Read the New Testament in 24 Weeks

Footnotes

1. Revelation 1:1 Christians are living in the last period of history. They are facing difficult times, and God’s plan is questioned. More than ever, faithfulness to his plan is required. Here then is a vision of faith concerning what is happening. The one who attests to it, in the Name of Christ, is prepared to give testimony for it even by shedding his blood.
2. Revelation 1:3 Blessed: this is the first of seven beatitudes that appear in the book (see Rev 14:13; 16:15; 19:9; 20:6; 22:7; 22:14). The word “blessed” is more all-encompassing than “happy”; it indicates the favorable conditions in which God has placed a person (see Ps 1:1; Mt 5:3). Prophecy: i.e., any word from God, whether it foretells the future, commands, instructs, or sets forth history.
3. Revelation 1:4 The greeting and the address introduce the work as a letter. [He] who is: this is how God revealed himself to Moses at the burning bush (Ex 3:14); this time, the divine name embraces the past, present, and future of humankind and is turned to the future, to the immediate fulfillment of all things: God, he who is to come. God is also described with the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, Alpha and . . . Omega; he is the Beginning and the End, the origin and the completion (a proper name of God according to Isa 44:6; 48:12). In addition, he is the master of all historical events, including the present ones, which, according to the author, are decisive. And Christ will appear in all the glory of his Resurrection and in the grandeur of the work accomplished to save humankind, comprising the body of the Church (see 1 Pet 2:5, 9), in the imminence of his coming to judge the world.
   In order to speak of him, the author here multiplies Biblical reminiscences (Ex 19:6; Ps 89:28, 38; Isa 55:3). The seven spirits before the throne (v. 4) represent the Holy Spirit in the many ways that the Spirit manifests himself in the world (e.g., Isa 11:2, 5).
4. Revelation 1:4 Seven Churches: the Churches (named in v. 11) formed a circle in the province of Asia and were separated from one another by some fifty miles.
5. Revelation 1:5 Faithful witness: the Messiah is the witness to the promise the Lord made to David (2 Sam 7:1; Ps 89; Isa 55:3-4; Zec 12:8) in his person as well as in his work. He also fulfills this promise and is thus the efficacious Word, God’s Yes (see Rev 3:14; 19:11, 13; 2 Cor 1:20). He is the heir of David (see Rev 5:5; 22:16) but also the firstborn from the dead because of his Resurrection (see Col 1:18) who will rule the universe after his enemies have been overcome (see Rev 19:6; Dan 7:14).
6. Revelation 1:6 Those who follow Christ will be part of a kingdom, because they will rule over all the nations (see Isa 54:11-17; Dan 7:22, 27; Zec 12:1-3; see Rev 2:26; 5:10; 20:6; 22:5). They will also be priests because like Jesus the Priest they offer up the sacrifice of their own lives as a burnt offering of love.
7. Revelation 1:9 The author describes himself as a Christian who has been exiled to a little island that lay off the coast of Miletus and Ephesus and was known as a prison island. Before his eyes the risen Christ appears. The majestic description derives its images from the portrait of the Son of Man in chs. 7 and 10 of the Book of Daniel. The description of his stance and clothing suggests majesty and power; this being who is master of life possesses the secret of all things and holds even the realm of death subject to him (v. 18).
   The netherworld, or the lower world (Hebrew: Sheol; not to be confused with hell, the place of eternal damnation), is a localization of the realm of death, where, it is imagined, the dead dwell, deprived of the ability to perform any existential act. Another term for it is Hades. Christ has the power to release souls from the netherworld (see Jn 5:26-28).
   The very figure of Christ shows the judgment to be imminent. But he is also present in the life of the Churches, and the author lists seven of them (seven is the number symbolizing universality).
   The text speaks of the angels of the Churches; according to the religious vision of the world at that time, some heavenly representatives presided over the destinies of cities, peoples, and Churches. The seer might be speaking of the earthly persons in charge of the Churches. However, the Churches are also in the power of Christ and under his protection.
   What is happening now, and what will take place afterward (v. 19): these words anticipate the two main parts of the work.
8. Revelation 1:9 Patmos: a small island in the Aegean Sea about 50 miles from Ephesus. According to the third-century Church historian Eusebius, John the Apostle was released from Patmos under the emperor Nerva (A.D. 96–98).
9. Revelation 1:10 In the spirit: i.e., in a state of spiritual ecstasy (see also Rev 4:2; 17:3; and 21:10). The Lord’s day: Sunday. In the Old Testament the expression “Day of the Lord” signifies some special intervention of God in history. For Christians, the eschatological age is the last times that have begun with the Resurrection of Christ; to celebrate the Lord’s day means therefore to commemorate his Paschal victory and to hasten his return (see Acts 20:7; 1 Cor 11:26; 2 Pet 3:12; see also the present-day liturgical acclamations after the consecration of the Eucharist).
10. Revelation 1:11 Scroll: pieces of papyrus or parchment sewn together and rolled up. The book form came into use some time in the second century.
11. Revelation 1:13 Jesus appears in garments that are priestly (the habit or long tunic) and royal (the golden breastplate). The white hair is a symbol of eternity; the flaming eyes signify omniscience, and the bronze feet, immutability. He is also a Judge, prepared to sentence those who are unfaithful (see Rev 2:16; 19:15; Isa 49:2; Eph 6:17; Heb 4:12). One or other of his attributes as Judge is used by the author at the beginning of each of the seven letters to indicate the circumstances of the Church addressed.
