Why is Revelation the most difficult part of the Bible to understand?

Answer 1

Revelation is difficult to understand because Jesus, through the angel, presented it to John to record as a "parable"... much in the same way as He always spoke to the masses. Parables are MEANT to hide the meaning of what's being said, in spite of the fact that Jesus is "revealing the future to His servants." "The disciples came to Him and asked, 'Why do you speak to the people in parables?' He replied, 'The knowledge of the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven has been given to you, but not to them.... 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." (Matt.13:10-14 NIV) Jesus always spoke and explained His parables to His disciples "PRIVATELY" after the masses had dispersed. He called THEM out of the world to train for Kingdom rulership... not everyone! THEY were meant to understand what He was saying... not everyone! So, is the understanding of Revelation not for everyone. Jesus had it recorded by John for THE SERVANTS OF JESUS to understand and know what is going to happen. "The revelation of Jesus Christ (not John's), which God (the Father) gave Him to SHOW HIS SERVANTS WHAT MUST SOON TAKE PLACE... blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and TAKE TO HEART what is written in it, because the time is near." (Rev.1:1-3 NIV) To understand the "parable" of Revelation... written for the masses to "not understand"... you have to go to the places in The Bible where Jesus spoke to His disciples "PRIVATELY" about the time of the end: like Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21. These are the keys to understanding Revelation's parable. Jesus is the "revelator"... not John. In these "private" sessions that speak plainly and openly of end time events, the disciples (and we) would know and understand the "mysterious" end time events about which Revelation speaks, because there is only ONE end time. In all these "private explanation" chapters of Jesus... as well as the book of Revelation... the events are written "chronologically" as they shall occur (with allowances for overlap of events. historic events don't stop and start). The servant of Jesus has but to "compare the symbolic seals of Revelation 6" with the chronological events of His private sessions to KNOW what the parable means. For example: the 6th seal of Revelation 6 reveals a "darkening of the sun and moon." In Matthew 24, this doesn't occur "chronologically" until verse 29! Therefore, all the events from verses 4 through 29 of Matthew 24 plainly reveal and explain to the reader the meanings of the first five seals of Revelation 6. God is not yet ready for all men to understand His Truth. So, Revelation is written for the masses to consume... and not understand. Jesus' SERVANTS, however, will continue in His Word (John 8:30-31) and go to Him privately for His explanation.

Answer 2

Revelation is an 'apocalypse', a genre that that developed in post-Exilic Judaism and includes Ezekiel. The word means "an unveiling or unfolding of things not previously known and which could not be known apart from the unveiling." This alone makes it difficult to understand, as the author presents us with obscure and unfamiliar images or information.
Revelation is particularly difficult, because much of it is not self-explanatory, for example by means of context or intent. It consists largely of a number of apparently impossible images that can be interpreted in myriad ways. But the more theologians have sought to find textual explanations that suit Christian purposes, the more difficult the message becomes.