James V. Head

The book of Revelation is rarely taught in Sunday schools or from the pulpit. Once it became obvious to me that it is written in code, using symbology and imagery from the Old Testament, I decided to attempt a decoding effort. If we could understand what the message was to the first century Christians, then we could figure out how it applies to all generations after the first century.

The Angel’s Riddle provides the decoded message of the Revelation to the first century Christians. The message lets them know that God had not forgotten them and that He would destroy the Roman Empire, stopping the persecution they were suffering. It provides a study and commentary, as well as a decoded version of the Revelation that is in harmony with the other books of the New Testament.

The overall theme is to answer the question, what is the Revelation message to the first century Christians and how does that message apply to all Christians that have come along after the first century. God will always defend His kingdom (commonly referred to as His church), as He defended it in its infancy, by destroying the Roman Empire.

The Angel’s Riddle is about the book of Revelation, and its coded message to the persecuted first century Christians, living in the Roman Empire.

The main characters of The Angel’s Riddle come from the book of Revelation. The vision of the Revelation was from God the Father as presented by Jesus the Christ and His Angel. The Apostle John recorded the vision of the Revelation while incarcerated on the Isle of Patmos. The message of the Revelation was intended to give comfort and encouragement to the early Christian community enduring persecution, even to death, by the Romans. These first century Christians were the first citizens of the kingdom of God, commonly referred to as the church.

There are six major theories regarding the book of Revelation. They are all vastly different. Therefore, they cannot all be correct. The Angel’s Riddle makes the book of Revelation understandable and demonstrates how it fits into the New Testament and explains prophecies from the Old Testament. The Angel’s Riddle shows how the Revelation is in harmony with the other books of the New Testament, not in conflict with them.

We are living in very troubling times. The Angel’s Riddle provides insight to the book of Revelation and its message of comfort during troubling times. The message of the Revelation is not about the end of days, although it mentions the end of days to make certain points. The message speaks to how Christians should conduct themselves in troubling times and how God will deal with nations that seek to defeat His kingdom.

Christianity is under attack today. Christianity was under attack in the first century. The encouragement God provided then still applies today. He will always defend His kingdom. The decoded message of the Revelation, provided by The Angel’s Riddle, clearly shows God’s methods for dealing with adversarial nations.

The Angel’s Riddle is the result of a decoding, critical analysis plus commentary. It provides the deciphered message from God to His people in the first century and how that message applies to us today. The conclusions of The Angel’s Riddle are backed up by scripture, not theories. The conclusions are in harmony with the other books of the New Testament, not in conflict with them.

I want readers to be able to use the book of Revelation, not view it as some strange document they cannot understand. It was written to the first century Christians first. The Angel’s Riddle shows how their message applies to all of us that have come along since the first century. The Revelation message is a message of encouragement to the persecuted and a warning to those that wish to harm God’s kingdom (church). Last, but not least, the book of Revelation is in harmony with the other books of the New Testament. It is not in conflict with them. The Angel’s Riddle shows how the Revelation is part of the “Good News” gospel, not some far out exception to it.

The Angel’s Riddle came about when the men’s group I’m a part of at church, decided to take on a study of the book of Revelation. I volunteered to lead the study. Five and half years later the massive database I had accumulated was reoriented from a teaching initiative to a book for others to use in their pursuit of the elusive Revelation.

The Revelation, as part of the New Testament, must be in harmony with the other books of the New Testament, and not in conflict with them. Remember, Jesus taught His Apostles, to include the Apostle John, what ultimately became the writings of the New Testament. The Revelation, also from Jesus, must, by basic logic, not be in conflict with what He taught earlier while still on this earth.

Since The Angel's Riddle was my first published book, we chose Westbow Press, a division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan. Both publishing houses are known in the Christian community and we felt it was the best fit for the task.