John’s KEY Unlocks Revelation!

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John’s KEY Unlocks Revelation!

A closer look at John’s theme verse. ¹ Unless indicated otherwise, all Scripture references contained herein are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB), Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. References from the New International Version are identified as (NIV), Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society.

The book of Revelation is the most controversial and confusing book in the entire Bible. Its vivid imagery has lent itself to an unending array of colorful and imaginative interpretation, the range of which would be impossible to estimate. And there doesn’t appear to be any end in sight! But is this never-ending range of interpretation actually justified? Are there not some solid places to put our feet as we seek to understand what John actually had to say so long ago now? And are there not some clear indicators to help narrow our focus? The answer is most decidedly Yes. And this article will examine just one of many such indicators. What if John hung the key to understanding his book right at the front door, if we would only recognize it as such?

“About the Book”

Flip most any book over. On the back cover, you will likely see two things, a large upper section “About the Book,” and a smaller lower section “About the Author.”

The About the Book section is designed to let you know what it is that you’re holding. Just what is this book about, what subjects does it deal with and what issues will you find discussed? Perhaps what conclusions will be provided. It’s a very brief orientation to what you’re going to find inside.

The About the Author section tells you something about the author. What is the author’s background and credentials for writing this work? That will tell us something about the book as well. All authors write from their own background, accumulated learning, academic degrees, if any, prior intellectual and/or personal pursuits, affiliations and general subject matter orientation. All of us can only write from our own background; how could it be any other way?

I have written two books of my own, and have edited and published three others. And so I have some very personal experience in preparing these About the Book and About the Author sections. First off, they are always completed after the book itself has been finished. Well, that makes sense. It’s only after the book is finished that you really know all that it’s about! And I work very hard on these sections. It is difficult to reduce a work of any size down to a short, concise summary. But I know that readers rely on this summary to be an accurate distillation of a book’s content, so it is very important work.

Interestingly, in his chapter 1, verses 1–11, John provides both of these sections in the introduction to his book of Revelation. Verses 1–8 are About the Book, while 9–11 are About the Author. In his About the Book section, John makes clear right up front that what he is about to relate is not something that he nor anyone else made up, but is rather a direct and urgent revelation from Jesus Christ Himself regarding events “which must soon take place” (v. 1).² This urgency is further repeated as he warns his readers to heed its contents, “for the time is near” (v. 3). A summary of similar time statements in Revelation can be found at the end of this article.

John’s Theme Verse

Most commentators (and with whom I heartily agree) see Revelation 1:7 as John’s theme verse for his entire work, and the climax of his “About the Book” section. It is this one verse which we will be examining more closely.

BEHOLD, HE IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.

Revelation 1:7

John likely chose this theme verse very carefully, knowing that it distilled the essence of the book which follows. And he intended his readers to pay attention to it as such. But I believe that the barnacles of nearly 2,000 years of accumulated tradition (of both translation and consequent interpretation) have actually blunted the power and clarity of John’s original intent. In this article I will endeavor to strip away those barnacles of tradition to recover what John himself considered to be the essence of his own book. For hundreds of years, countless people have opined on what John wrote. But, I hope you’ll agree, John’s opinion of his own book is the most important opinion of all!

This will prove to be a fascinating journey. We will learn the difference between exegesis and eisegesis. And along the way we will discover not only translational error, but even intentional translation bias in today’s most widely used translations. We’ll also be warned off paraphrase “wannabe” Bibles, so popular today. They engage in wholesale distortion of this vital passage, rendering it virtually unintelligible. All in all, this is pretty big stuff. You won’t want to miss this!

Copy Cat

It is generally acknowledged that Revelation 1:7 combines portions of Daniel 7:13 and Zechariah 12:10, both of which we will examine in detail later on. But for now, we should first take special note that these two particular passages are combined just like this in only one other place in all of scripture, Matthew 24:30. This is a highly significant fact, and it will inform our understanding of why John did the same thing in his own book.

Matthew chapters 24–25 contain Jesus’ famous “Olivet Discourse.” As He was leaving the Jerusalem temple area one day, Jesus’ disciples drew His attention to its magnificent buildings. Unimpressed, He replied, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down” (Matthew 24:2). Jesus’ disciples were incredulous! The Jerusalem temple complex had been the cultural and religious center of Jewish life for nearly 1,400 years. And Herod’s first century version of it made the short list for ancient Wonders of the World. When Jesus walked the earth it was still a work in progress, and would not even be considered complete until 63 AD, well after His own death. And so the thought of this complex being utterly destroyed was next to unthinkable.

So soon after they got to the Mount of Olives, the disciples decided they just had to know more about this remarkable prediction. So they posed the following three questions to Jesus.

Tell us,

(1) when will these things happen, and

(2) what will be the sign of Your coming,

(3) and of the end of the age³ Greek αιων: æon, or age. As in several other passages, the King James Version unfortunately renders this word “world” here, which has led many to a completely erroneous understanding of Jesus’ prophecy. Modern versions have corrected many of these passages.?”

