The Book of Revelation was written sometime around 96 CE in Asia Minor. The author was probably a Christian from Ephesus known as "John the Elder." According to the Book, this John was on the island of Patmos, not far from the coast of Asia Minor, "because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus" (Rev. 1.10).
The author of the Book of Revelation identifies himself only as "John". Traditionally, this was often believed to be the same person as John the Apostle (John, son of Zebedee), one of the apostles of Jesus, to whom the Gospel of John was also attributed.
Most Christian scholars believe that John of Patmos was also John the Apostle who traveled with Jesus during his ministry. Decades later as a much older man, John of Patmos took heat from the Roman government for preaching and was exiled to the island of Patmos, Greece.
Historical Background. The future of the Apostle John, sometimes called “the Beloved” or “the Revelator,” is a mystery to the world. Confusion comes because of the statement in John 21:20–23. Referring to John and speaking to Peter, the Savior said: “If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?
The theologian Tertullian reported that John was plunged into boiling oil but miraculously escaped unscathed. In the original apocryphal Acts of John, the apostle dies; however, later traditions assume that he ascended to heaven. Officially, the apostle's grave is at Ephesus.
2) He was a cousin of Jesus.
One of them was Mary, the mother of Jesus (Acts 1:14). The second was Mary, the mother of James and Joseph (Matthew 27:56). And the third was Mary Salome, the mother of James and John (Mark 15:40). As implied, Jesus and John the Beloved were cousins.
At the beginning of Revelation, John tells us that while he was on the Isle of Patmos, where he was banished because of his religious faith, he heard a loud voice telling him to write what he saw and then to send the writing to the seven churches in Asia.
A more critical reading of Luke and, especially, Matthew points to the possibility that John's “pre-understanding” vis-8-6s the Messiah kept him from making the leap of faith to become a disciple of Jesus.
The brothers of Jesus or the adelphoi (Greek: ἀδελφοί, translit. adelphoí, lit. "of the same womb") are named in the New Testament as James, Joses (a form of Joseph), Simon, Jude, and unnamed sisters are mentioned in Mark and Matthew.
The Church Fathers identify him as John the Evangelist, John of Patmos, John the Elder, and the Beloved Disciple, and testify that he outlived the remaining apostles and was the only one to die of natural causes, although modern scholars are divided on the veracity of these claims.
9 Now when he was risen early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. 10 She went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept.
The Bible doesn't mention a wife for the locust-and-honey-eating forerunner of the Christian savior, but as the titular wife here reasonably explains: “A woman, in those days, was not counted.
Since the end of the first century, the beloved disciple has been commonly identified with John the Evangelist.
Then Peter understood he was fleeing his destiny, returned to Rome, was arrested and crucified in Nero's stadium on Vatican Hill — now famous for the great basilica that marks his grave.
We will commence with John the Baptist. When Herod's edict went forth to destroy the young children, John was about six months older than Jesus, and came under this hellish edict, and Zecharias caused his mother to take him into the mountains, where he was raised on locusts and wild honey.
Because of intricate and unusual symbolic language, the Book of Revelation is hard for modern people to read. They are not used to this kind of literature. Not so for people in the ancient world who would have been more accustomed to the complex nature of apocalyptic literature.
Genre. Revelation is an apocalyptic prophecy with an epistolary introduction addressed to seven churches in the Roman province of Asia. The term apocalypse means the revealing of divine mysteries; John is to write down what is revealed (what he sees in his vision) and send it to the seven churches.
AD stands for Anno Domini, Latin for “in the year of the Lord”, while BC stands for “before Christ”.
According to Mark 6:3 Jesus had four brothers (and two sisters): "Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon?
Instead, tradition, supported by references in Restoration scripture, 14 has identified John as being the anonymous “disciple whom Jesus loved” who was present at the Last Supper, the Crucifixion, the empty tomb, and in Jesus's final Sea of Galilee appearance.