Apocalyptic Key
1 Corinthians 2:7 - But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory.
Mark 4:11 - And He said to them, To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God;
Mark 4:22 - For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light.
Revelation 1:1 - The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants--things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John.
SIGNIFIED - Expressed by a sign or symbol, as distinct from the physical form in which it is expressed.
The Book of Revelation is filled with mysterious symbols. Why? For the same reason that Jesus spoke in parables. The book of Revelation is clothed in symbols so that only those who sincerely seek the truth will find it.
Our Lord Jesus has revealed a number of keys to unlock the secrets of the book.
When the literal approach does not have meaning.
Revelation 17:1 - Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and talked with me, saying to me, Come, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters
Revelation 17:2 - with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
Revelation 17:3 - So he carried me away in the Spirit into the wilderness. And I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast which was full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
Could you find a literal harlot who is sitting on a scarlet beast?
If the literal approach does not make sense, we need to take the Spiritual meaning with the help of reference verses.
Revelation is filled with symbols just like the Gospels are full of Parables.
Jesus always spoke in Parables
Matthew 13:10 - And the disciples came and said to Him, Why do You speak to them in parables?
Matthew 13:11 - He answered and said to them, "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.
Matthew 13:12 - For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.
Matthew 13:13 - Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.
Matthew 10:26 - ....for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known.
John 16:25 - These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly about the Father.
John 15:15 - No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.
1. Beast = Kingdom [Daniel 7:23, Revelation 13:1,11]
2. Horn = King or Kingdom [Daniel 7:24; Daniel 8:5,21,22; Zechariah 1:18-19; Revelation 12:3; 13:1,11]
3. Babylon = Religious Apostasy [Revelation 17:1-5; 18:2-3; Genesis 11:6-9]
4. Bow = Word of God [Revelation 6:2; Habakkuk 3:8-9]
5. Crown = Kingship [Revelation 6:2; 1 Chronicles 20:2; 2 Kings 11:12]
6. Trumpet = Loud warning [Revelation 8:6, Ezekiel 33:3-6, Exodus 19:16-17, Joshua 6:4-5]
7. Doctrine of Balaam = Advancing own interests & compromise [Revelation 2:14, Numbers 22:5-35]
8. Cup = Suffering & Judgments [Revelation 16:19, Psalm 75:8; Isaiah 51:17,22-23; Jeremiah 25:15-17; 49:12]
9. Day = Year [Ezekiel 4:6, Numbers 14:34, Daniel 9:24-27, Genesis 5:4; 25:8, Revelation 2:10, 11:3, 12:6]
10. Dragon = Satan or his kingdom [Isaiah 27:1; 51:9; Psalm 74:13,14; Rev 12:3,4,7-9; Ezekiel 29:3; Jer 51:34]
11. Harlot = Apostate church [Revelation 17:5, Isaiah 1:21; Jer 3:1-9, Ezekiel 16:15-58; 23:2-21; Hosea 3:1]
12. Heads = Major powers, rulers, government [Revelation 12:3, Revelation 13:1, Daniel 7:6]
13. Image = A likeness [Genesis 1:26; Genesis 5:3; Exodus 20:4; Deuteronomy 4:25]
14. Incense = Prayers of God's people [Revelation 5:8; Revelation 8:3-4; Psalm 141:2, Luke 1:10, Acts 10:1-4]
15. Israel = True followers of Jesus [Romans 9:6-8; Romans 2:28,29; Galatians 3:29, Revelation 7:4]
16. Jezebel = Idolatry, Immorality, Apostasy [Revelation 2:20, I Kings 21:25; II Kings 9:22]
17. Merchants = Advocates (Priests/Pastors) of Babylon's teaching, who make a gain of godliness & traffic in religious privileges. [Isaiah 47:11-15; Nahum 3:16,17; Revelation 18:3,11,15,23, 2 Peter 2:3, John 2:16]
18. Mountain = Kingdom [Daniel 2:35,44,45; Isaiah 2:2,3; 37:24; Jer 51:24-25, Revelation 6:14,15; 16:20]
19. Scarlet (color) = Sin / Corruption [Revelation 17:3-4; Isaiah 1:18; Nahum 2:3]
20. Purple (color) = Rich / Royalty [Revelation 17:4; Luke 16:19; Mark 15:17-18]
21. Sodom = Moral degradation [Revelation 11:8, Ezekiel 16:46-55, Jude 1:7]
