After my recent article concerning the Mark of the Beast, I
was asked several questions. One of them was about the date of the writing of
John’s Revelation epistle. This article will attempt to address that question
and make a case for the earlier date, previous to the destruction of Jerusalem
in AD 70, as opposed to the later date under the Emperor Domitian.
Why does this matter? Well, it only matters because if
Revelation is about the coming destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, then the case
can be made (as I have done) that the letter was written to warn First Century
Christians of that event and to identify The Beast (Nero) and to provide
prophetic context for what was soon to take place.
If, however, if it can be shown that John wrote Revelation
after the fall of Jerusalem, then it must be warning Christians in future days
about events that have not yet happened.
NOTE: This article was written using various sources of information, most notably, the Raptureless website - specifically
THIS article - and the radio ministry of Steve Gregg which you can find
HERE.
The 10 reasons below were taken almost entirely from the Raptureless blog article linked above, but my notes and comments are found below each of them.
The Opposition
Before I share my reasons for claiming the earlier date,
let’s examine why some believe it was written after the reign of Nero. First,
because there is conflicting testimony concerning when John was exiled to the
island of Patmos (where he wrote the epistle). Some have said that he was
exiled there by Domitian (who came after Nero) and was on the island between 81
AD and 96 AD. However, there are also many historical documents that contradict
that claim and say that John was exiled during the reign of Nero (before AD 70).
The strongest evidence for a later date comes from Irenaeus
(120-202 AD) who claimed that John wrote his Revelation under the reign of
Domitian. However, Irenaeus had a pretty lousy track record for historical
accuracy. For example, he also wrote that Jesus’ ministry lasted twenty years
and that he was crucified at age 50. No one takes those claims seriously, so
perhaps we shouldn’t take his word for the date of John's Revelation either.
Here are 10 reasons
why I believe we can confidently accept the early date of Revelation rather
than the later date.
Reason 1: John
Identifies Nero As The Current Emperor.
In Revelation 17:10 John says this: "They are also
seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he
does come, he must remain for only a little while"
Here, John is attempting to identify the meaning of the 7
headed beast. He says that the seven heads are seven kings and then says that
the previous five have died, and the sixth one is still living. If we start
with Julius Caesar (the first Emperor of Rome) and start counting, we’ll find
that the sixth Caesar – the one who is now ruling – is Nero.
Could it be any clearer than that?
John himself tells us
that the ruler of the Roman Empire at the time he is writing his epistle is the
sixth Caesar and that was none other than Nero. [See more in my article “The Mark of The Beast Revealed”]
Reason 2: The Syriac
New Testament.
One of the oldest known New Testament documents is from the
second century and it is called The Syriac, or the Peshitto. In this early
version if you turn to the Book of Revelation you’ll see this on the title
page:
"Again the revelation which was upon the holy John the
Evangelist from God when he was on the island of Patmos where he was thrown by
the emperor Nero."
Since Nero ruled Rome from AD 54 to AD 68, John had to have
written his epistle during this time period.
Reason 3: Jewish
Persecution of Christians.
The New Testament reveals that, almost from the beginning,
the Jewish rulers persecuted the early church. Paul, the Apostle, was himself a
member of the group that went around arresting and harassing those who followed
Jesus as Messiah. This persecution by Jews continued and intensified until
something drastic happened: The Jewish Temple was destroyed, Jerusalem was ravaged
and the Jewish system of religion was effectively dismantled.
Because John refers to Jewish persecution in Revelation as
something that Christians were still enduring at the time of his writing, this
means that the Temple was still standing and therefore we can date his
Revelation as being written before AD 70.
Reason 4: Judaizers
Within The Church.
According to John’s epistle, Judaizers were very active at
the time of his writing.
“‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are
rich), and the blasphemy by those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a
synagogue of Satan.” (Rev. 2:9)
“Behold, I will cause those of the synagogue of Satan, who
say that they are Jews and are not, but lie—I will make them come and bow down
at your feet, and make them know that I have loved you.” (Rev. 3:9)
This would have not been any issue if the
Jerusalem Temple had been destroyed when John wrote his letter.
In addition, once Paul’s letters against Judaizers
(Galatians, Romans, and Ephesians) were published and circulated throughout the
early church (something that we can assume came after John’s Revelation
letter), this activity would not have been so easily tolerated.
So, after Paul’s letters denouncing Judaizers this would not
have been an issue. The fact that John addresses the issue means that Paul’s
letters had not yet been written and ciruculated. Therefore, Revelation was
written before Galatians, Romans and Ephesians, which means it was Pre-AD 70.
Reason 5: The
Existence of Jerusalem and the Temple.
In Revelation, Chapter 11, John is told to go and to
“measure the temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it.” (v. 1)
If the Temple had been destroyed, John could not have done
this. Therefore, John’s Revelation was probably written before the destruction of
Jerusalem in AD 70.
