Revelation is the record of a vision received by a Christian mystic during a time when Christians were experienci
ng great persecution. As a vision, it is symbolic, as a writing during persecution, it is written to obscure it's criticism of the persecutors. Some of the symbols are obvious, like the "mark of the beast" which referred to a requirement that everyone bow down and worship Caesar and those who did were giving a document attesting to their act - these documents were sold to people who couldn't worship Caesar (Christians and Jews), so they could "prove" they had and avoid the penalties.
Revelation makes little sense to us during pleasant times, but time and again, has provided comfort during the hard times of history. As a symbolic document, Revelation can be, and has been, re-interpreted to provide comfort to the persecuted in every age. It was written, not for the pseudo-persecuted, the American Conservative who complains of persecution if someone says, "Happy Holidays," instead of "Merry Christmas," but to Christians like those in North Korea, China, Indonesia, and the Middle East who are today giving their lives and freedom for their beliefs.
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