Summary of the Book of Revelation

This summary of the book of Revelation provides information about the title, author(s), date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the Book of Revelation.

Author

Four times the author identifies himself as John (1:1,4,9; 22:8). From as early as Justin Martyr in the second century a.d. it has been held that this John was the apostle, the son of Zebedee (see Mt 10:2). The book itself reveals that the author was a Jew, well versed in Scripture, a church leader who was well known to the seven churches of Asia Minor, and a deeply religious person fully convinced that the Christian faith would soon triumph over the demonic forces at work in the world.

In the third century, however, an African bishop named Dionysius compared the language, style and thought of the Apocalypse (Revelation) with that of the other writings of John and decided that the book could not have been written by the apostle John. He suggested that the author was a certain John the Presbyter, whose name appears elsewhere in ancient writings. Although many today follow Dionysius in his view of authorship, the external evidence seems overwhelmingly supportive of the traditional view.

Date

Revelation was written when Christians were entering a time of persecution. The two periods most often mentioned are the latter part of Nero's reign (a.d. 54-68) and the latter part of Domitian's reign (81-96). Most interpreters date the book c. 95. (A few suggest a date during the reign of Vespasian: 69-79.)

Occasion

Since Roman authorities at this time were beginning to enforce emperor worship, Christians -- who held that Christ, not Caesar, was Lord -- were facing increasing hostility. The believers at Smyrna are warned against coming opposition (2:10), and the church at Philadelphia is told of an hour of trial coming on the world (3:10). Antipas has already given his life (2:13) along with others (6:9). John has been exiled to the island of Patmos (probably the site of a Roman penal colony) for his activities as a Christian missionary (1:9). Some within the church are advocating a policy of compromise (2:14-15,20), which has to be corrected before its subtle influence can undermine the determination of believers to stand fast in the perilous days that lie ahead.

Purpose

John writes to encourage the faithful to resist staunchly the demands of emperor worship. He informs his readers that the final showdown between God and Satan is imminent. Satan will increase his persecution of believers, but they must stand fast, even to death. They are sealed against any spiritual harm and will soon be vindicated when Christ returns, when the wicked are forever destroyed, and when God's people enter an eternity of glory and blessedness.

Literary Form

For an adequate understanding of Revelation, the reader must recognize that it is a distinct kind of literature. Revelation is apocalyptic, a kind of writing that is highly symbolic. Although its visions often seem bizarre to the Western reader, fortunately the book provides a number of clues for its own interpretation (e.g., stars are angels, lampstands are churches, 1:20; "the great prostitute," 17:1, is "Babylon" [Rome?], 17:5,18; and the heavenly Jerusalem is the wife of the Lamb, 21:9-10).

Distinctive Feature

A distinctive feature is the frequent use of the number seven (52 times). There are seven beatitudes (see note on 1:3), seven churches (1:4,11), seven spirits (1:4), seven golden lampstands (1:12), seven stars (1:16), seven seals (5:1), seven horns and seven eyes (5:6), seven trumpets (8:2), seven thunders (10:3), seven signs (12:1,3; 13:13-14; 15:1; 16:14; 19:20), seven crowns (12:3), seven plagues (15:6), seven golden bowls (15:7), seven hills (17:9) and seven kings (17:10), as well as other sevens. Symbolically, the number seven stands for completeness.

Interpretation

Interpreters of Revelation normally fall into four groups:

1. Preterists understand the book exclusively in terms of its first-century setting, claiming that most of its events have already taken place.
2. Historicists take it as describing the long chain of events from Patmos to the end of history.
3. Futurists place the book primarily in the end times.
4. Idealists view it as symbolic pictures of such timeless truths as the victory of good over evil.

Fortunately, the fundamental truths of Revelation do not depend on adopting a particular point of view. They are available to anyone who will read the book for its overall message and resist the temptation to become overly enamored with the details.

