When approaching the book of Revelation, I didn’t want to just give a commentary and interpretation of the book, and instead, I wanted to address the claims of Shincheonji, both with their fulfillment, and theological issues of their interpretations.
Before continuing, we need to have the following concepts fully addressed:
- Is there a Promised Pastor of the New Testament?
- What are the doctrinal issues of the “Open Scroll” and the “Revealed word”?
- A Christian Response to Betrayal, Destruction, Salvation
- The issues with the Wisdom of Hiding
The common question I get over the years is “how can I read the Bible again after leaving SCJ”? To do so, I wanted to provide a template and examples on how to do so in light of being like the Berean Jews of Acts 17:11. I wanted to help provide the tools to the former members of Shincheonji, and also show how and why Shincheonji is wrong, instead of just blindly pointing them to yet another interpretation. I wanted to not only show the reasoning behind how I came to certain conclusions, but also explain how Shincheonji is wrong.
For this adventure, there will be 23 chapters. The first chapter will be about the issues on how Shincheonji interprets the Bible and how they collapse the entire Bible into a giant parable through their four major categories of prophecy, fulfillment, history, and moral teachings. Using a similar hermeneutic structure, I decided to also make up an SCJ lesson to show the absurdity of how SCJ interprets the Bible. Then, with the “Mystery of the Beast with 7 Heads and 10 Horns”, I systematically dismantled Shincheonji’s parable dictionary. While I won’t go through every single parable, I will go through the necessary ones as I continue refuting the doctrines of Shincheonji and their view on the book of Revelation. As time continues, I will also add more breakdowns of more of their other “parables”, especially when a “parable” repeats itself. Like the figurative meaning of a trumpet, for example.
As the reader progresses through each chapter of Revelation, I will break down the chapters into at the following categories:
- I will provide a link that shows the doctrinal shifts and fulfillment changes of Revelation.
- I will provide a link that shows the doctrinal issues of SCJ’s interpretation of that particular chapter (this can have multiple parts).
- I will finish with some of the potential push backs that I have received over the years of speaking out against Shincheonji, and interacting with members who are on the fence.
For me personally, while there were elements of psychology that kept me within SCJ, like the fear of hellfire and etc., the main reason why I stayed within SCJ was because at that point of time, I believed that Shincheonji had the “highest truth”. When I entered the Shincheonji Bible Study, I wasn’t even a Christian at that time, but was more agnostic atheist who wanted to learn more about who Christ was and the Bible. I’ve always asked many questions about Shincheonji, thus the name, QuestionsAboutSCJ.
After leaving, I knew about the failed prophecies, and I understood the basics about how Shincheonji was a “biblical cult”, and at the time of writing this document, I even did a video with Jordan from Great Light Studios about this very topic –
Shincheonji is a Biblical Cult
However, as I continued healing and returning back to the Christian roots I had as a child, I wanted to also document the doctrinal issues of Shincheonji. After years of going back and forth with current members, members who are on the fence, and members who left, I wanted to compile my notes and answer Shincheonji’s “solution” to the book of Revelation.
In the future, I will write more about my story, and show how I recovered by the grace of God. My friend who helped me with the website asked me as to why I didn’t talk about it in detail earlier? While it is a fair question, the answer is simple: I was still healing. Now that I feel more at peace about everything, and have gone through the necessary steps to heal both physically, emotionally, and spiritually, I will share this thought process with everyone. Special shout out to the subreddit, r/Shincheonji.
Examining Revelation
Before diving into the book of Revelation, it is essential to first understand how Shincheonji (SCJ) reads the Bible and why that method leads to distortion rather than truth. This post exposes SCJ’s interpretive framework that turns the Bible into a symbolic codebook where every verse becomes a hidden parable that only their leader can explain. By collapsing history, prophecy, and moral teaching into one allegorical system, SCJ detaches Scripture from its context and replaces Christ-centered revelation with human authority.
This overview is the foundation for the rest of the study. It teaches how to recognize SCJ’s interpretive errors and rebuild a sound, biblical way of reading. Before understanding Revelation, readers must first reclaim the right lens for approaching Scripture, one that keeps Jesus, not Shincheonji, at the center of all interpretation.
The Four Categories – How Shincheonji Rewrites Revelation
Before reading Revelation well, you must see how SCJ’s framework predetermines the answers. They treat nearly everything as coded prophecy that only their “Promised Pastor” can decode, turning Scripture into a floating metaphor dictionary that ignores genre, context, and author intent. The same method lets different groups, like WMSCOG, reach opposite “truths,” which shows the method is driving the result. A sound reading keeps symbols where the text puts them, honors historical and grammatical context, and centers fulfillment in Christ, whose finished work and open revelation guide the church by the Spirit. SCJ’s approach recenters authority in a man, turning the sealed scroll into “their message” and making faith depend on secret knowledge rather than on the Lamb who already opened God’s plan. The satirical “parable” shows how easily this method can make up a story, which is why Christians read Revelation as Christ fulfilled, Scripture sufficient, and the Spirit speaking to all believers today.
