📜 Book Overviews: General Epistles & Revelation

Hebrews through Revelation — Letters to the Church Universal

📖 About the General Epistles & Revelation

The General Epistles (also called "Catholic Epistles," meaning "universal") were written to the church at large rather than to specific congregations. Together with Revelation, they form the concluding section of the New Testament, addressing themes of Christ's supremacy, practical Christian living, love, perseverance under trial, and the ultimate victory of God.

These nine books can be grouped into: Hebrews (Christ's superiority), General Letters (James, 1-2 Peter, Jude), Johannine Epistles (1-3 John), and Apocalyptic (Revelation). They span from approximately AD 45 to AD 95.

📚 Categories of General Epistles & Revelation

Hebrews
General Letters
Johannine
Revelation
~AD 60–70 ~AD 45–68 ~AD 85–95 ~AD 95
✝️

Christ's Supremacy

The Superiority of Christ

Hebrews

Πρὸς Ἑβραίους 13 Chapters ▼
Unknown (traditionally Paul, also Barnabas, Apollos, or Luke suggested)
c. AD 60–70 (before temple destruction)
Jewish Christians tempted to return to Judaism
"To the Hebrews"

📌 Purpose & Theme

To demonstrate the absolute supremacy and sufficiency of Jesus Christ over all Old Testament institutions—angels, Moses, Joshua, the Aaronic priesthood, and the sacrificial system. The letter urges Jewish believers not to abandon their faith in Christ and return to Judaism, showing that Jesus is the fulfillment of all Old Testament types and shadows.

📋 Book Outline

  • Ch 1-2Christ Superior to Angels
  • Ch 3-4Christ Superior to Moses and Joshua
  • Ch 5-7Christ Superior as High Priest (Melchizedek)
  • Ch 8-10Christ's Superior Covenant and Sacrifice
  • Ch 11Faith's Hall of Fame
  • Ch 12-13Exhortations to Persevere in Faith

📖 Key Verses (KJ3)

Hebrews 1:1-3
"In many ways and in various ways of old, God having spoken to the fathers in the prophets; in these last days He spoke to us in the Son, whom He appointed heir of all things; through whom He indeed made the ages; who being the shining splendor of His glory, and the express image of His essence, and bearing up all things by the Word of His power, having made purification of our sins through Himself, He sat down on the right of the Majesty on high."
Hebrews 4:12
"For the Word of God is living, and working effectively, and sharper than every two-mouthed sword, and piercing as far as the division of both soul and spirit, of both joints and marrows, and able to judge of the thoughts and intentions of the heart."
Hebrews 11:1, 6
"Now faith is the essence of things being hoped, the evidence of things not being seen... But without faith it is impossible to be pleasing to God. For it is necessary for the one drawing near to God to believe that He is, and that He becomes a rewarder to the ones seeking Him out."
Hebrews 12:1-2
"So therefore we also, having so great a cloud of witnesses lying around us, having laid aside every weight and the easily surrounding sin, through patience let us also run the race being set before us, looking to the Author and Finisher of our faith, Jesus, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
Hebrews 13:8
"Jesus Christ, the same yesterday and today and forever."

🎯 Major Themes

Christ's Supremacy
Better Covenant
Melchizedekian Priesthood
Faith & Perseverance
Warning Against Apostasy
Heavenly Reality

✝️ Christ in Hebrews

Hebrews presents the fullest portrait of Christ's priesthood in Scripture. Jesus is revealed as the eternal Son, superior to angels and prophets, the perfect High Priest after the order of Melchizedek, the mediator of a better covenant, and the once-for-all sacrifice for sin. He is both the Author and Finisher of faith—the beginning and end of our salvation.

✉️

General Letters

Practical Faith in Action

James

Ἰακώβου 5 Chapters ▼
James, the brother of Jesus (leader of Jerusalem church)
c. AD 45–50 (possibly the earliest NT book)
"The twelve tribes scattered abroad" (Jewish Christians)
"Of James" (Iakobos)

📌 Purpose & Theme

To call believers to demonstrate their faith through practical Christian living. Often called "the Proverbs of the New Testament," James addresses the relationship between faith and works, showing that genuine faith inevitably produces good works. The letter confronts worldliness, favoritism, and loose speech while encouraging endurance in trials.

📋 Book Outline

  • Ch 1Trials, Temptation, and True Religion
  • Ch 2Faith Without Favoritism; Faith and Works
  • Ch 3Taming the Tongue; True Wisdom
  • Ch 4Worldliness, Humility, and Judging Others
  • Ch 5Warning to the Rich; Patience and Prayer

📖 Key Verses (KJ3)

James 1:2-4
"My brothers count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith works enduring patience. But let enduring patience have its perfective work, that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing."
James 1:5
"But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask from God, the One giving to all bountifully and not reproaching, and it will be given to Him."
James 1:22
"But become doers of the Word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves."
James 2:17-18
"So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself. But someone will say, You have faith, and I have works. Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith out of my works."
James 4:7-8
"Therefore be subject to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners! And purify your hearts, double-souled ones!"

