Chapter # 1 Paragraph # 1 Study # 2
March 26, 2023
Broadlands, Louisiana
(Download Audio)
1901 ASV
1:1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show unto his servants, [even] the things which must shortly come to pass: and he sent and signified [it] by his angel unto his servant John;
1:2 who bare witness of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, [even] of all things that he saw.
1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of the prophecy, and keep the things that are written therein: for the time is at hand.
- I. The Description Of This Entire Written Record.
- A. "Revelation".
- B. "Of Jesus Christ".
- C. The "time frame" issue.
- 1. The phrase translated "shortly" (en tachei).
- a. Literally means "with speed" (Logos Library System).
- b. There are two ideas involved.
- 1) The idea that, from the current "time", something will "quickly" follow to some future "time". This idea points to the "shortness" of "time" between two points of time; if today is the first "point of time" and the idea is that the next point of time is just a few days later, "shortly" is the right translation.
- 2) The idea that there will only be a brief amount of time from a point of time that is identified by the beginning of an action to the point of time that is identified by the ending of that action, "quickly" is the right translation.
- c. Both ideas ["shortly" or "quickly"] have a "time frame" in mind, but they part company over the issue of the identity of the beginning and ending of the "time frame" involved.
- 1) If "the things" of "The Revelation" are due to come to pass with the present time as the beginning point, then those "things" are due to begin "shortly".
- 2) If "the things" of "The Revelation" are due to follow one upon another in "quick" succession, then, once the first "thing" occurs" there will be no long space of time between the occurrence of all of the rest of "the things".
- d. Both ideas are associated with "relative time". How much time must pass for a thing to be considered "occurring shortly" or to be considered "occurring quickly"? What determines the relativity of the time involved: seconds, minutes, days, years, decades, or centuries as they are compared to other (similar) intervals? A thing done in a century is done far more quickly than the same thing done in four millennia. A thing that is to be done after the passing of a "week" is considered to be done relatively quickly if the thing is to be done several millennia later than it was announced to be "done".
- 2. The phrase translated "for the time [is] near", found in 1:3 and 22:10.
- a. The word "time" is normally "a season in which the activity of a process is accomplished", as in "the season for harvest", or "spring time".
- b. The word "near" is normally a close proximity. It can be measured by the amount of time involved, or it can be measured by the amount of geography involved.
- c. There is yet the issue of "relativity" (Mars is "nearer" the Sun than Jupiter; and Easter is currently "nearer" than Christmas).
- 3. The phrase in 22:6 translated "soon". The word is tachei.
- II. Supplemental Texts/Contexts
- Matthew 24:45-51
- 2 Peter 3:3-10
- 1 Thessalonians 1:6-10
- 1 John 3:3