The Literary Structure of Revelation
There are many ways to outline the book of Revelation, here are a few that I have found helpful.
Revelation 8 – The Seventh Seal & Four Trumpets
In Revelation 8 we get the opening of the Seventh Seal and the sounding of the first Four Trumpets.
Revelation 7 – The 144,000 & The Innumerable Multitude
The 144,000 is symbolic but also probably literal, and refers to a group of 1st century Jewish Christians who were sealed and thus saved from death in the Great Tribulation. In the Old Testament, a census was a military act that mustered God’s holy army, so this is a group of 144,000 Jewish warriors who relaunch the church after the tribulation.
Revelation 6 – Four Horsemen & Six Seals
My view is that the four horsemen are demons that possess four successive Roman Emperors (Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and Nero).
Revelation 5 – The Lamb & The Scroll
This is a picture of Christ’s ascension to the right hand of the Father. In Acts 1:9 we get the ground level/earthly view of Jesus’ ascension, and here in Revelation 5 we get the heavenly view of the same event but from the other side of the firmament.
Revelation 4 – The Throne Room
In Ephesians 2:6, it says that God “has raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” Well here in Revelation 4, we get a glimpse of what it looks like to sit and reign with Christ.
Revelation 3 – Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea
Revelation 3 contains the last 3 of the 7 letters to the 7 churches, and more specifically to the pastor or bishop of those churches. James Jordan and other commentators have noted that although these churches are real historical churches in the 1st century, they also represent seven unique periods in redemptive history.
Revelation 2 – Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, and Thyatira
Revelation 2 contains the first 4 of the 7 letters to the 7 churches. And you’ll remember from chapter 1 that we said the 7 stars are 7 pastors or bishops, and the 7 lampstands are the seven churches.
Revelation 1 – How To Interpret Revelation
Welcome back to the BRC Podcast, my name is Aaron Ventura and today we begin a new series through the book of Revelation. And the goal of these episodes is to provide you with a chapter by chapter companion as you read through this book. There are 22 chapters in Revelation and I am going to limit myself to 22 episodes, which means I have to be very selective about what goes into each episode.