“Interpretive Approaches to the Book of Revelation,” Liahona, Dec. 2023, United States and Canada Section.
New Testament in Context
Interpretive Approaches to the Book of Revelation
We can benefit from reading John’s revelation in various ways.
The book of Revelation is unique in the New Testament. It does not focus on the narrative details of Jesus Christ’s mortal ministry, as the four Gospels do. Nor does it illustrate the difficult circumstances faced by the early Christian Church, as the epistles do. Rather, the book of Revelation presents something more familiar to readers of modern epic fantasy: A dragon torments the earth. A beast rises out of the sea. Chaos and destruction are rampant. Hope begins to fade—until a rider on a white horse comes forth and conquers the dragon, bringing peace and prosperity to the land.
So, how is a faithful, 21st-century reader of the book of Revelation supposed to find meaning and application in a book that resists easy interpretation?
Different Modern Approaches
First and foremost, you will have greater success in understanding the book of Revelation by praying for the spirit of prophecy and revelation. Doctrine and Covenants 77, a revelation in which Joseph Smith received insight from the Lord about the setting and many of the symbols present in the book of Revelation, should also be part of your study.
In addition, it may be helpful to understand how the book of Revelation is variously interpreted by readers and scholars today. Generally, approaches to the book of Revelation’s intended context and meaning have fallen roughly into four categories. Each of them has strengths and weaknesses:
1. The book of Revelation is a symbolic recounting of history. In this tradition, the images and symbols of the book of Revelation are seen as aligning with key people and events from the beginning of the Christian Church up until the Second Coming. The problem with this approach is that it is often conjectural, based largely upon whichever historical persons or events the interpreter chooses to focus on. And readers must often change or alter their interpretations as time passes without the return of Jesus Christ. While this approach was particularly popular during the centuries preceding the 20th century, it has largely fallen out of favor now.
2. The scope of the book of Revelation is limited to the first century AD. This approach sees the events and symbols in the book of Revelation as applying strictly to the Christian Church during the first century of its existence. The advantage of this reading is it keeps the focus on first-century Christians and on the fact that the message of the book is intended for them. But the primary drawback of the approach is that it may lead people to think the book of Revelation is just an artifact of history rather than what it is: living scripture from which to draw relevant spiritual lessons today.
3. The majority of the events of the book of Revelation have yet to be realized. This perspective suggests that most of the events described in the book of Revelation will be fulfilled in the future. It believes the book is giving a chronology of events—but for the future rather than the past. Readers can get a clear timeline of future events by piecing together the clues strewn throughout the book. Futurists tend toward a more literal interpretation of events and figures in the book of Revelation. A strength of this approach is that it keeps the reader continually invested in the events of Revelation—they could happen tomorrow! In Nephi’s vision recorded in 1 Nephi 11–14, he is told by an angel that John would “write concerning the end of the world” (1 Nephi 14:22), so part of the book of Revelation must deal with future events. A drawback of this approach is that it removes the book of Revelation almost completely from its first-century context and readers risk missing some of the meaning John intended his immediate audience to receive.
4. The book of Revelation is an allegory for the battle between good and evil. This perspective reads the book of Revelation not as referring to specific past or future events but as an allegory for the contest between Jesus Christ and Satan, between the righteous and the wicked, between the Church of the Lamb and the church of the devil. In this view, the book of Revelation is intended to support certain ideals: that Jesus Christ triumphs, that the righteous will be supported, that the wicked will be punished. The events described in the book of Revelation are an allegorical vehicle for those larger principles. A strength of this approach is that choosing between good and evil applies to anyone in any time period. A weakness is that readers might miss signs or symbols that are intended to refer to specific events or time periods.
