THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE BOOK The Holy Bible began with the Book of Genesis that proclaimed the endless love of God towards man. He created everything for him, bestowed authority upon him and granted him that much dignity. Yet the scene soon changed and the picture was distorted. Man appeared leaving Paradise expelled, degraded and bearing upon his shoulders the bitter crime of mutiny. He was afraid to meet with God and escaped from the divine justice. But thanks be to God who did not leave man to live in this way aroused by sin. He concluded His Bible by the Book of Revelation giving us a joyous picture; an open gate in heaven, an eternal Paradise awaiting humanity, divine bosom hastening towards mankind, heavenly harps, joy and heavenly wedding for man. What a delightful and splendid book that is appropriate for every believer to hold, keep at heart, meditate on, and constantly repeat day and night. It is the book of hope, victory and praise; entirely, the book of heaven. 1. THE BOOK OF HOPE Whoever reads the Book of Revelation discovers what the Christian worship actually is. It is not just duties to be carried out, rituals to be performed or orders to be observed, but one sees through all that the invisible divine hands hurrying towards him to receive him, embrace him and raise him up to heavens where he lives as a partner in the eternal glory. Whoever tastes the Book of Revelation, no matter how much his fasts are, how long his prayers are, his kneelings, asceticism, depravation, suffering and his everyday crucifixion; they all turn to unspeakable joy and happiness. Through this book, one is dazzled by the love that binds the Creator with His creation, the victorious with the strugglers, and the heavenly with the human. Thus one forgets about every pain or hardship for the sake of this everlasting love. 2. THE BOOK OF VICTORY When the soul enters into the Book of Revelation as a bride visiting her Bridegroom's heaven she sees a wonderful Paradise and a startling glory prepared to receive her. There she becomes a friend of the Bridegroom. She accompanies His servants and she falls in love in the heavenly atmosphere of joy and sweetness. At that time she will not fear the slyness of her enemy "Satan," or get disturbed by him because she will recognize the power of her Bridegroom, His plans, disposals and intentions towards her. 3. THE BOOK OF PRAISE When the believer spends some time secretly in escape from the outer and inner voices to enter in calmness and silence with the Bridegroom into the book, there he hears hymns of praise and learns the language of unceasing praise. It is beautiful in that the believer does not listen to unknown hymns, but feels that he had learnt it before at his mother's house “the Church,” when he listens to the "hymn 1 For more details see my book: Introduction to the Book of Revelation, Alexandria, 1993. 8 of Moses," the "Lamb's hymn" and the hymn of the "Sanctification.” These and others, the church trains every heart on, unceasingly, as we shall see. 4. THE BOOK OF HEAVEN When the believer forgets all that's on around him withdraws from amongst the earthly treasures and enters into the Book of Revelation, he gets dazzled by the treasures he sees. He will see heavenly glories, words cannot describe. He will see precious stones, crowns and white robes. Therefore the heart settles there and refuses to belittle itself again by getting involved in earthly distractions. One will sell all his pearls to acquire the one pearl of great price1. THE WRITER OF THE BOOK The early Church unanimously agreed that the writer of the Book is St. John the Evangelist2. This was proven by the following: I. The writings of the early Church attribute the book to him3. II. He was the apostle considered by the churches of Asia Minor mentioned in the book. III. History4 assures us that John the beloved was exiled by the Emperor Domitian to Patmos Island where the apostle beheld his revelation (1:9 ). IV. Although the theme of his book differs from the Gospel according to St. John, some typical words occurred in both books but not in the others, like "the Word, the Lamb, the Victory..." also the word 'truth' was repeated in both books. V. The apostle did not hide his name, but mentioned it frankly four times in this book. This is because he is talking about prophecies. In order to trust in them we need to know the writer whom God had inspired with. Yet he did not mention his name in his Gospel nor in the three epistles, out of humbleness. PLACE OFWRITING OF THE BOOK In a small and rocky island lies about 25 miles far from the shores of Asia Minor (modern Turkey) called Patmos, and is now called 'Patino,' and is about 10 miles long and 6 wide, where the apostle wrote this Book during his exile (1:9)5. Some scholars think that he recorded the revelation he saw in his exile when he returned to Ephesus. There is no proof to support this opinion, especially that he was ordered to write what he saw without delay (1:10,11). On this island there is a cave that the inhabitants call the apostle's residence during his exile. TIME OFWRITING THE BOOK The majority believe that it was written after the destruction of Jerusalem, about the year 95 A.D. St. Irenaeus6 says that this revelation was proclaimed at the end of Domitian’s reign. 1 Cf. St. Jerome: letter 108. 2 Although Pope Dionysius believes that the writer is another John, one of the seventy apostles, probably because of the difference in style. However the Church did hot approve this opinion. 