John on Patmos writes Revelation
Revelation 1:1–20; 2–3; 22:16–21
Exiled to the island of Patmos for the word of God, John saw the risen Christ in glory and received the visions of Revelation, beginning with letters to seven churches of Asia: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.
When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead man. He laid his right hand on me, saying, “Don’t be afraid. I am the first and the last, and the Living one. I was dead, and behold, I am alive forever and ever. Amen. I have the keys of Death and of Hades.”
Revelation 1:17–18 (World English Bible)
The book comforts persecuted believers with the certainty of Christ's victory: the Lamb who was slain reigns, and God will one day wipe away every tear and make all things new. Its visions of the future are not placed on this timeline; this entry marks the writing of the book.
Places
AsiaEphesusLaodiceaThyatiraSardisPergamumPhiladelphiaSmyrnaPatmos
Dating notes
Irenaeus, who knew Polycarp, a disciple of John, says the vision was seen near the end of Domitian's reign, about AD 95–96. Some scholars date it before AD 70, under Nero.