THE OF THE CHRIST ( 4 TO 11) With this section begins the Revelation proper, following the antecedent vision of Chapter 1 and the preliminary messages to the seven churches. This section surrounds Christ as conqueror, in conflict of his Cause with the secular powers and Jewish authorities. The developments are gathered around the divine promise of 1:7--"Behold he cometh,” and 22:7--“ Behold, I come quickly,” coupled with and corresponding to the closing prayer “ even so, come Lord Jesus.” It signified the coming of the Lord in the immediate great events, which he would overrule to the triumph of his cause and the success of his kingdom-- Revelation 11:15. The repetition of the promise to come must be interpreted in keeping with the non-literal character of the book; hence, not his personal coming, not the second coming advent, but in the various events, judgments and rewards-- Revelation 1:7, Revelation 22:12. The phrases “ the coming of the Lord” ; and “ his coming” ; and “ son of man cometh” ; have numerous connotations in the scriptures. (1) It is used in reference to the first advent of Christ -- Genesis 49:10; John 6:14; Acts 7:52; Matthew 11:3; 2 Peter 1:16. (2) It is further used in reference to his second advent -- Acts 1:11; 1 Corinthians 11:26; 1 Thessalonians 2:19; 1 Thessalonians 3:13; 1 Thessalonians 4:15; 1 Thessalonians 5:23 and, hence in these passages to the end of time. (3) It refers to his presence in the apostles-- John 14:28; John 14:3; Matthew 28:20, hence in these verses to inspiration, to his indwelling in them. (4) It indicates the presence of Christ in the Christian -- John 14:23; Revelation 3:20. (5) It designates the destruction of Jerusalem-- Zechariah 14:1; Matthew 24:3-30; Matthew 26:64; James 5:7-8. (6) It denotes the appearance of his kingdom-- Matthew 16:27-8; Mark 9:1-50 :1 -his coming on Pentecost. (7) It is applied to the death of a Christian-- 1 Corinthians 1:7; 1 Corinthians 4:7. (8) It is descriptive of the judgment day-- Matthew 15:31; 2 Timothy 4:1; 2 Thessalonians 2:1; 1 Peter 3:10; Jude 1:21. (9) It is connected with the fulfillment of promises-- Romans 9:9; Malachi 3:2; Malachi 4:5; Acts 2:20; Acts 15:16. (10) It symbolizes events of both retribution and reward in the imagery of Revelation--l:7; 2:5, 25; 3:11, 20; 22:7, 20. From beginning to end the book abounds in imagery, full of puzzling enigmas, but notwithstanding the obscurities which give rise to conflicting interpretation, it nevertheless finds both application and fulfillment in the history of the first century period of persecution. Albert Barnes remarked that he was unable to apply the symbols of Revelation until he had read Gibbon’ s history of Rome. Philip Schaff said that the internal evidence is strongly in favor of the conclusion of many scholars who hold to the early date--between A.D. 60 to 70--before the destruction of Jerusalem, supporting the view that it was written under the Neroan period rather than the Domitian, being therefore descriptive of the approaching destruction of Jerusalem, the downfall of Judaism and the dissolution of paganism and the heathen world by the expansion of Christianity. The imagery therefore surrounds the ancient city of Jerusalem, not Rome. The inclusion of the Roman Empire into the symbols was collateral to the persecutions, the Roman emperors representing the secular power with which the destinies of Jerusalem and Judaism were affiliated in the political history. The contents of the book confirm this conclusion of an impressive number of scholars, and the past historical exegesis rather than the prophetical and continuous-historical theory is the only satisfactory application of its majestic and magnificent imagery. It unrolls a sublime panorama of the victorious Christ, called the Lamb; and of his triumphant church, called the Bride--the Lamb’ s bride. As a light shining in darkness, it was a book of hope and comfort to a church on the threshold of persecution, for amidst the ominous signs of calamity was also the omen of victory. Convinced of and committed to this view, the author will follow this exegesis.