AI generated
When Iran launched a barrage of missiles and drones against Israel recently, it was not surprising to read and hear concerns regarding the intentions of that almost-nuclear power, raising fears that the world is too dangerously close to witnessing the fulfilment of the end-of-the-world scenarios painted by prophets in the Bible or by prophets of doom of every stripe. The Bible, however, encourages me to say, “Lord, bring on the apocalypse.”
My years of translation work have made me particularly sensitive to the way people misuse words, sometimes ignorantly, but carelessly, in any case. Take the word, “forever”, for example. I remember when time share companies first came to Madeira Island over 20 years ago. The advertising slogan of one of the earliest companies was “Interval Ownership…Forever”. It made me wince every time I saw it. Fast forward to today, and I have the same reaction every time the commercial for a nutritional supplement airs on TV, and the man closes his glowing testimonial of the benefits of the product by saying, “I’m going to take this supplement forever.”
When words are used carelessly, they lose their meaning or their meaning completely changes.
Apparently many time share owners have concluded that 15 or 20 years of ownership is long enough, heaven forbid they should be trapped in their contracts “forever”. And no matter how good that nutritional supplement is, there’s no way that gentleman on TV is going to be around to take those capsules “forever”. We know what is meant when “forever” is used in this way, but that doesn't mean we should forget what the word really means.
There’s another word that’s bandied about, and no thought is given to what the word really means. I refer to the word “apocalypse”. Over and over, the phrase “the apocalypse” is used to mean “the (catastrophic) end of the world”. An article entitled “10 Times The Apocalypse Failed To Show Up” appeared on Dictionary Scoop in March, pointing out failed doomsday predictions in history. It reminded me of Peter’s words in 2 Peter 3.3-4, “Scoffers will come in the last days to scoff…saying, ‘Where is the promise of His [Jesus Christ’s] coming? Ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they have been since the beginning of creation.’” It’s the “the-sky-is-falling” syndrome of the Chicken Little story we read in grade school. Such predictions of doom are passed off as “much ado about nothing”.
I asked AI to generate a photo, simply using the word "apocalypse", and the image above is what I got
A recent article in The Washington Post dated July 12, 2024, was entitled “Taliban tries reconciling science and religion in facing climate change”. It includes this sentence, “Some religious scholars at Taliban-run institutes fear that prolonged drought and the growing number of deadly floods in Afghanistan may at best be God’s punishment and at worst a sign of the apocalypse.” (Emphasis mine.)
This catastrophic connotation of “apocalypse” comes from the last book of the Bible, entitled “The Revelation of St. John the Divine” in the KJV, or simply “Revelation” in modern translations. By the time the reader gets to chapter 18 of the book, the global scale of destruction has been so vividly described that, even if the figurative language is not easily understood, there is no doubt about its meaning for mankind as a whole. This is the end of the world, “the apocalypse” so feared and predicted time and time again; it’s the catastrophic stuff movies are made from.
“Apocalypse” does not mean “destruction” or “end of the world”.
The Greek word “apocalypsis” simply means, “revelation”, hence the name of the book in English. The title “The Revelation of St. John” is misleading. The apostle John wrote down the words, but the book opens with the statement, “The revelation (apocalypsis) of Jesus Christ that God gave Him”. When the disciples asked Jesus about the timing of His coming, He replied, “Now concerning that day and hour no one knows—neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son—except the Father only.” Matthew 24.36 This last book of the Bible is the Apocalypsis, the Revelation by Jesus of what the Father had told Him to reveal to His followers.
The book simply(?) reveals what God says is going to take place. In the first 20 chapters, there are descriptions of the glory of God’s presence in heaven and His intervention on behalf of those who believe in Him, but the message that makes the greatest impact is one of world-wide destruction and wrath on those who don’t. But the Revelation does not end in chapter 20. The last two chapters describe something of the glory of God’s heavenly kingdom on earth, and they are just as much a part of the Apocalypse as the preceding chapters of doom and gloom. They are, in fact, the climax of God’s work in creating mankind. They are the culmination of what human history has been all about.
One could argue that the book of Revelation was not meant for the world in general, anyway, as Rev. 1.1 says, “The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place.” The book is written so followers of Jesus will be prepared when all the terrible things happen all around them, and in chapters 21 and 22, believers are consoled by the Apocalypse, the Revelation, of the final outcome. Unbelievers and scoffers do not have that consolation. For them, the Revelation is one of divine judgment and eternal perdition.
Paul wrote, “While people are saying, ‘Peace and safety,’ destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.” 1 Thessalonians 5.3 - NIV, illustrating the troublesome times that precede the coming of the Lord. Our eldest granddaughter just had her first child…after being in labor for 39 hours. Long or short, difficult or relatively easy, no pregnant woman can escape those last hours or days of travail before giving birth, but holding the beautiful little girl or boy afterwards more than compensates for that pain and agony. In the same way, the world will not be able to escape the unimaginable travail that precedes the glorious rebirth of God’s creation.
The Bible's use of the word "apocalypse"
Passages such as Rom. 8.18-19, 1 Pet. 1.7,13; 4.13, and 1 Cor. 1.7, speak of the revelation (the Greek word, apocalypsis) of Jesus Christ and His glory as the culmination of His work of salvation. This is the way those verses sound when we replace the English word “revelation” with the word “apocalypse”.
“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is going to be revealed to us (Grk.=verb form of apocalypsis). For the creation waits with eager longing for the apocalypse (literal translation) of the sons of God.” Rom. 1.18-19
“…so that the genuineness of your faith—more valuable than gold, which perishes though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the apocalypse of Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 1.7
“Therefore, with your minds ready for action, be serious and set your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the apocalypse of Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 1.13
“Instead, rejoice as you share in the sufferings of the Messiah, so that you may also rejoice with great joy at the apocalypse of His glory.” 1 Peter 4.13
“…so that you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for the apocalypse of our Lord Jesus Christ. I Cor. 1.7
In chapter 22, verse 20, John closes the book of Revelation with the words, “He [Jesus] who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes! I am coming without delay.’ Amen! Yes! Come, Lord Jesus!”
In Eugene Peterson’s version of the Bible in Contemporary English, The Message, which is a paraphrase rather than a translation, Rev. 22.20 reads, “He who testifies to all these things says it again, ‘I’m on my way! I’ll be there soon!’ Yes! Come, Master Jesus!”
Here’s my paraphrase of that verse: “Jesus says, ‘My apocalypse is about to happen.’ Amen! Yes, Lord! Bring it on!”
When Jesus described to His disciples some of the “apocalyptic” signs that will accompany His return, He told them, “The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.” Luke 17.22 NIV Frankly, we as God’s people have not reached that point yet. But the time will come when we will cry out from the depths of our souls, “Apocalypse now! Please, Lord Jesus!”
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