Matthew 24:3

These queries triggered an extensive response on the part of Jesus, consuming the rest of Matthew chapter 24 and all of chapter 25. In response to the first component of their question, regarding “when” this would happen, Jesus replied, “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place” (Matthew 24:34), clearly indicating that at least some of them would be expected to live to see its fulfillment. And, faithful to Jesus’ own prophecy, virtually all of the events He had depicted in verses 4–33⁴ Scholars are somewhat divided regarding the timing of events depicted from verse 35 through the end of chapter 25. Some feel that after verse 34, Jesus then transitions to a discussion of His coming at the end of world history. But regardless of how that discussion is understood, certainly everything preceding verse 34 either preceded or accompanied the dismantling of the Jerusalem temple. indeed took place within a generation of those who were standing under the sound of His voice that day, with the climax occurring in the year 70 AD when Roman armies, under the leadership of Titus, completely dismantled the Jerusalem temple, and annihilated most of the city’s population.⁵ The following description of Rome’s destruction of Jerusalem and its temple is from the historian Flavius Josephus, Wars of the Jews (translated by William Whiston, 1737), 7.1.1. “Now as soon as the army had no more people to slay or to plunder, because there remained none to be the objects of their fury, (for they would not have spared any, had there remained any other work to be done,) Caesar gave orders that they should now demolish the entire city and temple, but should leave as many of the towers standing as were of the greatest eminency; that is, Phasaelus, and Hippicus, and Mariamne; and so much of the wall as enclosed the city on the west side. This wall was spared, in order to afford a camp for such as were to lie in garrison, as were the towers also spared, in order to demonstrate to posterity what kind of city it was, and how well fortified, which the Roman valor had subdued; but for all the rest of the wall, it was so thoroughly laid even with the ground by those that dug it up to the foundation, that there was left nothing to make those that came thither believe it had ever been inhabited. This was the end which Jerusalem came to by the madness of those that were for innovations; a city otherwise of great magnificence, and of mighty fame among all mankind.”

In verses 4–33, Jesus describes a number of events and conditions which would either precede or accompany the Temple’s destruction, including the following most significant prediction (verse 30), which is closely related to the subject of this paper, Revelation 1:7.

And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory.

Matthew 24:30

And as we mentioned earlier, outside of Revelation 1:7, this is the only other passage in Scripture which combines portions of Daniel 7:13 and Zechariah 12:10 in this manner.

Connecting the Dots

John was there that day on the Mount of Olives, as he listened carefully to Jesus describe all the events leading up to the unthinkable demolition of the Jerusalem temple. Years later, as Jesus words were in process of being fulfilled, he was to have a fresh—and even more urgent—revelation of his own. Is it possible, then, that his revelation dealt with those same events, and leading to the same inevitable conclusion? If so, wouldn’t it be only natural and fitting that John should use the same Old Testament passages which he had heard Jesus Himself use to introduce those same events?

But there is yet another interesting correlation to be observed in this regard. Though Matthew’s version is the most popular one, Jesus’ Olivet Discourse is included in all three of the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 24; Mark 13; Luke 21)⁶ The Synoptic Gospels are those that “see things together.” (From the Greek syn – “with or together” and optic – “to see.”). Matthew, Mark and Luke are considered the Synoptic Gospels because of the similarity of their content, order of events and statements which they include. The Gospel of John, on the other hand, often covers a variety of different material., but is conspicuously missing from the Gospel of John. Because of this, many have concluded that the Book of Revelation is John’s version of Jesus’ Olivet Discourse, explaining its absence from his Gospel. Is it possible, then, that for John, the events depicted in Jesus’ Olivet Discourse became an entire book of its own? Or perhaps is the “motion picture” version of the Discourse?

All of this is quite intriguing. Was John leaving us the key for understanding his book of Revelation right at the front door? And is it possible that he means for us to understand that his visions relate to the same subject matter as Jesus’ Olivet Discourse?

So here are the dots we’ve connected thus far.

1. We’ve suggested that John intended Revelation 1:7 to express the essence of his message, or visions he is about to relate.
2. Revelation 1:7 combines a portion of Daniel 7:13 and Zechariah 12:10.
3. Jesus was the only other person to combine those same Old Testament passages, which He did in His Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24:30).
4. Jesus’ Olivet Discourse, while contained in all three Synoptic Gospels, is conspicuously missing from John’s Gospel, causing some to feel that his Book of Revelation is the “motion picture” version of this Discourse.
5. In His Olivet Discourse, Jesus uses Matthew 24:30 to depict an actual event which He said would precede Jerusalem being destroyed, and which would also be within the lifetime of at least some of those under the sound of His voice that day.
6. As Jesus had thus prophesied, in 70 AD Jerusalem and its Temple were in fact utterly destroyed, and within the natural lifetime of at least some of those standing there that day.

As interesting as all this may seem, it nevertheless leaves us with a bit of a problem. The passage in view here, whether John’s version or that of Jesus, seems to be depicting Jesus’ “Second Coming” at the “end of the world.” If that’s true, how could Jesus say that this apocalyptic event would happen within the lifetime of some of His disciples, and heralding the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD? A detailed look at this most interesting text will help us answer that question.

