1. At the beginning of the Christian era, a wave of oppression propagated by the Roman Empire overwhelmed the Judeo-Christian community in the Mediterranean. It was in this context, marked by violence and hostility, that the apostle John of Patmos would have written the last book of the Bible: the Book of Revelation, more famous as the Book of Revelation. In it, he claims to relate revelations made to him by Jesus Christ. Throughout the chapters, the apostle traces a political and social panorama of the time, announcing what the end of those days would be like: the victory of good over evil. Thus, more than the end of the planet, João announced the end of those who ruled the world at that time.
– (Estevan Silveira/)
two. The apocalypse begins with the coming of the Antichrist, who will rule the world for «a thousand years». In the New Testament, “antichrist” is all “against Christ” – thus the figure is personified differently depending on the tradition. In the case of the Book of Revelation, the antichrist is personified in the Roman emperor Nero, persecutor and murderer of Christians. And the “thousand years” can be both literal and figurative, depending on the current interpretation
– (Estevan Silveira/)
3. A series of four “sevens” marks the apocalypse: seven letters, seven seals, seven trumpets and seven scourges. In Jewish tradition, the number 4 represents the idea of wholeness. The letters symbolize the original addressee churches of the book, scattered in Asia Minor, in the cities of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea. The seals unleash the trumpets played by angels, announcing the punishments perpetrated by the wrath of God.
– (Estevan Silveira/)
4. The first angel blows the trumpet and a shower of stones and fire mixed with blood hits the ground, burning trees and green grass. After the sound of the second angel, a third of the sea turns to blood. On the third ring, the star Wormwood falls from the sky, burning like a torch over the rivers – and the waters turn to bitter wormwood, killing many.
– (Estevan Silveira/)
5. The blast of the fourth trumpet hurts a third of the sun, moon and stars, which lose their brightness. At the touch of the fifth angel, a star falls from the sky opening an abyss, from which smoke with locusts comes out to torment the infidels. Poisonous, the animals have a scorpion’s tail, an iron breastplate, a golden crown, dandelions, a woman’s hair and a man’s face.
6. The sixth trumpet releases other angels who were trapped in the Euphrates River: the four horsemen of the apocalypse, with breastplates of fire, hyacinth and brimstone. Their mission is to exterminate the future: to kill a third of humanity. Alongside an army of 200 million, they ride horses with a serpent’s tail and a lion’s head. The leader is the rider on the white horse, which symbolizes conquest. The one on the red horse wields a sword, which represents war. That of the black horse brings hunger and misery. The pale horse rider finally brings death
7. The seventh angel descends from heaven with an open book, placing his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land. It is he who brings the bad news: the end is near. After its passage, the Sun turns black, stars fall from the sky, thunder and earthquakes rumble. Many hide in caves and mountains. But only 144,000 of God’s servants (12,000 of the 12 tribes of Israel) would be saved – which inspires the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ belief of 144,000 saved
– (Estevan Silveira/)
8. The temple of God opens in the sky amidst lightning and thunder. In the sky, signs are seen, such as a red dragon with seven heads, ten horns and seven diadems on its heads. In the celestial battle, the archangel Michael and the angels battle the wild beast (which symbolizes Satan). The dragon is overthrown and bound with chains – which is interpreted as the destruction of the antichrist by the word of Christ
– (Estevan Silveira/)
9. After the catastrophes and the fall of the kingdom of evil, symbolically referred to as Babylon (at the time of writing the book, the Babylonians represented enemies of the Jews), the kingdom of good is established, which portrays a return to a perfect paradise. The dead come to be judged by God. It’s the famous final judgment: saints go to heaven, sinners go to hell
– (Estevan Silveira/)