🎯 Major Themes

Faith and Works
Trials & Endurance
Taming the Tongue
Heavenly Wisdom
Humility
Prayer

✝️ Christ in James

Though James mentions Jesus only twice by name (1:1; 2:1), Christ permeates the letter as "the Lord of glory." James echoes Jesus' Sermon on the Mount throughout, showing the practical outworking of Christ's teaching. The "royal law" of love (2:8) reflects Christ's own command, and the call to patient endurance anticipates the Lord's coming (5:7-8).

1 Peter

Πέτρου Α΄ 5 Chapters ▼
Peter the Apostle (with Silvanus as secretary)
c. AD 62–64 (before Nero's persecution)
"Elect sojourners" in Asia Minor (Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia)
"Babylon" (likely Rome)

📌 Purpose & Theme

To encourage Christians facing persecution and suffering to stand firm in their faith. Peter presents suffering as a refining process that tests and proves genuine faith. He reminds believers of their living hope in Christ, their identity as God's chosen people, and the example of Christ who suffered unjustly yet entrusted Himself to God.

📋 Book Outline

  • Ch 1:1-12Living Hope and Inheritance
  • Ch 1:13-2:10Holy Living as God's People
  • Ch 2:11-3:12Submission and Christian Conduct
  • Ch 3:13-4:19Suffering for Righteousness
  • Ch 5Shepherding and Final Exhortations

📖 Key Verses (KJ3)

1 Peter 1:3-5
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the one according to His great mercy having regenerated us to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and unfading, having been kept in Heaven for you, the ones in the power of God being guarded through faith to a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time."
1 Peter 2:9
"But you are an elect race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of the One who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light."
1 Peter 5:7-8
"Casting all your anxiety onto Him, because it matters to Him concerning you. Be self-controlled. Be watchful, because your adversary the devil walks about as a roaring lion seeking someone he may devour."

🎯 Major Themes

Living Hope
Suffering & Glory
Holy Conduct
Royal Priesthood
Christ's Example
Spiritual Warfare

✝️ Christ in 1 Peter

Christ is the cornerstone rejected by men but precious to God (2:4-8), the Shepherd and Overseer of souls (2:25), and the supreme example of innocent suffering (2:21-24). His death brings redemption through His precious blood (1:18-19), and His resurrection ensures our living hope (1:3). Peter looks forward to Christ's revelation and the glory to follow (1:7, 13; 4:13; 5:4).

2 Peter

Πέτρου Β΄ 3 Chapters ▼
Peter the Apostle (shortly before his death)
c. AD 65–68 (Peter's "farewell letter")
Same audience as 1 Peter (general Christian churches)
Warning against false teachers

📌 Purpose & Theme

To combat false teachers who deny Christ's return and encourage immoral living. Peter urges believers to grow in knowledge of Christ, warns extensively about false prophets (paralleling Jude), and affirms the certainty of Christ's second coming despite apparent delay. This is Peter's "testament" before his martyrdom.

📋 Book Outline

  • Ch 1Growth in Godliness; Eyewitness Testimony
  • Ch 2Warning Against False Teachers
  • Ch 3The Day of the Lord; Call to Readiness

📖 Key Verses (KJ3)

2 Peter 1:3-4
"As His divine power having given as a gift to us all things pertaining to life and godliness through the full knowledge of the One calling us through glory and virtue, through which have been given as a gift to us the very great and precious promises, so that through these we might become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption in the world by lust."
2 Peter 1:5-8
"But also in this very thing having brought in all diligence, fully supply in your faith virtue, and with virtue knowledge, and with the knowledge self-control, and with the self-control patience, and with the patience godliness, and with the godliness brotherly love, and with brotherly love, love. For these things being in you, and abounding, they will place you so as not to be idle, not unfruitful into the full knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."
2 Peter 3:9
"The Lord of the promise is not slow, as some deem slowness, but is long-suffering toward us, not purposing any to perish, but all to turn one's self to repentance."

🎯 Major Themes

True Knowledge
False Teachers
Divine Nature
Christ's Return
God's Patience
Scripture's Authority

✝️ Christ in 2 Peter

Peter presents Christ as the object of true knowledge (1:2, 8; 2:20; 3:18), whose divine power grants everything needed for godly living. The Transfiguration testimony (1:16-18) confirms Christ's glory and the certainty of His coming. The letter opens and closes with exhortations to grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Jude

Ἰούδα 1 Chapter (25 verses) ▼
Jude, brother of James (and half-brother of Jesus)
c. AD 65–80
"To those having been loved in God the Father and having been kept in Jesus Christ"
Very similar content to 2 Peter 2

📌 Purpose & Theme

To urgently warn against false teachers who have infiltrated the church and to encourage believers to "contend earnestly for the faith." Jude uses vivid Old Testament examples (fallen angels, Sodom and Gomorrah, Cain, Balaam, Korah) to illustrate God's judgment on apostasy. The brief letter ends with one of Scripture's most magnificent doxologies.

