The book of Revelationis a series of apocalyptic images given to the apostle John by the Holy Spirit to set forth Jesus Christ as eternally victorious over all world conditions and thus to encourage the Christians of John's day and every succeeding day until the return of the Lord. The book of Revelation is a message of warning to the church to keep herself pure and free from worldly entanglements. Its message is that of warning to the enemies of the church that the church, through Jesus Christ, will eventually triumph and that' all who oppose it will find themselves broken by the righteous power of God. It is also a message of hope for those who are discouraged, for it tells them to lift up their heads and hearts since God has not abdicated His throne in favor of anyone or any power. Plus, it is a message of comfort for those who sorrow; for it reveals freedom from sorrow and pain in God's own time. The book of Revelation is a book peculiarly adapted to any age of great trouble and perplexity and it is vital to sustain us in this day and age.
When we look at the book of Revelation we need to keep in mind that it was written primarily for the encouragement and edification of the Christians of the writer's own time. When we do this, instead of trying to make this book some kind of end of time indicator, then it makes more sense and is easier to understand. We need to understand the historical background surrounding the time this book was written, what was going on in the church, the political conditions and world in general. In other words, we need to get into our minds who the people are that this book was originally written to for a better understanding of what is the tree message.
One of the greatest problems many people face when studying the book of Revelation is its symbolic language. John, by inspiration of God, used pictures of abstract ideas by painting a word picture to understand the symbols in relation to this historical background. The symbols of the book of Revelation are to be taken figuratively unless there is good reason for them to be taken literally. The meaning of the symbols in Revelation are quite clear to those who want to understand them, otherwise many of the symbols are weird and grotesque. Although many Old Testament expressions and images are used, we must not always think that they have the same meaning. We must keep in mind that the book of Revelation is a Christian book and not a Jewish book. For the true meaning of Revelation one must seek to grasp the visions, or series of visions, as a whole without pressing the details of the symbolism.