Dating the Book of Revelation

It is always important to know when a book is written, and this is especially true of Biblical books because it aids in our interpretation of what the author is trying to convey. Revelation is a special case because most people do not realize how the date of its writing actually affects the interpretation. Two of the views of Revelation are futurism, meaning the events described in entire book of Revelation (or most of the book, Ch. 4-22) are in the future from the date of its writing. However, Preterism requires a date before 70 A.D. because this view holds that the most of the events in Revelation (Ch. 1-19, partial preterism) are about the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. and the events leading up to it. The book of Revelation is a prophecy about events that would soon take place. So, establishing the date of Revelation is crucial to interpreting the book. Or put another way, the dating of the book can eliminate certain views and give us a better picture of what the Apostle John was talking about in the visions of the book.

The traditional view is that the book of Revelation was written in 95 or 96 A.D. However, it is imperative that we understand that the chief support for this date rests on external evidence. The church father Irenaeus (130-202) who was a disciple of Polcarp who was a disciple of the Apostle John. This fact alone gives what he has written great weight. In book 5 of his famous work, Against Heresies, he seems to state that the visions of Revelation were “seen” during the time of the Roman Emperor Domitian (81-96 A.D.). The English translation of the text is as follows:

We will not, however, incur the risk of pronouncing positively as to the name of Antichrist; for if it were necessary that his name should be distinctly revealed in this present time, it would have been announced by him who beheld the apocalyptic vision. For that was seen no very long time since, but almost in our day, towards the end of Domitian's reign. (Against Heresies, Book 5, Chapter 30.3)

While it is generally accepted that Irenaeus means that the vision of John was seen at the end of the Domitian’s reign, there are some scholars, such as Kenneth Gentry (Before Jerusalem Fell) who question whether Irenaeus meant the vision or the Apostle John was seen during that time. It should also be noted that Irenaeus refers to “ancient copies” of Revelation, which is inconsistent with the idea that the original autograph was written “almost in our day”. The main point I would make is that this text is the main evidence supporting the late date (95/6) for the writing of Revelation.

Now, let us consider an earlier date. Several are suggested but I think the best place to start is either Revelation was written before 70 A.D. or it wasn’t. David Chilton in his book on Revelation, The Days of Vengeance, has much to say about it. He suggests the safest course is to look at the internal evidence (within the book itself).

The book of Revelation is primarily a prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans. This fact alone places St. John’s authorship somewhere before September of A.D. 70. Further, as we shall see, St. John speaks of Nero Caesar as still on the throne – and Nero died in June 68.

More important than any of this, however, we have a priori teaching from Scripture itself that all special revelation ended by A.D. 70. The angel Gabriel told Daniel that the “seventy weeks” were to end with the destruction of Jerusalem (Dan. 9:24-27); and that period would also serve to “seal up the vision and prophecy” (Dan. 9:24). In other words, special revelation would stop – be “sealed up” –by the time Jerusalem was destroyed (Chilton, pg 4-5).

This agrees with the careful analysis of John A. T. Robinson that all Scripture was written prior to 70 A.D. (Redating the New Testament). Now let’s unpack what exactly is being said. Why does Chilton and others say that Nero is Ceasar at the time of Revelation’s writing? He is referring the internal evidence of Revelation 17.

This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain only a little while. Revelation 17:9-10

Five of the kings have fallen (died) and one is, and one is to come. It is generally accepted that this refers to the Caesars. Basically what some scholars are saying is that the “one is” refers to Nero, meaning that Revelation was written during his reign (54-68). Now everyone does not count the seven Caesars the same. Some start with Julius Caesar and some with Augustus.

The Sixth King of Revelation 17

Option 1: Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, Nero, Galba, Otho, Vitellius, Vespasian

Option 2: Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, Nero, Vespasian

Option 3: Julius Caesar, Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, Nero

You notice the three options for the sixth king, Galba, Vespasian and Nero. The reason there are differences is because of which Caesar is first and some scholars skip Galba, Otho and Vitellius. We should note that the best approach is what the ancient historians used such as Josephus or Suetonius. Some historians and theologians believe the book of Revelation was written in 69/70 A.D. Looking back at the chart you will notice this fits with Option 1 (Galba) and Option 2 (Vespasian). However, using a date this late means the book of Revelation cannot be a prophesy about 70 A.D. For Preterism to work the date would have to be in the mid-60s or earlier. It is worth noting that support for a Neronic date for the book of Revelation include Arethas, the Syriac History of John, the Syriac version of Revelation, Theophylact, and Epiphanius.

Now one thing I would add, and we will deal with this in detail later, is that in Daniel 7 it expresses the beasts as kingdoms, however it is also kings. Daniel 7:17 states, “Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth.” What this means is the kings or leaders represent the kingdom, so you can interchange king and kingdom. Meaning the Bible is referring to both the king and kingdom. So when Revelation 17 refers to seven kings, it is very likely this also means seven kingdoms.

Finally, I want to consider a date before 60 A.D. This is unusually and not in the mainstream but I believe it is a very valid and valuable assessment. Consider Laodicea in Revelation 3. It is described as rich and prosperous. In 60/61 A.D. the city suffered a devastating earthquake. It is highly improbable the city would have been able to rebuild to the point of being rich and prosperous by the mid-60s or even by 68 A.D. This likely means the book of Revelation had to be written either before 60 or later in the 90s.

Bible scholar Ernest L. Martin has noted, “The apostle John actually saw the visionary events recorded in the Book of Revelation on two different occasions… The first time he saw the Revelation was about 56 C.E. (during Nero’s reign) and the last time he witnessed it was in the time of Domitian (96 C.E.). It is even attested in the Book of Revelation itself that John would be given the contents of the “little scroll” on two different occasions. The first time was before the destruction of Jerusalem and the second long after Jerusalem had been destroyed. The angel told John: “And he said unto me, ‘You must prophesy AGAIN before many peoples, and nations and tongues and kings’.” Rev. 10:11 (Ancient Nations in the Middle East – Part 1)

So it is possible after the original publication of Revelation, probably 56-60 A.D., the apostle published an expanded Greek version of Revelation in the 90s. This would account for the varying opinions on an early and late date for the book.