Do you think Revelations is enigmatic?

[Aquila]

Originally Posted by Amanah

everyone sees Rome as being the beast
* first century saints see Imperial Rome
* Reformation saints see The Roman Church
* most people today see a revived empire.

it seems like figuring this out is key.

I believe that Revelation was written in a way that serves all three purposes. It gave faith and hope to the first century saints to truly did believe they were quite possibly living through the end times. But, they weren't. Throughout Christian history, after the rise of the Roman Catholic Church and the Holy Roman Empire, Revelation gave faith and hope to those precious saints suffering under Catholic persecution, and they too truly believed that they were seeing the end time upon them. But, they weren't. And today, it gives us faith and hope in light of increasing globalization and religious extremism and persecution around the globe. We too believe that we might very well be in the end times. However, we don't know. Maybe we are, maybe we aren't. The unfolding of the Great Tribulation may very well be within our lifetimes. Or... it may be generations away. We don't know.

But the purpose of the Revelation is served. It will continue to give faith and hope to the church of Christ up until that very hour when Christ returns and subdues the kingdoms of this world and establishes His Kingdom.