Prophecies of John the Theologian – when will the Apocalypse be?
The Apocalypse is the most mysterious part of the Bible. Authorship is attributed to John the Theologian, but many scholars have doubts about this. The language of Revelation differs significantly from the Gospels, and the book itself is full of mysterious and complex symbols. In it, the number of the beast was first mentioned – 666. But most of all, the consciousness of both Christians and unbelievers is disturbed by frightening prophecies about the time that will come before the Second Coming of Christ.
According to the scripture, John received a revelation about the future of mankind while praying. The knowledge gained was supposed to give believers an idea of the fate of the church and help in the fight against all sorts of temptations. But John did not name the exact date of the Apocalypse. He mentioned that at the time of the end of the world, the last battle of mankind will take place at Armageddon – a mountain in Israel (the real name of the mountain is Megiddo, in Hebrew Har Megiddo ). It is striking that it was there that the first battle known to historians took place – in the 15th century. BC e. Pharaoh Thutmose III defeated the Canaanite kings near Mount Megiddo. And, according to John, the decisive battle between good and evil will take place there.
Mysterious symbols
The Revelation of John the Evangelist is considered the most difficult part of the Bible to understand. Thousands of studies have been devoted to it, hundreds of interpretations of images have been made. But the most exciting symbols are the following:
- Seven lamps. In his revelation, John saw Christ in the midst of seven candlesticks, each of which symbolizes the church in a particular period of time. The last of these is the Laodicean, whose followers will be “neither cold nor hot.” This means that before the end of the world, people will become indifferent to faith, and religion for them will have a formal character.
- Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. In the sixth chapter of Revelation, John writes that God will send horsemen to Earth who will bring discord and suffering to the earth. Their names are Plague, War, Famine and Death.
- The coming of the Antichrist. In the last times, the Antichrist will descend to Earth, who will call on humanity to fight against Christ.
Throughout the existence of Christianity, people have seen signs of the approaching Apocalypse. However, every year more and more what is happening in the world begins to resemble the events described by John the Theologian.
Fulfilled prophecies
When the tragedy occurred at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, many saw in it the prophecy of the Apocalypse that had come true. The book says that the wormwood star should fall from the sky. It will make the waters bitter, and people will die because of it. In Ukrainian, wormwood means “Chernobyl”. An explanation was also found for why an explosion in a nuclear reactor was called a star – nuclear reactions take place in a star, and therefore it can symbolize nuclear explosions.
Also, Christian leaders are worried about the situation with the church. The fact that believers everywhere began to attend temples only on holidays, while not observing either the fasts or the commandments of Christ themselves, speaks of the beginning of the times of the Laodicean church.
The description of the army of the last times seems frightening. John the Theologian writes that people dressed in fire armor will fight on horseback, whose breath spews fire, smoke and brimstone. Does not what the apostle saw in Revelation resemble modern military equipment? In addition, the Apocalypse says that there will be “darknesses” of warriors. Some tend to see this as a warning about a future war with China.
However, the onset of the Apocalypse was expected even earlier. There is evidence that in 666 Christians were convinced that the end of the world was approaching. It was also expected after – in the Middle Ages, in modern times, in the 20th century. Nevertheless, each time humanity successfully survived the fateful date. Maybe we have nothing to worry about now?
