3 Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and keep the things that are written in it, for the time is at hand.
Blessed is he who reads – the one who reads and understands this Book is very blessed. Most of the prophecies in this Book have been fulfilled in astounding detail as we shall see. This is the first of seven blessings mentioned in Revelation. The rest are: “blessed is he who dies in the Lord from now on,” Rev 14:13; “blessed is he who stays awake” (and ready for the Lord’s return), Rev 16:15; “blessed are those invited to the marriage supper of the lamb,” Rev 19:9; “blessed and holy is he who has a part in the first resurrection (of the martyrs), Rev 20:6; “blessed is he who heeds the words of the prophecy of this book,” Rev 22:7; and “blessed are those who wash their robes,” Rev 22:14.
And heeds the things which are written in it – Chapters two and three are directed towards the believers in John’s day and contain many warnings for them. The same warnings are useful for us. The remainder of Revelation is relevant to our current day, especially the warning not to worship the beast, and his image or receive his mark.