Every Eye Will See Him Coming on the Clouds

The two passages we have been discussing depict Jesus “coming on clouds.” For convenience, they are both included again right here.

And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory.

Matthew 24:30

BEHOLD, HE IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.

Revelation 1:7

Today’s popular conception of these passages is that of Jesus’ “Second Coming”⁷ It should be noted that the term “Second Coming” is not an expression found anywhere in Scripture. It has become a shorthand theological expression. And it is this flawed expression itself which can blind us to the actuality of Jesus’ “coming” or “returning” in the first century to judge the nation of Israel, as He had promised. at the “end of the world.” Among other things, this conception includes the following features.

1. Jesus will return to earth in his recognizable, resurrected bodily form.
2. He will be riding a cloud.
3. All people alive on the planet at that time will see this event simultaneously, since “every eye will see him.”
4. This event signals the end of world history.

But the mere fact that Jesus included this specific event in His Olivet Discourse—promising its fulfillment in the first century—has already challenged this popular conception in a most serious way. And it has actually led some influential critics to question the fundamental reliability of Scripture—or to reject it altogether.⁸ One notable example is Bertrand Russell, a highly influential philosopher of the 20^th century. According to Amazon, “Few philosophers have had a more profound influence on the course of modern philosophy than Bertrand Russell . . . . whom many consider to be one of the most influential thinkers of the twentieth century.” Russell held Jesus to be a fraud, at least in part, because of His failed prophecies to “return” in the first century. Here is Russell’s logic. “I am concerned with Christ as He appears in the Gospels, taking the Gospel narrative as it stands, and there one does find some things that do not seem to be very wise. For one thing, He certainly thought that His second coming would occur in clouds of glory before the death of all the people who were living at that time. There are a great many texts that prove that. He says, for instance: ‘Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of Man be come.’ Then He says: ‘There are some standing here which shall not taste death till the Son of Man comes into His kingdom’; and there are a lot of places where it is quite clear that He believed that His second coming would happen during the lifetime of many then living. That was the belief of His earlier followers, and it was the basis of a good deal of His moral teaching . . . . . The early Christians did really believe it . . . . they did accept from Christ the belief that the second coming was imminent. In that respect clearly He was not so wise as some other people have been, and he was certainly not superlatively wise.” (Bertrand Russell, Why I Am Not A Christian, [New York: Simon And Schuster, 1957], pp.12-13)

So we shall continue to examine the Scriptural underpinnings of these passages to see if those criticisms are valid, and if this most popular “Second Coming” concept can hold up under close scrutiny.

Opening the Hood

Unbeknownst to most people, the division of the Bible into chapters and verses is a relative recent phenomenon. And we have two Frenchmen to thank for it. Stephen Langton divided the Bible into chapters in the year 1205, and Robert Stephanus divided it further into verses in 1551. All of this has been very helpful, in that it helps us “get on the same page” with others, so to speak. We can all now find the same passage together rather quickly by using this uniform referencing system. Great! So now all we have to do is say “John 3:16,” and we can all get there very quickly (and we might just know what the passage says without even opening our Bibles!).

But while this referencing system has proven most helpful, it has also facilitated a practice known as “proof-texting.” This is where a selected verse is plucked out of its original context to support a certain position. And oftentimes those positions have nothing at all to do with the verse as properly understood within its original context. This practice of “proof texting” has led some to the cynical conclusion that “You can make the Bible say anything you want it to say!” We’ve all heard people do this (though none of us have ever been guilty of it ourselves, of course). This is obviously an abuse of Scripture, and is most unfortunate. In today’s world even pastors often adorn their own thoughts in like manner, with great-sounding Scripture passages, but which in reality have nothing at all to do with the points they’re endeavoring to make. (When you hear a pastor do this, consider mentioning it to him afterward. That will tell him that you were indeed listening, and could lead to some interesting conversation!)

I’ve explained this practice because proof-texting is commonplace in today’s Christianity. And because of that, to a degree we have been conditioned to accept it as normal. Since many see it as normal, they may even come to believe that even the Biblical authors engaged in it themselves. But nothing could be further from the truth! Biblical authors did not engage in proof-texting, and Jesus most certainly did not. Regarding the use of the Old Testament by New Testament authors, scholar F.F. Bruce says,

It is not simply that a number of texts out of context are given a Christian significance: the New Testament interpretation of a few Old Testament words or sentences actually quoted often implies the total context in which these words or sentences occur.

F.F. Bruce, The Canon of Scripture (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), p. 56, emphasis added.

