What is the meaning of all the symbols in the book of Revelation?

Answer 1

That's a small book, to answer your question completely, and which cannot fully be addressed here! But in relation to your question, first, let me say that I understand the events described in the book of Revelations to be not just symbolic descriptions of a general judgment of God to come upon this earth but also, in large part, to be a literal pre-written historical account about actual characters, events and happening taking place during a yet future time. This literal, as I understand it, period of time concerns the whole world but in large part for future historical contextual purposes, centers the focus of its narrative on how these characters and events relate specifically to the Jewish people and the land of Israel. This actual period of time is referred to throughout scripture as "the Day of the LORD", with specific pertaining to Jews in this time through use of such phrases like "the time of Jacob's trouble", and such descriptive types or symbols like "a woman in travail".

As I understand it, against the backdrop of this future historical narrative, there are sprinkled in the use of certain symbols, which are explained elsewhere in scripture and are used specifically for the purpose of further illustrating certain key characters and events of great importance as they relate to the overall future historical narrative. Again, all of these symbols, I believe, are understood, where they do occur, by comparing scripture with scripture ,and so by, mining out their meaning, as you take the very words and phrases and trace them throughout The Bible. To this end a concordance is especially useful, and preferably one contained as part of a computer Bible software program. These contain many other such useful resources like dictionaries, commentaries, maps, lexicons ,histories, topical studies etc.. One such program easily obtainable off the Internet for free, is ESWORD. Its a very useful program and has much free download-able content that make it very useful for any bible study, and all with the benefit of compactness, portability, and ease and speed of access that comes with a computer programs vs. using a large collection of books.

But in relation to the rest, as I believe is to be separated from the symbolic, the narrative of this future time is difficult to follow and discern exactly. I believe this is the result of John, who is a man of the first century, attempting to describe in the language, vocabulary and understanding available to a man of his time. As these are events that are occurring in the far distant future. I do, and several others, (but not all nor even the majority of Christendom), believe that we have noticed the descriptions given in revelations as being parallel to descriptions of things that we understand today. These modern day realities, in my opinion, are things which have only been comprehendible by man ,in large part, in only the last 70 years or so. These seem to shed light on and be eerily parallel to many of the accounts that John writes about. I'm specifically referencing things which he described which were unexplainable historically, (in the how they could be), in times past but yet today, (last 70 years or so) are very easily understood or deemed plausible in the how.

For that above statement I would like to support with this list (not inclusive) of what those things are:

• the re-establishment of the nation of Israel in 1948 thus setting the stage and enabling all of these prophecies concerning the Jewish people in the land of Israel to now occur, including the demand of prophecy for a rebuilt temple of worship, (in Jerusalem which they again now possess)

• the realignment of governments with each other that previously constituted territories of the former Roman Empire thus allow us to witness before our very eyes the in progress "rebirth" of the Roman Empire (the still in formation EU with the Med. Union trade partnership) called for as a requirement immediately preceding the rise of Antichrist to power in Revelations and elsewhere.

• The explosion of human population since 1900 allowing us to now understand, among other things, how a modern day army from the east numbering 200 million with all the supporting artillery, tanks, helicopters, jets etc can be fielded (see Rev 9:16-19)-interestingly there likely were not 200 million people on earth in John's time (and so historically even by some thought to be a scribal error in number), but in the 1960's Red China announced the capacity to field a 200 million man army with all of its regulars and reserves.

• Not to mention our modern understandings of the likelihood of a future asteroid collision with the earth and/or nuclear war and its results (see Rev:8 and chpt.16) with its immediate effects and poisoning of the earth, water and air, and destruction of the earth's atmosphere ( Rev 16:9-men scorched with fire?

• satellite enabled global instant communications (See Rev.11:9 the whole world will see the dead bodies of the 2 witness'- think CNN live 24 hour global news coverage), etc etc.

Now does this mean that these things listed above are all exactly how certain verses will actually transpire? Not necessarily, but the fact that our understanding does only now allow for us to see how all these things could transpire, is significant, and should not be dismissed, and I believe does establish our particular time in history in relation to prophecy as being genuinely unique from the many previous generations.

Contrary to the aboveThe Book of Revelation is written in apocalyptic writing. Almost all Bible scholars, theologians and the vast majority of ordinary Christians regard the Book of Revelation as written in apocalyptic symbolic language. There are a few who disagree, but their arguments fall down after the most basic scrutiny. Much in Revelation is so symbolic that whole books have been written about the symbols therein. As one simple example, the 'Number of the Beast 666' has fueled countless websites claiming to have solved the riddle, many books some serious and some total rubbish, and quite a few films too.

The quote "dead seriously literal" above is not accepted by almost all Christians and never has been throughout history. Whilst the underlying account contains absolute truth, the vision seen in Revelation is necessary to be seen as symbolic as it does not describe a particular style of warfare or a particular method by which the world will end. Nor does it describe heaven in the sense we would know it. Many have interpreted the account there in different ways. The above description of armageddon as a 'nuclear war' is typical of the twentieth century where the real possibility of nuclear war ending the world was rife. In the early 20th Century the Jehovah's Witnesses predicted with certainty (they were wrong!) that the world would end because of the Great War 1914-1918 based on these same Revelation symbols. In previous centuries the Napoleonic wars, the Reformation, the 100 years' War etc have all been cited as the symbolic war used in Revelation as the end of the world. Yet we are still here. What IS certain is that we do not know, and never will know, the time of the end. Only God the Father knows that as scripture confirms.

As to the actual meanings of the symbols, it is almost impossible to say in a brief answer to the question. I suggest you get a good Bible commentary on Revelation (the Tyndale commentaries are a good place to start) and read through with a Bible at hand, preferably a modern translation to start (say, the NIV) and you can find out the symbolic nature and apocalypric nature of Revelation for yourself.