Today's Puzzling Passage from Dr Ian Elmer examines the fascination the the Book of Revelation has had for the human imagination down through history. We all love our apocalyptic vision, don't we? Just witness the popularity of films whose stories are rooted in this genre of writing. This is a fascinating commentary just for its general knowledge content.

The Book of Revelation: Fact or Fiction?

There is probably no more puzzling book in the entire canon of the Bible than the Book of Revelation or, as it is called in some traditions, the Apocalypse. Most people find the text impenetrable, filled with fantastic imagery and unintelligible utterances. Adding to the confusion is the fact that some Christian groups have suggested that Revelation be taken seriously as a prophetic work which predicts actual future events.

Movie, DVD and Book images sourced from various places on the net. Click image to enlarge or these links: 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9. Click Wikipedia logo for their page on the Book of Revelation.

From time to time this prophetic aspect of the Book of Revelation has caught the popular imagination. Many modern "doomsday" movies have drawn directly upon the images and motifs in the book of Revelation — The Seventh Seal (1957), Rosemary's Baby (1968), A Distant Thunder (1978), The Late, Great Planet Earth (1979), The Seventh Sign (1988), Revelation (1999), The Apocalypse (2004) and, of course, The Omen (1976) and its various sequels including the more recent The Omen 666 (2006).

A similar ambiguity characterised the reception of Revelation in the early Church; and it appears that its place in the canon was not guaranteed. Despite the fact that some second-century "millenarian" Church Fathers, like Papias of Hierapolis, favoured Revelation, doubts were raised by others about its character, symbolism, and apostolic authorship. Even in the Fourth century, the Church historian Eusebius, who considered it canonical was still suggesting problems about its origins, arguing that it had no apostolic foundation. His contemporary, Gregory of Nazianzus, completely rejected Revelation on the basis that it was neither apostolic nor prophetic — a view later taken also by Luther in sixteenth century.

All of which prompts the question: Is the Book of Revelation to be read as fact or fiction, prophesy or fantasy? Should it be considered as having equal status in the canon with other texts, such as the letters of Paul or the Gospels?

Genre...

There is no doubt that the Book of Revelation is unique within the New Testament in that it is neither written as a realistic narrative, as are the Gospels or Acts, nor is it composed in the form of moralizing or pedagogical prose, as we find with the epistles of Paul, James, Jude, Peter and John.

Revelation uses a special kind of narrative, which bears elements of Old Testament prophesy and Jewish "day of reckoning" predictions, to relate visions and auditions concerning things that are either beyond sense experience or beyond the present age. We call this style of writing "apocalyptic" from the Greek word, apokalyptō, meaning "to uncover", "to reveal" or "to disclose" what is hidden.

There are various types of apocalyptic writing; but the most predominant in the Judeo-Christian tradition is "apocalyptic eschatology", which boasts portents and "visions" of the Last Things (eschaton), such as the "Day of the Lord", the Final Judgment, the Parousia and/or the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth. The purpose of such visions and portents is to provide a sense of hope in a better future that was presently unimaginable to an audience hard-pressed by famine or failure, war or persecution, poverty or pestilence.

Not surprisingly, apocalyptic writings appeared in Jewish and Christian history at times of great suffering, especially during periods of oppression from foreign invaders. The heyday of Jewish apocalyptic writing occurred after the fall of Samaria and the demise of the Northern kingdom of Israel at the hands of the Assyrians (721 BCE), and during the years leading up to the fall of Jerusalem (586 BCE) and the Babylonian Exile (587-539 BCE).

The most notable example of apocalypse in the Hebrew Scriptures is the book of Daniel, which details the career and visions of a Jewish prophet and seer who becomes head of the court magicians at Babylon during the turbulent years of 605 to 530 BCE. Written much later during the Maccabean revolt against the latter-day Greek overlords of Judah (175-135 BCE), the Book of Daniel recalls the visions of Daniel as a reminder of an earlier triumph over foreign invaders. Such was its success that Daniel was reckoned a "prophet", his story and visions were included in the canon of the Hebrew Scriptures, and his work became the model for subsequent apocalyptic writings.

