The vivid imagery and dramatic message of Revelation have long captivated the attention of Christendom although most of the interest is based on a radical misunderstanding of the very nature and purpose of the book. As church historian Philip Schaff noted over eighty years ago, "The literature of the Apocalypse, especially in English, is immense, but mostly impository rather than expository, and hence worthless or even mischievous, because confounding and misleading." The publication by Edgar C. Whisenant is an example of the misleading nature of literature on the Apocalypse . Six million copies of his work caused quite a stir among evangelicals in the summer and fall of 1988. Mr. Whisenant laboriously demonstrated why Christ would return to the earth in September, 1988. Regional news reports noted that a number of Christians took his message so seriously that they quit their jobs in anticipation of Christ's imminent return. I called to order a book from a major Christian book outlet only to be told by a recording that the employees had the day off to spend with their families before the Lord returned. Needless to say they all came back to work disappointed that the Lord didn't show. The "end of the world" frenzy of the 19th century has spawned many groups such as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons), the Jehovah's Witnesses, the Christadelphians, and countless other "last days" groups. In recent times, the "frenzy" has continued with the teachings of interpreters like Marshall Applewhite (Heaven's Gate cult leader). This "frenzy" continues to survive today because of modern misconceptions about the purpose of the prophetic events in Revelation and the time frame for their occurrence, which was the first century.