The prologue to this book, similar to that of the
Gospel of John, is a kind of overture, announcing the main themes while providing the readers with a vantage point to interpret the visions that follow. This part shares some features and forms an
inclusio with the epilogue (
Revelation 22:6–
21).
Verse 1 :
The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, • "Revelation" (): or "apocalypse" (cf. , ). This term is used by biblical scholars for a literary genre. The meaning of this Greek word is "to lay bare, make naked, to disclose a truth which before was unknown", or "a manifestation or an appearance of a person" (in this case, the appearance of Jesus Christ; cf. ). • For discussion of the identity of "John", see
Authorship of the Johannine works.
Verse 2 :
Who bore witness to the word of God, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to all things that he saw. • John, who had the last word in the canonical order of the
gospels, also has the last word of the New Testament as he bears witness and testifies to that which he has
seen and
heard, two words which he frequently uses in all genres of his writings to describe a special function in his ministry: his firsthand accounts of the words and works of Christ (
John 21:24, , ). • This is the first of the so called 'seven beatitudes' in the book of Revelation (cf. , ; ; ; ,), which are pronounced on the readers, the hearers (to whom the book are read aloud, according to the custom in the antiquity) and those who heed the message (, ; cf. ). The
number 7 occurs 58 times in The Revelation with its first appearance here in Rev 1:4. • Evangelical
Tom Meyer notes that, like Paul—who is
traditionally said to have written to seven churches (in Thessalonica, Galatia, Corinth, Philippi, Rome, Colossae, Ephesus)—John also writes to seven churches: • "Faithful witness": as Jesus testifies the truth (), to be the model for Christians who died as "witnesses" (; ; ). This is the first of many titles given to the risen Christ in the Book of Revelation, which would remind any reader intimate with the Hebrew Bible of the same title given to YHWH: "the LORD be a true and faithful witness between us" (); thus, John equates the divinity and unity of the Father and the Son who came “to bear witness unto the truth” (). • "Kingdom and priests": are 'the vocation promised to Israel' (; ), which is extended to the church (
1 Peter 2:9).