I'm trying to finish up an intro course on the NT. Part of the course requirements is that I need to read through the entire New Testament. Twice. Yesterday I finally finished by reading Revelation. My assignment for that book was pretty easy: describe how Revelation "makes you feel." I thought that it was very cool to reflect on what kind of emotions scripture brings out of us. Below is some of what I wrote. By the way, the image is "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" by Viktor Vasnetsov (1887).
When I first looked at the question in the assignment, a few words came to mind. First, there is eeriness. There is something so otherworldly and bizarre about this book that I can’t help but have a sense of eeriness and strangeness. The description of the 4 winged beings is beyond anything I've seen or experienced. This brings me naturally to another emotion I felt; fear. Though I am a Christ follower, the terrible events, suffering, and pain which are described in detail are a little frightening.
I don’t like to admit it, but I also felt a little bit of distrust. When you hear that many of these “crazy” things are supposed to happen soon and you know that is almost two thousand years since John wrote that these things were going to happen - well, it makes you wonder. Seems like it should have happened already. Or has it? I know that time is different with God, but I still feel some distrust and it makes me wonder if either I’m totally not reading things right or something went wrong with the prophecy.
Lastly, the final part of the book fills me with hope. The triumph of the Lamb over his enemies is inspiring. When the new heaven and new earth are created and the heavenly city comes down, that is exciting stuff! I feel like what is supposed to happen will. The beauty of “no more tears” and God being the light for the city is truly fantastic to meditate upon. Yes, I definitely felt hopeful and optimistic at the end.
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