Beginning with a Conclusion

For the sake of ease, let's begin with the most plausible interpretation of Revelation 1:19, then follow with the study (below).
1:19 is a commission to John to record everything he sees. The three clauses do not impose a rigid past‑present‑future outline but highlight different aspects of his prophetic task:

• "The things you have seen" - likely the entire unfolding vision he receives throughout the book.
• "The things that are" - the present situation of the seven churches, which is representative of the whole church age .
• "The things that are to take place after this" - events unfolding in the last‑days period initiated by Christ. The clause draws on Daniel's language about the latter days and is underscored by John's claim that these events are soon to begin.

This approach to reading honours Revelation's Old Testament allusions, respects the "near" language of its prologue, and preserves the book's relevance for believers throughout history. The visions that follow portray the ongoing conflict between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of the world, which began with Christ's death and resurrection and will culminate in his return.

The Three Clauses: Have, Are, Are To Take Place

Many futurist interpreters treat the three clauses as a chronological outline of the book of Revelation:

1. Past vision: chapter 1.
2. Present condition: the letters to the seven churches (chapters 2-3).
3. Future events: everything from chapter 4 onwards, still in our future.

While the verse does mark out different aspects of John's task, the evidence below suggests that it should not be pressed into a rigid timeline.

The First Clause - "the Things Which You Have seen"

Not only the past vision.

• Many commentators take this clause as referring only to the vision of Christ in chapter 1, but this classification does not help much.
• The phrase meta tauta ("after this") appears repeatedly in the book (4:1; 7:1; 7:9; 15:5; 18:1; 19:1; 20:3), and often functions as a literary seam that introduces the next vision (e.g., 4:1; 7:1, 9; 15:5), not a guarantee of a new historical era, which is why the cycles (seals, trumpets, bowls) can cover the same age from different angles.
• "Things which you have seen" seems rather to pick up on 1:11, where the angelic voice tells John to write "what you see."
• There is no reason to limit the scope of this to the first vision John has; it seems more naturally to refer to the contents of the entire book.
• Because the visions are for the church's instruction (1:4, 11; 2-3), John is told to record all he has seen, is seeing regarding the seven churches, and will see afterwards. So the "things seen" naturally covers the whole book, not just the opening scene.

The Second Clause: "the Things Which are"

Present condition of the churches.

• This clause refers to the present state of the seven churches, which are symbolised by the lampstands and stars in chapter 1.
• The command "give an account of those things which thou hast seen as designed to represent the condition of the seven churches" shows that "the things that are" is the situation of Christ's people in John's day.

Relevance throughout the church age.

• Because the seven churches symbolise the universal church, the exhortations in chapters 2-3 apply to believers in every generation.
• "What is now" includes a vision of God's throne room in chapters 4-5 and the letters to the churches reflecting the life of churches in Asia Minor.
• Therefore the "present" section contains truths relevant for the entire period between Christ's first and second comings .
• In other words, these are as relevant for us today as are Paul's instructions to any of the churches he wrote to.

The Crucial Third Clause: "those that Are to Take place after this"

God speaks to John using language he first gave Daniel six centuries earlier. It should be no surprise that God gave John a major vision linked to what He had already spoken through the prophets. Revelation 1:19 and three other places (1:1; 4:1; 22:6) all echo Daniel's words to Nebuchadnezzar (Dan 2:28, 29, 45). As noted earlier, Revelation 1:1 draws directly from Daniel 2:28, 29, 45, which say God made known what will happen "in the latter days" or "after this/after these things":

Notice the one major shift in these verses: what Daniel called "the latter days" or "after this" (far ahead to him) John calls "shortly/quickly," signalling that those "latter days" are now beginning. In 1:3 John adds that the "time is near," echoing Jesus' words in Mark 1:15 ("The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand").

• Note: The word"near" functions like "fulfilled": the Greek verb behind the adjective "near" means "about to arrive" or "beginning to arrive." Not far off, but starting now with more to come.

This is how Jesus himself reads Daniel. In Luke 20:18 he identifies the "stone" of his own ministry with Daniel's end-time rock. For Jesus, Daniel is on the verge of fulfilment. John thinks the same.

• Revelation 1 alludes to Daniel repeatedly: God's kingdom (1:6, 9 as in Dan 7:14) is being initiated; the "Son of Man" appears (1:13 as in Dan 7:13) in a heavenly vision (1:13-16 as in Dan 7:13-14).
• In John's day Jesus is already beginning to fulfil Daniel 7's Son of Man prophecy.

Set 1:19 alongside 1:1 and Daniel:

• "What will take place in the latter days/after this" (Dan 2:28, 29, 45)
• "The things which must shortly (quickly) take place" (Rev 1:1)
• "The things which shall take place after these things" (Rev 1:19)

In Daniel, "in the latter days" and "after this/after these things" mean the same thing and point far ahead. In Revelation, these phrases point to what is already starting. This is because 1:1 replaces "latter days" with "shortly," and 1:3 adds "near."

• Therefore "after these things" in 1:19 does not mean only future events. It also covers events already unfolding in these last days, which began with Jesus' death and resurrection.
• Each of the three parts of 1:19 may refer to the same reality: the entire church age.
• Note: 1:19 is complex and debated, so no overall scheme (futurist or otherwise) should rest mainly on it.

How Revelation 4:1 Fits

• This again echoes Daniel 2:29. If "these things" equals "the latter days" (as in Dan 2:28-29), it means the last days that began at the cross and resurrection.
• Revelation 1 shows that John believes Daniel 2 and 7 began fulfilment at Christ's first coming. So, the visions in the rest of the book describe what unfolds across the whole last-days period: the entire history of the church between resurrection and return.
• We can then expect the visions to address every era of the church, including John's original readers, while some parts also focus on the time immediately before Christ's return.

This reading runs counter to popular treatments that push almost all the visions into a still-future window right around the Second Coming. However, this approach better explains the book's relevance: otherwise most of Revelation would have little direct relevance to the first churches or to most believers since.

Bookended by Daniel-language

• This repeats Rev 1:1, bookending the entire book of Revelation.
• What John has seen are things about to unfold and that have been unfolding ever since.

Notably, each major section of Revelation is introduced with Daniel 2 language:

• the introduction (1:1-18),
• the letters (1:19-3:22),
• the visions (4:1-22:5), and
• the conclusion (22:6-21).

Daniel 2:28-29, 45 likewise frame Daniel's own interpretation. This is no accident. Daniel 2 provides the framework for reading Revelation as the story of the end-time conflict between good and evil and the establishment of God's kingdom, already begun in Jesus' death and resurrection and completed at his final coming.

Why the Futurist Outline is Insufficient

1. It ignores repeated literary markers. The futurist scheme assumes that the third clause begins in chapter 4. Yet the phrase meta tauta recurs throughout the book. Treating it as a single chronological marker overlooks its literary function as a scene‑change indicator.
2. It neglects the "near" language of 1:1-3. John emphasises that the visions reveal what must happen "soon."  If most of the book refers only to the end of history, the urgency for John's audience is lost.
3. It disconnects Revelation from its Old Testament background. Daniel's latter‑days vision spans the entire period from Babylon to God's kingdom. Revelation reuses Daniel's language but announces that fulfilment has begun. Therefore the visions describe events across the church age rather than only those immediately preceding Christ's second coming.
4. It undermines the book's relevance for persecuted believers. Revelation is mainly about life now, between the first and second comings of Jesus, designed to encourage persecuted Christians. If the bulk of the book were future to all readers, its pastoral function would be diminished.