And not only do Jesus and the New Testament authors merely “imply the total context” when quoting Old Testament passages, they often claim a current sense of their prophetic fulfillment!⁹ Consider, for just one example, Jesus’ reading of Isaiah 61:1-2a in the synagogue, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed,to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Luke 4:18–19, NIV), whereupon He proclaims “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing” (v. 21). And so when Jesus combines Daniel 7:13 and Zechariah 12:10 in His Olivet Discourse we should pay very close attention to their original context, because Jesus was indeed claiming the prophetic fulfillment of both of these passages. It would therefore behoove us to understand both the nature and timing of that fulfillment. And that’s exactly what we’re going to now do. We will first examine Daniel 7:13, and then turn our attention to Zechariah 12:10.

Daniel 7:13¹⁰ Most commentators see parallels between the books of Daniel and Revelation. Interestingly, Daniel was told that his prophecies would not be fulfilled immediately, but only at the “end time,” “Go your way, Daniel, for these words are concealed and sealed up until the end time” (Dan 12:9). John, on the other hand was told that the fulfillment of his prophecies was imminent, and that there was therefore an urgency to get the word out, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near” (Rev 22:10). Apparently what was far away in Daniel’s day was near in John’s day. Because of the similarity of their subject matter, this has led some to feel that John’s Book of Revelation “unsealed” the book of Daniel, because Daniel’s “end time” had now become “near.”

Shortly after the reign of King Solomon, the united kingdom of Israel split into two, the Northern Kingdom of Israel, came to be headquartered at Samaria, and the Southern Kingdom of Judah, headquartered at Jerusalem. Because of rampant idolatry, in 721 BC the Northern Kingdom of Israel was permanently destroyed by the nation of Assyria. One hundred thirty-six years later, in 586 BC, Israel’s “treacherous sister Judah”¹¹ “Then the LORD said to me in the days of Josiah the king, ‘Have you seen what faithless Israel did? She went up on every high hill and under every green tree, and she was a harlot there.I thought, “After she has done all these things she will return to Me;” but she did not return, and her treacherous sister Judah saw it.And I saw that for all the adulteries of faithless Israel, I had sent her away and given her a writ of divorce, yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear; but she went and was a harlot also.Because of the lightness of her harlotry, she polluted the land and committed adultery with stones and trees.Yet in spite of all this her treacherous sister Judah did not return to Me with all her heart, but rather in deception,’ declares the LORD. And the LORD said to me, ‘Faithless Israel has proved herself more righteous than treacherous Judah’ ” (Jeremiah 3:6–11). was punished as well, and carried away captive to Babylon for a time. The prophet Daniel was among those carried away. And he wrote his prophetic book during this Babylonian captivity. For the Israelites, this captivity had the feeling of finality. All was lost! But wait, it wasn’t over for them just yet. So God provided Daniel’s visions of future glory to give them hope and purpose for living. They would indeed return to their homeland, because there was unfinished business yet in their future.

Daniel’s prophetic book contains a number of visions, with an emphasis on the coming of Israel’s Messiah and His inauguration of God’s eternal Kingdom (which stood in stark contrast with the temporary Kingdom of Israel). Such is the case with our passage under review. Daniel 7:13 is the first verse of a two-verse interlude in the middle of chapter 7. This interlude separates Daniel’s vision of four beasts (vv. 1–12) from the interpretation thereof (vv. 15–28), and is actually the centerpiece of the entire chapter.

I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven one like a Son of Man was coming, and He came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed.

Daniel 7:13–14

It is beyond the scope of this article to provide a detailed commentary on this entire chapter, but suffice it to say that it portrays a progression of earthly kingdoms and culminates with “a Son of Man . . . coming with the clouds,” receiving the eternal Kingdom of God and inaugurating His rule on earth, which Kingdom would ultimately sweep the planet and never pass away. And so when Jesus cites this passage in His Olivet Discourse, He is identifying Himself and His ministry as its prophetic fulfillment. Indeed, it can be argued that Daniel’s “Son of Man” prophecy is the pinnacle or climax of Jesus’ entire ministry. Perhaps this is why Jesus referred to Himself as “Son of Man” no less than 81 times in the Gospel narratives.

At this point, however, the astute reader will note a nuance of difference between Daniel’s prophecy and Jesus’ use of it in His Olivet Discourse. Both involve His “coming” in connection with “clouds.” But in Daniel, this coming is directed heavenward “to the Ancient of Days” whereupon He is awarded His Kingdom, whereas in Matthew, this coming is directed earthward “with power and great glory” and is to be observable to people on earth. Though there is a nuance of difference, both of these “comings” are connected.

In the “Great Commission” Jesus confirms He had indeed already received His Kingdom, and thus commissioned His servants to begin its worldwide dominion in fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecy.

All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

Matthew 28:18–20

Thus, Daniel’s “coming . . . to the Ancient of Days” had already transpired; Jesus has now received His Kingdom. And once having received that Kingdom, He could then return to earth “in His kingdom” in a demonstration of its “power and great glory” (Matthew 24:30). This is completely consistent with what He had told His disciples on a previous occasion, “Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom” (Matthew 16:28). Jesus confirmed His coming a final time while being questioned by Caiaphas, the High Priest, just prior to His crucifixion,

And the high priest said to Him, ‘I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.’ Jesus said to him, ‘You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN.’

