Revelation 1:1 - Printer Friendly

ESV: The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,

NIV: The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,

NASB: The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bond-servants, the things which must soon take place; and He sent and communicated it by His angel to His bond-servant John,

CSB: The revelation of Jesus Christ that God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,

NLT: This is a revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants the events that must soon take place. He sent an angel to present this revelation to his servant John,

KJV: The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:

NKJV: The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants—things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John,

Verse 1 identifies the entire book of Revelation as "the revelation of Jesus Christ." The word "revelation" is from the Greek word apokalypsis, meaning "a disclosure" or "an unveiling." The association of this term with John's depiction of the end times is one reason we refer to "end of the world" occurrences using the term apocalypse. Scholars differ on whether the book of Revelation should be thought of as a disclosure about Jesus Christ or a disclosure from Him. Likely, it is both.

God gave the apostle John the book of Revelation to communicate events which will take place suddenly once they begin. He revealed these events to John through an angel. Although the angel is not named, it may have been Gabriel, who carried messages to Daniel, Mary, and Zechariah (Daniel 8:16; 9:21–22; Luke 1:5–19, 26–31).

John is referred to as God's servant in Revelation 1:1. The Greek word translated "servant" means a slave. Just as a slave in ancient times did whatever his master told him to do, so John obeyed whatever God instructed him to do. In this case, God trusted John to communicate the revelation of Jesus Christ. The same Greek word, translated "servant," identifies New Testament figures such as Paul, Timothy, James, Peter, and Jude (Romans 1:1; Philippians 1:1; Titus 1:1; James 1:1; 2 Peter 1:1; and Jude 1:1).

Revelation 1:1–3 is the prologue to the book of Revelation. It establishes the authority for the entire writing by stating that this uncovering—this ''revelation''—is from Jesus Christ, given by God to John. John testifies that what he saw was a message from and about Jesus Christ. He promises that all who read and obey the words of Revelation will be blessed.

The Roman government had banished John to the island of Patmos in the Aegean Sea, off the coast of Asia Minor, modern-day Turkey. While John was at Patmos, the risen, glorified Son of God appeared to him and commanded him to write ''the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this'' (Revelation 1:19). John pronounces blessings to those who read and obey Revelation, and then he greets his readers warmly and describes Jesus' appearance.

The apostle John begins this chapter by stating that he received the revelation of Jesus Christ by divine activity. God sent this vision to John while he was on the island of Patmos, likely as a punishment from the Roman government. This book follows John's four prior messages contained in the New Testament: the Gospel of John and the letters 1, 2, and 3 John. Chapters 2 and 3 tell what Jesus dictated to seven churches in Asia Minor, while the rest of John's message concerns future events.

The word ''revelation'' means ''an unveiling or disclosure.'' This writing unveils future events such as the rapture, three series of judgments that will fall on the earth during the tribulation, the emergence of the Antichrist, the persecution of Israel and her amazing revival, as well as Jesus' second coming with His saints to the earth, the judgment of Satan and his followers, and finally, the eternal state. This content, combined with the original Greek term apokalypsis, is why we now refer to an end-of-the-world scenario as ''an apocalypse.''