Who wrote the book of Revelation?
While it is debated by some that the John mentioned in the book of Revelation (1:1, 4, 9, 22:8) refers to the Apostle John, it remains to be a strongly held and supported view. The strongest opponent regarding the Johannine authorship was raised by Dionysius, a bishop of Alexandria in the third century. His major area of contention was that the language and style of writing found in the Apocalypse did not match that of other Johannine texts. However, this argument falls short in light of other internal evidences. The author is clearly a church leader, a Jew, and his authority is already well established with the churches in Asia Minor, as was the Apostle. The author also shares similar metaphors with other Johannine scriptures, such as "living water", "shepherd", "lamb", and "manna". Beyond this, the Johannine authorship is also supported by the early church fathers such as Justin Martyr, Ireneus, Clement of Alexandria, and Tertullian. So, who wrote the book of Revelation? In my opinion, it is the Apostle John. Nevertheless, I would like to add that while Dionysius raised the question regarding the Johannine authorship, he never questioned nor doubted the inspiration or inerrancy of the book; and that is the only question that every truly needs to be asked. [mp]
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Michael D'Urbano
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