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Revelation: the Key to Bible Study

The book of Revelation begins with this promise, “Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near” (Revelation 1:3).  Yet many who spend much time in Bible Study tend to avoid this book, claiming that it is a mystery, or a sealed book. This is in spite of the fact that the word Revelation means the revealing of a mystery.  Just a casual search through the many books about Revelation reveal further confusion when one ponders the different and conflicting interpretations.  I believe that the proper understanding of Revelation provides a marvelous key to meaningful Bible Study.  Proper Bible Study requires a set of guiding principles to help interpret the Sacred Text.  One of the main reason for so much confusion concerning the book of Revelation results from the tendency to match the prophecies with current events making the daily headlines and failure to develop valid guiding principles for Bible Study.

Many scholars recognize that the last book, quotes or alludes to the Old Testament hundreds of times.  This means that in order to understand Revelation, you must first have a fairly good grasp of the rest of the Bible.  Revelation is like a ‘mosaic” of the Scriptures.  A second key to proper Bible Study, especially in the Book of Revelation is to recognize that the entire book is a Revelation of Jesus Christ. Every prophecy must center in and focus on Jesus Christ.  The Lamb is the focus of the book along with his “called, chosen and faithful followers” (Revelation 17:15)  John repeatedly refers to these two key principles for Bible Study when he uses the phrase “The Word of God and the Testimony of Jesus” as two witnesses to God’s great plan of Salvation.  When we study the Bible with these two points in mind, Revelation becomes the grand climax or capstone to all serious Bible Study.