John of Patmos

John of Patmos (also called John the Revelator, John the Divine or John the Theologian; Greek: Ἰωάννης ὁ Θεολόγος) is the name given to the author of the Book of Revelation, the apocalyptic text forming the final chapter of the New Testament. The text of Revelation states that the author is called John and that he lives on the Greek island of Patmos, where, by some, he is considered to be in exile as a result of anti-Christian persecution under the Roman emperor Domitian.

Traditionally, the writer of Revelation was widely considered to be John the Apostle, who was also seen as author of the Gospel of John. However, others identified the author as John the Elder and many modern scholars believe it was written by an otherwise unknown author, to whom they have given the name John of Patmos.

Book of Revelation

The author of the Book of Revelation identifies himself only as "John". Traditionally, this was often believed to be the same person as John, son of Zebedee, one of the apostles of Jesus, to whom the Gospel of John was also attributed. The early 2nd century writer, Justin Martyr, was the first to equate the author of Revelation with John the Apostle. Other early Christian writers, however, such as Dionysius of Alexandria and Eusebius of Caesarea, noting the differences in language and theological outlook between this work and the Gospel, discounted this possibility, and argued for the exclusion of the Book of Revelation from the canon as a result. The assumption that the apostle John was also author of the Book of Revelation is now widely rejected in modern critical scholarship. The early Christian writer Papias appeared in his writings to distinguish between John the Evangelist and John the Elder, and many biblical scholars now contend that the latter was the author of Revelation.

Jesus

Jesus (/ˈdʒiːzəs/; Greek: Ἰησοῦς Iesous; 7–2 BC to AD 30–33), also referred to as Jesus of Nazareth or Jesus Christ, is the central figure of Christianity, whom the teachings of most Christian denominations hold to be the Son of God. Christians believe Jesus is the awaited Messiah (or Christ, the Anointed One) of the Old Testament.

Virtually all modern scholars of antiquity agree that Jesus existed historically, and historians consider the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) to be the best sources for investigating the historical Jesus. Most scholars agree that Jesus was a Galilean, Jewish rabbi who preached his message orally,was baptized by John the Baptist, and was crucified by the order of the Roman Prefect Pontius Pilate. In the current mainstream view, Jesus was an apocalyptic preacher and the founder of a renewal movement within Judaism, although some prominent scholars argue that he was not apocalyptic. After Jesus' death, his followers believed he was resurrected, and the community they formed eventually became the Christian church. The widely used calendar era, abbreviated as "AD" from the Latin "Anno Domini" ("in the year of our Lord") or sometimes as "CE", is based on the birth of Jesus. His birth is celebrated annually on December 25 as a holiday known as Christmas.

Book of Revelation

The Book of Revelation, often known simply as Revelation or The Apocalypse of John, is a book of the New Testament that occupies a central place in Christian eschatology. Its title is derived from the first word of the text, written in Koine Greek: apokalypsis, meaning "unveiling" or "revelation". The Book of Revelation is the only apocalyptic document in the New Testament canon (although there are short apocalyptic passages in various places in the Gospels and the Epistles).

The author names himself in the text as "John", but his precise identity remains a point of academic debate. Second century Christian writers such as Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Melito the bishop of Sardis, and Clement of Alexandria and the author of the Muratorian fragment identify John the Apostle as the "John" of Revelation. Modern scholarship generally takes a different view, and many consider that nothing can be known about the author except that he was a Christian prophet. Some modern scholars characterise Revelation's author as a putative figure which they call "John of Patmos". The bulk of traditional sources date the book to the reign of the emperor Domitian (AD 81-96), and the evidence tends to confirm this.

New Jerusalem

In the Book of Ezekiel, New Jerusalem (יְהוָה שָׁמָּה, Jehovah-shammah, or "[where] YHWH [is] there") is Ezekiel's prophetic vision of a city centered on the rebuilt Holy Temple, the Third Temple, to be established in Jerusalem, that will be the capital of the Messianic Kingdom, the meeting place of the twelve tribes of Israel, and of the world's nations, during the Messianic era. The prophecy is recorded by Ezekiel as having been received on Yom Kippur of the year 3372 of the Hebrew calendar.

In the New Testament it is also titled Heavenly Jerusalem in the Book of Revelation as well as Zion in other books of the Christian Bible. In Christian eschatology it is a city that will be established to the south of the Temple Mount and will be inhabited by the twelve tribes of Israel after the Messianic era when Christ reigns over the saints (Revelation 20-21). It is believed that the woman crowned with twelve stars upon her head (Revelation 12), Queen of the South (Matthew 12.42) and woman crying in labour (Isaiah 54) as the same "mother" of the third temple or metaphorically the new Jerusalem.