Outline

• Introduction (1:1-8)
  • Prologue (1:1-3)
  • Greetings and Doxology (1:4-8)
• Jesus among the Seven Churches (1:9-20)
• The Letters to the Seven Churches (chs. 2 - 3)
  • Ephesus (2:1-7)
  • Smyrna (2:8-11)
  • Pergamum (2:12-17)
  • Thyatira (2:18-29)
  • Sardis (3:1-6)
  • Philadelphia (3:7-13)
  • Laodicea (3:14-22)
• The Throne, the Scroll and the Lamb (chs. 4-5)
  • The Throne in Heaven (ch. 4)
  • The Seven-Sealed Scroll (5:1-5)
  • The Lamb Slain (5:6-14)
• The Seven Seals (6:1;8:1)
  • First Seal: The White Horse (6:1-2)
  • Second Seal: The Red Horse (6:3-4)
  • Third Seal: The Black Horse (6:5-6)
  • Fourth Seal: The Pale Horse (6:7-8)
  • Fifth Seal: The Souls under the Altar (6:9-11)
  • Sixth Seal: The Great Earthquake (6:12-17)
  • The Sealing of the 144,000 (7:1-8)
  • The Great Multitude (7:9-17)
  • Seventh Seal: Silence in Heaven (8:1)
• The Seven Trumpets (8:2;11:19)
  • Introduction (8:2-5)
  • First Trumpet: Hail and Fire Mixed with Blood (8:6-7)
  • Second Trumpet: A Mountain Thrown into the Sea (8:8-9)
  • Third Trumpet: The Star Wormwood (8:10-11)
  • Fourth Trumpet: A Third of the Sun, Moon and Stars Struck (8:12-13)
  • Fifth Trumpet: The Plague of Locusts (9:1-12)
  • Sixth Trumpet: Release of the Four Angels (9:13-21)
  • The Angel and the Little Scroll (ch. 10)
  • The Two Witnesses (11:1-14)
  • Seventh Trumpet: Judgments and Rewards (11:15-19)
• Various Personages and Events (chs. 12-14)
  • The Woman and the Dragon (ch. 12)
  • The Two Beasts (ch. 13)
  • The Lamb and the 144,000 (14:1-5)
  • The Harvest of the Earth (14:6-20)
• The Seven Bowls (chs. 15-16)
  • Introduction: The Song of Moses and the Seven Angels with the Seven Plagues (ch. 15)
  • First Bowl: Ugly and Painful Sores (16:1-2)
  • Second Bowl: Sea Turns to Blood (16:3)
  • Third Bowl: Rivers and Springs of Water Become Blood (16:4-7)
  • Fourth Bowl: Sun Scorches People with Fire (16:8-9)
  • Fifth Bowl: Darkness (16:10-11)
  • Sixth Bowl: Euphrates River Dries Up (16:12-16)
  • Seventh Bowl: Tremendous Earthquake (16:17-21)
• Babylon: The Great Prostitute (17:1;19:5)
  • Babylon Described (ch. 17)
  • The Fall of Babylon (ch. 18)
  • Praise for Babylon's Fall (19:1-5)
• Praise for the Wedding of the Lamb (19:6-10)
• The Return of Christ (19:11-21)
• The Thousand Years (20:1-6)
• Satan's Doom (20:7-10)
• Great White Throne Judgment (20:11-15)
• New Heaven, New Earth, New Jerusalem (21:1;22:5)
• Conclusion and Benediction (22:6-21)

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From the NIV Study Bible, Introductions to the Books of the Bible, Revelation
Copyright 2002 © Zondervan. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

Jude 1 NLT and the Summary

Summary of the Book of Jude

This summary of the book of Jude provides information about the title, author(s), date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the Book of Jude.

Author

The author identifies himself as Jude (v. 1), which is another form of the Hebrew name Judah (Greek "Judas"), a common name among the Jews. Of those so named in the NT, the ones most likely to be author of this letter are: (1) Judas the apostle (see Lk 6:16; Ac 1:1 and note) -- not Judas Iscariot -- and (2) Judas the brother of the Lord (Mt 13:55; Mk 6:3). The latter is more likely. For example, the author does not claim to be an apostle and even seems to separate himself from the apostles (v. 17). Furthermore, he describes himself as a "brother of James" (v. 1). Ordinarily a person in Jude's day would describe himself as someone's son rather than as someone's brother. The reason for the exception here may have been James's prominence in the church at Jerusalem (see Introduction to James: Author).

Although neither Jude nor James describes himself as a brother of the Lord, others did not hesitate to speak of them in this way (see Mt 13:55; Jn 7:3-10; Ac 1:14; 1Co 9:5; Gal 1:19). Apparently they themselves did not ask to be heard because of the special privilege they had as members of the household of Joseph and Mary.

Possible references to the letter of Jude or quotations from it are found at a very early date: e.g., in Clement of Rome (c. a.d. 96). Clement of Alexandria (155-215), Tertullian (150-222) and Origen (185-253) accepted it; it was included in the Muratorian Canon (c. 170) and was accepted by Athanasius (298-373) and by the Council of Carthage (397). Eusebius (265-340) listed the letter among the questioned books, though he recognized that many considered it as from Jude.

