The Bible, as we have it today, came into being over a period of time.
First of all, the early church recognised that the writings of the apostles like Paul, Peter and John should be added to the books of the Old Testament. It still took around 300 years before there was a clear consensus as to what should be included in the final “Bible”. The list of what could be counted as scripture was called the “canon”.
In the 405 verses of Revelation, there are 676 different allusions to the Old Testament, even though there is not one single direct quotation! Here they are— broken down by book
- Isaiah – 128 times
- Psalms – 99 times
- Ezekiel – 92 times
- Daniel – 82 times
- Exodus – 53 time
Why Should Reading Revelation Be so Difficult?
The book of Revelation claims to “lift the lid” on what is really happening in our world. An “apocalypse” simply means an “uncovering”. A bit like wondering what’s for lunch, and not being sure until the cook lifts the lid. But there are lids – and lids!
Cars are becoming ever more complex. People used to do their own car maintenance. They don’t anymore. If you open the bonnet of your car, it looks hopelessly confusing. Try reading a maintenance manual, and it gets more complex still. Just as opening the bonnet of a modern car needs a whole new understanding, so reading Revelation requires background knowledge if we are to make sense of it. We cannot just read it off the page like a newspaper. That background is what we want to provide in sermons and home-groups this autumn.