Matthew 26:64–64

So this is pretty interesting. In each of these three statements regarding His return, Jesus is quite explicit, and emphatic, that it would happen within the lifetime of His audience.

(1) “some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom” (Matthew 16:28),

(2) “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place” (Matthew 24:34), and finally, with an eerie sense of foreboding to the High Priest Caiaphas during His trial,

(3) “I tell you, hereafter you¹² In the Greek, this you is plural. Jesus was not directing this prophecy to Caiaphas alone, but rather to the entire Jewish Sanhedrin in front of whom He was on trial. will see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN” (Matthew 26:64).

And in Matthew 24, Jesus specifically connects His “cloud coming” with the looming destruction of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem, whereupon “not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down” (Matthew 24:2). And just as Jesus had prophesied, that Temple was indeed dismantled, by Roman troops in 70 AD, in response to the Jewish uprising against Roman domination which had begun in 66 AD. It should go without saying that 70 AD was well within the lifetime of at least some of those who had comprised His Olivet audience.

But why are “clouds” connected with this coming of Jesus? Throughout the Old Testament, their invisible God made His presence known within Israel by means of clouds; God spoke to Moses from a cloud on Mount Sinai, God led the children of Israel in a cloud while they traveled in the desert, and God took up residence both in the desert Tabernacle, and in the later Temple by way of a cloud. Connecting the divine presence with clouds is a concept which had been deeply entrenched in the Israelite mindset for 1,400 years.

But not all of God’s Old Testament “cloud” appearances were beneficent. Carefully consider this “cloud coming” of God to the nation of Egypt.

The oracle concerning Egypt. Behold, the LORD is riding on a swift cloud and is about to come to Egypt; The idols of Egypt will tremble at His presence, And the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them.

Isaiah 19:1

In this “cloud coming,” God was manifesting His presence in judgment upon Egypt. That judgment came to Egypt at the hands of Assyria, which God had stirred up for that very purpose. And it was in a similar judgment that Jesus came in a cloud to Israel in its devastation of 70 AD, at the hands of Roman troops. The nation of Israel had openly and defiantly declared itself the enemy of God, first by crucifying her own Husband, and then by violently persecuting God’s newborn children, the first century Christians. And so this “cloud coming” was an act of liberation, which was viewed as “power and great glory” to those first century Christians. But it resulted in devastation and destruction to their mutual enemy, the nation of Israel.

And just as God was not seen physically riding a cloud in the seventh century BC as He stirred up the Assyrians to subjugate Egypt, so Jesus was not seen riding a cloud as He stirred up the Romans to destroy Israel in 70 AD. In His Olivet Discourse, Jesus was instead drawing on well-known Old Testament apocalyptic imagery to depict His pending judgment on Israel. Jesus’ first audiences were well acquainted with this kind of apocalyptic imagery; modern Christians not so much.

We now turn our attention to Zechariah 12:10, which will both confirm and expand upon this understanding of John’s theme verse.

Zechariah 12:10

As we have been saying, Revelation 1:7 and Matthew 24:30 are the only two places in all of scripture which combine portions of Daniel 7:13 and Zechariah 12:10. And we have just finished looking at the portion of those verses dealing with the “cloud” coming of Jesus, which hearkens back to Daniel 7. We will now take a closer look at the mourning of “all the tribes of the earth” and “those who pierced him,” hearkening back to Zechariah 12.

By citing Zechariah 12:10, both Jesus and John are in a shorthand way invoking by reference the larger context from which this verse comes, with a sense of its prophetic fulfillment. Here is the larger passage.

I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn. In that day there will be great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the plain of Megiddo. The land will mourn, every family by itself; the family of the house of David by itself and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Levi by itself and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by itself and their wives by themselves; all the families that remain, every family by itself and their wives by themselves.

Zechariah 12:10–14

It should be noted that this passage has well defined limits, geographically and ethnically. It is limited geographically to the land of Israel (and in particular the city of Jerusalem), and ethnically to the nation of Israel. And in His Olivet Discourse Jesus has provided two more limits: one limit regarding a specific event, and another regarding the timing of that event. Regarding the specific event, Jesus is proclaiming the prophetic fulfillment of this passage in the destruction of the Jewish temple, “not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down” (Matthew 24:2). Regarding the timing of that event, He says it would happen within the natural lifetime of at least some of those then living, “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place” (Matthew 24:34).

Utterly faithful to all four of these prophetic limits, the Jerusalem temple was indeed thoroughly demolished in 70 AD. And as Roman troops were in the process of violently dismantling their temple and slaying everyone in sight, this prophetic declaration of Jesus undoubtedly hung in air, leading those still alive to reflect back on the One they had “pierced” and to mourn their fateful demand, “Away with Him, away with Him, crucify Him!” (John 19:15).

By now it should go without saying that this passage from Zechariah has nothing at all to do with (1) the entire planet, (2) all of its inhabitants or (3) the end of world history, though many today (perhaps most) would have us believe so.

