The Spirit of Prophecy in Revelation

As we have seen so far, the evidence from the contemporary Jewish extra biblical sources and Revelation itself show that the phrase “the spirit of prophecy” (Rev. 19:10) refers not to all believers in general but only to those called by God to prophetic ministry. ^{38Bauckham, 160. Contrary to Beale, who views tēs prophēteias in Revelation 19:10 as a descriptive genitive denoting believers as prophetic people. He argues that the prophets in the text in view are “not an exclusive office but the same group mentioned as prophets elsewhere in the book, where the prophetic role of the entire church is in mind” (The Book of Revelation, 948). So also Osborne, 678.} Likewise, the expression “the testimony of Jesus” in Revelation 12:17 and 19:10 does not refer to believers bearing witness about Christ, but to the testimony that Jesus bears through His prophets inspired by the Spirit, just as was the case with the prophets in the Old Testament. In Revelation prophets are regularly mentioned as a group distinguished from the rest of the believers (11:18; 16:6; 18:20, 24; 22:6, 9). ^{39So Osborne, 678.} Believers are in possession of the testimony of Jesus conveyed to them through the agency of prophets. The testimony of Jesus is thus the substance of the prophetic message.GOP 197.1

Revelation 19:10 is thus in line with the teaching of the rest of the New Testament, where the prophets in the church are distinguished as a special group within the church, just as was the case with the prophets in the Old Testament. Many modern scholars uphold this assertion. For instance, Richard Bauckham argues thatGOP 197.2

a distinction is to be drawn between the special vocation of the Christian prophets to declare the word of God within the Christian community, and the general vocation of the Christian community as a whole to declare the word of God in the world. The former will then subserve the latter. The Spirit speaks through the prophets to the churches and through the churches to the world. However, as far as specific references to the Spirit go, those we have so far examined concern exclusively the Spirit’s inspiration of Christian prophecy addressed to the churches. ^{40Bauckham, 162; also Beckwith, 729, 730.}GOP 197.3

Similarly, David Aune and many others hold that the phrase “the spirit of prophecy” should be understood as “the power that allows certain individuals to have visionary experiences and gives them revelatory insights not available to ordinary people.” ^{41Aune, 1039; also Caird, 238; Robert L. Thomas, Revelation 8-22: An Exegetical Commentary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1992), 377.}GOP 198.1

The book of Revelation recognizes the presence and ministry of such individuals with the prophetic gift in the churches in Asia in John’s days—“your brothers the prophets” (Rev. 22:9; cf. verse 6)—without informing us of their role and activities in those churches. ^{42Hill, 417.} But, they are clearly referred to as the servants, the prophets. John the revelator had a leading role in this group. Although he never refers to himself as a prophet, he functions in a role similar to that of the Old Testament prophets. Like Paul prior to him (2 Cor. 12:1), he claims that he received a special revelation from God. And he bore witness to “the testimony of Jesus Christ” that was communicated to him in vision (Rev. 1:2). The contents of the book he wrote are “the words of the prophecy” (verse 3; Rev. 22:7, 18) conveyed to him as he was taken in Spirit (Rev. 1:10; 4:2; 17:2; 21:10) in vision. John was thus an agent through whom the Spirit conveyed the word of God as Christ’s testimony to the church. The book of Revelation claims to be a prophetic book— Christ’s own testimony to the church conveyed by the Spirit. ^{43It is doubtful whether Revelation 11:11 and 22:6 refer to the Holy Spirit, while 13:15; 16:13, 14; and 18:2 refer to satanic spirit/spirits. Four times the Spirit is referred to as “the seven Spirits” (Rev. 1:4; 3:1; 4:5; 5:6) and 14 times as “the Spirit.” Of these 14 references, seven occur in the conclusion of the seven messages to the churches: “Who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Rev. 2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22). Four describe John being carried in the Spirit to be shown the things in vision (Rev. 1:10; 4:2; 17:3; 21:10). Two refer to the words of the Spirit cited in Revelation to provide comfort to God’s people in midst of persecution (Rev. 14:13) and to infuse the church with a longing to meet Christ when He comes in glory and power (Rev. 22:17). The last reference to the Spirit is found in Revelation 19:10.}GOP 198.2

The Holy Spirit plays an essential role in the transmission of the prophetic revelation in the book of Revelation. The word “spirit” (pneuma) occurs ^{44See Richard Bauckham, The Theology of the Book of Revelation, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993), 115.} times in Revelation, of which 18 refer to the Holy Spirit. ^{45As rightly observed by Osborne, 678.} Of the 18, 17 refer to John’s inspiration of prophecy, while Revelation 19:10 refers to the prophetic office in general. The Holy Spirit is regularly alluded to as the Spirit in the book, which further affirms the assertion that “the Spirit” in 19:10 refers to the Holy Spirit.GOP 198.3

In Revelation the reference to the Holy Spirit concerns prophetic inspiration and the communication of the prophetic message. The activity of the Holy Spirit is administered through prophets in the church. ^{46Bauckham, The Theology of the Book of Revelation, 115.} Four times John is carried in the Spirit to be shown the things in vision (Rev. 1:10; 4:2; 17:3; 21:10), just as Ezekiel in the Old Testament (Eze. 3:12, 14; 8:3; 37:1; etc.). The prophecy is the Word of God borne by Christ as His own testimony to the church and conveyed by the Spirit. The Holy Spirit enables the prophet to receive the prophetic message in the visionary experience. ^{47Ibid., 116.} This is best seen in the conclusion of the messages to the seven churches, which are designated as the voice of the Spirit conveying to the churches the words of Jesus exhorting them to come out of their spiritual lethargy: “Who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Rev. 2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22). What the Spirit says is actually what Christ says. ^{48Ibid., 117} This brings to mind Jesus’ description of the role of the Spirit: “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you” (John 16:13, 14).GOP 198.4

An emphasis on the Spirit in connection with prophecy distinguishes between true and false prophets (cf. Rev. 2:20-23). In this lies the test of true prophets. At the time of John the prophetic gift was opposed by self-appointed prophets like Jezebel in the church of Thyatira, who claimed she had the prophetic gift (verse 20). In his other letter, John urged the Christians in Asia to test the spirits to see whether they come from God, “because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1). They must heed what the Spirit speaks to the churches. It is also significant that, in the final conflict, one of the key players in the final crisis of this earth’s history is referred to in Revelation as the “false prophet.” That is why God’s end-time people need Christ’s special guidance conveyed to them by means of the spirit of prophecy—as provided in Scripture, in the book of Revelation, and through a genuine prophet who may be sent to them by God. However, it is not just the manifestation of the prophetic gift in their midst only, but also heeding the prophetic message that separates God’s people from the unfaithful at the time of the end (cf. Rev. 1:3).GOP 199.1