After the meal, Jesus and the apostles left the house. Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, where was a garden, into the which he entered, and his disciples. And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation. And he saith to his disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray yonder. And he was withdrawn from them about a stones cast, and he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, James and John, and began to be sorrowful and sore amazed, and to be very heavy. Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me. And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and kneeled down, and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, Abba, o my Father, all things are possible unto thee; if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. And when he rose up from prayer, he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them sleeping for sorrow, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? what, could ye not watch with me one hour? And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise, watch and pray, lest ye enter into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done. And when he returned, he found them asleep again, (for their eyes were heavy,) neither wist they what to answer him. And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. And he cometh the third time to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going: behold, he is at hand that doth betray me (UG 160; Mt 26:3646; Mk 14:3242; Lk 22:3946).
Soon after, Jesus was arrested and brought before Caiaphas, the High Priest. And Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple [John Zebedee]: that disciple was known unto the high priest, and went in with Jesus into the palace of the high priest. But Peter stood at the door without. Then went out that other disciple, which was known unto the high priest, and spake unto her that kept the door, and brought in Peter (Jn 18:1516; compare UG 163; Mt 26:58; Mk 14:54; Lk 22:5455).
After Caiaphas, Jesus was taken to Pilate, the prefect (procurator), who sentenced him to death through crucifixion. John came to the place of the execution to say his last good-bye to Christ. Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mothers sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple [John] took her unto his own home (Jn 19:2527; compare UG 171172; Mt 27:5556; Mk 15:4041; Lk 23:49).
On the third day, Jesus rose from the dead. The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre. Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him. Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple [John], and came to the sepulchre. So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre. And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in. Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie, and the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself. Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed. For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead. Then the disciples went away again unto their own home (Jn 20:110; compare Lk 24:12).
After his resurrection, Jesus appeared to his disciples on several occasions. After these things Jesus shewed himself again to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias; and on this wise shewed he himself. There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two other of his disciples. Simon Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him, We also go with thee. They went forth, and entered into a ship immediately; and that night they caught nothing. But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus. Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No. And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fishers coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea. And the other disciples came in a little ship; (for they were not far from land, but as it were two hundred cubits,) dragging the net with fishes (Jn 21:18).
Following their meal, Jesus said to Peter, Follow me. Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple [John] whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee? Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do? Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me. Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? This is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true (Jn 21:1924).
Jesus ascended into Heaven forty days after his resurrection.
b. The history behind the writing of the Apocalypse
On the tenth day after the ascension of Jesus, the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles and their disciples at Pentecost. They began to prophesy in different tongues. Of those who saw and heard them, about three thousand men and women were added to the Church that day and got baptized. As the apostles preached in Jerusalem, new people were joining the Church daily (see Act 12).
John was taking care of the Blessed Virgin Mary without ever leaving Jerusalem until the day of her Assumption. Following her Assumption, John, chosen by lot, went to preach the Good News in Proconsular Asia, the Roman province at the west coast of Asia Minor with its capital in Ephesus (see Eusebius of Caesarea, Church History, 3,1).
The Apostle was later exiled for preaching the Gospel there, as he himself mentions in the Apocalypse. He wrote his book while in exile:
I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ (Rev 1:9).
Because John was told: What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea (Rev 1:11) and Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand (Rev 22:10), he obeyed the command immediately.
I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ (Rev 1:9).
Because John was told: What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea (Rev 1:11) and Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand (Rev 22:10), he obeyed the command immediately.
This is what the Church historian Eusebius of Caesarea tells us about the time of the writing of the Apocalypse and the life of the apostle:
[The Roman emperor] Domitian was a brutal enemy of many: a great number of prominent and noble people in Rome were executed by him without trial; thousands of famous and innocent men and women were exiled, their property was plundered. Towards the end of [his rule], he proved himself to be Neros true successor in hatred and enmity towards God. He was the second one to start persecuting us, although his father, Vespasian, did not plan anything of the sort.
It was told at that time that the apostle and evangelist John, who was still alive, was convicted to be exiled to the island of Patmos for his testimony of the Word of God. Irenaeus mentions the number of the name of the Antichrist from the so-called Apocalypse of John. In the 5th book Against Heresies, he says with regard to John: If the name of the Antichrist was to be revealed at this time, it would be revealed unto the one who was a witness of Gods mysteries. The revelation was given to him quite recently, almost in our century, before the end of the Domitians reign [compare Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies, 5,30].
At the time described, our faith shone in the world so brightly that even the writers, so totally unfamiliar with our teachings, did not delay to tell about this persecution and the martyrs. They accurately noted the time: in the fifteenth year of Domitian Flavius, Domitilla, the niece of Flavius Clement, one of the Roman consuls in those days, was sentenced along with many others to be exiled to the island of Pontia for confessing Christ (Eusebius of Caesarea, Church History, 3,1718).
It follows that Johns Apocalypse was written on Patmos about the year 96 from New Era (96 NE).
