in need of a revelation about the book of revelation

7212019 In Need of a Revelation About the Book of Revelation

httpslidepdfcomreaderfullin-need-of-a-revelation-about-the-book-of-revelation 17

983089

By Kevin Merrell

In Need of a Revelation

About the Book of Revelation

Once we take the Book of Revelation seriously what are weto make of the casserole of curious metaphors that populate it

Container or contents

In the movie The Princess Bride Wallace Shawn plays Vizzini a self-import-

ant little boss in a trio of bumbling outlaws Mandy Pitinkin plays another of

the outlaws Inigo Montoya a Spanish fencing master intent on revenging his

fatherrsquos death Despite his belief that hersquos an unusually clever person Vizziniis fond of saying that unlikely events are ldquoinconceivablerdquo Once after he says

this Inigo thoughtfully replies ldquoYou keep using that word I do not think

it means what you think it meansrdquo The same could be said for a word that

showed up as far back as the Book of Revelation or The Apocalypse of John

in the Bible The word apocalypse is a part of our modern written and visual

vocabulary to describe the world as we know it collapsing into chaos suffering

and destruction right Yes and no

While the dictionary indeed defines apocalypse as ldquoa great disaster asudden and very bad event that causes much fear loss or destructionrdquo the

word has its origins in the Greek word apokalypsis simply meaning ldquoto reveal

or uncoverrdquo Itrsquos as if the word apocalypse was a jug full of chocolate milk At

one time the word jug meant a container for liquid and the words chocolate

milk meant chocolatendashflavored milk Over the course of thousands of years

however the word jug in this case has taken on the meaning of its contents

the chocolate milk There is great value in separating the container of the

revelations of John from its contents of prophecies about the judgments ofGod in the last days

This is revelation

The first verses of the Book of Revelation open with a bold statement an-

nouncing this separation of container from content and inviting our attention

and further study

983089 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

M



983090

and signified it by his angel unto his servant John

983090 Who bare record of the word of God and of the testimony of Jesus

Christ and of all things that he saw

983091 Blessed is he that readeth and they that hear the words of this proph-ecy and keep those things which are written therein for the time is at

hand (983154983141983158983141983148983137983156983145983151983150 983089983089ndash983091)

In verse one we learn that Johnrsquos revelation is actually Jesusrsquo revelation and

as with all matters divine it originates with God Will we heed the mind and

will of the Lord By way of assignment a messenger or angel has guided John

through the revelation In verse two we learn that the Book of Revelation is

Johnrsquos testimony or witness of Jesus Christ and the events of the last days that

were shown to him In verse three we discover that a blessing is attached toreading hearing and abiding by the words of the revelation The phrase ldquofor

the time is at handrdquo adds a note of urgency mirroring Jesusrsquo own urgency

when he taught his apostles about the last days

The gift of a divine message

In the Book of Mormon we learn that others including Nephi the son

of Lehi have experienced this same comprehensive panoramic vision of the

human story seen by John

983090983093 But the things which thou shalt see hereafter thou shalt not write

for the Lord God hath ordained the apostle of the Lamb of God that

he should write them

983090983094 And also others who have been to them hath he shown all things

and they have written them and they are sealed up to come forth in

their purity according to the truth which is in the Lamb in the own

due time of the Lord unto the house of Israel983090983095 And I Nephi heard and bear record that the name of the apostle

of the Lamb was John according to the word of the angel (983089 983150983141983152983144983145

983089983092983090983093ndash983090983095)

Nephi is forbidden by an angel to write an account of the vision of all things

because it is the task of another John the apostle of the Lamb of God has

been ordained to share this testimony and revelation with us Other prophets

have been shown the same vision but their records are sealed up to come forth

in a future day of the Lordrsquos choosing The Book of Revelation is the gift of

a divine message to us a testimony of Jesus Christ and a witness by divine



983091

decree to the events unfolding in the last days What faithful person would

not be drawn in study and prayer to Johnrsquos revelation Will God not hold us

accountable for what we do with such a gift

ldquoPlain and purerdquoEven a casual reading of Johnrsquos Apocalypse however raises an additional

but perplexing question if the Book of Revelation is a specially-prepared

testimony of Jesus and of end time events why oh why does it feel so ob-

scure and mysterious to us With its jambalaya of curious beasts books seals

trumpets colors and sounds the book reads in places like some kind of fever

dream or hallucination

Remarkably in the opinion of the angel teaching Nephi about the vision

Johnrsquos record is plain pure and easy to understand

Wherefore the things which he [John] shall write are just and true

and behold they are written in the book which thou beheld proceeding

out of the mouth of the Jew and at the time they proceeded out of the

mouth of the Jew or at the time the book proceeded out of the mouth

of the Jew the things which were written were plain and pure and most

precious and easy to the understanding of all men (983089 983150983141983152983144983145 983089983092983090983091)

ldquoWell of course itrsquos clear to an angelrdquo we think to ourselves ldquoWithout the veil to cloud his understanding itrsquos easy for him to understand Johnrsquos visionrdquo

