- [Jon] It's the end of the world.
The moon turns to blood,
mountains crumble, mutant locus swarm.
These are just some of the strange images we find
in parts of the Bible called apocalyptic.
- [Tim] And while most people think
the Biblical word "apocalypse" means the end of the world,
it actually doesn't mean that at all.
- [Jon] So let's talk about
how to read apocalyptic literature in the Bible.
So wait, the apocalypse doesn't mean the end of the world?
- [Tim] No, "apocalypse" is a Greek word
that means "to uncover or reveal."
An apocalypse is when you suddenly see the true nature
of something that you couldn't see before.
- [Jon] Because I don't always see things
the way they really are.
- [Tim] Right, we all develop familiar ways
of seeing the world that can limit or blur our vision.
- [Jon] So an apocalypse is like a revelation.
- [Tim] Right. Now in the Bible,
an apocalypse is when God pulls back the curtain
to show someone what's really going on in the world
from a divine perspective. - [Jon] For example?
- [Tim] Take Isaiah the prophet.
He's suddenly transported in a vision
into God's throne room.
- [Jon] Oh right, he's in God's temple,
described as a bridge between Heaven and Earth.
- [Tim] And there, God gives him a divine perspective
on Israel's past, present, and their future.
- [Jon] So that Isaiah can bring challenge
and comfort to God's people in his own day.
- [Tim] Or think about the apostle Paul
who was trying to stop the movement of Jesus,
but then he gets stopped in his tracks
by a vision of the risen Jesus himself.
- [Jon] Yeah, he realizes that he's fighting
against the very thing that he's been hoping for,
and it changes the course of his life.
- [Tim] So these apocalypses give people
a heavenly perspective on their earthly situation,
and they can give hope or they can challenge you.
- [Jon] Or make you change everything.
- [Tim] Now, those are Biblical stories
about people having an apocalypse.
There are also whole sections of biblical books
where a prophet describes extended apocalyptic dreams
and visions. People call this apocalyptic literature.
- [Jon] And reading these dreams
and visions is difficult.
I mean, they're filled with strange images.
Like, let's take Daniel.
He sees ferocious beasts coming up out of a dark sea,
trampling people on the land.
And then a character called the Son of Man is exalted
to rule the world.
What is going on?
- [Tim] Yeah, apocalyptic literature is written
in a poetic, imaginative style,
and it's packed with symbolism.
- [Jon] How can I know what these symbols mean?
- [Tim] Well, first by studying the rest of your Bible.
Apocalyptic imagery is based on Biblical design patterns
that begin in the book of Genesis
and then develop throughout the Bible,
like the chaotic sea in the first sentences of the Bible
that God tames but doesn't eliminate as he orders creation.
And so the sea becomes an image of danger,
death, and cosmic chaos.
- [Jon] And the dry land, which comes out of the sea,
is the safe, ordered place where humans are supposed
to rule as God's image.
- [Tim] Yes, and also on the land are beasts
that humans are supposed to oversee, but keep reading
and the humans are deceived by a beast.
- [Jon] And start acting like violent beasts.
- [Tim] Exactly. Now sometimes a prophet
will tell you what a symbol means.
Like in Daniel, we're told those beasts
symbolize violent human kingdoms.
But more often, the authors just assume you know how
to trace an image through the Biblical story
to understand its meaning.
- [Jon] Now let's look at the last book of the Bible,
the Revelation, because it's one really long vision.
The whole thing is an apocalypse.
- [Tim] Yeah, and it works the same way.
It begins with John the visionary transported
to God's throne room where he sees the risen Jesus
as the exalted king of the world.
- [Jon] But Jesus is depicted as a bloody lamb.
- [Tim] Right, it's a design pattern,
showing how Jesus is the sacrificial lamb
from Israel's Passover and from the Day of Atonement.
He gave his life for the sins of the world.
And then John sees the ultimate beastly dragon,
that spiritual power that energizes violent earthly empires,
it's cast out by Jesus, the world's true king.
- [Jon] Yeah, now that reminds me,
when I read the Revelation,
I'm struck by all this cosmic destruction and violence.
I mean, it happens over and over and over.
- [Tim] Yeah, in the Revelation
there are three seven-part cycles of God's judgment.
And it's another design pattern that connects together
the stories of the flood, the 10 plagues on Egypt,
and the exile to Babylon, and even more.
These are moments when humans unleash so much violence
and death into the world
that God hands them over to self-destruction.
It's like a reversal of creation in Genesis 1,
as God allows the world and humans
to sink back to darkness and disorder.
- That's sobering. - It is.
But remember, in Genesis 1 God overcame darkness and chaos
with his light and life, and so, too, in the Revelation.
The death of Jesus and the death of the world as we know it
is the pathway into the renewed creation
that began with the resurrection of Jesus.
- [Jon] And so while the Revelation feels
like the end of the world,
- [Tim] It's actually about the beginning
of the renewed world where Heaven and Earth are reunited
and God's human images rule all creation
in the love and power of God.
- [Jon] Okay, this is a lot to take in.
- [Tim] It is, and there's a lot in these books
that is still hard to understand,
but the purpose of apocalyptic is really clear
to give us a heavenly perspective
on our earthly circumstances
so that every generation of God's people can be challenged,
comforted, and given hope for the future.
- [Jon] All right, we did it.
In this series on how to read the Bible,
we looked at all the styles of writing in the Bible:
narrative, poetry, discourse.
- [Tim] And we learned how to read
all of the main sections of the Bible.
- [Jon] This is sophisticated and beautiful literature,
and I can see why the Bible is one
of the most influential books in human history.
- [Tim] Yes, every part fits into the unified story
that leads to Jesus.
And it invites us into a lifetime of reading and meditation.
There's a whole new world
just waiting to be discovered in your Bible.
(laid back music)