03.00. Revelation: A Study Guide

Revelation: A Study Guide By Coty Pinckney

Welcome to our study of Revelation! Some people consider this book the most frightening in the Bible, others the most confusing. We will trust the Lord to hold to the promise he gives in Revelation 1:3 :

Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it. This course is a book study of Revelation, not a commentary study. When studying this last book in the Bible, it is tempting at every confusing point to turn to the commentary or Study Bible notes to find the meaning. But note God’s promise in Revelation 1:3 : It is to those who read and hear the words of the prophecy, not the words of the commentator. It is God’s word which is sharper than any two-edged sword, not the words of a Bible scholar; it is the word of Christ that is to dwell in us richly, not the explanations of a particular theological school.

Yet Revelation is indeed a confusing book, and we can learn much from other godly readers. How can we study this book in such a way that we allow God to speak to us through His word, yet take advantage of the insights He has given to others? Our technique will be the same that I use whenever approaching a passage to teach or preach:

·First, encounter the text. Read it; examine the context; study its structure; compare this passage with others throughout the Bible. Highlight difficulties and challenges in the text, pray about them, and consider applications to your life and the lives of others.

·Then, and only then, examine explanatory notes, commentaries, sermons, and other resources. At this point, such resources can serve to help you understand the passage further; if you start with the commentary, however, you never encounter the Word yourself, and generally restrict yourself to the interpretation offered by the commentator. My role in this endeavor is to provide you not with an interpretation of the book but with questions that aid you in digging into the book yourself. Learning to ask good questions is the key to being able to study and teach the Bible effectively. I hope that these questions will help you learn how to generate insightful questions about other passages you study. The questions will refer you to passages elsewhere in Scripture to which Revelation alludes, or which cover similar material.

You will learn most if you write out answer to every question, and keep your answers in a computer file or notebook. For a serious learner, each lesson will take at least two hours, and probably closer to three hours. With twenty-seven lessons in total, understand ahead of time that this course will take considerable time to complete.

While for the most part this is a study of the English text of Revelation, this version makes several references to the Greek text of Revelation and the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint (referred to as LXX). A student who knows no Greek could still use this guide profitably, skipping some questions, or could use an earlier and somewhat simpler version of this study guide. As you undertake a serious study of this wonderful book, I encourage you to commit to memory portions of it. Here are some suggestions. Those of you who know some Greek would do well to memorize at least one or two of these verses in the original language: 3:14-22, 4:8-11, 5:1-14, 7:9-12, 21:1-8, 22:12,13,17. Pick verses that will be helpful to you personally, and then hold on to them for all your life.

References: After dealing with the text yourself, I will suggest that you turn to two commentaries:

·Michael Wilcock, The Message of Revelation: I Saw Heaven Opened, Intervarsity Press, 1975.

·Ray Stedman, God’s Final Word: Understanding Revelation, Discovery House Press, 1991.

We use these commentaries for several reasons: they approach the book in markedly different ways; they argue strongly for their own interpretation, while not dismissing other interpretations in a cavalier or dogmatic manner; they are written by men who are dedicated to letting the Word itself speak to us; they draw out implications for believers today from every passage. Both treatments are non-technical, Stedman’s especially so, since his book originated as a sermon series. Stedman’s original sermons are available at <www.pbc.org/dp/stedman/revelation>, and, if you wish, you read his input there instead of in the book. The lessons, however, refer to page and chapter numbers in the book.

I pray that you will find this study spiritually enriching, intellectually challenging, and emotionally inspiring. By the time we finish, all of us will be better prepared to say with John, "Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!"

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Copyright © 2002, Thomas C. Pinckney. This data file is the sole property of Thomas C. Pinckney. Please feel free to copy it, but only in its entirety for circulation freely without charge. All copies of this data file must contain the above copyright notice. This study guide may be edited and revised for use in small groups provided:

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2.A link is provided to http://www.expository.org/revstudy2.doc <http://tcpiii.tripod.com/revstintro.htm> for those who want to see the original study guide;

3.The resulting product is not sold. This data file in its original or modified form may not be copied for resale or incorporated in any commercial publications, or other products offered for sale, without the written permission of Thomas C. Pinckney, tpinckney@williams.edu <mailto:tpinckney@williams.edu>, c/o Community Bible Church, 160 Bridges Rd, Williamstown, Mark 01267.