Difficulties

1:1 - Why does John say that these events “must soon take place”? (c.f. 1:3; 2:16; 3:11; 22:7, 12, 20) 1:4 - What are the seven spirits mentioned here? 1:7 - Does this passage refer to the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70? 1:10 - What does it mean that John was “in the Spirit”? 2:1 - Was this an angel or the pastor of the church? 2:6 - Who were the Nicolaitans? 2:7 - Do we need to “overcome” to inherit eternal life? (c.f. 2:11, 17, 26; 3:5, 12, 21) 2:9 - Synagogue of Satan? 2:10 - What does John mean by 10 days? 2:17 - What are the secret names and the white stones mentioned here? 2:28 - What is the morning star? 3:5 - Does God erase names from the book of life? 3:10 - Does this support a pre-tribulation rapture of the church? 3:14 - Was Christ a created being? 3:15-16 - What does it mean to be “hot or cold” for God? 4:4 - Who are the 24 elders mentioned here? 6:2 - Who is the rider on the white horse? Christ or the antichrist? 6:9-11 - Is it Christian to pray for vengeance? 7:1 - Did the biblical authors believe in a flat earth? 7:4 - What is the seal of God? 7:4-8 - Why is the tribe of Dan missing from this list? 7:4 - Who are the 144,000? 8:10 - Is this a torch or a lamp? 8:10 - Is this star simply an angel? 8:11 - Why is the star called Wormwood? 9:1 - Is this angel Satan? 9:13 - Why are the angels “bound” to the river Euphrates? 11:1 - Is this a literal Temple and city, or does this represent the church? 11:3-12 - Who are the two witnesses? 11:5 - What is the fire coming out of their mouths? 12:1 - Who is the woman: Israel, Mary, or the Church? 12:4, 9 - When did Satan sweep a third of the angels away to the Earth? When was Satan cast out of heaven? 13:1 - Is the Antichrist an empire or a single individual? 13:3 - What is the “fatal wound” mentioned here? 13:18 - What does “666” mean? 14:6-7 - Is this a message of forgiveness or judgment? 16:21 - How could hailstones be this big? 16:21 - Could the 100 pound hailstones actually be fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70? 17:5 - What is the mystery of Babylon? 17:9 - Are the “seven hills” an allusion to Rome here? 17:10 - Who are the seven kings? Roman Emperors or World Empires? 20:2-3 - Is Satan currently bound? 20:4-5 - Does the “first resurrection” refer to spiritual regeneration or bodily resurrection? 20:7-8 - Do Gog and Magog rebel before the millennium or after? 22:14-15 - Will sinful people not get into heaven?