The Second Coming, by Harry Anderson
Three Things to Keep in Mind as You Read the Book of Revelation
Many readers (myself included) find themselves adopting parts of each of these approaches. I believe this approach aligns best with what modern scripture and revelation have revealed about understanding the book of Revelation (see Doctrine and Covenants 77, for instance). The book defies any easy categorization and rewards readers who are open to applying different lenses of interpretation. An approach that works well in Revelation 5 may not be as helpful in Revelation 11.
As readers explore different ways of reading the book of Revelation, I would recommend keeping three things in mind.
1. Always remember the first words of the book: “The Revelation of John, a servant of God, which was given unto him of Jesus Christ.”1
This book is about the Savior. Every symbol, every story, reveals something to us about Jesus Christ. He is the Lamb who brings peace to His people, and He is the figure dressed in red who brings destruction to the enemy. He is the Bridegroom who remains ever faithful to His bride and to God, who sits upon His throne.
The Greek word that is translated as “Revelation” in the title of the book is apocalypsis, which means “to unveil” or “to reveal.” That is precisely what John is doing for his readers—pulling back the veil and revealing to us who Jesus Christ really is. The name Jesus appears rather sparingly in the book of Revelation (around a dozen times), but His influence, His importance, lies behind every verse.
2. Keep in mind the statement by Joseph Smith that the book of Revelation “is one of the plainest books God ever caused to be written.”2
One of the pitfalls readers of the book of Revelation can sometimes encounter is the frustration that comes from a sense that they are not understanding what is happening, as symbol after symbol seems to take them further and further from any kind of actual applicable meaning. But Joseph Smith reminds us that the book of Revelation is a “plain” book, one whose meaning is meant to be clear.
I often tell my students that I can summarize the book of Revelation briefly: “The Savior Jesus Christ wins!” Begin by reading it with that thought in mind. When you run into a symbol or a story that appears confusing, ask yourself how it informs your understanding of Jesus Christ’s victory. This may not answer all of your questions, but it will help you build an important framework.
Elder Bruce R. McConkie (1915–1985) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught that “the common notion that [the book of Revelation] deals with beasts and plagues and mysterious symbolisms that cannot be understood is just not true” and added that “most of the book … is clear and plain and should be understood by the Lord’s people.” Yes, there are certain images and symbols that are harder to decipher than others, but that “does not mean that we could not understand them if we would grow in faith as we should.”3 In other words, don’t be intimidated by the book of Revelation—it may be a wrestle, but it’s a worthwhile one!
3. Always strive to read the book of Revelation with the Spirit and an open mind.
It is certainly tempting, as many have done, to take all the descriptive imagery of animals and numbers and events and try to pin all these symbols down to specifics, as if sleuthing the hidden meaning behind the number three-and-a-half will provide the reader with secret information that remains hidden from the masses.
But the beauty of a book like the book of Revelation is that its pervasive symbols, numbers, and events can lead to a variety of valid and useful interpretations, especially as we pray for the Spirit and bring into our study important tools such as 1 Nephi 11–14, Doctrine and Covenants 77, and the Joseph Smith Translation. Perhaps one person reads John’s narrative of the Lamb and the dragon as representing the historical battle between Zion and Babylon that has waged from the earliest pages of the Bible. Another finds in John’s writings a prediction of the Second Coming and Jesus Christ’s inevitable conquest and discovers hope in an ever-darkening world. At the same time, a third finds personal application in learning possible ways to overcome the adversary in his or her daily struggle with agency. The remarkable thing about the book of Revelation is that all three have found productive and insightful ways to read as they are led by the Holy Spirit.
The Prophet Joseph Smith explained that “whenever God gives a vision of an image, or beast, or figure of any kind, he always holds himself responsible to give a revelation or interpretation of the meaning thereof, otherwise we are not responsible or accountable for our belief in it.”4 As we open the book of Revelation and begin our study of it, God will assist us as we strive to glean further light and knowledge from John’s remarkable vision.
The book of Revelation has much of value to teach us. May we each find inspired meaning and deeper application as we prayerfully work through this emotionally stirring and spiritually stimulating text.