Above all, you must realize that no prophecy in Scripture ever came from the prophet’s own understanding, or from human initiative. No, those prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit, and they spoke from God. [2 Peter 1:20-21 (NLT)]
The Apostle Peter tells us that true prophecy isn’t a product of the prophet—prophets only speak God’s revelation. Directed by the Spirit, their words communicate the message the Lord wants sent. Sometimes, however, prophecy is difficult to understand and interpretations of Revelation go from one extreme to the other. Some, like that priest in Monday’s devotion, dismiss it as completely symbolic. To them, Revelation is an allegory about the conflict between good and evil with good winning in the end. On the other extreme, we find obscure theories, convoluted correlations, and implausible explanations of every symbol and metaphor along with sensationalism and unchecked speculation connecting Revelation to current events.
A simple rule of thumb in hermeneutics (the interpretation of Scripture) is, when it obviously is literal, we should accept it as such. The key to understanding Revelation is to interpret it as literally (and simply) as possible. Extra meaning shouldn’t be given to words or phrases if they can be understood as written. For instance, we shouldn’t assume 1,000 years means anything else. Moreover, when a description is of something we’ve never seen, such as cherubim or heaven, we shouldn’t immediately dismiss it as totally figurative. Nevertheless, we can’t read Revelation as we might a newspaper. When a passage clearly uses figurative language or obviously is symbolic, we should interpret it as such.
At the same time, we should be careful about finding extra meaning in John’s figurative descriptions. For example, Revelation 4:3 describes the One sitting on the throne “like a jasper stone and a sardius in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, like an emerald in appearance.” Although the word “like” clearly indicates a simile, many commentators ascribe extra meaning to the descriptions, e.g. the stones allude to the high priest’s breast plate, the red sardius signifies God’s righteous anger or Jesus’ blood, the green denotes God’s mercy and grace, or the rainbow means God’s won’t depart from His covenant with Israel. To understand John’s words, we don’t need to get bogged down in possible symbolic meanings when what we’re being told clearly is that there was a spectacular radiance to the One (God) sitting on the throne.
Revelation, like other apocalyptic prophecy, often has bizarre imagery. John describes such things as locusts wearing armor with wings that roared like an army of chariots and horses with heads like lions with fire, smoke, and burning sulfur coming from their mouths. While these horrifying things may have been living demonic creatures, they also could be weaponry like helicopters, drones, missiles, or tanks. Prophecy describes the future and, not knowing what he saw, John may have used metaphors to describe their size, power, and noise. Whatever he saw was unfamiliar, frightening, and capable of mass destruction and his imagery conveys that perfectly.
While meant for all believers, John specifically wrote to the seven churches in Asia and many of his allusions make sense in historical context. When he describes a woman sitting on seven hills, his 1st century readers easily would have known he was referring to Rome (a city built on seven hills). Moreover, because concepts and symbols from the entire Bible echo throughout Revelation, John’s allusions must be put in scriptural context. Without ever making a direct quote, 278 of Revelation’s 404 verses make at least one allusion to the Old Testament. For example, after one of the elders points out “the lion from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David,” John sees a “Lamb, standing as if slaughtered.” John’s original readers easily would have recognized Messianic descriptions found in Isaiah and Genesis.
With events taking place simultaneously in heaven and on earth, Revelation doesn’t follow a strict chronology and can be challenging to follow. With its wars, famine, and disasters, it can be distressing and, with its allusions and figurative language, it can be confusing. But, as God’s word, Revelation can’t be ignored or treated as fictional fantasy.
Because Revelation was written for the servants of Christ (that’s us), it seems unlikely that God expected us to have theology degrees to understand its message. Nevertheless, understanding Revelation is easier with a good study Bible, a commentary or two, and a study guide or group, along with prayers for the Spirit’s guidance.
Revelation shows us God’s amazing patience as He gives mankind opportunity after opportunity to repent and plenty of reasons to do so! For those who choose not to believe, Revelation is a book of dire warning but, for those who believe, it is a beautiful book of hope. Spoiler alert—Jesus wins!
The big picture of Revelation is clear: Jesus returns, people must be ready, evil is defeated…. With the rest of the details, there is room for disagreement. [Scott McConnell]
The Israelites had just crossed the Jordan River and were preparing to conquer Canaan when Joshua came upon an armed man. Joshua was a stranger in a foreign land and, as Israel’s general, he may have been scrutinizing Jericho’s defenses to determine his plan of attack. I wonder if Joshua brandished his sword (while shaking in his sandals) as he queried, “Friend or foe?” The man, however, was neither ally nor adversary. Identifying himself as the commander-in-chief of the Lord’s army, his loyalty was to neither side. His allegiance was to God and the only side he was on was God’s! God wasn’t on Israel’s side any more than He was on Canaan’s. Israel, however, was on God’s side because their conquest of Jericho was part of His master plan of redemption. It was because they were on God’s side that the fortified city’s walls collapsed.
While editing photos, I came to one of a pipevine swallowtail. Seeing it on my computer rather than the camera’s viewfinder, I realized it had seen far better days. Its once beautiful wings were tattered and torn, only one “tail” remained, an antenna was missing, and, with many of its scales gone, its wings were more translucent than iridescent blue. Perhaps it had a close call with a predator, the wind had tossed it around, or it simply was old. In any case, it was damaged goods and no longer beautiful.
Because the nearby bird sanctuary/swamp gets its water from rainfall, the size of its lakes fluctuates substantially with the seasons. During the dry seasons of winter and spring, the swamp’s lakes gradually recede until the summer rains begin. When this annual dry-down occurs in springtime, the wading birds congregate in the shallow lakes. With the fish having no place to hide the shallow water, it’s as easy as catching fish in a rain barrel for the birds!
Back when I did weight training, I’d often find myself struggling with my last few reps. When I thought I couldn’t get the dumbbell up another inch and was about to give up, my trainer often gave me a little help so I could finish the rep. Disappointed that I couldn’t do it on my own, he’d remind me, “There’s nothing wrong with a little assisted lifting!”
The Amalekites were a warlike nomadic tribe who frequently raided settlements to carry off plundered goods. About six weeks into the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt, these marauders made an unprovoked attack on the weary refugees while they camped at Rephidim. Moses commissioned Joshua to lead an army against their enemies the following morning. Joshua’s army, however, wasn’t made up of soldiers! Facing the veteran warriors of Amalek were men who less than two months earlier had been enslaved brick makers and field laborers! Worse, this unseasoned army was led by a general as inexperienced as were they. Nevertheless, Israel’s men set out to battle while Moses, his brother Aaron, and a man named Hur (who Jewish tradition believes was married to Miriam and brother-in-law to Moses) climbed to the top of a nearby hill to watch. As Israel fought their powerful foes, Moses extended his arms and held out his staff for all to see.
Devotions of the Heart 