The Apocalypse is a difficult book to interpret, though easier on the whole than the Gospels. This is because there are few source-critical problems to fight through. The primary problems in studying the Apocalypse are four: the symbolism; the structure of the book; the debate among historicist, preterist, idealist, and futurist interpretations; and the use of the OT in the book. The function of the symbolism is greatly debated, especially in terms of its relation to