While thatrsquos undoubtedly true therersquos also a possible clue for us in the text

The angel notes that ldquoat the time the book proceeded out of the mouth of the Jew

the things which were written were plain and purerdquo Like many parts of the

Bible the story may well have gotten muddled in transcription and translation

before it got to us

Working on the puzzle

Even if wersquore stuck with a clear story that took a beating when it went

through repeated translations yet there are pieces to the puzzle that we might

piece together for ourselves For instance when we read about the opening of

the sixth seal (the sixth thousand-year period of the earthrsquos mortal probation)

in Revelation 983094983089983090ndash983089983094 we see a tremendous earthquake followed by lights out

and everyone ducking for cover

983089983090 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal and lo there wasa great earthquake and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair and

the moon became as blood



983092

13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth even as a fig tree casteth

her untimely figs when she is shaken of a mighty wind

14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together and

every mountain and island were moved out of their places

15 And the kings of the earth and the great men and the rich men and

the chief captains and the mighty men and every bondman and every

free man hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains

983089983094 And said to the mountains and rocks Fall on us and hide us from the

face of him that sitteth on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb

In verse 983089983091 wersquore not sure what to make of stars falling to the earth yet in

verse 983089983093 we read that everyone from the high and mighty to the lowest of the

low are trying to find a cave to take refuge in Why Something is falling outof the sky on them Could the word stars in this case perhaps mean meteor-

ites Later in chapter eight we read of hail and fire falling from the sky and

burning up a third of the earthrsquos vegetation Could the word hail in this case

mean meteorites again Hundredndashpound burning rocks falling out of the sky

makes more sense than 983089983088983088-pound hailstones falling out of the sky Also itrsquos

a stretch to imagine fire and ice coming down at the same time much less

burning up great swaths of vegetation around the world

Continuing on in Revelation 983096983096ndash983097 we read of something described as a

mountain falling from the sky into the sea causing the water to become as

blood rendering it toxic to all aquatic life Where have we heard of water

being turned to blood rendering it poisonous before The story of Moses

and the plagues of Egypt There are a number of similarities between the

plagues of Egypt and the judgments of God found in the Book of Revelation

Because God always uses natural means to accomplish his purposes itrsquos not

unreasonable to imagine him using the same natural forces in both scenarios

One of the striking similarities among all scriptural accounts of the last days

is a connection to the heavens Something dramatic always appears in the sky

or falls out of the sky

ldquoOne of the plainest booksrdquo

Itrsquos one thing for an angel to declare the Book of Revelation to be clear and

easily understood by all but what are we to make of Joseph Smithrsquos declaration

to a conference of the Church on April 983096 983089983096983092983091 that ldquoThe book of Revelationis one of the plainest books God ever caused to be writtenrdquo (History of the

Church 983093983091983092983090) What Did the prophet of this the final dispensation of the



983093

fullness of times receive the same vision of all things seen by John Nephi

Moses Enoch and the Brother of Jared Joseph never claimed that he did

but anything he received from the Lord could help us decipher the Book of

Revelation

In fact as Joseph Smith was translating the Bible he had a question-and-an-swer session with the Lord about the Book of Revelation that is preserved

in the Doctrine and Covenants as Section 983095983095 A pattern quickly emerges in

DampC 983095983095 that John is telling the story using symbols

983091 Q Are the four beasts limited to individual beasts or do they represent

classes or orders

A They are limited to four individual beasts which were shown to John

to represent the glory of the classes of beings in their destined order orsphere of creation in the enjoyment of their eternal felicity

4 Q What are we to understand by the eyes and wings which the beasts

had

A Their eyes are a representation of light and knowledge that is they

are full of knowledge and their wings are a representation of power to

move to act etc (983140983078983139 983095983095983091ndash983092)

