Ever hearing but never understanding

A follow-up question from my sister:

You commented over soup, I think, that you don't think non-Christians can understand (are supposed to understand?) Revelation. Is that what you meant to say? If so, why not? (Beyond the general difficulties of understanding such a vision, of course.)

Yes, that is what I meant to say. Of course, that does not mean that I was correct.

It comes back to what I interpret to be the main purpose of the letter: to encourage Christians and give them hope in the face of hardship. While some books — notably the gospels — are designed to introduce people to the person of Christ, Revelation assumes that the reader already knows him. A non-Christian reads about white horses and swords coming out of the mouth and sees only fanciful myth; a Christian (potentially) recognizes a new dimension to the one he already knows.

There is precedent for such a hidden message even in the gospels. When the disciples asked Jesus why he spoke in parables, he answered, “This is why I speak to them in parables: Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.’ ” (Mt 13:13-14)

Now, perhaps, you will ask me why Jesus would deliberately speak so that people cannot understand him. I can't say for certain, but I think the answer is that he doesn't want people to understand him the way they understand physics. He wants people to know him. For people who do not yet know him, it is more important for him to whet their appetite than it is to answer their questions.

Of course, just as in the days of Isaiah and the days of Jesus, most people are more interested in getting answers than in getting to know Jesus. To them he says: “You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.”