The apostle John¹ was on the isle that is called Patmos² when he received the panoramic³ visions recorded in the Book of Revelation.⁴ Patmos is a small rocky island with a deep harbor in the Aegean sea about 24 miles off the coast of Asia Minor (modern Turkey).⁵ Patmos was one of many islands used by the Romans as a penal colony for banished exiles and criminals.⁶ Many Christians were exiled to such islands after they were made criminals for their faith in Jesus Christ.⁷ John confirms that he too was banished to Patmos⁸ on religious grounds for the testimony of Jesus Christ.⁹ He was probably almost 100 years old when this occurred.¹⁰

According to an ancient but frequently cited tradition, the Romans tried to kill John in a cauldron of boiling oil at Rome before he was banished to Patmos.¹¹ He couldn't be killed or even injured,¹² however, because he had a translated body that was not subject to death or even physical pain and suffering.¹³ For this reason, the Romans had to effectively commute John's death sentence to hard labor in the mines of Patmos.¹⁴

A minority of scholars believe the Book of Revelation was written in 68 or 69 AD before the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD.¹⁵ This minority believes that the Emperor Nero, who reigned from 54-68 AD,¹⁶ banished John to Patmos¹⁷ during the first Christian persecution¹⁸ that Nero instigated.¹⁹ The first Roman persecution began when Nero accused Christians of starting the great fire that burned much of Rome in 64 AD.²⁰ After this conflagration, as it is called,²¹ Christian persecution spread from the city of Rome to provinces in the empire perhaps by official edict.²² The Neronian persecutions have led some scholars to believe that Nero is the symbolic First Beast mentioned in Revelation 13:3.²³ Scholars also use gematria (juh-MA-tree-uh) to equate the symbolic number of 666 in Revelation 13:18 with the name of Nero Caesar in Hebrew.²⁴

Domitian (Duh-MISH-uhn or Duh-MISH-ee-n)²⁵ was the Roman emperor from 81-96 AD.²⁶ The vast majority of scholars believe that Domitian imprisoned John on Patmos.²⁷ This occurred between 93 and 96 AD, during the second Christian persecution instituted by Domitian.²⁸ After Domitian died in 96 AD,²⁹ John was released to live again at Ephesus.³⁰ On this basis, primarily, the Book of Revelation is dated to 95 or 96 AD.³¹ This date is consistent with an ancient tradition that John's exile lasted about 18 months.³²

The scholarly minority asserts that John's vision occurred no later than 69 AD because his vision revealed things which must shortly come to pass.³³ They claim that these words in Revelation 1:1 were fulfilled when Jerusalem was destroyed a year later in 70 AD.³⁴ The scholarly minority interprets the word shortly too literally.³⁵ Even if a literal interpretation is appropriate, the minority should be equally content with dating John's vision to 96 AD,³⁶ because Jerusalem was destroyed again in 135 AD.³⁷ This occurred at the end of the Second Jewish Revolt,³⁸ known as the Bar Kokhba Revolt.³⁹ By the time that revolt ended,⁴⁰ hundreds of thousands of Jews had been killed.⁴¹ Thus, John's vision on Patmos in 96 AD is still early enough in Jewish history to reveal the beginning⁴² of things which must shortly come to pass, even for the most literal and preteristic (historic-minded) scholars.⁴³ Furthermore, John's letters to the seven churches in Asia describe in detail the things that shortly came to pass at the close of the first century in 96 AD.⁴⁴

Based on these and many other evidences, this text accepts 96 AD as the date for John's apocalyptic visions on Patmos island.