Program / Course 7: New Testament Theology and History / Lesson 7.2
What you will learn
- Describe the four main ways of reading apocalyptic texts: preterist, futurist, historicist and idealist.
- Explain the three main views of the millennium in Revelation 20: premillennial, amillennial and postmillennial.
- Define the rapture and tribulation views and their origins.
- Compare how Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant churches teach about the end.
The big idea
Christians agree that Christ will return, the dead will be raised, and God will judge and renew all things. They disagree about how to read the texts that describe the end, especially Mark 13, 1 Thessalonians 4, 2 Thessalonians 2 and Revelation. Some see these as fulfilled in the first century, some as describing a future time, some as describing the whole sweep of church history, and some as symbols of spiritual realities that recur. Views of the millennium in Revelation 20 form a separate debate. Understanding the options lets a reader judge with care and speak fairly of others.
Key terms
- Preterist
- From Latin for past. A reading that holds that much of the prophecy of Mark 13 and Revelation was fulfilled in the first century, especially in the fall of Jerusalem.
- Futurist
- A reading that holds that most prophecies of Revelation 4 to 22 describe events yet to come, shortly before the return of Christ.
- Historicist
- A reading that sees Revelation as a map of the history of the church from the first century to the end. It was common among Reformation Protestants.
- Idealist (or symbolic)
- A reading that sees Revelation as expressing timeless truths about the struggle of good and evil, with no particular timeline.
- Millennium
- From Latin for a thousand years. Revelation 20:1 to 6 speaks of a thousand-year reign of Christ and his saints.
- Rapture
- A word from the Latin of 1 Thessalonians 4:17 (rapiemur, caught up). In dispensational teaching, the secret taking of believers to meet Christ before a period of tribulation.
- Tribulation
- A period of great suffering before the end, mentioned in Mark 13:19 and developed in Revelation.
Background
Apocalyptic writing, such as Daniel and Revelation, uses visions, symbols and numbers. It does not give a plain timetable, and reading it requires judgments about genre. Ancient Jewish apocalypses were written to comfort the faithful under oppression. Revelation does the same for Christians under Roman pressure, using images such as a beast, a harlot and a lamb.
The church has read these texts differently from the beginning. Early writers such as Justin and Irenaeus taught a literal thousand-year kingdom on earth after the resurrection. Origen read many such texts spiritually. Augustine, in The City of God, set out a view in which the thousand years refers to the present age of the church, which became standard in the Catholic and later in the Reformation churches. Modern movements have revived other readings.
Step-by-step explanation
Step 1: Four ways of reading prophecy
The preterist reading holds that Jesus’ predictions in Mark 13 mostly concern the siege of Jerusalem in 70 AD. Partial preterists accept a future coming of Christ as well. Full preterists, a small group, say all prophecy has been fulfilled, which the historic churches reject. For Revelation, preterists point out that the book was written to its first readers and uses Roman imagery, such as the beast whose number 666 may stand for Nero (the Hebrew letters of Nero Caesar add up to 666 in some manuscripts, while others read 616).
The futurist reading takes most of Revelation after the letters to the seven churches as concerning events at the end. The historicist reading, held by Luther, Calvin and many in their age, saw the book as tracing the history of the church and identified the beast with the papacy, a view Catholics rejected and most Protestants have since given up. The idealist reading sees the book as describing the permanent conflict of the church with evil and the triumph of the Lamb, without a fixed scheme. Many interpreters combine elements.
Step 2: Views of the millennium
Revelation 20 describes Satan bound for a thousand years, the faithful dead reigning with Christ, and a final rebellion and judgment. Premillennialists hold that Christ will return before the thousand years and reign on earth, an idea found in Justin, Irenaeus and in many Protestants today. Historic premillennialists place the return after the tribulation. Amillennialists, such as Augustine and most Catholic, Orthodox and Reformed writers, take the thousand years as symbolic of the present age between Christ’s first and second coming, so that there is no future earthly kingdom. Postmillennialists, common among Puritans and nineteenth-century evangelicals, expect the gospel to spread until a golden age comes, after which Christ returns.
Each view appeals to Revelation 20 and related texts. The debate is mostly among Protestants, as the Catholic and Orthodox churches have held the amillennial view. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (676) rejects forms of millenarianism that foresee an earthly triumph of the church before the end.
Step 3: The rapture and dispensationalism
In the nineteenth century, John Nelson Darby and the Plymouth Brethren taught dispensationalism: God deals with Israel and the church in different ages, and before a seven-year tribulation, believers will be raptured to meet Christ in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17). The teaching spread widely through the Scofield Reference Bible and in popular books and films, and it shapes the outlook of many American evangelicals, including their views of modern Israel.
Critics, including most Catholic, Orthodox, Reformed and Lutheran scholars, as well as many evangelicals, argue that the New Testament speaks of a single coming of Christ and that the idea of a secret rapture before the tribulation is not found in the text and was unknown before the 1800s. Defenders reply that it follows from a literal reading of the prophetic texts and the distinction of Israel and the church. The disagreement is real and affects church life.
Step 4: What the churches share
Beneath the differences, the creeds speak with one voice: Christ will come again to judge the living and the dead, the dead will rise, and there will be life of the world to come. Churches differ on details such as the nature of the intermediate state, purgatory, and the fate of the lost, which are beyond the scope of this lesson.
A reader may use several rules. Read each text in its own literary setting. Recall that apocalyptic images are symbols. Notice that Jesus refused to give dates. Test any reading against the whole of Scripture, and be modest about claims. The history of failed predictions, such as those of William Miller in 1844, shows the danger of confident timetables.