Intentional Translation Bias

It should be more than clear by now that the narrow focus of this passage is upon both the land of Israel, as well as the people of Israel. To remain true to this focus then, both Matthew 24:30 as well as Revelation 1:7 should read, “all the tribes of the land will mourn.” Translated correctly, we get the clear idea that the “tribes” are the tribes of Israel, and the “land” is the land of Israel. Ironically, the only Bible version to my knowledge which gets it right is the Complete Jewish Bible, by David H. Stern.¹³ David H. Stern, Complete Jewish Bible (Clarksville, MD: Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc., 1998).

In play here are the words tribes and land. We will look at each one.

Land. The Greek word for land is γη (gē). It is most often translated either (1) land or (2) earth, and occurs 223 times in the Greek New Testament. When we see the word earth in the New Testament, we tend to think of the entire planet. On the other hand, when we see land, we tend to think of the Biblical land of Israel. And so translators have to decide which of these two words to use, depending on their understanding of the context in which the word is used.¹⁴ The same is true of the Old Testament Hebrew word אָ֥רֶץ (ʾerets), which can also mean either land or earth. Therefore, anytime you see land or earth in the Bible, feel free to evaluate for yourself which word is more appropriate for the context. But be careful. Translators don’t always get it right, as we have seen. But they don’t always get it wrong, either. If the translator has already decided what the text actually means (or doesn’t mean), that will affect the decision. Unfortunately, other than the Complete Jewish Bible, every other popular version uses earth in both Matthew 24:30 as well as Revelation 1:7. This is one strike against us as we try to decide what these texts are actually saying.

Tribes. The Greek word for tribes is φυλη (phulē). According to Greek Lexicons, in the New Testament, it has (1) a primary meaning of a single tribe or all the tribes of Israel, and (2) a secondary meaning of nation or people, again, depending on context. Phulē occurs 23 times in the New Testament. I will argue that, in actuality, all 23 of these occurrences relate exclusively to the tribes of Israel.

Since 1987 the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible has outsold the King James Version (KJV), and is today the most widely used version in America. And reviewing its translation of the Greek phulē is quite revealing. Of the 23 occurrences of phulē, 21 times it is very appropriately translated as a single tribe, or in the plural, all the tribes of Israel. So what about those other 2 occurrences? They just happen to be in the eschatological passages we are looking at, Matthew 24:30 and Revelation 1:7. In Matthew 24:30, the NIV renders the passage, “all the nations of the earth,” and in Revelation 1:7, “all the peoples of the earth.” Here they both are.

At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.

Matthew 24:30

Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen.

Revelation 1:7

Words matter, don’t they? The NIV rendering of these two texts give an entirely different impression than a proper translation. Why would this be? It’s the difference between exegesis and eisegesis. Let me explain.

Exegesis. In the field of Biblical studies, exegesis is the careful examination of a text to obtain as full and as accurate an understanding as possible. Grammar, the meaning of words and the larger context of a passage are all vitally important to the process. This entire article is actually an exercise of exegesis.

Eisegesis. On the other hand, eisegesis is the practice of superimposing pre-existing ideas or presuppositions onto a Biblical text, in an effort to make the text agree with those ideas or presuppositions. In the process, the actual meaning of a text is either distorted or ignored altogether. And in this regard, it is very clear that the NIV translators are guilty of eisegesis in the handling of the two texts in question here. Their pre-existing theological framework could not make sense of an accurate translation of these passages. And so they decided to tweak these texts so they would more closely align with their theological framework. In short, they make the text say what they think it should say. That’s the way eisegesis works. And unsuspecting readers of the NIV will never be the wiser, unless they “open the hood” for themselves. And very few readers have the ability and resources to do that, which is most unfortunate.

Wannabe Bibles

If you think that the NIV translators played fast and loose with Matthew 24:30 and Revelation 1:7, there are other popular versions where the abuse is far worse. There is apparently a brisk appetite in America for new Bible versions. This fact is not lost on Bible publishers, happy to crank out a new version if they can make a buck doing it. And in actuality, that’s precisely what is driving the perpetual stream of Bible versions hitting the market in recent years. But do these buyers actually know what they’re getting? Handle at your own risk!

The saddest part is that these new Bibles often create or perpetuate bad theology. This is a huge problem. In regard to our subject texts, we will look at two of these “versions,” the New Living Translation (NLT) and The Message (MSG). Interestingly (and sadly) in 2014 the NLT was second only to the NIV in sales.

New Living Translation (NLT). The NLT is a make over of the Living Bible (LB), which was a pure paraphrase and had been around since the early 1970s. What’s a paraphrase Bible? A paraphrase does not provide a translation of the underlying text (either Hebrew or Greek). Instead, it tends to interpret or explain the text. It tells you what the paraphrase author believes the text actually means. And so, in actuality, it is a commentary on the text, rather than a legitimate translation of the text. I’m sure you can appreciate that there is a huge difference!