📋 Book Outline

  • vv 1-4Greeting and Occasion: Contend for the Faith
  • vv 5-16Description of False Teachers (OT examples)
  • vv 17-23Exhortations to Believers
  • vv 24-25Doxology: "To Him Who Is Able"

📖 Key Verses (KJ3)

Jude 3
"Beloved ones, making all diligence to write to you about the common salvation, I had need to write to you to exhort you to contend earnestly for the faith once given over to the saints."
Jude 21
"Keep yourselves in the love of God, eagerly awaiting the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to everlasting life."
Jude 24-25
"Now to Him being able to keep you without stumbling, and to set you before His glory without blemish, with exultation; to the only wise God, our Savior, be glory and majesty, might and authority, even now and forever. Amen."

🎯 Major Themes

Contending for Faith
False Teachers
Divine Judgment
Apostasy
God's Preservation
Mercy

✝️ Christ in Jude

Christ is "our only Master and Lord" (v. 4) whom the false teachers deny. Believers are "kept in Jesus Christ" (v. 1), awaiting His mercy for eternal life (v. 21). The magnificent closing doxology (vv. 24-25) celebrates Christ's power to keep believers from falling and present them faultless before His glorious presence.

💙

Johannine Epistles

Letters of Love and Truth

1 John

Ἰωάννου Α΄ 5 Chapters ▼
John the Apostle ("the disciple whom Jesus loved")
c. AD 85–95
Churches in Asia Minor (Ephesus and surrounding area)
Ephesus (tradition)

📌 Purpose & Theme

To combat early Gnostic heresies (especially Docetism, which denied Christ's true humanity) and provide tests of genuine faith. John presents three tests of authentic Christianity: doctrinal (believing Christ came in the flesh), moral (obedience to God's commands), and social (loving one another). The letter emphasizes fellowship with God and assurance of eternal life.

📋 Book Outline

  • Ch 1:1-2:2Fellowship with God: Walking in Light
  • Ch 2:3-27Tests of Knowing God: Obedience and Love
  • Ch 2:28-3:24Children of God: Righteousness and Love
  • Ch 4:1-21Testing the Spirits; God Is Love
  • Ch 5Faith, Testimony, and Assurance

📖 Key Verses (KJ3)

1 John 1:5-7
"And this is the message which we have heard from Him, and we announce to you: God is light, and no darkness is in Him, none! If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and we walk in darkness, we lie and are not practicing the truth. But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of His Son Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin."
1 John 1:9
"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous that He may forgive us the sins, and may cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
1 John 4:8-10
"The one not loving did not know God, because God is love. By this the love of God was revealed in us, because His Son, the Only begotten, God, has sent into the world that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be a propitiation concerning our sins."
1 John 5:12-13
"The one having the Son has life. The one not having the Son of God does not have life. I have written these things to you, the ones believing into the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have everlasting life, and that you may believe into the name of the Son of God."

🎯 Major Themes

God Is Light
God Is Love
Fellowship
Assurance
Christ's Incarnation
Brotherly Love

✝️ Christ in 1 John

John emphasizes Christ's full humanity ("which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon, and our hands touched"—1:1) against Gnostic denials. Jesus is the eternal Word of life (1:1), our Advocate with the Father (2:1), the propitiation for our sins (2:2; 4:10), the Son sent by the Father (4:9-10, 14), and the source of eternal life (5:11-12, 20).

2 John

Ἰωάννου Β΄ 1 Chapter (13 verses) ▼
John the Apostle ("the Elder")
c. AD 85–95
"The elect lady and her children" (a church or individual Christian woman)
Shortest book with "chapters" in NT

📌 Purpose & Theme

To encourage walking in truth and love while warning against showing hospitality to false teachers who deny Christ's incarnation. This brief letter balances Christian love with doctrinal discernment—true love does not compromise truth, and truth must be expressed in love.

📋 Book Outline

  • vv 1-3Greeting: Truth and Love
  • vv 4-6Walking in Truth and Love
  • vv 7-11Warning Against Deceivers
  • vv 12-13Closing: Hope to Visit

📖 Key Verses (KJ3)

2 John 6
"And this is love, that we should walk according to His commands. This is the command, even as you heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it."
2 John 9
"Everyone transgressing and not abiding in the teaching of Christ does not have God. The one abiding in the teaching of Christ, this one has the Father and the Son."

