John Walvoord Revelation 4: 1

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A (Brief) Study of Revelation Most Christians, especially in the western church, are either hyper obsessed with the book of Revelation or want nothing to do with it because they find it confusing. Vern Poythress and John Walvoord, who wrote two of many commentaries on Revelation, offer two opposing interpretations of the second cycle, namely Revelation 4:1 through 8:1. After analyzing these two interpretations, this essay contains my own thoughts about which interpretation is more accurate as well as reflects upon BIB 152 as an entire course. Part One: Vern Poythress Vern Poythress, author of The Returning King, views Revelation from an eclectic perspective; he combines elements from all four standard schools of interpretation as he studies …show more content…

Secondly, while the vision of the throne room reflects God’s glory in every sphere, the vision of the opening of the seven seals reveals the execution of God's glorious plan for all of history. In referring to the seven seals in Revelation 6:1 through 8:1, Poythress states, “History unfolds as a series of judgments, leading up to the appearance of Christ and the consummation of all things” (Poythress, p. 113). However, these judgments are not reserved for the future. In Revelation 6:1-8, the four horsemen represent calamities such as death, famine, war, and conquest, but they “characterize an indefinite period before the Second Coming” (Poythress, p. 114). All throughout history, war, famine, and death have existed, but Christ has been, and always will be, in control of these things. In fact, the reality that the Lamb opens the seals that release the horsemen represents God’s judgment on a sinful world. The point of cycle 2 in Revelation is not to question whether Christ shall win the war; rather, the truth that He is the one who opens the scroll reveals that He already has won. Moreover, despite these calamities that

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