John, to the seven churches which are in Asia; Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, (5) and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, (6) and has made us kings and priests to his God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. (7) Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. (8) “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

Revelation was written by the apostle John who was the last remaining apostle on this earth. John was exiled by the Romans to the island of Patmos which was a penal colony for political prisoners. Revelation means unveiling or disclosure – the translation of this Greek word for apocalypse – and uses symbolic language throughout. Christ Jesus was the giver of this revelation of God to John and is its main subject. This book deals mainly with future events and stresses the continuity of God’s sovereign dealing with humankind. The theme of the book is the ultimate victory of Christ over all His enemies and the establishment of His earthly kingdom. The climatic event in Revelation is the return of Christ at His second coming.

Jesus Christ is the faithful witness or the great prophet who knows everything to come and knows it perfectly. Christ is the first one to be resurrected and today is still the only one to be resurrected. We are not speaking of a spiritual myth but an historic person who lived over 2000 years ago and lives today. This book offers in some way or another to open up those secrets of God which are yet hidden in the future and points to a consummation of all things to a time when the kingdom of God shall be finally and completely established. In Christ’s earthly life He is the “faithful witness.” In His death on the cross He has washed us from our sins by His blood and given the believers access to God as priests. The stress of the book rests on Israel who rejected Him but also on all, for all have hand in the crucifixion of Christ. All the affairs of the earth are within the control of the almighty one. The coming again of Christ is glorious for the people of God but a tragedy for unbelievers.

Alpha and omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet and signify here God’s comprehensive control over all things, including time. He is the originator and terminator of all things. He is the almighty. Revelation points to the main event, the return of Jesus Christ at His second coming. The book also presents the triune God is the Lord of time (past, present and future) faithful to His promises and powerful enough to bring these events to pass. This last book of the Bible stresses these qualities of God as does the first book.

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