🎯 Major Themes

Truth
Love
Discernment
Christ's Humanity
Hospitality Limits

✝️ Christ in 2 John

The central issue is Christ's incarnation—"Jesus Christ coming in the flesh" (v. 7). Those who deny this are "the deceiver and the antichrist." True fellowship requires abiding in "the teaching of Christ" (v. 9), which means holding to the truth about who Jesus is—fully God and fully man.

3 John

Ἰωάννου Γ΄ 1 Chapter (15 verses) ▼
John the Apostle ("the Elder")
c. AD 85–95
Gaius (a beloved church member)
Shortest book in the NT (by word count)

📌 Purpose & Theme

To commend Gaius for his faithful hospitality to traveling missionaries and to contrast his godly example with Diotrephes, who loved preeminence and refused to welcome the brothers. The letter encourages support of gospel workers and warns against selfish, divisive church leadership.

📋 Book Outline

  • vv 1-4Greeting and Joy Over Gaius
  • vv 5-8Commendation: Hospitality to Missionaries
  • vv 9-10Condemnation: Diotrephes' Pride
  • vv 11-12Commendation: Demetrius' Good Testimony
  • vv 13-15Closing: Hope to Visit

📖 Key Verses (KJ3)

3 John 4
"Greater joy than these things I do not have, that I hear my children are walking in truth."
3 John 11
"Beloved, do not imitate the bad, but the good. The one doing good is of God. The one doing evil has not seen God."

🎯 Major Themes

Walking in Truth
Christian Hospitality
Supporting Missionaries
Godly Leadership
Good vs. Evil

✝️ Christ in 3 John

Though Christ is not explicitly named, the letter centers on gospel work done "for the sake of the Name" (v. 7). The traveling missionaries serve Christ, and those who support them become "fellow workers for the truth" (v. 8). Living for "the Name" reflects devotion to Jesus Christ.

👑

Apocalyptic Literature

The Revelation of Jesus Christ

Revelation

Ἀποκάλυψις 22 Chapters ▼
John the Apostle (exiled on Patmos)
c. AD 95 (during Domitian's persecution)
The seven churches in Asia (and all believers)
Apocalyptic prophecy; letter

📌 Purpose & Theme

To reveal Jesus Christ in His glory and unveil God's plan for the end of history. Written to persecuted Christians, Revelation assures believers of Christ's ultimate victory over evil, Satan, and death. The book calls the church to faithfulness, warns against compromise, and promises eternal blessing to those who overcome. Central theme: Jesus Christ wins!

📋 Book Outline

  • Ch 1Prologue: Vision of the Glorified Christ
  • Ch 2-3Letters to the Seven Churches
  • Ch 4-5Throne Room of Heaven; The Lamb and the Scroll
  • Ch 6-7The Seven Seals
  • Ch 8-11The Seven Trumpets; Two Witnesses
  • Ch 12-14Cosmic Conflict: Woman, Dragon, Beasts
  • Ch 15-16The Seven Bowls of Wrath
  • Ch 17-18Fall of Babylon the Great
  • Ch 19Return of Christ; Final Battle
  • Ch 20Millennium; Final Judgment
  • Ch 21-22New Heaven, New Earth, New Jerusalem

📖 Key Verses (KJ3)

Revelation 1:8
"I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, says the Lord, the One being, and the One who was, and the One coming, the Almighty."
Revelation 3:20
"Behold, I stand at the door and am knocking. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will enter to him, and I will dine with him, and he with Me."
Revelation 21:3-4
"And I heard a great voice out of Heaven, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God with men! And He will tabernacle with them, and they will be His peoples, and God Himself will be with them as their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. And death shall be no longer, nor mourning, nor outcry, nor will there be pain still; for the first things passed away."
Revelation 21:5
"And the One sitting on the throne said, Behold! I make all things new."
Revelation 22:13-14
"I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last. Blessed are the ones doing His commands, that will be their right over the Tree of Life, and by the gates they may enter into the city."
Revelation 22:20
"The One testifying these things says, Yes, I am coming quickly. Amen. Yes, come, Lord Jesus!"

🎯 Major Themes

Christ's Victory
God's Sovereignty
Faithful Endurance
Divine Judgment
New Creation
Worship
Lamb of God
Overcoming

✝️ Christ in Revelation

Revelation is supremely about Jesus Christ—"the Revelation of Jesus Christ" (1:1). He appears as the glorified Son of Man (ch. 1), the One who walks among the churches (ch. 2-3), the slain Lamb worthy to open the scroll (ch. 5), the returning King of kings and Lord of lords (ch. 19), and the Alpha and Omega, Beginning and End (1:8; 22:13). He is the Lion of Judah and the Root of David (5:5), the Bridegroom coming for His bride (19:7-9; 21:2, 9), and the Light of the New Jerusalem (21:23). The entire book proclaims: Jesus wins!