The NLT was created in 1996, using the LB as its base, but trying to conform more closely to the original Biblical texts. Revised editions came out in 2004 and 2007. No doubt the NLT is an improvement over the LB. But I believe the NLT is deceptively titled; it has a very long way to go to be considered a legitimate translation. In many ways, it remains a commentary on the text, rather than the text itself. Just look at how it abuses the two texts we have been looking at.

And then at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

Matthew 24:30, NLT

Look! He comes with the clouds of heaven. And everyone will see him— even those who pierced him. And all the nations of the world will mourn for him. Yes! Amen!

Revelation 1:7, NLT

The Message (MSG). The Message (MSG) is the sole work of Eugene Peterson, formerly of Regent College, Vancouver, British Columbia. First published in part beginning in 1993, the entire version became available in 2002. Unlike the NLT, which at least claims to be a translation, the MSG is a pure paraphrase from beginning to end. While popular in some circles, the MSG is thankfully nowhere near as popular as either the NIV or the NLT.

It is very sad indeed to believe that some of Peterson’s readers will base their theology on his imaginative version of the two scriptures we have been examining. His versions almost read like a comic book instead of sacred scripture. Needless to say, his fanciful interpretation does extreme violence to the real meaning of the text. “People from all nations and all times.” Really, Eugene?!

Then, the Arrival of the Son of Man! It will fill the skies – no one will miss it. Unready people all over the world, outsiders to the splendor and power, will raise a huge lament as they watch the Son of Man blazing out of heaven.

 Matthew 24:30, MSG

Riding the clouds, he’ll be seen by every eye, those who mocked and killed him will see him, People from all nations and all times will tear their clothes in lament. Oh, Yes.

Revelation 1:7, MSG

Every Eye Will See Him

In Jesus’ shorthand reference to Zechariah 12:10–13, He describes those who will see His coming as “all the tribes of the land” (Matthew 24:30), whereas John adds the further description, “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him” (Revelation 1:7). And so in many translations of Revelation 1:7 we find “every eye” combined with “all the peoples [or nations] of the earth.” As a result, it is easy to understand this event receiving worldwide attention, with every person on the planet taking notice, all at the same time. And, according to many today, this worldwide event is to happen sometime yet future to our own day. But this contemporary understanding is nowhere near Zechariah’s description, nor faithful to the intention of either Jesus or John.

As we mentioned above, the Zechariah passage, and Jesus’ use of it, have four built-in limits regarding (1) geography, (2) ethnicity, (3) the specific event and (4) timing. All four of these limits preclude it being a future, worldwide event. We might even add a rather obvious logical objection to this modern understanding as well: It is physically impossible for all people on the planet to see something in the sky at the same time. This is certainly true with the sun, isn’t it?

So what was John talking about then, regarding “every eye” seeing this coming of Jesus? Zechariah is quite specific, and emphatic regarding those who will see Jesus in that day, and mourn over Him. He names four families of Israel by name, the families of (1) David, (2) Nathan, (3) Levi and (4) Shimei. And for those Israelites not specifically named, he lumps them all together as “all the families that remain, every family.” In other words, as Jesus says in his shorthand reference of Matthew 24:30, “all the tribes of the land.” Consistent with Zechariah’s prophecy, John expands slightly on Jesus’ shorthand by further describing the mourners as “those who pierced Him.” Grammatically, this last phrase of Revelation 1:7 functions as an “explicative;” it provides additional description or specificity to what came just before. So John’s passage could just as easily have read, “Every eye will see Him, specifically the eyes of those who pierced Him.” And so, when properly understood, John’s phrase here actually confirms two of the limits we’ve been talking about, (1) ethnicity and (2) timing. The eyes which will see Jesus’ coming, and mourn for him, will belong to that generation of Jews which were responsible for piercing Him.

Additionally, when John refers to “every eye,” he doesn’t mean every eye without exception, rather every eye without distinction. In other words, this will not be an event known only to a select class or group. It will not be hidden, secret or obscure. On the contrary, if you’re alive in the land of Israel when this thing goes down, you certainly aren’t going to miss it!

Summary and Conclusion

In His Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24:30), Jesus combined portions of Daniel 7:13 and Zechariah 12:10, claiming their prophetic fulfillment in the soon-coming destruction of Israel and her temple, climaxing in 70 AD. Some years later, the Apostle John was given an even more graphic and detailed picture of that destruction, comprising the bulk of his Book of Revelation. Since he was warning his readers of the same imminent doom, it was most appropriate that he, too, proclaim prophetic fulfillment of those same Old Testament passages, just as Jesus had done.

So here are the dots we’ve connected thus far.

