Interpreting Revelation: Understanding Genre

Interpreting Revelation Rightly

One of the reasons many struggle to understand the book of Revelation is simply a lack of understanding regarding how to approach the genre of the book. God has inspired his word to work within the human genres of literature which it was written. This means we must read Revelation not on our terms, but on the terms of the genres of literature utilized. What makes Revelation unique is a combination of three genres of literature:

 Genres of Revelation: Epistle, Prophecy, and Apocalypse. 

Revelation is a Letter. 

This may come as a big surprise to many, but, Revelation was written and meant to be read as a letter. In a casual reading, one notices that it has the familiar characteristics of a letter: (Verses 1:4-6, 9-11; 22:8-9). All of the New Testament Epistles were written to specific communities of faith, enduring specific problems, and looking for specific answers and outcomes. Revelation is no different. The apostle John wrote his letter to the 7 churches of Asia Minor. If we are going to understand the rest of the book, we need to understand the historical and cultural setting of the recipients of this letter. 

Revelation is a Prophecy

John states in 1:3 “3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud 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.”. This is important, Revelation is meant to be a blessing to the church.  It is also important to notice that the church is supposed to “keep” what is written. When we think of the word “Prophecy” we often think of forecasting future events. While that is indeed a part of prophecy, it's not the full understanding of its scope. Prophecy is speaking from God's perspective about the past, present, or future. Much of prophecy is actually God speaking to his people about their past and present realities. Revelation is a divine disclosure of God's perspective to his people. 

Revelation as an Apocalypse 

“The Revelation of Jesus Christ.” The Greek word for “revelation” is apocalypse. For modern hearers, this word may summon thoughts of waste lands, zombies, or cataclysmic, world-ending events. However, this concept would have been foreign to the original readers. understanding of the word apocalypse. In Greek, apocalypse means “to unveil or reveal what is hidden”. An apocalypse is when someone experiences a revealing of truth that was once hidden. Commonly, apocalyptic writings in the first century were highly symbolic works written with the intention to reveal God’s activity within history to save his oppressed people. Revelation seeks to reveal Jesus as the victor of human history.

Looking for more on understanding apocalyptic literature? Check out this Bible project video. 

Bringing it all together: 

When we come to Revelation we should seek to understand the original context into which it was written. We should ask the question “How would the original readers have engaged with this text? How would they have understood it?” Only then, can we then ask what it might mean to us.

If you are looking to learn more about Revelation, join us for our Discovery class. Learn more here.