Chapter 16: The seven plagues (summarizing the events of the Jewish-Roman War: 67-70 AD) are poured out, intentionally alluding to the ten plagues of Egypt. [Deuteronomy 28.27, 60] Satan, the Roman Empire, and apostate Israel incite each other into war at “Armageddon”. The word literally means “Mountain of Megiddo”. Jerusalem “the great city” is “split into three parts”, corresponding to the three factions of Zealots that took over the city in 67 AD, ultimately being the reason why the Romans conquered the city in 70 AD. (The third bowl is tied directly to Matthew 23:33-38 & Rev 18:20 & 24).
Chapter 17: John sees a vision of a harlot “Babylon the great”, which he is explicitly told is a symbolic representation of “the great city” Jerusalem. The harlot is “drunk with the blood of the saints”, showing Jerusalem’s guilt of persecuting the Church (Matthew 23:34-37). The harlot is allied with the scarlet beast (satan or apollyon), showing apostate Israel’s alliance with the Roman Empire. John is told that the seven heads represent seven kings; these are the first seven emperors of the Roman Empire, beginning with Julius Caesar. This results in the sixth king being Nero Caesar, who was singled out by John’s prophecies in Revelation 13.
The scarlet beast itself is the “eighth” king. The Roman Empire is described as attempting to destroy the Church, but failing (symbolically depicted as the beast warring upon the Lamb). (64-68 AD) In anger at failing to destroy the Church, the Roman Empire turns vengeance upon apostate Jerusalem, the harlot, and destroys her. (67-70 AD)
Chapter 18: John records a lament by the world over Jerusalem’s death. He ends the lament with the statement that “in her was found the blood of … all who have been slain on earth”, directly linking to Christ’s statement that Jerusalem held the guilt for “all the righteous blood shed on earth” (Matthew 23:33-37). This chapter resembles Ezekiel chapter 16 thus showing that Jerusalem and Babylon the great were the same city.
Babylon the great is called “the great city”. The great city is also mentioned in Revelation chapter 11
8 Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city—which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt—where also their Lord was crucified.
Sodom represented Jerusalem morality and Egypt represented Jerusalem bondage.
God calls His people out of her in verse 4 and the saints left Jerusalem right before the siege by the Romans.
Chapter 19: John sees the Marriage Supper of the Lamb begin as a direct result of the death of apostate Israel and the Old Covenant age. In essence, Israel, God’s wife [Ezekiel 16.32] had committed apostasy, which was the same thing as “sexual immorality” [Ezekiel 16]. According to Christ, divorce could be issued because of “sexual immorality”. [Matthew 5.31-32] Hence, God divorced his adulterous wife Israel by having her destroyed with fire, which was the Old Covenant death sentence for women who were “sexually immoral” (if they were related to priests, which Israel was). [Leviticus 21.9] God divorced ethnic apostate Israel in order to marry true Israel, which is the Church.
The overarching theme of Revelation 16-19 perfectly fits Christ’s parable of the wedding feast [Matthew 22.1-15], right down to the burning of “their city” being immediately followed by the wedding feast. The second half of the book symbolically represents Christ’s victory over the world including the Roman Empire and apostate Israel with the sword of His mouth His word. The demonic beings influencing Rome, Apostate Israel and their leaders are cast into the lake of fire alive.
Chapter 20: John sees Satan bound up so that he could not deceive the nations, a symbolic representation of the great chain the power of the gospel. The “first resurrection” refers to the resurrection of Jesus Christ “the first fruits”. [1 Corinthians 15.20] thus when we believe we are spiritually raised to life and reign with Christ. Verse 4 shows that even when we die physically we are still alive spiritually reigning with Christ. (Rev. 14.13: “blessed are those who die in the Lord from now on”) The “thousand years” is symbolic of the era of the Church age,
The number 1000 is a symbolic numeral for “completion”. Thus, when the “thousand years” end, the plan of God will be brought to completion. Satan will be released from his thousand-year binding, bringing about a great deception. Satan’s people (symbolized as “Gog and Magog”) will attempt to destroy the Church (symbolized as “God’s holy city”), the rapture will take place immediately followed by the second coming of Christ. Satan will be cast into the lake of fire. Christ will sit upon his throne, and he will bring about the resurrection of the dead. All of mankind (and angels) will be judged. John sees the wicked cast into the lake of fire. Finally, John sees Death itself destroyed by Christ.
