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II I
EXEGETICAL
AN
COMMENTARY
Kenneth Barker, General Editor
Robert L. Thomas
Commentaries ISBN: . 0-8024-9265-7
ON 1-7
EXEGETICAL
AN
COMMENTARY
Kenneth Barker, General Editor
.R obert L. Thomas
MOODY PRESS
CHICAGO
© 1992 by
ROBERT L. THOMAS
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form
without permission in writing from the publisher, except in the case of
brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are the author's
translation.
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Thomas, Robert L., 1928-
Revelation 1-7 I Robert L. Thomas.
p. em.
Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
ISBN 0-8024-9265-7
1. Bible. N.T. Revelation !-VII-Commentaries. I. Title. II. Series.
BS2825.3T46 1992
228' .07-dc20 91-45740
CIP
13579108642
Printed in the United States of America
Dedicated to
my children,
Barbara
Bob
Jon
Mark
Mike,
five overcomers whose faith in Christ has been a great encouragement
Written especially for the informed layman, student, and scholar,
all exegesis and exposition is based on the original languages of the
Bible books. Translations used are those of the author. Textual crit
icism and word study are included where appropriate.
This in-depth commentary also includes extended excursuses on
important topics of theological, historical, and archaeological interest.
The text is interpreted according to a historical, critical, gram
matical hermeneutic and propounds a conservative, evangelical the
ology. But the reader will not get a narrow view of problem passages.
This commentary interacts with a range of major views, both evan
gelical and nonevangelical.
General Editor
Kenneth L. Barker (B.A., Northwestern College; Th.M., Dallas Theo
logical Seminary; Ph.D., Dropsie College for Hebrew and Cognate
Learning) is executive director of the NIV Translation Center (a min
istry of the International Bible Society) in Lewisville, Texas, and
former academic dean and professor of Old Testament literature and
exegesis at Capital Bible Seminary, Lanham, Maryland.
Special Editor
Moises Silva (B.A., Bob Jones University; Ph.D., University of Man
chester, England; B.D., Th.M., Westminster Theological Seminary) is
chairman of the New Testament department and professor of New
Testament at Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia.
REVELATION
Through the centuries since its writing, the book of Revelation
has captured the fascination of the Christian church. Ea:rrliest Chris
tians were unanimous in understanding its prophecies as descrip
tions of events surrounding the premillennial second advent of Jesus
Christ, but alongside their exclusively futuristic and premillennial
view other hermeneutical approaches to the book began to emerge in
the third century. These clouded, and added complexity to, the task of
explaining the book's meaning. For most of the Christian era, conse
quently, many readers have viewed this last of the NT writings as
though it were hopelessly embedded in an aura of deep mystery. An
avalanche of interpretive literature has evidenced remarkable in
terest in the book's contents, but along with the interest has come
widespread bewilderment.
In post-Reformation times detailed commentaries on the Greek
text of Revelation from a futurist and premillennial perspective have
been scarce and perhaps even nonexistent. This first of two volumes
commences the filling of that void with its exegetical analysis of the
first seven chapters of the Apocalypse. It reaffirms the basic frame
work of eschatology espoused by ancient Christianity, but with added
help from centuries of maturing thought and doctrinal progress in
the Body of Christ.
About the author
Robert L. Thomas (B.M.E., Georgia Institute of Technology; Th.M.,
Th.D., Dallas Theological Seminary) is professor of New Testament
language and literature at The Master's Seminary, Sun Valley, Cal
ifornia. He has written Understanding Spiritual Gifts and "1, 2 Thes
salonians" in the Expositor's Bible Commentary and has edited A
Harmony of the Gospels (NASB) and The NIV Harmony of the Gospels.
He is also general editor of the New American Standard Exhaustive
Concordance.
Table of Contents
General Editor's Introduction x1
Preface xiii
Abbreviations xv
Selected Bibliography xvii
Introduction to the Commentary 1
Authorship of the Apocalypse 2
Dionysius of Alexandria 2
Personal background 2
Dionysius's case against apostolic authorship 3
Summary of Dionysius's evidence 8
Principles derived from examining Dionysius 10
Additional Evidence for Apostolic Authorship 11
Vocabulary 11
Syntax 13
Style 15
Concepts 16
Differences Between the Apocalypse and John's
Other Writings 17
Date of the Apocalypse 20
Prophetic Style of the Apocalypse 23
vii
Table of Contents
Hermeneutics for Interpreting the Apocalypse 29
Language of the Apocalypse 39
Other Scripture in the Apocalypse 40
Text of the Apocalypse 42
Structure of the Apocalypse 43
Part 1-The Preparation of the Prophet: His Past Vision
(1:1-20) 47
1. The Prologue of the Apocalypse 49
A. Prologue (1: 1-8) 49
1. Preface (1:1-3) 49
2. Address and doxology (1 :4~6) 63
3. Theme (1 :7-8) 76
2. John's Vision of the Glorified Christ 83
B. John's Commission to Write (1 :9-20) 83
1. The first commission to write (1:9-11) 83
2. The source of the commission (1 : 12-16) 96
3. The commission restated and amplified (1: 17 -20) 108
Part 2-The Preparation of the People: Their Present
Condition (2:1-3:22) 123
3. Church of Loveless Orthodoxy 125
A. The Message to Ephesus (2:1-7) 125
4. Church of Martyrdom 157
B. The Message to Smyrna (2:8-11) 157
5. Church of Indiscriminate Tolerance 177
C. The Message to Pergamum (2:12-17) 177
6. Church of Compromise 205
D. The Message to Thyatira (~:-18-29) 205
7. Church of Complacenc~' 239
E. The Message to Sardis (3:1-6) 239
8. Church of Promised Deliverance 269
F. The Message to Philadelphia (3 :7 -13) 269
9. Church of Lukewarmness 295
G. The Message to Laodicea (3:14-22) 295
viii
Description:This volume presents an exegetical analysis of the first seven chapters of the Apocalypse. It reaffirms the basic framework of Eschatology espoused by ancient Christianity but with added perspective of centuries of doctrinal progress in the body of Christ.
