There is, perhaps, no book in the Bible that has resulted in more confusion than the book of the Revelation. To mention alone, by name, the many conflicting schools of interpretation that it has produced, would be but to open the door to the confusion. And yet it is quite certain that God never intended any part of His Word to lead to confusion. Confusion is not a characteristic of the Lord; He is not a God of confusion. It therefore becomes necessary that we seek to reduce the message of the book to some simple conclusions; and I think the first three chapters, which form a distinct section, may help us to see how the whole book can and should be reduced to such a simple conclusion.
