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It is commonly believed that the visions describe events taking place at the End Times and the second coming of [[Jesus Christ]]; however, some groups such as [[Preterists]] disagree, believing that the book describes events fulfilled at other points in history.
It is commonly believed that the visions describe events taking place at the End Times and the second coming of [[Jesus Christ]]; however, some groups such as [[Preterists]] disagree, believing that the book describes events fulfilled at other points in history.
The events of the book are largely centered around two periods: a seven-year period widely known as The [[Tribulation]] (during which the judgments revealed will take place), followed immediately thereafter by a 1,000-year period widely known as The [[Millennium]] ("millennium" means "1,000 years") when Jesus Christ will reign as King over all the Earth.
===Tribulation===
There is wide disagreement among religious scholars as to the fate of Christians before the Tribulation period.<ref>The three main views are the Pre-Tribulation [[Rapture]] (where Christians are taken out of the world beforehand; the [[Left Behind]] series is based on this view); the Mid-Tribulation Rapture (where Christians are taken out when the Antichrist reveals his true nature; this view is the least-held), and the view that there will not be any Rapture at all and Christians will go through the Tribulation.</ref> Revelation itself does not discuss this topic.
What is understood is that, at the outset of the Tribulation, a figure called the [[Antichrist]] (or the Beast) will rise on the scene. He will establish a one-world government to which all must pledge allegiance, by taking on themselves a mark consisting of the [[Number of the Beast]] (best-known by its numerical designation of '''666''') in order to buy or sell. He is accompanied by a religious figure, the False Prophet, who will establish a one-world religion in direct opposition to Christianity, to which all must adhere. Though there will be those who resist (notably the Two Witnesses and a group of 144,000 evangelists, often believed to be Jewish), the Antichrist will largely be successful in opposing and killing those who resist him.
The Antichrist will establish a peace treaty with [[Israel]] for seven years, allowing Israel to rebuild its long-awaited Temple and restore the Jewish sacrificial system. Once the Temple is completed at the mid-way point of the treaty, the Antichrist will reveal his true nature: he will enter the Temple and proclaim himself to be the awaited Messiah. At this point, the world will be subject to a series of ever-harsher judgments.
Ultimately world events will lead to a final battle between the nations of the world (led by the Antichrist) and Israel culminating at the Battle of [[Armageddon]]. Israel will find itself on the brink of extinction when Jesus Christ Himself will return with an army (commonly believed to consist of all Christians from all of history) and defeat the Antichrist and False Prophet.
===Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse===
===Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse===
The four horsemen are synonymous to the first four seals, and there is a direct correlation between the events of the seals and the list of events found in the Olivet Discourse, as found in Matthew 24. According to this view, the first four seals are usually perceived as being the ''beginning of birth pangs'' (Matthew 24:4-8).
The four horsemen are synonymous to the first four seals, and there is a direct correlation between the events of the seals and the list of events found in the Olivet Discourse, as found in Matthew 24. According to this view, the first four seals are usually perceived as being the ''beginning of birth pangs'' (Matthew 24:4-8).
===Plagues===
===Plagues===