“The book of Revelation can feel more intimidating to read than other books of the Bible. It invites readers into a world that seems confusing and sometimes even strange: golden lampstands, seven seals, a dragon, and a rider on a white horse. But at its core, Revelation is a message of hope written to Christians facing hardship, and it’s worth the effort to read it and understand it. In this first volume in the New Testament Theology series, trusted scholar Thomas Schreiner walks step-by-step through the book of Revelation, considering its many themes—the opposition believers face from the world; the need for perseverance; God as sovereign Creator, Judge, and Savior—as well as its symbolic imagery and historical context. The Joy of Hearing brings clarity to the content and message of Revelation and explores its relevance for the church today.” - Crossway Books
The book of Revelation is the most intimidating book of the Bible, in my opinion. Navigating different interpretations, timelines, and references makes it hard to know where to begin. When I saw this book was released, I took it as a challenge to read and start studying the book of Revelation. Thomas Schreiner lays out the book in 7 chapters that correspond to different themes, The deafness of those living on earth, The saints hear and heed, The declaration that God rules on his throne, The good news of the Lion and the Lamb, The testimony of the Holy Spirit, The promise of blessing and the New Creation, and Reigning with Christ for one thousand years.
Schreiner does a good job laying out the timeline and dating differences between the different interpretations from the very beginning. Where you land on the dating of the book of Revelation will lead you to differing expositions and views. He does make a case for his choice in dating for his interpretation which I would say is amillennial/ idealist view that lays his foundation for the rest of the book.
In later chapters, he gives other interpretational views of passages and explains why he thinks they are wrong. His critiques stem from their differences in the dating of the book and their differences in viewpoint. I feel this information is lacking from his criticism. He does explain why they don’t go along with his view on the book, but I felt overall there was some information lacking as to how the other viewpoints got to their interpretation of particular passages. I also understand this may not have been the purpose of this book as it was not an exhaustive study but more an overview focusing just on themes.
I did appreciate that he stayed on task with each theme. He frequently mentioned that specific topics would be addressed in other chapters, which he delivered. He gives each subject its own time to be explained. It very well could have been filled with rabbit trails. I appreciated the focus he put on each theme. I also valued the longest chapter focused on John’s high Christology. I knew John had a high Christology from his gospel but, Schreiner pointed out and melded together all of John’s writing into a cohesive overview of his thoughts. I would have never made the connections on my own with my first reading of Revelation so, I appreciated that chapter the most.
Overall this book was a great resource for me. With Revelation being overwhelming to most people, it was good to have this book as a starting point. This book would be great for any Christian wanting to study differing viewpoints and interpretations of Revelation. I am excited to read future books in the New Testament Theology series, co-edited by Thomas Schreiner and Brian Rosner.
*I received this book free from NetGalley along with Crossway in exchange for an honest review.*

The readers of Revelation need to hear the truth about who God is and what he does. He is sovereign and holy, and therefore he judges sin as Almighty God, as the Holy One of Israel.

Depending on your background of study of the bible and end times, this text will affirm what you know, will challenge you to know more, and you may have some disagreements. This did all three for me. It is important to read scripture first and supporting scripture when it comes to end times. In doing so, it gives you a desire to know more and to give hope. Hope is the reason for Revelation and also a warning. It will inquire courage and steadfastness in the faith.

The text is not deep but presses on important scripture. For example the letters to the churches, the bowls, and the 1000 year reign. What I struggled with the most is 144,000. Who are the 144,000 and what does it mean. What is Israel's role and the churches role? Does one cancel the other or work together. It is my understanding that the text implies the cancel of Israel and the chosen people of God. Scripture has been made plain to me that God is not finished with his Chosen people and will use them significantly in the end times. Prophecy has held true with Israel becoming a nation in one day and after the war, the Jewish people coming back to Israel to build their nation. With evil hell bent on destroying Israel as a people, God has maintained them. His hand is still on them.

"Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. 23 And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. 24 After all, if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild by nature, and contrary to nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree! Romans 11:22.

So I leave you with this. Read the word, study with other believers, read books from trusted publishers and authors. Seek salvation from God thru Christ Jesus. Scripture testifies to the truth to what has happened and what will happen. God be the glory!

A special thank you to Crossway Publishers and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review

First sentence: In this chapter we consider those in Revelation who refuse to hear the truth, those who close their ears to the message about Jesus Christ.

The Joy of Hearing is not a verse by verse commentary on the book of Revelation. It provides commentary and insight on the whole book thematically. The chapters are, "The Deafness of Those Living On Earth," "The Saints Hear and Heed," "The Declaration that God Rules on His Throne," "The Good News of the Lion and the Lamb," "The Testimony of the Holy Spirit," "The Promise of Blessing and the New Creation," "Reigning with Christ for One Thousand Years." (There's an introduction and epilogue as well).

The book of Revelation is complex; the subject matter can be heavy. (It doesn't have to be heavy. You can read the book of Revelation as a worship book. You can focus on the GLORY and MAJESTY of God, savor the richness of the promises and blessings. You don't have to focus on the whole THE WORLD IS ENDING aspect of it.) The Joy of Hearing may be a SHORT book, certainly more concise than some other commentaries out there on the book of Revelation. But it is still a scholarly approach--with tons of notes (footnotes? endnotes? note-notes?). It does not have a devotional approach. For better or worse.

I found it to be a dense read. I don't say that to be mean. I don't. I really don't. I just didn't have the desire to slowly chew and digest--unpack--the weighty contents of this one. I did find myself loving how each chapter had several pages of conclusion that summed up in a concise manner the contents of the chapter. The conclusions were proof that the contents were good--if not a little dense, theologically complex. That with the right consistent amount of effort, it would be to the reader's benefit.

The book does give an overview of the book of Revelation.