Find me a code book

Describing one thing as another thing is a rich poetic form called meta-

phor that resembles using code words or a specialized vocabulary For instance

instead of saying there was so much dust in the air that the moon looked red

we read in several places in scripture that there will come a time in the last

days that ldquothe moon will turn to bloodrdquo In fact there is an entire subndashgenre

in scripture called apocalyptic literature that includes besides the Book of Rev-

elation sections of Daniel Ezekiel Isaiah Habakkuk Mark 983089983091 Matthew 983090983092983089 Nephi 983089983091ndash983089983092 and DampC 983096983096 These passages written by different prophets at

different times and in different places all refer to the last days using similar if

not the exact same metaphors Perhaps part of our challenge in grasping the

Book of Revelation or apocalyptic literature in general is learning this pro-

phetic language Wersquod benefit from a code book or a Rosetta Stone to help

us make sense of all those metaphors If Joseph Smith proclaimed the Book

of Revelation one of the plainest of all books he probably understood this

prophetic language of metaphors



983094

Remarkably LDS researcher Anthony E Larson claims to have discov-

ered robust workable insights mirrored by non-LDS scholars that unlock

the metaphoric language of the prophets Hersquoll be the first to state hersquos not

a prophet but he does make good use the same gifts of reason and prayerful

study that wersquove all been given and invited to use Through books a blogan excellent series of onndashline courses and a Facebook page Brother Larson

connects us with both the seemingly supernatural miraculous stories from

ancient scripture as well as the events of the last days foretold in scripture

Check out Anthony Larsonrsquos take on prophetic language and decide for your

self httpmormonprophecycom

ldquoOne grand signrdquo

Joseph Smith taught that it is not Godrsquos intention for us as the children ofthe light to be caught off guard by the events of the last days

The coming of the Son of Man never will bemdashnever can be till the

judgments spoken of for this hour are poured out which judgments are

commenced Paul says lsquoYe are the children of the light and not of the

darkness that that day should overtake you as a thief in the nightrsquo It

is not the design of the Almighty to come upon the earth and crush it

and grind it to powder but he will reveal it to His servants the prophets(983146983151983155983141983152983144 983155983149983145983156983144 983156983141983137983139983144983145983150983143983155 983151983142 983156983144983141 983152983154983151983152983144983141983156 983146983151983155983141983152983144 983155983149983145983156983144 983090983096983094)

More useful news God reveals his design for the last days to his servants

the prophets Already Joseph Smith and Nephi have helped us better under-

stand the Book of Revelation By knowing about the events of the last days

we can recognize in faith the hand of God when his judgments come instead

of concluding that he has forgotten us or worse

And therersquos more Continuing his insights about the end times Joseph

shared with us the grand sign of the second coming of Christ

Judah must return Jerusalem must be rebuilt and the temple and water

come out from under the temple and the waters of the Dead Sea be

healed It will take some time to rebuild the walls of the city and the

temple and etc and all this must be done before the Son of Man will

make His appearance

There will be wars and rumors of wars signs in the heavens above

and on the earth beneath the sun turned into darkness and the moon toblood earthquakes in divers places the seas heaving beyond their bounds



983095

then will appear one grand sign of the Son of Man in heaven But what

will the world do They will say it is a planet a comet etc But the Son

of man will come as the sign of the coming of the Son of Man which

will be as the light of the morning cometh out of the east (983146983151983155983141983152983144

983155983149983145983156983144 983156983141983137983139983144983145983150983143983155 983151983142 983156983144983141 983152983154983151983152983144983141983156 983146983151983155983141983152983144 983155983149983145983156983144 983090983096983094ndash983096983095)

Thank you Joseph for the grand sign of the second coming

ldquoUnfolded in the eyes of all the peoplerdquo

Finally letrsquos give Moroni the last word and add him to the list of the Lordrsquos

servants the prophets that can help us better understand the Book of Revelation

In the book of Ether the Lord speaks to Moroni of the revelations of John

983089983093 Behold when ye shall rend that veil of unbelief which doth cause youto remain in your awful state of wickedness and hardness of heart and

blindness of mind then shall the great and marvelous things which have

been hid up from the foundation of the world from youmdashyea when ye

shall call upon the Father in my name with a broken heart and a contrite

spirit then shall ye know that the Father hath remembered the covenant

which he made unto your fathers O house of Israel

16 And then shall my revelations which I have caused to be written by

my servant John be unfolded in the eyes of all the people Remember when ye see these things ye shall know that the time is at hand that they

shall be made manifest in very deed

983089983095 Therefore when ye shall receive this record ye may know that

the work of the Father has commenced upon all the face of the land

(983141983156983144983141983154 983092983089983093ndash983089983095)

More clues Our veil of unbelief hardness of heart and blindness of mind

are all part of the problem It doesnrsquot mean wersquore bad people it just means ourtraditions of understanding the Book of Revelation and the last days prevent

us from actually understanding them All of us can humbly call upon the

Father in the name of Christ and seek to understand the Book of Revelation

the best we can As we do therersquoll come a time when everyone understands

the revelations of John and when that happens the events themselves will

manifest shortly thereafter Furthermore as wersquove already received the record

of Moroni we know that the work of the Father has commenced It feels like

wersquore right in the thick of things now We feel empowered to go out and studythe Book of Revelation