3 See the sayings of St. Justin the Martyr in his dialogue with Trypho 81 and Tertullian against Marcion 4:14 etc. 4 St. Clement of Alexandria referred in his book "Who is the rich that will be saved?" 42 to his exile on the island of Patmos. Origen also refers to that in his Commentary on Matt. 2:22. 5 This island was an exile for fierce criminals and the Christians refusing to worship idols in the days of the Romans. 6 Eusebius 3:18. 9 THE CONCERN OF THE CHURCH WITH THE BOOK In spite of what the heretics as Marcion stirred up with regards of the canonity of this book yet we find that the Church gives it a special care since the early centuries. Therefore some fathers explained it and some wrote articles about it, among them Justin the Martyr, Irenaeus, Hippolytus1, Melito, Victorinus2, Dionysius of Alexandria, Methodios, Basil the Great, Gregory of Naznianzus, Cyril the Great and Gennadius. THE DIFFICULTY OF THE BOOK The interpretation of the Book of Revelation is considered a difficult task for the following reasons: 1. Its being a prophetic book (22:7). It is the only prophetic book in the New Testament. 2. Its prophesies about spiritual heavenly facts that cannot be expressed by human languages, therefore it came in numbers, symbols, colors and similes. 3. It talks about matters that the faithful does not have to understand the details of its secrets, because if he knows about the times, he would get lazy and hopeless. And if he does not know about the hardships he might face during his struggle, he would also fall victim to despair. The Book of Revelation therefore presents to us the events with the amount that makes the heart burn with fervor, and get filled with hope without being concerned with the times or even curious to know about the future events. 4. Its words bear profound meanings in front of which the church fathers stood in amazement. St. Jerome3 wrote to Fr. Paulinus, bishop of Nola, saying: [The secrets of the Book of Revelation are as numerous as its words, each word bears a secret. Still this is little compared to the high honor of this book, that in fact every praise is counted insignificant, because every word carries many meanings. In this book I praise what I understand and what I do not understand.] Pope Dionysius of Alexandria says: [...having formed an idea of it as a composition exceeding my capacity of understanding, I regard it as containing a kind of hidden and wonderful intelligence on the several subjects which come under it. For though I cannot comprehend it, I still suspect that there is some deeper sense underlying the words. And I do not measure or judge its expressions by the standard of my own reason, but, making more allowance for faith, I have simply regarded them too lofty for my comprehension; and I do not forthwith reject what I do not been able to discern its important4.] THE KEY TO THE BOOK In this book the Holy Spirit accompanies the human soul on the eternal road, revealing to its inner senses how to see, hear, touch and grow stronger until it reaches the eternal wedding. (1) It begins by showing an "open door in heaven” to ascend to it through our 1 Some scripts of his interpretation are found at “The Monastery of the Syrians,” at Wadi-El-Natroun. 2 The series of Ante-Nicene Fathers published it in English. 3 Epistle 53. 4 A.N. Fathers, vol. 6, p. 82. 10 Lord Jesus, the Lamb standing as if slain, ... and what do we see? (2) We see first "the state of the Seven Churches," that reveals the extent of the human weakness and how powerful the work of grace in the Church. Here our Lord Jesus comes to announce that He is the only cure to our weaknesses. (3) Then He carries the human soul up as if with a dove’s wings, towards eternity, on the road of the cross, the road of pain; to see the Lamb opening "the Seven Seals," proclaiming a state of permanent war between God who cares for His children and Satan who never ceases fighting against the children of God. (4) And we hear "the Seven Trumpets," proclaiming God's warnings to mankind in order not to accept Satan’s deception, but to be attached to God. They also proclaim the power of the woman clothed with the Sun, against her enemy the sea monster and whoever he arouses, "the sea beast and the land beast.” (5) And you see the "Seven Strokes" to discipline the wrongdoers, that they might repent; revealing the destruction befalling the adulteress and her lovers. Every time the soul discovers a bitterness that prevails mankind or a difficulty that encompasses the faithful, we find that the Person of our Lord Jesus immediately appears in one way or another to encourage, sympathize and strengthen His children in order to accomplish their struggle in peace. 6) At last, the Spirit accompanies the soul into the “Heavenly Jerusalem” to see and get dazzled by what must be for her sake and what God has planned for mankind; as she watches with her eyes, Satan, the enemy of humanity, thrown down into the lake burning with fire. SECTIONS OF THE BOOK 1. The Seven Churches 1 - 3. 2. The Prophetic Revelations 4 - 20. 3. The Glory of Heavenly Jerusalem 21 - 22. Important Notice Many have distorted the Book of Revelation by changing its interpretation into a search for the details of future events and matters that we do not have to investigate, unaware of the noble spiritual meanings that God wants to proclaim to us in order to live with it and help us to grow spiritually. We are not required to set up prophets of ourselves, in order to see and proclaim what is irrelevant to man's life and salvation. Thus, we might not hear that reproach, "Show the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that You are God" (Isaiah 41: 22, 23).
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