1. We’ve suggested that John intended Revelation 1:7 to express the essence of his message, or visions he is about to relate; it is his “theme verse.”
2. Revelation 1:7 combines portions of both Daniel 7:13 and Zechariah 12:10.
3. Jesus was the only other person to combine those same Old Testament passages, which He did in His Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24:30).
4. Jesus’ Olivet Discourse, while contained in all three Synoptic Gospels, is conspicuously missing from John’s Gospel, causing some to feel that the Book of Revelation is his version of this Discourse.
5. As Jesus had thus prophesied, in 70 AD Jerusalem and its Temple were in fact utterly destroyed, and within the natural lifetime of at least some of those standing there that day.
6. The “cloud coming” depicted in Revelation 1:7/Matthew 24:30 hearkens back to Daniel 7:13, wherein Jesus first ascends “with clouds” to receive His kingdom from the Ancient of Days (God), and then returns “on clouds” to inaugurate His kingdom’s worldwide dominion, as evidenced in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18–20).
7. The portion of Revelation 1:7/Matthew 24:30 prophesying that “all the tribes of the land will mourn” hearkens back to Zechariah 12:10. It should be noted that Zechariah 12:10 has well defined limits, geographically and ethnically. It is limited geographically to the land of Israel (and in particular the city of Jerusalem), and ethnically to the nation of Israel. And in His Olivet Discourse Jesus provides two more limits: one limit regarding a specific event, and another regarding the timing of that event. Regarding the specific event, Jesus is proclaiming the prophetic fulfillment of this passage in the destruction of the Jewish temple, “not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down” (Matthew 24:2). Regarding the timing of that event, He says it would happen within the natural lifetime of at least some of those then living, “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place” (Matthew 24:34). Because this plain reading and understanding of the text does not align well with today’s popular theology, some modern translators have actually forced these texts to agree with their theology by fiddling with the wording, altering their original meaning. Unsuspecting Bible readers are largely unaware of this problem, and think that’s what the Bible actually says.
8. When John in Rev 1:7 speaks of “every eye seeing Him,” he is expanding upon Jesus’ version, “all the tribes of the land,” indicating that the entire nation of Israel will be acutely aware of the event at hand. John further explains that the “every eye” which will see Jesus coming are “those who pierced Him,” consistent with Zechariah’s 12:10 prophecy which we saw pertained exclusively to the nation of Israel. Additionally, when John refers to “every eye,” he doesn’t mean every eye without exception, rather every eye without distinction. In other words, this will not be an event known only to a select class or group. It will not be hidden, secret or obscure. On the contrary, if you’re alive in the land of Israel when this thing goes down, you certainly aren’t going to miss it!

And so John did, in fact, leave the key for understanding his book right at the front door. His vivid imagery depicted the prophesied destruction of Jerusalem and her temple in 70 AD, just as Jesus had done in his Olivet Discourse of Matthew 24. A careful examination of John’s imagery readily confirms this understanding.

Modern theology, however, holds that the coming of Jesus depicted in Revelation 1:7/Matthew 24:30 is going to be a future, world-wide event, which will be witnessed by every human being on the planet simultaneously. Apart from the extensive Biblical exegesis contained herein to the contrary, there is a rather obvious logical objection to this modern understanding as well: It is physically impossible for all people on the planet to see something in the sky at the same time. Shouldn’t that alone tell us something about this modern presupposition?

Jesus is indeed “returning” again, at the end of world history, to set everything right again. All people will be resurrected, and even the cosmos itself. Judgment, rewards and punishments, will also occur. All evil will be forever extinguished. And all God’s people will live together with Him in eternal bliss in the New Jerusalem. Hallelujah!

But this “end of the world” coming of Jesus is not the coming depicted in Matthew 24:1-34, nor in the first 19 chapters of the book of Revelation. To confuse the two is not faithful to the Biblical record and breeds confusion. Our faulty understanding of these passages has also, sadly, turned some away from the faith altogether. That modern understanding also minimizes (or ignores altogether) Jesus’ “judgement coming” upon the nation of Israel, climaxing with the dismantling of the Jerusalem temple in 70 AD. This event looms large in Biblical prophecy. And as such, it needs much, much more focus and attention, not less.

Yes, John did indeed hang the key to understanding his Book of Revelation right at the front door. And we ignore it, or distort it, to our own peril.

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John’s Time Statements in the Book of Revelation

In His Olivet Discourse, Jesus uses Matthew 24:30 to depict an actual event which He said would precede Jerusalem being destroyed, and which would also be within the lifetime of at least some of those under the sound of His voice that day. It was a stark and dramatic prophecy, with an obvious expectation of near-term fulfillment.

Consistent with Jesus’ expected near-term fulfillment of events associated with the destruction of Jerusalem and her temple, John, too proclaims his Book of Revelation to be a “prophecy…whose time [was] near” (Rev 1:3). In fact, John expresses this tremendous sense of urgency no less than seven times in the first and last chapters of his book. And in the final chapter, three of these imminence passages are directly associated with the Lord’s “coming” — according to Jesus Himself!

Two from chapter 1:

[1] The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. (Rev 1:1)

[2] Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near. (Rev 1:3)

Five from chapter 22:

[3] The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent His angel to show to His bond-servants the things which must soon take place. (Rev 22:6)

[4] “And behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed is he who heeds the words of the prophecy of this book.” (Rev 22:7)

[5] And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near. (Rev 22:10)

[6] “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done. (Rev 22:12)

[7] He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming quickly.” (Rev 22:20)