According to Jerome and Didymus, some did not accept the letter as canonical because of the manner in which it uses noncanonical literature (see notes on vv. 9,14). But sound judgment has recognized that an inspired author may legitimately make use of such literature -- whether for illustrative purposes or for appropriation of historically reliable or otherwise acceptable material -- and such use does not necessarily endorse that literature as inspired. Under the influence of the Spirit, the church came to the conviction that the authority of God stands behind the letter of Jude. The fact that the letter was questioned and tested but nonetheless was finally accepted by the churches indicates the strength of its claims to authenticity.

Date

There is nothing in the letter that requires a date beyond the lifetime of Jude the brother of the Lord. The error the author is combating, like that in 2 Peter, is not the heretical teaching of the second century, but that which could and did develop at an early date (cf. Ac 20:29-30; Ro 6:1; 1Co 5:1-11; 2Co 12:21; Gal 5:13; Eph 5:3-17; 1Th 4:6). (See also Introduction to 2 Peter: Date.) There is, moreover, nothing in the letter that requires a date after the time of the apostles, as some have argued. It may even be that Jude's readers had heard some of the apostles speak (see vv. 17-18). Likewise, the use of the word "faith" in the objective sense of the body of truth believed (v. 3) does not require a late dating of the letter. It was used in such a sense as early as Gal 1:23.

The question of the relationship between Jude and 2 Peter has a bearing on the date of Jude. If 2Pe 2 makes use of Jude -- a commonly accepted view (see Introduction to 2 Peter: 2 Peter and Jude) -- then Jude is to be dated prior to 2 Peter, probably c. a.d. 65. Otherwise, a date as late as c. 80 would be possible.

Recipients

The description of those to whom Jude addressed his letter is very general (see v. 1). It could apply to Jewish Christians, Gentile Christians, or both. Their location is not indicated. It should not be assumed that, since 2Pe 2 and Jude 4-18 appear to describe similar situations, they were both written to the same people. The kind of heresy depicted in these two passages was widespread (see Date).

Occasion and Purpose

Although Jude was very eager to write to his readers about salvation, he felt that he must instead warn them about certain immoral men circulating among them who were perverting the grace of God (see v. 4 and note). Apparently these false teachers were trying to convince believers that being saved by grace gave them license to sin since their sins would no longer be held against them. Jude thought it imperative that his readers be on guard against such men and be prepared to oppose their perverted teaching with the truth about God's saving grace.

It has generally been assumed that these false teachers were Gnostics. Although this identification is no doubt correct, they must have been forerunners of fully developed, second-century Gnosticism (see Introduction to 2 Peter: Date).

Outline

• Greetings (1:1-1:2)
• Occasion for the Letter (1:3-1:4)
  • The Change of Subject (1:3)
  • The Reason for the Change: The Presence of Godless Apostates (1:4)
• Warning against the False Teachers (1:5-1:16)
  • Historical Examples of the Judgment of Apostates (1:5-1:7)
    1. Unbelieving Israel (1:5)
    2. Angels who fell (1:6)
    3. Sodom and Gomorrah (1:7)
  • Description of the Apostates of Jude's Day (1:8-1:16)
    1. Their slanderous speech deplored (1:8-1:10)
    2. Their character graphically portrayed (1:11-1:13)
    3. Their destruction prophesied (1:14-1:16)
• Exhortation to Believers (1:17-1:23)
• Concluding Doxology (1:24-1:25)

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From the NIV Study Bible, Introductions to the Books of the Bible, Jude
Copyright 2002 © Zondervan. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

Jude 1 NLT

1 This letter is from Jude, a slave of Jesus Christ and a brother of James. I am writing to all who have been called by God the Father, who loves you and keeps you safe in the care of Jesus Christ. 

2 May God give you more and more mercy, peace, and love. 

3 Dear friends, I had been eagerly planning to write to you about the salvation we all share. But now I find that I must write about something else, urging you to defend the faith that God has entrusted once for all time to his holy people. 

4 I say this because some ungodly people have wormed their way into your churches, saying that God’s marvelous grace allows us to live immoral lives. The condemnation of such people was recorded long ago, for they have denied our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. 

5So I want to remind you, though you already know these things, that Jesus first rescued the nation of Israel from Egypt, but later he destroyed those who did not remain faithful. 

6 And I remind you of the angels who did not stay within the limits of authority God gave them but left the place where they belonged. God has kept them securely chained in prisons of darkness, waiting for the great day of judgment.

7 And don’t forget Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns, which were filled with immorality and every kind of sexual perversion. Those cities were destroyed by fire and serve as a warning of the eternal fire of God’s judgment. 

8 In the same way, these people—who claim authority from their dreams—live immoral lives, defy authority, and scoff at supernatural beings. 