Reason 6: Events To
Come “Shortly” and “Soon”.
All throughout Revelation, John continues to remind his
readers that the events he is foreshadowing in his letter will come to pass
“shortly” or “soon” or “quickly”. If he meant that these events would happen
more than 2,000 years later, he certainly could have said so. But he didn’t.
“The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show
to His bond-servants, the things which must soon take place..” (Rev. 1:1)
“Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the
prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near. “
(Rev. 1:3)
“And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the
prophecy of this book, for the time is near.” (Rev. 22:10)
“He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming
quickly.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.” (Rev. 22:20)
Reason 7: Christ Seen
By “Those Who Pierced Him”.
To explain this reason (and the reference above from Rev.
22:20) it’s necessary to first explain what we mean by the “Coming” of Jesus,
as opposed to the “Return of Christ” at the End of the World.
There are several references throughout the entire Bible to
judgment events as “the coming of God”. For example, in the OT we find
prophecies about God’s judgment against certain nations expressed this way:
“Behold, the LORD rideth upon a swift cloud, and shall come
into Egypt: and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at his presence, and the
heart of Egypt shall melt in the midst of it.” (Isaiah 19:1)
Did God actually ride on a cloud and attack Egypt? No. But
the Assyrian army did attack Egypt in fulfillment of this prophecy around the
7th century BC.
It’s in the same way that Jesus says that he will “come in
the clouds” to bring judgment against Jerusalem for rejecting him and his
gospel. For example, Jesus tells the High Priest that he will personally see
Jesus coming on the clouds with power:
“Jesus said to him, “You have said it yourself; nevertheless
I tell you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of
Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Matthew 26:64)
This was a promise made to a certain man, Caiphas, the High
Priest: “You will see the Son of Man…coming on the clouds of heaven.”
Jesus also prophesied during his Olivet Discourse, (which is
all about the destruction of the temple), the following:
“And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky,
and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of
Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.” (Matt. 24:30)
So, having said all of that, let’s look at what John says in
Revelation:
“BEHOLD, HE IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS, and every eye will
see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn
over Him. So it is to be. Amen.” (Revelation 1:7)
Here, John says that the same people who crucified Christ
will see him “coming in the clouds” which not only aligns with Jesus’ own
words, but also points to a coming Judgment against Jerusalem by using the
phrase “coming in the clouds” as a reference to those OT passages above.
Just for the record, “those who pierced him” were not alive
in AD 96 when some believe John wrote Revelation. How do we know this? Because
they were all killed in AD 70 when the Romans destroyed Jerusalem. Therefore,
“those who pierced him” were still alive before AD 70 and that means John had
to have written his letter when they were still living.
Reason 8: John’s
Condition In AD 96.
We know from the writings of Jerome (an early Church
Father), that John the Apostle was seen in AD 96 and that he was quite frail,
saying:
"…he was with difficulty carried to the church, and
could speak only a few words to the people.”
However, if we read Revelation 10:11 John says:
“(I must) prophesy again concerning many peoples and nations
and tongues and kings."
If John wrote Revelation in AD 96, when we have an
eyewitness who says he was barely able to walk or speak at that time, then how
could John continue to speak to anyone in that condition?
However, if John wrote Revelation in AD 70, he had many
years of life left to speak to many nations and kings about the Gospel of Jesus
before AD 96.
Reason 9: Daniel’s
Prophecy.
When the prophet Daniel was given his prophecy by the angel
of God, he is told to "seal up the vision, for it is a long way off"
(See Daniel 12:4). But the things he wrote about were only about 483 years
away. Yet John is told “not to seal up the vsion”. Why? Because he is told his
prophecy “concerns things which must shortly come to pass.” (See Rev. 22:10).
If the events in John’s prophecy were just a few years away
(10 or 20 years time), then all of this would make sense. However, if Daniel’s
prophecy was sealed because it was “a long way off” (483 years), it makes no
sense that John’s prophecy was NOT sealed if it “must shortly come to pass”
more than 2,000 years later?!
For this reason, I believe that John’s Revelation was
written before the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70.
Reason 10: Only Seven
Churches?
John’s letter begins with a series of specific messages
given by Jesus to the Seven Churches in Asia Minor. If John’s epistle were
written after AD 70, say in AD 96 as some suggest, there would have been many,
many more churches in that region than just seven.
IN CONCLUSION
These are the ten best reasons for accepting the early date
for the writing of John’s Revelation and for interpreting the events found in
this epistle as being fulfilled by the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans
in AD 70.
Future articles will answer the following questions:
*What about the claim that apocalyptic events would be the
worst that have ever been or ever would be again?
*How do the events in Revelation compare to the actual, historical
destruction of Jerusalem?
*If Revelation has already been fulfilled, then what is
there left to look forward to?
Any other questions? Please let me know in the comments
below.
Thanks!
kg