The Figurative Meaning of a Beast
SCJ turns Scripture into a roaming metaphor dictionary, stitching together Psalms, Ecclesiastes, Jude, 2 Peter, and Paul to claim that a beast means a person or pastor who lacks secret revelation, but a plain reading by genre and context shows otherwise: in Psalm 49 and Ecclesiastes 3 beast language highlights mortality and folly rooted in trust in wealth and human limitation, in Jude 10 and 2 Peter 2 it condemns corrupt false teachers driven by instinct and greed, in 1 Corinthians 2:14 Paul contrasts unbelievers without the Spirit and believers to whom the Spirit reveals Christ crucified, and in Daniel 7 with Revelation 13 and 17 the beast is empire level opposition to God with heads and horns that the angel himself defines as mountains and kings; clouds likewise function as poetic majesty in Psalms, manifest presence in Exodus, and visible theophanic glory in Daniel 7 and Revelation 1:7, not spirit for SCJ or flesh for WMSCOG; the sound approach is to identify genre, read in context, let authors define their symbols, and keep Scripture’s harmony centered on Christ as the revealed mystery, which leaves no room for a modern code keeper and makes the beast what the text says it is rather than what a private system requires.
The Figurative meaning of a Horn
SCJ builds its doctrine of the beast with seven heads and ten horns by fusing unrelated passages into a single metaphor system, turning poetic and prophetic imagery into coded prophecy. They argue from verses like Psalm 18:2 and Luke 1:69 that a “horn” means authority, then invert the idea so that “no horn” equals “no authority,” redefining horns as powerless evangelists. They join this to Daniel 7’s ten kings and Revelation 13 and 17’s beasts to say that horns are people without authority who later gain it. Yet when read by genre and context, the Bible consistently uses “horn” to symbolize strength, victory, or rulership: in 1 Samuel 2:10 and Psalm 75:10 it is power and exaltation, in Daniel 7 and Zechariah 1 it is national or kingly might, and in Luke 1:69 and Revelation 5:6 it points to Christ’s saving power and perfect authority. Both Daniel and Revelation explicitly define the horns as kings, leaving no room for SCJ’s redefinition. Their system merges poetry, prophecy, and apocalyptic genre into one symbol dictionary, reverses the direction of meaning, and overrides the text’s own explanations. A consistent hermeneutic—honoring author intent and literary context—shows that horns always represent power and rule, not weakness or laity. By inverting the symbol, SCJ adds to Scripture and detaches Revelation from its own interpretation, replacing the Lamb’s authority with human invention.
The Figurative Meaning of a Head
This article is part of the “Answering Revelation” series and addresses whether Shincheonji correctly interprets the Beast with seven heads and ten horns using only the Bible. Shincheonji teaches that each “head” symbolizes a pastor or leader with authority, drawing from verses like Daniel 2:38 and Revelation 13 and 17 to claim that the “heads” are religious figures ruling over “horns,” or laypeople. However, biblical context shows that “head” consistently refers to authority or rulership in a political, relational, or theological sense—not to a pastor or spiritual revelator. In the Old Testament, “head” refers to kings or nations (e.g., Daniel 2:38; Isaiah 7:8–9), while in the New Testament, it points exclusively to Christ as the Head of the Church (Ephesians 1:22; Colossians 2:19). In apocalyptic literature like Daniel and Revelation, Scripture itself defines “heads” as kings or kingdoms (Revelation 17:9–10), not pastors. Shincheonji’s interpretation replaces this biblical meaning with a self-referential system that projects its own hierarchy—pastors, evangelists, and tribes—onto the text to claim prophetic fulfillment within their organization. This approach disregards authorial intent, genre, and Scripture’s own explanations, turning Revelation into a reflection of Shincheonji’s structure rather than God’s redemptive plan centered on Christ. In short, “head” in Scripture always refers to authority or rulership contextualized by the passage—not to a pastor or modern religious leader.
Answering Revelation Chapter One – The Summary of Revelation 1:1-8
For a Shincheonji member, five topics are crucial to address in conversation. The first is who Jesus truly is, since SCJ diminishes His divinity in practice; Scripture teaches that Jesus is fully God, the Alpha and the Omega (John 1:1, Colossians 2:9, Revelation 22:13). The second is the “Promised Pastor” or “New John” claim, which undergirds SCJ’s authority structure; the Bible makes no promise of a new mediator after Christ (Hebrews 1:1–2, Revelation 22:16). The third is how to interpret Revelation, as SCJ redefines its symbols and geography; the book itself provides interpretive clues and calls all believers to understand it (Revelation 1:3, 1:19). The fourth is the nature of the Second Coming, which SCJ spiritualizes into their leader’s work; Scripture insists that Jesus will return bodily and visibly (Acts 1:9–11, Matthew 24:27–30). Finally, salvation and the sufficiency of the gospel must be clarified—faith in Christ alone saves, without joining a particular organization (John 3:16, Ephesians 2:8–9, Hebrews 7:25). These five themes strike the core of SCJ’s theology and re-center discussion on the biblical Jesus rather than a human substitute.