Chapter 21: John sees the New Jerusalem, a symbolic representation of God’s perfect Church the bride of the Lamb with imagery drawn from Ezekiel’s description of Eden. [Ezekiel 28.13] Whereas the priestly garments of the Old Covenant had 12 different stones, each with a name of one of the 12 tribes engraved upon it [Exodus 28.17-21], John sees the New Jerusalem built on a foundation of 12 different stones, each with a name of the one of the 12 apostles engraved upon it. Since the New Jerusalem is the Church, it has no temple within it, because the Lord God and the Lamb are its temple. No one else can enter it because the New Jerusalem is the church.
Chapter 22: John sees the river of life (The Holy Spirit) flowing from the throne of God and of Jesus. He also sees the tree of life (eternal life) bearing fruit each month. He states that the tree’s leaves are “for the healing of the nations”, corresponding to how the gospel of Jesus Christ brings healing to mankind. John states that only the “those who wash their robes” in the blood of Jesus may enter the New Jerusalem, corresponding to the fact that only those believe in Christ and repent of their sins become members of the Church, which is the Body of Christ.
The New Jerusalem, as depicted in Revelation 21-22, is a present reality for the Church [Galatians 4.22-31; Hebrews 12.22], made real by the sacrifice of Christ, but it also awaits perfect fulfillment at the Second Coming of Christ.
John in the last chapter was told not to seal up the words of the prophecy in this scroll because the time is near and states three times (at the time Revelation was written) that Jesus was coming soon.
Additional Notes: I cannot repeat it enough times: Partial preterists do not believe that the Second Coming took place in 70 AD. God had several, unique “judgment comings” throughout the Old Testament, in which God “came” and destroyed a wicked nation by using another nation as his tool of judgment. Likewise, the “coming of the Son of Man” is interpreted by partial preterists as referring to Christ’s “judgment coming” in 70 AD, in which he “came” and destroyed apostate Israel by using the Roman nation as his tool of judgment. Partial preterists do believe that the Second Coming is still in the future, in which Christ will physically return to the earth.
Partial preterism does not teach “replacement theology”, it teaches “covenant theology”. “Replacement theology” is the teaching that the Church replaced ethnic Israel. “Covenant theology” is the teaching that the New Covenant replaced the Old Covenant. The Church is true Israel. The Church consists of Christ-believing ethnic Israelites, Christ-believing ethnic Gentiles.
Chapter 17: John sees a vision of a harlot “Babylon the great”, which he is explicitly told is a symbolic representation of “the great city” Jerusalem. The harlot is “drunk with the blood of the saints”, showing Jerusalem’s guilt of persecuting the Church (Matthew 23:34-37). The harlot is allied with the scarlet beast (satan or apollyon), showing apostate Israel’s alliance with the Roman Empire. John is told that the seven heads represent seven kings; these are the first seven emperors of the Roman Empire, beginning with Julius Caesar. This results in the sixth king being Nero Caesar, who was singled out by John’s prophecies in Revelation 13.
The scarlet beast itself is the “eighth” king. The Roman Empire is described as attempting to destroy the Church, but failing (symbolically depicted as the beast warring upon the Lamb). (64-68 AD) In anger at failing to destroy the Church, the Roman Empire turns vengeance upon apostate Jerusalem, the harlot, and destroys her. (67-70 AD)
Chapter 18: John records a lament by the world over Jerusalem’s death. He ends the lament with the statement that “in her was found the blood of … all who have been slain on earth”, directly linking to Christ’s statement that Jerusalem held the guilt for “all the righteous blood shed on earth” (Matthew 23:33-37). This chapter resembles Ezekiel chapter 16 thus showing that Jerusalem and Babylon the great were the same city.
Babylon the great is called “the great city”. The great city is also mentioned in Revelation chapter 11
8 Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city—which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt—where also their Lord was crucified.
Sodom represented Jerusalem morality and Egypt represented Jerusalem bondage.
God calls His people out of her in verse 4 and the saints left Jerusalem right before the siege by the Romans.
