This page looks at the portion of John's prologue to Revelation where he informs us of the circumstances that caused him to write the book. The book was written because Jesus commanded it to be written. This command came immediately before the visions were seen by John.

Circumstances in which John Wrote

Rev 1:9-11

John The "John" who introduces himself here (Rev 1:4), is most likely John the apostle who wrote the gospel and the three epistles that also bear his name. Some insist that it is a different John, because the language style differs from the other books. However that is explained in that John is writing a different manner of book, and doing so under the thrall of the visions being shown to him (note Rev 10:4).

Asia The "Asia" here (Rev 1:4), is not what we call Asia today, but rather Asia Minor, the area of which Ephesus is the major city. The seven churches to whom the letter was originally circulated were in Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea (Rev 1:11).

Map

Map

Patmos John was on a small island off the coast of Ephesus. There he would be able, undisturbed, to receive "the word of God and the testimony of Jesus" . It is necessary, sometimes, to go away to a lonely place in order to be "in spirit".

The Lord's day John is beginning one of the most remarkable days of his life. Heaven is opening up to him. He is "in spirit" not in his usual every day state. So John calls this "the Lord's day". It has been noted that the Greek word John uses for "Lord's" is used only once elsewhere. This is in reference to "the Lord's Supper" (1Co 11:20). Some link the term "the Lord's day" with the day of observance of the Lord's Supper, namely "the first day of the week" (Acts 20:7). It is common among Christians to hear Sunday referred to as the Lord’s day.

As a matter of interest, all the days of the week are named after false gods as shown in the table below. Maybe we should call every day the Lord's day!

Seven churches The seven churches to whom the book of Revelation was originally circulated, are listed in clockwise order as you would find them, travelling north from Ephesus (the capital of Asia Minor) to Pergamum, then southwest to Laodicea. Although John is writing to these seven churches, they are representative of all churches of Christ, and what John heard, saw, and wrote, is for us all.

Links to Lessons on Revelation Chapter 1

Is Revelation a Book for You? 156
The Relevance of Revelation (Rev 1) 600
Him Who Is, Was, and is To Come (Rev 1) 743
A Useful Outline of Revelation 576
Don't Skip Over the Title (Rev 1) 920
The Seven Spirits (Rev 1) 478
What Were John's Sources? (Rev 1) 824
John's Seven Declarations (Rev 1) 489
Seven Powers of Christ (Rev 1-3) 744
Alpha and Omega - Jesus is God (Rev 1) 157
The Vision of Christ (Rev 1) 569
Christ Speaks to John (Rev 1) 745
Notes on Revelation Chapter 1 918

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