decade" and considered the album a return to the "unbridled fervor" Third Day was characterized by early in their career. Deborah Evans-Price of Billboard magazine described the album as "one of the best of the year" and praised Mac Powell's vocals as "possessing just the right amount of gritty intensity combined with sweet Southern charm" and as "equally effective on tender ballads like "Let Me Love You" and such hard-charging rockers as "This Is Who I Am". Matt Conner of CCM Magazine gave Revelation four-and-a-half out of five stars, opining that "The production on Revelation showcases a seasoned band working with a new-yet-veteran producer in Howard Benson ... And the results are perhaps the band's best work to date" and praising the guest appearances by Chris Daughtry and Lacey Mosley. Russ Breimeier of Christianity Today commented that "I've heard lead singer Mac Powell and the others say that they put more blood and sweat into their tenth studio album than any previous effort. It's not just hyperbole, it's a Revelation, and it ranks with their best albums so far", but noted that the album is "briskly paced with 13 songs in just 43 minutes; only the radio single "Call My Name" runs over 4 minutes. That's a good thing in that the album easily holds your attention from one lean song to another, but it deprives Third Day the opportunity to delve into longer instrumental jams or deeper lyrics about the conversations we share with God during the darker times in life". Graeme Crawford of Cross Rhythms gave the album nine out of ten stars and opined that "the newly slimmed down band deliver a quality record that all Third Day fans will enjoy" and that it "should be investigated by anyone with even a passing interest in rock music". John DiBiase of Jesus Freak Hideout gave Revelation four-and-a-half out of five stars and commented that "If the album doesn't grab the listener from Powell's soulful southern drawl and an accompanying acoustic before "This Is Who I Am" breaks wide open, closer attention to the words and themes that permeate the album should bring to light what is actually one of the strongest records so far this year" and stated that "Revelation is an honest, emotional, vulnerable, beautiful, and delicious southern rock record"; however, he also stated that "only fault [of Revelation] may be that its greatest strengths double as