The Plan of Revelation.— The book con sists of two unequal parts: (1) The letters to the Seven Churches of Asia (i, 3; iii, 22) ; (2) The Apocalypse proper (iv-xxii). The first three verses serve as a brief explanatory in troduction to the whole book, indicating the source and authority of the contents which are expressly stated to be a °revelation)) and a sword of concerning things which must soon take place.
The letters are nominally from John to the seven churches. In reality they claim to be a message from the eternal God, the ((seven spirits before His throne* and from Jesus Christ, the head of the Church, who is soon about to come again (i, 3-8). John describes his vision of Jesus who commanded him to write (i, 9-20) and then gives in detail the message to each of the seven churches (chs. and From these messages, with their particular ref erences to the circumstances of each church, we learn what the conditions were that sug gested the great Apocalyptic drama that fol lows.
The Apocalypse proper (iv-xxii) opens with a vision of God on His throne, with His heavenly court, ineffably glorious, worshipping and adoring Him (ch. iv), holding in His right hand a seven-sealed book (the book of des tiny) which the Lamb (the crucified and glori fied Jesus) alone is able to unseal. To the Lamb the whole heavenly court ascribe all praise (ch. v). The dramatic action of the Apocalypse begins with the opening of the seven-sealed book of destiny, seal by seal (ch. vi). Between the unsealing of the sixth and seventh seals there is a pause, full of meaning vii). The breaking of the seventh seal introduces a second series of signals, seven trumpet-blasts (ch. viii), each blast being f lowed by some event of ominous portent. The fifth and sixth trumpet-blasts also usher in the first and second of three great woes destined to come upon mankind (ch. ix). Then comes another significant pause. A little book (of prophecy?) is given the seer by an angel and the seer devours it (ch. x), after which he measures the Temple, except the outer court, which is to be given over to the Gentiles, and is told of the two witnesses and their fate and the calamities that are to follow it, making up the second woe (xi, 1-14). The blast of the sev
enth trumpet brings the great announcement Kingdom of Christ has come to pass,* at which heaven rings with praise (xi, 15-19). From now on the theme centres about the great judgment-crisis in its various stages. First, however, we are let into the secret of the great issues at stake. Such is the real signifi cance of chs. xii-xiv. It was necessary to ex plain this before describing the great judg ment. The seer sees a woman about to bear a son, which a great dragon is waiting to kill as soon as born. But the child is caught up to God and saved. The dragon pursues the woman but she escapes. War ensues in heaven and the dragon and his hosts are defeated and cast down to.earth. The real victory has been won, but the dragon continues the conflict on earth (ch. xii). The two beasts of ch. xiii are the dragon's agents on earth by whom he seeks to keep control of mankind. But he is opposed by the Lamb, head of the armies of heaven, whose impending triumph is forecast in an nouncements of angels (xiv, 1-20). Now come the seven last plagues poured out by seven angels from seven bowls full of the wrath of God and culminating in the great judgment on ((Babylon* (xv-xviii). These are fittingly introduced by a hymn of the victors over the beast (xv, 1-4), then described in detail (xv, 5 xvi, 21), the climax being reached when the great harlot, the earthly representative of the kingdom of Satan, the deadly enemy and per secutor of the Church, is utterly destroyed (xvii-xviii). The final acts of the great drama now take place. Of these, the supremely sig nificant one is marriage of the as is indicated in the announcement in xix, 1-10. But preceding this a final disposition must be made of the beast and the dragon, who are overthrown and at last, after a 1,000-year in, terval, subject to eternal punishment (xix, 11 xx, 15). Then appear the new heaven and the new earth, the marriage of the Lamb takes place and the new type of existence begins (xxi, 1-xxii, 5). The Conclusion (xxii, 6-21) repeats in fuller form the urgent appeal and solemn warning of the introductory section of the book.