Revelation 1:19 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this.

NIV: Write, therefore, what you have seen, what is now and what will take place later.

NASB: Therefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things.

CSB: Therefore write what you have seen, what is, and what will take place after this.

NLT: Write down what you have seen — both the things that are now happening and the things that will happen.

KJV: Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;

NKJV: Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this.

In this verse we learn that Jesus instructed John to write what he had seen, the things that are, and those that are still future. The things that John had seen comprise an account of John's experience at Patmos when Jesus appeared to him. The letters to the seven churches that were located in Asia comprise the "things that are." The rest of the book of Revelation comprises the things that are to take place after this.

These three components provide a good working outline of the book of Revelation. Chapter 1 includes the things John saw to introduce his writing. Chapters 2 and 3 include the things that are. Chapters 4—22 describe the things which are yet to take place. Although there are divisions in each of these main parts of Revelation, the threefold outline provides a well-organized basis for studying the book of Revelation. Although no specific dates are given for the events described in Revelation 4—22, we gain a broad awareness of what lies ahead for humanity and the earth.

Revelation 1:17–20 reports John's dramatic response to seeing the glorified Son of God and Jesus' comforting actions and words. Jesus also describes Himself and repeats His command to John to write what he has seen, the present things, and what lay in the future. Finally, He explains the meaning of the seven stars and the seven lampstands.

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.''

Accessed 5/19/2024 1:15:24 PM