Answering Revelation Chapter Two – Revelation 1:9 – 20
This section explains that Revelation 1:9–20 anchors the whole book in real first-century history and in the supremacy of Christ, not in a later “promised pastor.” John was literally exiled on Patmos for the gospel, early sources corroborate this, and the seven named churches were real congregations that already had leaders. The vision then shifts from setting to theology: the risen Son of Man walks among the lampstands, holds the stars, and reveals Himself as the First and the Last who conquered death and holds the keys of death and Hades. Each feature of His appearance draws from Old Testament imagery to affirm His deity, priestly care, and royal authority. Verse 1:19 gives the book’s outline in three parts, what John has seen in chapter 1, what is now in chapters 2–3, and what will take place later in chapters 4–22. Shincheonji’s attempt to allegorize Patmos, replace the historical churches with a modern Korean scheme, and transfer Christ’s revelatory authority to a human mediator fails on historical, grammatical, and theological grounds. The passage calls readers to hear and obey the revelation of Jesus Christ, who alone stands among His churches and rules over history.
Revelation Chapters 2 – 3 Part One – The 12 Promised Blessings
This article examines Shincheonji’s claim that Revelation 2–3 was fulfilled when Lee Man-hee sent letters to seven “messengers” of the Tabernacle Temple and that the twelve promised blessings belong to a future new spiritual Israel under his leadership. It first summarizes SCJ’s interpretations and then tests them against Scripture, questioning whether these blessings were originally given to real first-century churches. It demonstrates that “what the Spirit says” refers to the Holy Spirit conveying Jesus’ words, highlighting the Trinitarian and Greek grammatical distinctions that SCJ overlooks. The article further reviews how Revelation itself presents the gospel—showing that life, victory, and assurance are already granted in Christ rather than mediated through a later “overcomer.” It also explores SCJ’s shifting claims about Antipas and Pergamum within their historical context. Ultimately, the piece argues that SCJ’s framework replaces Christ’s finished work and the universal call to faithfulness with an exclusive organizational narrative. In contrast, it offers a biblical alternative grounded in the text, early church history, and orthodox Christian doctrine.
Expected Pushback and Antipas
Revelation Chapters Four and Five – Shincheonji’s Perspective
Revelation 4–5 is a vision of heaven itself, with God reigning on the true throne and the Lamb alone worthy to open the sealed scroll. The scene is about worship, sovereignty, and Christ’s unique authority, not a blueprint for an earthly headquarters. Recasting the throne, elders, living creatures, and Spirits as Shincheonji offices and educators replaces a heavenly worship vision with a human hierarchy. Hebrews 8 points to Christ as the true tabernacle and fulfillment, not to a later organization that mirrors heaven’s layout. The scroll is opened by the Lamb because of His death and resurrection, which means revelation and authority rest in Jesus, not in a promised pastor. The takeaway: keep the focus where the text puts it, on God’s throne and the Lamb’s worthiness, and test any claim of transferred authority against Scripture’s plain meaning rather than an administrative chart.
Revelation Chapters Four and Five Part Two – Does Shincheonji Fulfill the Throne Room?
This piece challenges Shincheonji’s recent claim that Antipas in Revelation 2:13 suffered a “spiritual” death. It argues from the Greek text that Antipas was literally killed, fitting Revelation’s consistent view of martyrdom as faithful witness, not doctrinal failure. The article shows that SCJ’s reinterpretation lets them say truth vanished after the apostles and returned through Lee Manhee, which undercuts the sufficiency of Christ and the Spirit’s ongoing work. It explains that the seven letters addressed real first-century churches, that phrases like “I know your deeds” reflect Christ’s omniscience, and that images like lampstands, Satan’s throne, Jezebel, refined gold, and “he who has an ear” carry ethical and pastoral meaning for all believers rather than secret codes for a modern organization. Common SCJ objections are answered with biblical, historical, and literary context, showing John was in exile, local leaders existed, and the letters were not prophecies about Korea. The conclusion calls readers to see Revelation 2–3 as Christ’s enduring call to repentance and perseverance for the whole church, with no need for a new mediator.
Revelation Chapters Four and Five Part Three – The New Song of the Slain Lamb
In the Bible a “new song” is praise that comes after God has already saved, not a code of hidden teaching. In Revelation 5 the new song is sung before the scroll is opened and it celebrates one thing only, that the Lamb was slain and by His blood redeemed people from every nation. Revelation 14:3 fits this pattern since “learn” (manthanō) means to participate by experience, so only the redeemed can sing it because they share in that salvation. The 144,000 are defined by following the Lamb, not by special doctrines. The Lamb’s seven horns and seven eyes show His complete authority and the Spirit’s fullness, and heaven gives the same worship to the One on the throne and to the Lamb, which affirms Christ’s divinity. Throughout Scripture God is exalted after acts of deliverance and Revelation 5 shows that climax in Christ. SCJ reverses this order by turning the song into secret knowledge tied to an organization, but Scripture ties access to the song to the blood of Jesus alone.
Revelation Chapters Four and Five Part Four – Potential Pushback