Book Notice: Jim Hamilton’s Revelation: The Spirit Speaks to the Churches

James M. Hamilton

Revelation: The Spirit Speaks to the Churches
Ed. R. Kent Hughes
Crossway: Wheaton, IL, 2012
Available Amazon.com. (and for Kindle).

This book is an exposition of Revelation based on a series of sermon’s preached at Kenwood Baptist Church in Louisville, KY. It reads very easily with a definite verbal feel and gives good explanations and exhortations, but without going into the minutia of academic debate. Hamilton writes in a format that covers the need of the audience, the main point of the text, contextual matters, he exposits the text, exhorts from the text, and wraps things up with a brief conclusion. It is also full of wonderful illustrations, anecdotes, some charts for literary parallels, plus references to ancient and modern literature too. Hamilton takes a historic premillennial position position which shines through in places like Revelation 20, but this perspective does not over-power his exposition. If you’re studying Revelation or preaching through it yourself, this book would be a good compliment to something dense and detailed like Greg Beale’s NIGTC commentary since Hamilton offers a more sermonic and practical approach to the Book of Revelation. Here is one of many of Hamilton’s short conclusions (here on Rev 12.1-17):

Satan is at enmity with the woman and her seed. He wants to accuse before God, but Jesus has defanged the dragon, and all his accusations are now toothless against those of us who trust in Christ. The new exodus has happened, and God is carrying us, those who trust him, on eagles’ wings, sustaining us in the wilderness as we sojourn toward the promised land. Satan is making war on us, but the outcome will be as it has been throughout history. Strong as Satan may look, the seed of the woman will crush his head (p. 256).