The Nature of Prophecy
Prophecies occur across many cultures, bearing different forms and names. In ancient Greece,
they were known as oracles and were delivered through seers. Among Indigenous peoples, they
come through shamans. Yet, in all these cases, these terms describe the act of foreseeing future
events.
In the Bible, however, prophecy plays a more sophisticated and less mystical role than it does
in other traditions. A biblical prophet is someone who brings a message from God—which may
or may not be about the future. The fundamental distinction between a priest and a prophet is
this: a priest carries the voice of the people to God, interceding on their behalf, while a prophet
delivers the voice of God to the people, whether it refers to the future, the present, or even the
past.
Still, most people tend to associate prophecy with future predictions—a divine forecast carrying
some spiritual or existential significance. And yes, we find this type of prophecy in the book of
Revelation, but it comes clothed in symbolic language. Revelation belongs to a very particular
genre: symbolic prophetic literature. That means it’s not just a straightforward prophecy—it is
a prophecy delivered through symbols, and those symbols must be decoded to be understood.
In fact, the Bible is full of prophecies, but the majority of them are not symbolic. When God told
Isaiah that Babylon would destroy Jerusalem, He didn’t bury it in riddles. He simply named
the kingdom that would come—and history confirmed it. When Isaiah, 150 years in advance,
prophesied that Cyrus would be the one to liberate Israel after Babylonian captivity, he not only
called him by name but also described the obstacles ahead of him, including bronze gates that
he would need to break through.
When God revealed to Jeremiah that the people of Israel would face 70 years of captivity, He
didn’t veil it in metaphor—He stated it plainly, and again, it came to pass exactly as spoken.
But when it comes to Revelation and Daniel, these books are loaded with deep symbolic
imagery. They demand a greater level of discernment and spiritual decoding, which is why both
belong to this specific literary genre we now call symbolic prophecy.
This leads to a compelling question: Why did God choose to speak in symbols? If His goal was
to reveal, why would He hide anything at all?
The answer for this question is crucial to understand:
First, symbols carry intense layers of meaning.
God could have simply said that the last-day church would be corrupt, but He instead calls it a
prostitute, conveying a deeper sense of betrayal and moral decay. He could have called the devil
simply an enemy, but in Revelation, He refers to him as a dragon and the ancient serpent,
highlighting not just his opposition but also his nature as a deceiver and persecutor.
These symbols help us grasp the character of the spiritual forces and figures involved. They
make the message more vivid, urgent, and serious. They teach us just how holy, dangerous, or
depraved certain things are in the eyes of God. And in doing so, they invite us to take the
prophetic message more seriously.
2. The Message Was Written for a Specific Audience
Another reason why God chose to speak through symbols is that the message of Revelation was
meant for a specific group of people. It wasn’t designed for the masses—it was targeted. In
Scripture, this group is referred to by many names: the elect of God, the children of God, the
wise, the remnant, the sealed ones, or the 144,000. They are God’s elite task force in the final
days.
Now, just as the enemy has his agents on earth—those who have sold their destiny in exchange
for power, fame, wealth, and pleasure—God also has His faithful ones, individuals who are
fully aligned with Him, no matter the cost. While the devil’s followers are in it for selfish gain,
God’s people are often the poor, the persecuted, the forgotten, and the mistreated of this
world, but they share one defining purpose: to do the will of God.
To fulfill this mission, they know they must understand His Word. And so, in prayer and
devotion, they spend time daily studying the Scriptures, digging deep to uncover the secrets God
is eager to reveal to His people. Jesus Himself said the Holy Spirit would guide the Church
into all truth, and that receiving this guidance would require persistence—asking, seeking,
knocking.
That’s why, in the final days, God’s chosen ones will dedicate serious time and energy to
understanding Revelation. For them, this isn’t just academic—it’s a matter of faith and survival.
They know that their hope and spiritual strength hinge on what God reveals in this prophetic
book.
