to remain indentured to the master that freed him/her.’ This truth lays emphasis upon the ‘true audience’ for whom God intended this advanced revelation of Jesus Christ. It was divinely intended for the redeemed men and women from among the fallen race of Adam[7] that understand that being redeemed by the blood of Christ means far more than ‘not going to Hell.’ It means giving myself up entirely unto God in this life and throughout eternity.
Many ‘Christians,’ or church members, read the book looking for answers to prophetic questions or some kind of present day ‘handwriting-on-the-wall’ kind of experience. But God did not write the book to satisfy anyone’s curiosity or to provide something upon which we might ‘hang a calendar.’ It is written and divinely given to His servants, those that delight in being entirely and only His bondslaves. Any reading or study of the book done for the sake of finding answers or filling out a prophetic calendar will fail to encounter the ‘Revealed Christ’ that God intends.
1…to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass…
The Revelation given by God through Jesus unto His servants speaks of revealing things ‘which must shortly come to pass.’ The Greek word translated ‘shortly’ must be considered carefully. Seeing it in other passages may be helpful. It is the same word, for example, found in:
Luke 18:7-8 (in His teaching about persistent prayer) the Lord Jesus Christ said:
And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
I tell you that he will avenge them speedily.
How is it possible to say that the Lord will avenge them ‘speedily’ when we have already been told that they have been crying unto God day and night? Perhaps we need to adjust our own understanding of the word ‘speedily’ as God uses it here.
Romans 16:20 Paul assures the suffering saints in Rome that such will not always be their lot. He says:
And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
The Romans destroyed Jerusalem in 70 A.D. This was approximately fifteen years after Paul wrote to those in Rome. Furthermore, these early persecutions of the churches during the age of the apostles were minimal compared to what came nearly three hundred years later. God ‘bruising Satan’ under their feet shortly certainly did not mean anything like ‘almost immediately.’
To suggest that these things revealed in the book of Revelation are going to take place within some time frame interpreted by men as ‘shortly’ is not wise. It has already been nearly two thousand years since John wrote these words. That plainly does not align with how we fallen human beings think of as ‘shortly.’
In nearly every century since Christ first came among men there have been those that have dogmatically said that ‘we are in the last days,’ that the details identified in the book of The Revelation are ‘transpiring before our eyes.’[8]We do well to remember, once again, that the book of The Revelation is not intended to provide us with something that would enable us to identify specific dates or times. It is intended to deepen our worship of Jesus Christ.
1…and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:
This revelation of Jesus Christ that God gave unto His Son to pass along to His servants was ‘sent and signified by God’s angel unto His servant John.’ The Greek word translated ‘signified’ comes from the same Greek root word that Luke used when he revealed Jesus’ words in answer to those demanding a ‘sign’ from Him in Luke 11:29.
And when the people were gathered thick together, he began to say, This is an evil generation: they seek a sign; and there shall no sign be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet.
For men to demand a ‘sign’ from God can clearly be evil. But, for God to choose to provide a ‘sign’[9] is a key indication that He is choosing to identify something significant. Since the entire book of The Revelation is a further divine revelation of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, it is not surprising that God would step outside the normal boundaries of ‘inspiration’[10] to lay great stress upon the important nature of this revelation of His Son. Everything we have considered has laid great emphasis upon the importance of this ‘revelation of Jesus Christ.’
As we proceed, we will see repeatedly that God’s angel(s) played a significant role in the staggering details of this Revelation given to John.
[1] These words were directly taken from an online version of Webster’s Dictionary, where this is spoken of as “the essential meaning of apocalypse.” https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/apocalypse. [2] As an aid in sustaining this focus on the entire book being a Revelation of Jesus Christ, I will use the first two words of the title of the book given in the KJV: The Revelation when referring to the book as a whole in writing this current book. [3] Both in the Old Testament Hebrew writings, and the previously given inspired writings of what would become the New Testament. [4] This is a principle of Bible study that will bear us in good stead all throughout this study. [5] In just a couple of verses this truth will broaden out even further, to include the Holy Spirit. (Vs. 4) [6] See Strong’s number g1401. [7] Not all redeemed men and women have been brought to see themselves as deliberate bondslaves of God through Jesus Christ. The reader is encouraged to ponder 2 Corinthians 5:15. [8] At this current writing (2022) many are saying the same thing. [9] Which is the exact meaning of the word ‘signify’ as used in our verse here in The Revelation. [10] God could clearly have worked through the process of inspiration through John, writing upon scrolls in a cave, by himself in a cave on Patmos without the intervening functionality of an angel.
I'm so excited about this study. I love how you have already shown the readers that this IS a revelation of Jesus Christ.