Hildegard divided her first visionary work into three parts, and each part contains several pictures of visions that are firstly described and then interpreted. The visions and their interpretations (auditions) were from divine origin. In the first part, the focus is the Creator God and his creation, whereas the second part describes how humankind can be released through the self-sacrifice of Christ with the help of the Church and the sacraments and despite sin. The last part describes the contribution of the people in building the Edifice of Salvation, effected by the Holy Spirit, and the salvation. So, the Triune God is already existent in the structure of the work.

The purpose of the book is mentioned by the voice of God in the 11th vision of the third part:

„But now the Catholic faith wavers among the nations and the Gospel limps among the people; and the mighty books in which the excelling doctors had summed up knowledge with great care go unread from shameful apathy, and the food of life, which is the divine Scriptures, cools to tepidity. For this reason, I now speak through a person who is not eloquent in the Scriptures or taught by an earthly teacher; I Who Am, speak through her of new secrets and mystical truths, heretofore hidden in books.“

For this reason, according to the prophet it was more necessary than ever, now at the beginning of the ending time, that the people could find their way back to the right faith and lead a life chosen by God. Thus, Scivias was not directed at people of all classes, but only to the spiritual elite. One reason for her preaching journeys could have been to reach as many people, who otherwise could not read her writings, as she possibly could. However, especially the clergy should have felt addressed, because the clergy had the task to guide the believers. In this meaning, Scivias reminds us of the visionary Holy Scriptures or a prophetic preaching for change in order to be salvaged at the closing end of the times.

The complete work still exists in ten different manuscripts as well as in the form of excerpts. The Rupertsberg Codex of the Liber Scivias and the Salem Codex are the only versions where miniatures were included. However, The Rupertsberg version, which originated around 1165, has been missing since the Second World War and only exists as a handmade facsimile in the Eibingen Monastery.