In Daniel 11 and 12, a special group arises—people who shine like the stars forever. They are
those who lead many to righteousness, and Daniel calls them the wise. He goes on to say that
in the end times, the wicked will not understand, but the wise will.
At first glance, we might think this is just a division between the Church and the world. But it’s
deeper than that. God is speaking about two groups within the Church itself:
• Those who truly follow Christ and understand the message—called the sheep, wheat,
remnant, or the wise.
• And those who only appear to follow, but do not understand—called goats, chaff,
apostates, or fools.
Jesus said both groups would grow together until the harvest. And He warned us clearly:
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but only those
who do the will of My Father in heaven.”
That’s why God encoded His message in symbols—to conceal it from those who were never
truly seeking it. It is a message veiled to the wicked, hidden from the hypocrites, sealed from
the self-sufficient, but open to the humble, sincere, and dependent on God.
To understand it, your academic background is irrelevant. Your résumé doesn’t matter. Your
talents won’t help. God reveals His secrets to those whose hearts are aligned with Him.
In Matthew 11:25, Jesus rejoices and says:
“I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the
wise and learned and revealed them to little children.”
Just think about it—who were the ones who recognized the divine truth at Jesus’ first coming?
• Was it the scribes?
• The Pharisees?
• The rabbis or religious scholars?
None of them received Him. It was the simple, faithful people who saw Him for who He was:
• Anna, the prophetess, held the infant Jesus in her arms and recognized Him.
• The shepherds, considered lowly by religious society, were visited by angels.
• The wise men from the East followed the star and found the Messiah.
• The fishermen left everything to follow Him.
Meanwhile, the theologians of the time argued with Jesus, clinging to tradition and their
intellectual pride. They were so entangled in their status, egos, and ministries that they missed
the very One they claimed to represent.
And sadly, the same irony repeats itself today. Many people wait for someone with a PhD in
theology to explain the Book of Revelation, as though divine insight can only be accessed
through academic circles. But theology has often turned into a game of intellectual ego, where
scholars debate not to seek truth, but to publish another book, earn another title, or stroke their
pride.
If you’ve read some academic commentaries on Revelation, you may know what I mean—
complex language, dense historical references, and Greek word studies that seem to require a
degree in ancient languages just to follow along.
But here’s the thing: Revelation was never meant for the intellectual elite.
It was meant for God’s people—for the simple and sincere.
So, be cautious of any interpretation that requires more than a basic education to grasp. Though
Revelation is symbolic, it was written for the everyday believer—someone who practices
prayer, fasting, intentional study of the Word, and communion with the Spirit. These are
the disciplines that produce divine wisdom.
Take John, the author of Revelation, as proof. He was the least educated of all the disciples. His
Greek was simple, and scholars often say his grammar is the roughest in the New Testament.
God could have chosen Luke, the physician, or Paul, the intellectual. But He chose John.
Why? Because revelation doesn’t come from academic merit—it comes from intimacy with
God.
So don’t wait for the theologians in your church to “crack the code” of Revelation for you.
That’s not how it works. Just like the rest of the Bible, this book requires you to go directly to
God. If your heart is humble and your intentions are pure, He will not withhold His wisdom
from you.
That’s why this book you’re holding isn’t an academic dissertation. Yes, I’ve studied theology.
I’ve spent countless hours reading, researching, debating, and praying over this book. But what I
share here is not the fruit of scholarly status—it’s the result of years of meditation, prayer, and
communion with God, not the product of what I now call “pretentious scholasticism.”
3. Symbols Conceal the Truth from Enemies of the Faith
Another reason why God speaks in symbols is to protect the truth from the enemies of the
faith.
When you read the book of Revelation, you realize it describes nothing less than a cosmic war—
a spiritual conflict between the forces of good and evil. Some have called it “The Conflict of the
Ages” or “The Great Controversy” between God and Satan.
If the message of Revelation had been written in plain, obvious language—if God had named
His enemies outright, those same enemies would have attempted to suppress or destroy the
message long ago.