22. Waters = Inhabited area of people, multitudes, nations, and tongues [Revelation 17:15; 17:1]
23. White = Purity [Revelation 3:4,5,18; 4:4; 7:14; 15:6; 19:8; Psalm 51:7; Isaiah 1:18]
24. White robes = Righteousness [Revelation 19:8; 3:5,18; 6:11; 7:14; Isaiah 61:10; Zechariah 3:1-5; Gal 3:27]
25. Winds = Strife, Commotion, Winds of war [Jeremiah 25:32; 49:36,37; 4:11-13; 18:17; Zechariah 7:14]
26. Wine of her fornication = False doctrine [Revelation 17:2, 18:3, Deuteronomy 32:33, Jeremiah 51:7]
27. Wormwood = Sorrow / Bitterness [Revelation 8:11, Jer 9:15; 23:15; Lam 3:15,19; Prov 5:4; Ruth 1:20]
28. Sun of Righteousness = Jesus [Malachi 4:2; Revelation 12:1]
29. Sun = King / Ruler [Jeremiah 15:9, Isaiah 60:20, 13:10, Revelation 6:12, 8:12, 9:2]
30. Sun darkened = Fall of Kings [Rev 6:12; 8:12; 9:2; Eze 32:7; Dan 8:10; Joel 2:10; Isa 14:2; 34:4; 13:10]
31. Gold = Faith / Pure Character [Revelation 3:18, Isaiah 13:12]
32. Tree = Prince / King [Rev 8:7; Isa 14:8; 37:24; Dan 4:10-26; Zec 11:2; Psa 37:35; 92:12; Nah 1:4]
33. Clothing = Character & Nakedness = Unrighteousness [Revelation 3:17-18; 16:15, Isaiah 64:6; 59:6]
34. Black = Moral darkness, destruction [Rev 6:5,12; Jer 4:20-28; 14:2; Lam 4:8; 5:10; Joe 2:6; Nah 2:10]
35. Seven stars = Angels of the seven churches [Revelation 1:20]
36. Seven Candlesticks = Seven churches [Revelation 1:20]
37. Adultery / Fornication = Idol Worship [Revelation 17:2,4; Ezekiel 16:15-58; 23:2-21, Isaiah 1:21, Jer 3:9]
38. Mark = Seal / Mark of approval [Ezekiel 9:4; Revelation 13:17; Revelation 14:9-11]
39. Earthquake = Overthrow of Kingdoms [Rev 6:12, 11:13, 16:18, Hag 2:6,21-22, Heb 12:26, Eze 26:15, 31:16]
40. Hail = Hostile Invasion [Revelation 8:7; Isaiah 28:2,17; Isaiah 30:30]
41. Judgments on earth = Judgments on Roman earth [Luke 2:1; Revelation 6:4; 6:8; 6:10]
42. Drying of River = Destruction / Weakening of kingdom [Rev 16:12, Nah 1:4; Isa 19:5; 42:15; Jer 51:36]
43. Loose the four angels bound in Euphrates = Wars starting from Ottoman Empire [Turkey] - Rev 9:14
44. Locusts = Arabians [Revelation 9:3, Judges 7:12, Exodus 10:13-15 - East of Egypt is Arabia]
45. Woman travailing in birth = Primitive Church of Jesus [Revelation 12:1-2; Galatians 4:19; Isaiah 66:7-8]
46. She brought forth a male child = Jesus formed in Christian's heart [Galatians 4:19; Revelation 12:5]
47. Eagle's Wings = Protection of God [Exodus 19:4; Revelation 12:14]
48. Blasphemy = Idol Worship [Rev 13:1,5,6; 16:9,11,21; 17:3; Eze 20:27; Isa 65:7, 2 Kings 19:22; Deu 31:20]
49. Travail = Persecution [Revelation 12:2; Isaiah 66:7; Matthew 24:8-9, Mark 13:8-9]
50. Flood = Persecution [Rev 12:15-16; Isa 28:2; 59:19; Jer 46:7-8; Dan 9:26; Amo 8:8; 9:5; Nah 1:8]
51. Furnace = Slavery [Revelation 9:2, Deuteronomy 4:20, 1 Kings 8:51, Isaiah 48:10, Jeremiah 11:4]
52. Smoke ascending forever and ever = Perpetual subjection & slavery [Rev 14:11, 19:3, Isaiah 34:10]
53. Sore = Spiritual Plague [Revelation 16:2, 16:11; Isaiah 1:4-7]
54. Wound of a beast = Overthrow in war [Rev 13:3,12,14; Isaiah 51:9; 2 Sam 22:39; Psa 110:6; 18:38; 68:21]
55. Ascending towards heaven = Rising in power & honor (Revelation 11:12; Psalms 139:8; Ezekiel 38:9)
56. Hiding of men in dens & rocks = Shutting up of Idols in temples [Revelation 6:15-16; Isaiah 2:18-19,21]
57. Red = Godly vengeance against sinners [Isaiah 62:2-3; Nahum 2:3; Revelation 6:4]
58. Souls under the altar = Martyrs of Roman Persecutions [Exodus 29:12; Leviticus 4:25]
59. Sackcloth = Affliction [Gen 37:34; 2 Sam 3:31; 1 Ki 21:27; 2 Ki 19:1; Isa 15:3; Jer 4:8; 6:26; 49:3; Eze 7:18]
60. Moon = Religious Ecclesia [Psalms 81:3; Ezekiel 32:7; Isaiah 24:23; 1:14; 1 Chr 23:31; 2 Chr 2:4; Ezra 3:5]
61. Fig tree = Strongholds [Revelation 6:13; Nahum 3:12; Isaiah 34:4; Jeremiah 8:13; Hosea 2:12]
62. Mountain & island removed = Fall of Pagan Roman empire [Job 9:5-6; Isa 41:5; Eze 38:20; Nah 1:4]
63. Grass = Common people [Rev 8:7; 2 Kings 19:26; Isaiah 37:27; 40:6-7; Psalms 90:5; 102:11; 103:15]
64. Star = Ministers of Religion [Revelation 1:20, Daniel 8:10]
65. Key = Power [Isaiah 22:22, Matthew 16:19, Luke 11:52, Revelation 1:18]