Revelation 1:3

Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of the prophecy, and keep the things that are written therein: for the time is at hand.

It was noted above that "shortly come to pass" cannot be applied to all that is revealed in the prophecy; but the last clause here surely indicates that some of the events foretold would soon occur, the very imminence of them leading to this double beatitude which was to be heeded by the persons who originally received the epistle. Regarding the events which were indeed imminent, the great persecution about to break forth against the Christians was most certainly one of the things in view. "There is general agreement that John expected persecution of the church by the Roman Empire."[6] Frank L. Cox noted that, "This is the first of seven beatitudes in the book, the other six being found in Revelation 14:13; Revelation 16:15; Revelation 19:9; Revelation 20:6; Revelation 22:7, and Revelation 22:14."[7] Regarding this one, Beasley-Murray wrote:

The blessing invoked is on the one reading aloud to the congregation and on those hearing and observing that which is enjoined. There are two classes here, not three, the last two participles being governed by one subject.[8]

The words of this prophecy ... Although the book is called "Revelation" in Revelation 1:1, it is here also called "this prophecy," a title for it which appears five other times in Revelation 19:10; Revelation 22:7; Revelation 22:10; Revelation 22:18; and Revelation 22:19.

[6] G. B. Caird, op. cit., p. 12.

[7] Frank L. Cox, Revelation in 26 Lessons (Nashville: The Gospel Advocate Company, 1956), p. 2.

[8] G. R. Beasley-Murray, New Bible Commentary, Revised (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1970), p. 1280.