But here’s the genius of divine symbolism: the wicked cannot understand it. As a result, they
allow its circulation, unaware that the book exposes their ideologies and deceptions. This is one
of the reasons why Revelation has survived for over 2,000 years, and why it continues to speak
prophetically to each generation.
God’s use of symbols was an act of spiritual strategy—a way to preserve the truth and
protect the message until the appointed time when His people would be ready to receive it.
4. Symbols Allow the Message to Be Revealed at the Appointed Time
A fourth reason why God speaks symbolically is because some truths were not meant to be
understood until the time was right.
Certain elements in Revelation only make sense within specific historical contexts. When
people live through the very events described in the book, the symbols suddenly come to life.
In this way, God crafted a prophetic language flexible enough to speak across generations, yet
precise enough to be understood only when the time is right.
For example, the message about “the beast” will only fully make sense to those who face the
beast. To those living in a previous era, the symbol might seem abstract or mysterious. But to the
generation that will confront it directly, the meaning will become crystal clear.
Each prophecy will find its full clarity and relevance in the moment of its fulfillment—and
not before.
Understanding the Unique Nature of Apocalyptic Prophecy
So yes, apocalyptic prophecy is different. It’s more complex, more layered, and often harder to
grasp than other, more straightforward prophecies. But that doesn’t mean it’s inaccessible. It just
means God had a purpose for communicating this way.
Even beyond symbolic language, it’s important to recognize that biblical prophecies vary in type
and nature. Some are conditional, and others are unconditional. Revelation, too, includes both
kinds.
In general, when God gives a prophecy, we assume it will come to pass. And many do—exactly
as foretold. But some prophecies are conditional, meaning their fulfillment depends on how
people respond to the message.
A classic example of this is the story of Jonah and Nineveh. God sent Jonah to warn of the
city’s destruction. But when the people repented, fasted, and sought God’s mercy, He relented
and spared them. That’s a conditional prophecy. Its fulfillment depended on the people’s
response.
Most of the prophecies in Revelation are unconditional on a global scale—they will happen, no
matter what. However, there is still a conditional element on the personal level.
Take Laodicea, for instance. God declares that the church in that era will be lukewarm. That’s a
prophetic reality—it describes the spiritual climate of the last generation. But that doesn’t mean
every individual within Laodicea is condemned to be lukewarm.
God is describing the condition of the Church as a whole, not predetermining the fate of each
person in it. Within a lukewarm church, there will still be people who burn with passion and
faith.
Jesus Himself said in Matthew that both the wise and foolish virgins fell asleep while waiting
for the Bridegroom. That paints a sobering picture of the Church before Christ’s return. But even
so, not everyone needs to fall asleep.
You can be the one who wakes others up. You can be the voice that cries out, “Behold, the
Bridegroom is coming! Wake up!”
Because while prophecy reveals the future, it is not a divine decree over your personal life.
Yes, global events are set in motion, but your choices still matter. Your free will is intact. You
get to decide which side of the story you’ll be part of.
Final Encouragement
Never forget—God’s symbols have a purpose.
Let His will unfold in your life. Let the meaning of the text come alive as you explore the
symbols He has woven into the fabric of prophecy.
Be humble and sincere in heart. Remember, this message is not for everyone. The enemies of
faith won’t understand it. The proud will misinterpret it. But for those who seek with honesty and
devotion, the light will shine.
And always remember: certain truths are revealed only at the right time—God’s appointed
time. Some parts of Revelation will make sense only when their time has come.
God’s symbolism is brilliant, rich, and full of beauty. Don’t ever believe it’s unimportant or
irrelevant to your salvation. Many of these symbols were given as present truth for specific
generations.
To miss the truth for your time is as dangerous as not knowing when the flood would come in
Noah’s day—or as deadly as failing to flee Jerusalem before its destruction.
As the old saying from the days of Jehoshaphat still declares:
“Believe in His prophets, and you will prosper.”
Chapter 1 – Revelation Unpuzzled – Fabio Pinheiro Campos