This is about the general structure of Revelation. First of all, keeps this in mind that throughout John's entire vision, almost 100% of the imagery was borrowed from the Old Testament, but when they're pieced together, what he saw essentially was a worship service in the heavenly temple. Jesus was dressed in high priest's garment, and the angels were priests performing their liturgical duties. If you go back and read those weird bloody rituals in Leviticus, you can see that those were a drill practice of the real thing, the Tabernacle of Meeting was like a movie set, and all the ceremonies instructed for Aaron to do in there was a demonstration of what the angels are doing in heaven, but instead of offering animals, WE the church are the Lord's living sacrifice.
Revelation contains four clear heptads (set of seven): the seven letters, the seven seals, the seven trumpets, and the seven bowls. Jesus as High Priest dictates the seven letters and opens the seven seals to unfold the blessings and curses from the Scroll, then the angels bring forth the judgement through the trumpets and bowls. However, there're also unspecified contents in John's own observation that also come in form of heptads. For a better understanding, they're summarized as seven signs and seven sights:
Seven Signs:
1) the woman clothed in the sun (12:1)
2) the dragon (12:3)
3) Michael and the cosmic war in heaven (12:7-8)
4) the beast from the sea (13:1)
5) the beast from the earth (13:11)
6) the Lamb and the 144,000 (14:1)
7) the three angels and two harvests (14:6-14)
Seven Sights:
1) "I saw" Jesus and "the armies of heaven" (19:11)
2) "I saw an angel standing in the sun" (19:17)
3) "I saw the beast and the kings... and their armies" (19:19)
4) "I saw an angel coming down out of heaven" (20:1)
5) "I saw thrones on which were seated..."/"I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded" (20:4)
6) "I saw a great white throne"/"I saw the dead" (20:11)
7) "I saw a new heaven and a new earth"/ "I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem" (21:1)
And so here is the structure of the movie:
Introduction: 1:1-8
Apostle John‘s Exile in the Island of Patmos
Prologue: 1:9-20, 2-3
Vision of glorified Jesus, seven letters to seven churches - 2000 years of Church age
Opening: 4-5
Throne room in heaven, Jesus as the Lamb exalted and preparing to open the scroll
Act I: 6-11
Seven Seals and Seven Trumpets - **Three and a half years** of Tribulation from heavenly prospective; "Spiritual Sodom and Egypt" is exposed and judged;
Interlude: 12
Transition from heaven to earth: Satan cast out of heaven; Signs 1-3
Act II: 13-19:1-10
Signs 4-7 and Seven Bowls - **Three and a half years** of Tribulation from earthly prospective; "Great Babylon", which is possibly the same as "Spiritual Sodom and Egypt", is exposed and judged. Note: To those who believe in 7-year tribulation, all three mentions in 12-13 of "3.5 years" are the "second half", while the two mentions of "3.5 years" in 11, and possibly the "3.5 days" regarding the resurrection of the Two Witnesses in 11:11 are the "first half". I personally don't believe in that, I think all of those are the same 3.5 years of Great Tribulation, but nevertheless you decide for yourself.
Climax: 19:11-21
Sights 1-4: Seconind Coming and the Final Battle of Armageddon
Ending: 20
Sights 5-6: Millennial Kingdom established, Satan and his worshippers bound, white throne judgement
Epilogue: 21-22:1-5
Sight 7: New heaven and new earth, New Jerusalem
Credit Roll: 22:6-21
Testimony of Christ and farewell address to the Church.
Revelation contains four clear heptads (set of seven): the seven letters, the seven seals, the seven trumpets, and the seven bowls. Jesus as High Priest dictates the seven letters and opens the seven seals to unfold the blessings and curses from the Scroll, then the angels bring forth the judgement through the trumpets and bowls. However, there're also unspecified contents in John's own observation that also come in form of heptads. For a better understanding, they're summarized as seven signs and seven sights:
Seven Signs:
1) the woman clothed in the sun (12:1)
2) the dragon (12:3)
3) Michael and the cosmic war in heaven (12:7-8)
4) the beast from the sea (13:1)
5) the beast from the earth (13:11)
6) the Lamb and the 144,000 (14:1)
7) the three angels and two harvests (14:6-14)
Seven Sights:
1) "I saw" Jesus and "the armies of heaven" (19:11)
2) "I saw an angel standing in the sun" (19:17)
3) "I saw the beast and the kings... and their armies" (19:19)
4) "I saw an angel coming down out of heaven" (20:1)
5) "I saw thrones on which were seated..."/"I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded" (20:4)
6) "I saw a great white throne"/"I saw the dead" (20:11)
7) "I saw a new heaven and a new earth"/ "I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem" (21:1)
And so here is the structure of the movie:
Introduction: 1:1-8
Apostle John‘s Exile in the Island of Patmos
Prologue: 1:9-20, 2-3
Vision of glorified Jesus, seven letters to seven churches - 2000 years of Church age
Opening: 4-5
Throne room in heaven, Jesus as the Lamb exalted and preparing to open the scroll
Act I: 6-11
Seven Seals and Seven Trumpets - **Three and a half years** of Tribulation from heavenly prospective; "Spiritual Sodom and Egypt" is exposed and judged;
Interlude: 12
Transition from heaven to earth: Satan cast out of heaven; Signs 1-3
Act II: 13-19:1-10
Signs 4-7 and Seven Bowls - **Three and a half years** of Tribulation from earthly prospective; "Great Babylon", which is possibly the same as "Spiritual Sodom and Egypt", is exposed and judged. Note: To those who believe in 7-year tribulation, all three mentions in 12-13 of "3.5 years" are the "second half", while the two mentions of "3.5 years" in 11, and possibly the "3.5 days" regarding the resurrection of the Two Witnesses in 11:11 are the "first half". I personally don't believe in that, I think all of those are the same 3.5 years of Great Tribulation, but nevertheless you decide for yourself.
Climax: 19:11-21
Sights 1-4: Seconind Coming and the Final Battle of Armageddon
Ending: 20
Sights 5-6: Millennial Kingdom established, Satan and his worshippers bound, white throne judgement
Epilogue: 21-22:1-5
Sight 7: New heaven and new earth, New Jerusalem
Credit Roll: 22:6-21
Testimony of Christ and farewell address to the Church.
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