9 But even Michael, one of the mightiest of the angels, did not dare accuse the devil of blasphemy, but simply said, “The Lord rebuke you!” (This took place when Michael was arguing with the devil about Moses’ body.) 

10 But these people scoff at things they do not understand. Like unthinking animals, they do whatever their instincts tell them, and so they bring about their own destruction. 

11 What sorrow awaits them! For they follow in the footsteps of Cain, who killed his brother. Like Balaam, they deceive people for money. And like Korah, they perish in their rebellion. 

12 When these people eat with you in your fellowship meals commemorating the Lord’s love, they are like dangerous reefs that can shipwreck you. They are like shameless shepherds who care only for themselves. They are like clouds blowing over the land without giving any rain. They are like trees in autumn that are doubly dead, for they bear no fruit and have been pulled up by the roots. 

13They are like wild waves of the sea, churning up the foam of their shameful deeds. They are like wandering stars, doomed forever to blackest darkness. 

14 Enoch, who lived in the seventh generation after Adam, prophesied about these people. He said, “Listen! The Lord is coming with countless thousands of his holy ones 

15 to execute judgment on the people of the world. He will convict every person of all the ungodly things they have done and for all the insults that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” 

16 These people are grumblers and complainers, living only to satisfy their desires. They brag loudly about themselves, and they flatter others to get what they want. 

17 But you, my dear friends, must remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ predicted. 

18 They told you that in the last times there would be scoffers whose purpose in life is to satisfy their ungodly desires. 

19 These people are the ones who are creating divisions among you. They follow their natural instincts because they do not have God’s Spirit in them. 

20 But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, 

21 and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life. In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God’s love. 

22And you must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering.

23 Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others, but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives. 

24 Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault. 

25 All glory to him who alone is God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen.

Book of 3rd John and the Summary

Summary of the Book of 3 John

This summary of the book of 3 John provides information about the title, author(s), date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the Book of 3 John.

Author

The author is John the apostle. In the first verses of both 2 John and 3 John the author identifies himself as "the elder." Note other similarities: "love in the truth" (v. 1 of both letters), "walking in the truth" (v. 4 of both letters) and the similar conclusions. See Introductions to 1 John and the Gospel of John: Author.

Date

The letter was probably written about the same time as 1 and 2 John (a.d. 85-95). See Introduction to 1 John: Date.

Occasion and Purpose

See Introduction to 2 John: Occasion and Purpose. Itinerant teachers sent out by John were rejected in one of the churches in the province of Asia by a dictatorial leader, Diotrephes, who even excommunicated members who showed hospitality to John's messengers. John wrote this letter to commend Gaius for supporting the teachers and, indirectly, to warn Diotrephes.

Outline

• Greetings (1-2)
• Commendation of Gaius (3-8)
• Condemnation of Diotrephes (9-10)
• Exhortation to Gaius (a href="/nlt/3-john/1-11.html">11)
• Example of Demetrius (a href="/nlt/3-john/1-12.html">12)
• Conclusion, Benediction and Final Greetings (13-14)

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From the NIV Study Bible, Introductions to the Books of the Bible, 3 John
Copyright 2002 © Zondervan. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

Book of 3 John

1 This letter is from John, the elder. I am writing to Gaius, my dear friend, whom I love in the truth. 

2 Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit. 

3 Some of the traveling teachers recently returned and made me very happy by telling me about your faithfulness and that you are living according to the truth. 

4 I could have no greater joy than to hear that my children are following the truth. 

5 Dear friend, you are being faithful to God when you care for the traveling teachers who pass through, even though they are strangers to you. 

6They have told the church here of your loving friendship. Please continue providing for such teachers in a manner that pleases God. 

7 For they are traveling for the Lord, and they accept nothing from people who are not believers. 

8 So we ourselves should support them so that we can be their partners as they teach the truth. 

9 I wrote to the church about this, but Diotrephes, who loves to be the leader, refuses to have anything to do with us. 

10 When I come, I will report some of the things he is doing and the evil accusations he is making against us. Not only does he refuse to welcome the traveling teachers, he also tells others not to help them. And when they do help, he puts them out of the church. 

11 Dear friend, don’t let this bad example influence you. Follow only what is good. Remember that those who do good prove that they are God’s children, and those who do evil prove that they do not know God. 

12Everyone speaks highly of Demetrius, as does the truth itself. We ourselves can say the same for him, and you know we speak the truth. 

13 I have much more to say to you, but I don’t want to write it with pen and ink. 

14 For I hope to see you soon, and then we will talk face to face. 

15 Peace be with you. Your friends here send you their greetings. Please give my personal greetings to each of our friends there.