Chapter 19: John sees the Marriage Supper of the Lamb begin as a direct result of the death of apostate Israel and the Old Covenant age. In essence, Israel, God’s wife [Ezekiel 16.32] had committed apostasy, which was the same thing as “sexual immorality” [Ezekiel 16]. According to Christ, divorce could be issued because of “sexual immorality”. [Matthew 5.31-32] Hence, God divorced his adulterous wife Israel by having her destroyed with fire, which was the Old Covenant death sentence for women who were “sexually immoral” (if they were related to priests, which Israel was). [Leviticus 21.9] God divorced ethnic apostate Israel in order to marry true Israel, which is the Church.
The overarching theme of Revelation 16-19 perfectly fits Christ’s parable of the wedding feast [Matthew 22.1-15], right down to the burning of “their city” being immediately followed by the wedding feast. The second half of the book symbolically represents Christ’s victory over the world including the Roman Empire and apostate Israel with the sword of His mouth His word. The demonic beings influencing Rome, Apostate Israel and their leaders are cast into the lake of fire alive.
Chapter 20: John sees Satan bound up so that he could not deceive the nations, a symbolic representation of the great chain the power of the gospel. The “first resurrection” refers to the resurrection of Jesus Christ “the first fruits”. [1 Corinthians 15.20] thus when we believe we are spiritually raised to life and reign with Christ. Verse 4 shows that even when we die physically we are still alive spiritually reigning with Christ. (Rev. 14.13: “blessed are those who die in the Lord from now on”) The “thousand years” is symbolic of the era of the Church age,
The number 1000 is a symbolic numeral for “completion”. Thus, when the “thousand years” end, the plan of God will be brought to completion. Satan will be released from his thousand-year binding, bringing about a great deception. Satan’s people (symbolized as “Gog and Magog”) will attempt to destroy the Church (symbolized as “God’s holy city”), the rapture will take place immediately followed by the second coming of Christ. Satan will be cast into the lake of fire. Christ will sit upon his throne, and he will bring about the resurrection of the dead. All of mankind (and angels) will be judged. John sees the wicked cast into the lake of fire. Finally, John sees Death itself destroyed by Christ.
Chapter 21: John sees the New Jerusalem, a symbolic representation of God’s perfect Church the bride of the Lamb with imagery drawn from Ezekiel’s description of Eden. [Ezekiel 28.13] Whereas the priestly garments of the Old Covenant had 12 different stones, each with a name of one of the 12 tribes engraved upon it [Exodus 28.17-21], John sees the New Jerusalem built on a foundation of 12 different stones, each with a name of the one of the 12 apostles engraved upon it. Since the New Jerusalem is the Church, it has no temple within it, because the Lord God and the Lamb are its temple. No one else can enter it because the New Jerusalem is the church.
Chapter 22: John sees the river of life (The Holy Spirit) flowing from the throne of God and of Jesus. He also sees the tree of life (eternal life) bearing fruit each month. He states that the tree’s leaves are “for the healing of the nations”, corresponding to how the gospel of Jesus Christ brings healing to mankind. John states that only the “those who wash their robes” in the blood of Jesus may enter the New Jerusalem, corresponding to the fact that only those believe in Christ and repent of their sins become members of the Church, which is the Body of Christ.
The New Jerusalem, as depicted in Revelation 21-22, is a present reality for the Church [Galatians 4.22-31; Hebrews 12.22], made real by the sacrifice of Christ, but it also awaits perfect fulfillment at the Second Coming of Christ.
John in the last chapter was told not to seal up the words of the prophecy in this scroll because the time is near and states three times (at the time Revelation was written) that Jesus was coming soon.
Additional Notes: I cannot repeat it enough times: Partial preterists do not believe that the Second Coming took place in 70 AD. God had several, unique “judgment comings” throughout the Old Testament, in which God “came” and destroyed a wicked nation by using another nation as his tool of judgment. Likewise, the “coming of the Son of Man” is interpreted by partial preterists as referring to Christ’s “judgment coming” in 70 AD, in which he “came” and destroyed apostate Israel by using the Roman nation as his tool of judgment. Partial preterists do believe that the Second Coming is still in the future, in which Christ will physically return to the earth.
Partial preterism does not teach “replacement theology”, it teaches “covenant theology”. “Replacement theology” is the teaching that the Church replaced ethnic Israel. “Covenant theology” is the teaching that the New Covenant replaced the Old Covenant. The Church is true Israel. The Church consists of Christ-believing ethnic Israelites, Christ-believing ethnic Gentiles.
