What’s the Book of Revelation All About?

The book of Revelation is not a prophecy about the future, so what is it all about? Why is it important to know this?

[juliachildress]

Very powerful and important message. It's hard to overstate the fear and trauma I suffered as a child from the hellfire and damnation preaching of our southern Baptist preachers. It makes me so angry that preachers with the even larger pulpits of the internet and television are terrifying even greater numbers today.

[SheikhN-bible-syndrome]

My mom locked me up as a kid in the woods hiding waiting for god to come back, i ran away when i got old enough and im still dealing with problems from how she raised me as an end times nut job

[boblyle]

Just finished reading Bart Ehrman’s new book “Armageddon”. This is a good synopsis of his thesis!

[Agryphos]

NT: we are dreaming of a world where God destroys the subjugating boot of this age and we live in oneness with God

Revelation: but what if we get to BE the boot?

[koolaidserpent]

Revelation was a huge part of my time in the church in the 80s and 90s. Our youth group showing the series, Thief in the Night, as a movie night. Traumatic imagery and horrific rhetoric from the pulpit. I recently was told that a lot of that 70s and 80s apocalyptic focus on revelation was sparked by a book called, the late great planet earth by Hal Lindsey and Carla/Carole Carlson. I haven't personally read this book. But according to the extensive internet research I've watched on tiktok and YouTube, it was a major contributor to my childhood trauma. Lol.

Great work Dan. I love your insights into these subjects.

[talkofchrist]

This could be the most powerful, moving, and thoughtful video I have seen by Dan so far. And I watch hundreds of his videos. This one really makes me think.

[MsFitz]

The final message was so powerful. Fantastic video.

[matejoh]

How dare you...tell the truth. Good stuff, Dan!

[robbymillsap]

Great job Dan! The best summary of Revelation I've ever heard. If you look at how evangelicals are selling "end times preparedness" as a product it's not hard to see why this modern interpretation gained popularity.

[timothyshaw]

I truly appreciate your comments regarding which groups are/are not being persecuted. Thank you.

[stephencalvird]

Big fan of your videos Dan! Would you ever do a critique of Richard Carrier's On the Historicity of Jesus?

[mikepolioudakis]

My one little up vote is not enough. Really useful and understandable summary of the history and present issues around Revelations. I hope this video gets many views. Mike

[jenna]

The first book I read as a newly minted Christian and impressionable teenager in 1972 was The Late Great Planet Earth, which is basically Hal Lindsay's amplification of the narrative of Revelation. That scared the living crap out of me. 'Then I saw Rev 1:1 - where it says "SIGNIFIED." So it's not much different from Dicken's scathing social comment of The Christian Carol. (Which nobody understands that it shows that the British elitist society DID turn things around at the end of that story in the person of the transformed Scrooge.)

[hoytoy]

After deep meditation on that book, I determined that it is the ranting of a madman.

[xaayer]

I'm halfway through Bart Ehrman's book Armageddon. It's such a fantastic read. So succinct and clear with a good bit of wit sprinkled throughout. This video is such a lovely sort of Cliff Notes or addendum to his book as well as to the proper way to approach Revelation (and apocalyptic literature in general) in an intellectually honest way.

[paulvanbeurden]

Revelation by the word by Our Lord Jesus Christ He is Alpha and Omega
The Almighty.

[Cor]

Preach! How I wish every pastor and priest would steal your every word and make it their next Sunday sermon!

[JBFJBFJBF]

I am definitely one of those people who was really affected by Revelations growing up. Heck, I still am. I am having a hard time with your reasoning that it isn't like the rest of the New Testament though, because Jesus specifically makes references to how the poor and oppressed will get a great "reward in heaven" and that the evil will be sorted and thrown into the fire. Any branch that doesn't bare good fruit will the thrown away and all that. Could you further explain how these promises that Jesus made about the future don't align with the book of Revelation? Because in my eyes it's always seemed uncomfortably cohesive with rest of the new testament Canon (especially Romans 9)

[jameschapman]

Christian's have been waiting for the return of Christ for about 2000 years. The early apostles thought Jesus would return in their life time. Grew up in the south east as a Fundamentalist Christian and many Christians have a persecution complex that is all in their heads.

[nedsantos]

"In some ways, it's a fantasy."