- Which of the four ways of reading prophecy seems best suited to Mark 13, and which to Revelation?
- What are the strengths and weaknesses of reading Revelation as written to its first readers?
- How does Augustine’s view of the millennium differ from that of Justin or Irenaeus?
- Why might the idea of a rapture before the tribulation be appealing, and what are the objections?
- How does your church speak about the end, and which reading does that implicitly follow?
- What do the creeds affirm that all readings share?
Examples
The number of the beast
Revelation 13:18 gives 666 as the number of the beast, ‘the number of a man.’ Some manuscripts read 616. Preterist interpreters suggest the letters of Nero’s name, while futurists expect a future figure and some idealists see a symbol of human power set against God. The same verse supports different readings.
Failed predictions
In 1844 the preacher William Miller and many followers expected Christ’s return on a certain date, and the disappointment is remembered as the Great Disappointment. Groups that later emerged, such as the Seventh-day Adventists, reinterpreted the event. Such episodes caution against fixing dates.
Liturgy and the end
Every Sunday most churches say in the creed, ‘He shall come again with glory to judge the quick and the dead.’ This steady affirmation is a form of eschatology that does not depend on any single reading of Revelation.
Different perspectives
Catholic view
The Catholic Church holds the amillennial view in practice, teaching that the reign of Christ is realized in the church, and rejects millenarianism. It teaches the second coming, the resurrection of the body, the final judgment and the new creation. Catholic scholars read Revelation as addressed to its first readers and also as speaking to every age.
Orthodox view
The Orthodox Church does not read Revelation in its regular liturgy and has historically been cautious about speculation. It teaches the second coming, the general resurrection and the judgment, and has generally been amillennial. Icons of the Last Judgment are central in churches.
Protestant view
Protestants hold all the views described. Lutherans, Reformed and Anglicans tend toward amillennialism, Baptists and many evangelicals toward premillennialism, with dispensationalism strong in some circles. Postmillennialism has had a smaller following since the twentieth century. Protestants agree on the return of Christ and differ on the rest.
Scholarly view
Most biblical scholars read Revelation primarily in light of its first-century setting and genre, and see in it a message for persecuted churches. They debate the date, the identity of the beast and the extent to which the book is a prediction of the distant future.
Why it matters
Ideas about the end shape how Christians relate to politics, war, the natural world and each other. Some readings have fed calm confidence, others fear or violence, and others disappointment. Knowing the options helps a student to read these texts with humility and to understand the beliefs of neighbors.
Common misunderstandings
Misunderstanding: Only one reading of Revelation is faithful.
Correction: Faithful Christians in all traditions have held different readings. The creeds fix the main hope and leave the details open.
Misunderstanding: The rapture is a long-standing teaching of the whole church.
Correction: The idea of a pretribulation rapture arose in the nineteenth century. 1 Thessalonians 4:17 speaks of being caught up to meet the Lord, which most churches understand as part of the Lord’s one coming.
Misunderstanding: A symbolic reading of Revelation means it is not true.
Correction: Symbolic language can carry truths. Idealist and other readings hold that the book teaches real realities, such as the victory of Christ, through images.
Misunderstanding: Calculating the date of the end is a sign of faith.
Correction: Jesus said that no one knows the day or hour, and repeated attempts to set dates have failed.
Knowledge check
Name the four main ways of reading prophetic books like Revelation.
Preterist, which sees most prophecy as fulfilled in the first century; futurist, which sees it as yet to come; historicist, which sees it as a map of church history; and idealist, which sees it as symbolic of recurring spiritual conflict. Many interpreters combine them.
What are the three main views of the millennium?
Premillennial: Christ returns before a thousand-year reign. Amillennial: the thousand years is the present age of the church, with no future earthly kingdom. Postmillennial: the gospel will bring a golden age before Christ returns. Catholic and Orthodox churches have held the amillennial view.
What is the rapture?
In dispensational teaching, the taking up of believers to meet Christ before a period of tribulation, based on 1 Thessalonians 4:17. Most churches see that verse as part of Christ’s single coming, and the pretribulation form dates from the nineteenth century.
What does the number 666 illustrate?
It illustrates how one text can support different readings. Preterists connect it to Nero, futurists to a future leader, and idealists to the pattern of human power opposed to God. Some manuscripts read 616.
What do all the churches affirm about the end?
That Christ will come again to judge the living and the dead, that the dead will be raised, and that God will bring a new creation. These affirmations are in the creeds and are accepted by Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant churches.
Think it through
- Which reading of the end did you absorb growing up, and where did it come from?
- How should a Christian respond to someone who claims to know the date of Christ’s return?
- What comfort does the vision of Revelation give to those who suffer?
- How could a church hold different views of the millennium while staying united?
Independent assignment
One passage, four readings
In your own notebook, write 350 to 500 words. Choose Mark 13:14 to 27 or Revelation 20:1 to 6. Summarize the passage, then in four short paragraphs show how a preterist, a futurist, a historicist and an idealist might each explain it. Finish with a paragraph on what the passage most plainly says. Do not send this to anyone.
Further study
- Augustine of Hippo, The City of God Read selectively in Book 20 for Augustine’s reading of Revelation 20.
- Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church Read the sections on the final judgment and the hope of the new heaven and earth.
- Westminster Assembly, The Westminster Confession of Faith Read the chapters on the last judgment and on the resurrection.
- Irenaeus of Lyon, Against Heresies Read Book 5, the last chapters, for an early premillennial view.
- Revelation 20:4 The thousand years.
- Mark 13:30 This generation shall not pass.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:17 Caught up together to meet the Lord.