Hey, this is John at the Bible Project.

Today we're talking about how to read apocalyptic literature in the Bible.

And if you've seen any movies, you know that the apocalypse means the end of the world.

In the Bible, the word apocalypse does not mean the final destruction of the world.

That's not what it means.

All you have to do is get out of concordance and look at the uses of the word.

Apocalypse is a Greek word.

It actually means to reveal something or uncover something.

A biblical apocalypse is when God's perspective on the world is revealed to us.

The Apostle Paul had an apocalypse on the road of Damascus when Jesus revealed himself to

him the prophet Daniel had an apocalypse when God revealed the meaning of King Nebuchadnezzar's

dream to him.

In fact, one of the most common ways that God's perspective of the world is revealed

is through dreams.

We think of dreams in our culture as windows to the inside of someone.

So here's what's fascinating is that most human cultures, for most of human history,

have the opposite understanding of dreams.

Most traditional cultures see dreams as a window to something outside of myself.

It's an altered state of consciousness that potentially reveals the true nature of the

world.

So today we're going to get apocalyptic.

Thanks for joining us.

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