12. Revelation 1:13 Son of man: see note on Mt 8:20.
13. Revelation 2:1 Christian communities at the end of the first century found themselves faced with difficulties that were substantially the same as those faced by the Church in every age, from the Passover of Christ to the end of history. The real struggle was and would be that of fidelity in the midst of constant renewal. The letters here are addressed to seven Churches of Asia Minor; the number seven is symbolic, in the sense that these communities represent all the Churches with their difficulties and problems, their efforts to be faithful, and their undertakings.
    Each letter follows the same pattern: Christ comes on the scene bearing one of the symbols listed in the great vision of Rev 1:9-20; he judges the communities according to their deficiencies, their fidelity, and their constancy; then he concludes with the promise of final victory.
    In every age each community and each believer will read these letters in order to submit to the Lord’s judgment and to hear once again his call. Addressed as they are to angels who, according to the religious thinking of the time, were regarded as presiding over the destiny of a community, they envisage first of all the leaders of the communities.
14. Revelation 2:1 Under the pretext of Christian spirituality and freedom, a sect that, certainly without justification, claims reliance on one of the first deacons, Nicholas (see Acts 6:5), allows itself the most serious moral deviations and takes part very freely in pagan worship. (A similar group at Pergamum holds the teaching of Balaam [vv. 14-15], and a third at Thyatira follows the woman Jezebel [v. 20]. All three groups are usually termed Nicolaitans.)
    The community of Ephesus does resist the danger that threatens it, but unfortunately in its effort to be faithful it has become judgmental. It has lost its charity. The time has come for it to be renewed. Otherwise, the community will lose its place. What a perspective is thus opened for fidelity! A new access to the tree of life militates against succumbing to sin (see Gen 2:9; 3:22-24); expressed in Jewish language, it is the hope of an unending life.
15. Revelation 2:1 Ephesus: see introduction to the Letter to the Ephesians.
16. Revelation 2:7 Whoever has ears should listen to what the Spirit says . . .: this formula concludes each of the seven letters and stresses the role of the Spirit in Christ’s relation with his Church. Anyone who is victorious: i.e., anyone who clings to the faith in the face of persecution. Right to eat from the tree of life: a right lost by our first parents but now restored by Christ who abrogated the decree that excluded human beings from the tree of life. God and humans are restored to the perfect fellowship that existed before the advent of sin.
17. Revelation 2:8 Those Jews who did not acknowledge Christ as the one who fulfilled their hope, nor the Church as the true Israel, slandered the Christian community. They were regarded as partisans of the forces of opposition represented by Satan. However, the Christians must take courage, for the trial will last only for ten days, i.e., it will be of short duration—the reward for a life in God is near. Believers will escape the second death, i.e., defeat and definitive perdition at the judgment of God.
18. Revelation 2:8 Smyrna: a city closely aligned with Rome that housed a large Jewish population hostile to Christians (see Acts 14:2, 19; 17:5, 13). One of the most famous early martyrs, Polycarp, was bishop of Smyrna.
19. Revelation 2:12 In this city, a main center of emperor worship, the presence of Satan is visible. Deviant heresies, like that of the Nicolaitans, glorify participation in pagan forms of worship and in the moral disorders they represent, which in the eyes of the Old Testament is tantamount to prostitution. The episode of Balaam is evoked to stigmatize these wanderings of the conscience of believers (see Num 25:3; 31:16). The reward is illustrated by two symbols: the manna, i.e., the food of life (see Ps 78:24f), evokes all the blessings God bestows on those who remain faithful to him, blessings of which the Eucharist is the sign (see Ex 16:32-34; 2 Mac 2:4-8; Heb 9:4); the white stone probably recalls the stones upon which Greeks wrote the names of the candidates for whom they were voting in elections. God chooses us.
20. Revelation 2:12 Pergamum: the ancient capital of Asia, built on a hill. Its name means “citadel” in Greek and is the origin of the word “parchment.” It was the center of emperor worship in Asia.
21. Revelation 2:13 Antipas: the first martyr of Asia, who was put to death under the emperor Domitian.
22. Revelation 2:14 Teaching of Balaam: Balaam counseled the Midianite women on how to lead the Israelites astray (see Num 25:1-2; 31:16; see also Jude 11); thus he is the exemplar of teachers who lead the faithful into becoming completely worldly-minded.
23. Revelation 2:18 A prophetess, who is compared to Jezebel of sad memory in the Books of the Kings of Israel (see 1 Ki 16:31; 2 Ki 9:22), is inciting Christians to take part in idolatrous worship. Some, who are doubtless Nicolaitans, believed that they could obtain a deeper religious knowledge through a mysterious initiation. Believers cling to Christ. He will be at their side on the Day of Judgment, according to the classic images of Psalm 2. The morning star is the symbol of the Resurrection and its power—for Jesus rose from the dead just before dawn, the time when the morning star is visible.
24. Revelation 2:18 Thyatira: a military outpost noted for its trade guilds.
25. Revelation 2:24 The deep secrets of Satan: perhaps the esoteric teaching of the Nicolaitans.