Revelation, << REHV uh LAY shuhn, >> Book of, is the last book of the New Testament. It is also known as the Apocalypse, from a Greek word that is translated as revelation. The book was written by a man named John while he was in exile on the island of Patmos in the Aegean Sea, probably about A.D. 95. Many scholars believe that this was not the apostle John, but another person of that name.
The Book of Revelation is an example of apocalyptic literature. The only other example of this type of literature in the Bible is the Book of Daniel. Like other apocalyptic literature, Revelation is addressed to people undergoing persecution. It encourages them to withstand the persecution, principally by predicting the rapidly approaching end of the world, when God will rescue them by destroying the powers of evil. The author presented this prediction in symbolic language. To the original readers of the book, the meaning of these symbols was clear. To modern readers the symbols seem obscure, and close study is required to understand the original meaning of the book.