983090

and signified it by his angel unto his servant John

983090 Who bare record of the word of God and of the testimony of Jesus

Christ and of all things that he saw

983091 Blessed is he that readeth and they that hear the words of this proph-ecy and keep those things which are written therein for the time is at

hand (983154983141983158983141983148983137983156983145983151983150 983089983089ndash983091)

In verse one we learn that Johnrsquos revelation is actually Jesusrsquo revelation and

as with all matters divine it originates with God Will we heed the mind and

will of the Lord By way of assignment a messenger or angel has guided John

through the revelation In verse two we learn that the Book of Revelation is

Johnrsquos testimony or witness of Jesus Christ and the events of the last days that

were shown to him In verse three we discover that a blessing is attached toreading hearing and abiding by the words of the revelation The phrase ldquofor

the time is at handrdquo adds a note of urgency mirroring Jesusrsquo own urgency

when he taught his apostles about the last days

The gift of a divine message

In the Book of Mormon we learn that others including Nephi the son

of Lehi have experienced this same comprehensive panoramic vision of the

human story seen by John

983090983093 But the things which thou shalt see hereafter thou shalt not write

for the Lord God hath ordained the apostle of the Lamb of God that

he should write them

983090983094 And also others who have been to them hath he shown all things

and they have written them and they are sealed up to come forth in

their purity according to the truth which is in the Lamb in the own

due time of the Lord unto the house of Israel983090983095 And I Nephi heard and bear record that the name of the apostle

of the Lamb was John according to the word of the angel (983089 983150983141983152983144983145

983089983092983090983093ndash983090983095)

Nephi is forbidden by an angel to write an account of the vision of all things

because it is the task of another John the apostle of the Lamb of God has

been ordained to share this testimony and revelation with us Other prophets

have been shown the same vision but their records are sealed up to come forth

in a future day of the Lordrsquos choosing The Book of Revelation is the gift of

a divine message to us a testimony of Jesus Christ and a witness by divine



983091























before it got to us












983092





































983093




Revelation





classes or orders




had




Find me a code book

















983094





























make His appearance





983095





983155983149983145983156983144 983156983141983137983139983144983145983150983143983155 983151983142 983156983144983141 983152983154983151983152983144983141983156 983146983151983155983141983152983144 983155983149983145983156983144 983090983096983094ndash983096983095)

















(983141983156983144983141983154 983092983089983093ndash983089983095)












983091























before it got to us












983092





































983093




Revelation





classes or orders




had




Find me a code book

















983094





























make His appearance





983095





983155983149983145983156983144 983156983141983137983139983144983145983150983143983155 983151983142 983156983144983141 983152983154983151983152983144983141983156 983146983151983155983141983152983144 983155983149983145983156983144 983090983096983094ndash983096983095)

















(983141983156983144983141983154 983092983089983093ndash983089983095)












983092





































983093




Revelation





classes or orders




had




Find me a code book

















983094





























make His appearance





983095





983155983149983145983156983144 983156983141983137983139983144983145983150983143983155 983151983142 983156983144983141 983152983154983151983152983144983141983156 983146983151983155983141983152983144 983155983149983145983156983144 983090983096983094ndash983096983095)

















(983141983156983144983141983154 983092983089983093ndash983089983095)












983093




Revelation





classes or orders




had




Find me a code book

















983094





























make His appearance





983095





983155983149983145983156983144 983156983141983137983139983144983145983150983143983155 983151983142 983156983144983141 983152983154983151983152983144983141983156 983146983151983155983141983152983144 983155983149983145983156983144 983090983096983094ndash983096983095)

















(983141983156983144983141983154 983092983089983093ndash983089983095)












983094





























make His appearance





983095





983155983149983145983156983144 983156983141983137983139983144983145983150983143983155 983151983142 983156983144983141 983152983154983151983152983144983141983156 983146983151983155983141983152983144 983155983149983145983156983144 983090983096983094ndash983096983095)

















(983141983156983144983141983154 983092983089983093ndash983089983095)












983095





983155983149983145983156983144 983156983141983137983139983144983145983150983143983155 983151983142 983156983144983141 983152983154983151983152983144983141983156 983146983151983155983141983152983144 983155983149983145983156983144 983090983096983094ndash983096983095)

















(983141983156983144983141983154 983092983089983093ndash983089983095)










in need of a revelation about the book of revelation

Documents