Lets hear Eusebius further:
When the fifteen years of Domitians reign were over, Nerva came to power; historians of that period write that, by the order of the Roman senate, the honors granted to Domitian were revoked, and those unfairly deported were returned home. It was around that time, according to the testimony of our ancient writers, that John the Apostle left the island of his exile and settled in Ephesus. After Nervas reign, which lasted for a little over a year, Trajan came to power.
[] At that time the Apostle and Evangelist John, the one whom Jesus loved, was still in Asia. Upon his return from the island of the exile, after the death of Domitian, he was actively involved in taking care of the local churches. That he was still alive at that time is sufficiently confirmed by the two faithful witnesses, the paragons of true orthodoxy in the Church: Irineus and Clement of Alexandria. The former writes literally the following in his second book Against Heresies: All the elders in the Province of Asia who communicated with John, the disciple of the Lord, testify that he spoke of this; he was with them until the time of Trajan [compare Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies, 2,22].
In his third book, he writes: And the Church, founded by Paul in Ephesus where John lived until the time of Trajan, is the true witness of this testimony of the apostles [compare Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies, 3,3].
Clement, who also mentions this period, included the following story in his essay entitled Who is the rich man that can be saved? It is a highly instructive tale for all who like to listen to wholesome admonitions. So, take it and read it:
Listen to this true story, not a fable, about John the Apostle. We committed it to memory just as it was passed down to us. Upon his return from Patmos to Ephesus, after the death of the tyrant, he was invited to visit the nearby regions to appoint bishops, plant churches, or sometimes introduce this or that person into the clergy, as led by the Spirit. When he came to a nearby city (some even mention its name), he helped the brothers to establish peace among themselves, and, noticing a young man, handsome and fervent in spirit, he asked the local bishop, whom he had appointed: I fully entrust him to your care before the witness of the Church and Lord Jesus. The bishop took the boy under his wing and promised to do as he was asked. John repeated his charge again and asked him to swear an oath one more time. Then John departed for Ephesus, and the bishop, taking the young man into his home, provided him with the proper support, care and protection, and, finally, got him baptized. After that he lessened his care and withdrew some of his protection, believing Gods seal of approval to be the best protection. The young man was prematurely allowed too much freedom and, to his own demise, got hooked up with some of his peers the notorious lazybones, dabbling in sin. At first, they were taking him from one feast to another, but one night, they took him on a raid, and then, finally, decided that he was ready for more serious crimes. A gifted man, he was gradually getting used to this new lifestyle, and, like a stubborn horse, he took the bit between his teeth, left the straight path and rushed headlong to his own ruin. Abandoning all hope of being saved by God, he, finally, began to plot many crimes: if you are to perish anyway, why not suffer along with others by committing something worth remembering. Gathering a gang of robbers from among his comrades, he became their leader a rapist, a killer and a villain more vicious than others. In the meantime, John was invited there again on some errand. Having done everything he came for, he said, Now, bishop, please give account for the pledge that I and Jesus Christ laid on you, to which the church you oversee is a witness. At first, the bishop was frightened, thinking that he must have been falsely accused of stealing money, which he had not taken. He could not just agree to something that didnt happen, but neither could he distrust John. I demand the soul of the young man and your brother, he said. Upon hearing this, the bishop groaned inwardly and said, He died. In what manner and what was his death? He died for God as an arch villain and, what is more, a thief. Instead of being in the Church, he is now on the mountain with an army of robbers. The apostle tore his clothes and, moaning loudly, showered his head with many blows, What a guardian did I leave for my brother! Give me a horse and someone to lead the way. And he hopped on the horse right on the spot and was off in no time. When he came to that place, he was seized by the robbers picket but didnt run away or plead for mercy. He just cried, This is why I came! Take me to your leader! The leader picked up his weapon as he was expecting the visitor, but, having recognized John, turned and ran away in shame. John, forgetting his old age, started chasing him around crying at the top of his voice, Son, why are you running away from your father, I am unarmed and old? Take pity on me! Dont be afraid, theres still hope. I will answer for you to Jesus Christ, and will, if necessary, give up my life for you, just like our Lord gave up his life for us. I will give up my soul for you. Stop running and trust me; I have been sent by Jesus Christ. The thief lingered as he was listening to him, at first downcast, but then, throwing down his weapon, he embraced the old man in bitter tears, and his penitence became his best protection against evil. His tears became his second baptism. All this time, however, he was hiding his right arm. The apostle swore an oath that he had been forgiven by the Savior; he knelt and pleaded with him, kissing his right arm as if cleansed by the repentance. And in this way, he restored him to the Church. He constantly prayed for him, encouraged him to practice fasting, and fasted together with him, edifying him in every possible way with wholesome admonitions. They say, he left him no sooner than the young man was securely back in the Church as a paragon of true repentance, a symbol of rebirth and a victorious banner of the visible resurrection.