Other prophetic works from the actual period of the Babylonian Exile, however, contain features that are related to apocalyptic thought and mode of expression. For example, a Judean priest exiled in Babylon, Ezekiel, couched his words of encouragement to the exilic community in terms of visions and secret messages from God; hence, he is sometimes called "the father of apocalyptic". Similarly, many passages in Isaiah 40–55 (i.e., Second Isaiah, a contemporary of Ezekiel), along with Isaiah 25–27 and Zechariah 9–14, anticipate the apocalyptic style and content. All these and other passages from the Hebrew prophets contain representations of the intervention of God for the salvation of his people.

Moving into the New Testament period, we find apocalyptic writing not just in Revelation, but also in the Gospels. Indeed, J. D. G. Dunn (1990) has suggested that "apocalyptic Christianity" may have been the most primitive form of the Jesus movement. Two of our earliest canonical texts, Paul's letters to Thessalonika, bristle with apocalyptic imagery, as Paul makes reference to the parousia of the Christ, the Anti-Christ and the Final Judgement.

Very similar imagery is found in the so-called "Little Apocalypse" of the Synoptic Gospels (Mk 13:1-36; Mt 24:1-51; Lk 21:5-36), which address both the Roman destruction of Jerusalem (70 CE) and the future end of the present world order. Along with 1 & 2 Thessalonians, the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke draw on early traditions originating with a Christianity that was emerging from its Jewish matrix and, as a consequence, becoming increasingly subject to persecution from both the Jewish synagogues and the Roman civil authorities.

Sociological study of eschatologically focused, or millenarian, groups has emphasized that a new experience of relative deprivation arising from changes within society's structures and patterns of relationships generally lies behind this kind of eschatological interest. Our earliest evidence suggests that Paul's preaching of the gospel offered just such an eschatological faith and probably reflects the teachings of other early Christian evangelists.

Looking at 1 & 2 Thessalonians it is certainly clear that Paul preached a message with a strong eschatological orientation and that this orientation was apparently taken to an extreme by some members of the community (1 Thess 4:13–5:11; 2 Thess 2:1–12), refusing to work (because the end of the world was near) or claiming to be immortal (i.e., already living the resurrection). Perhaps this eschatological excitement was great enough to prompt the charges of political subversion that are described in the Acts' account of Paul's mission in Thessalonika (Acts 17:6–7). Such would make perfect sense in that there seems to be a direct relationship between political oppression or social alienation and the rise of apocalyptic literature.

The Historical Context...

The Book of Revelation opens with the words, "The Revelation (apokalypsis) of Jesus Christ that God gave him" (Rev 1:1) which would seem to imply that the author, identified as John, saw his works as the definitive declaration of that which other writings of this kind sought to give — revelations from God via Jesus Christ. However, we cannot be certain as to whether John intended to describe his work as an apocalypse.

Revelation appears more as a circular letter addressed to the seven churches of the Roman province of Asia (Rev 1:4): Ephesus; Smyrna; Pergamum; Thyatria; Sardis; Philadelphia; and Laodicea. The seven messages to these churches that open the book (Rev 2-3) are not letters as such, but serve to introduce the themes that will be developed in subsequent chapters through a series of visions and auditions.

Still, despite that fact, it seems clear enough that Revelation may be "occasional" in nature — that is, like the letters of Paul, Revelation deals with problems and challenges specific to the seven churches named.

Revelation, like other "apocalyptic eschatological" texts, does favour the stock-standard portents and images of the final judgment and the triumph of God over this evil age. But such motifs are always applied to the situation of the addressees. It calls on them to share in God's victory over the anti-Christian forces of their time and place — specifically, the power and influence of Rome, its emperor, and its pagan culture.

Significantly the cities in which the seven churches were located were centers of civic administration and their Christian communities were no doubt amongst those most affected by civil and social persecution. While it seems clear that some of the communities addressed were less affected by such persecution than others in the roster, all seven communities are challenged to witness publicly their commitment to the Christian movement.

Of particular concern to the seven churches was the phenomenon of emperor worship, which was enthusiastically adopted in that area, possibly more than elsewhere in the Roman Empire. All the cities of the seven churches had the worship of the emperor in their midst. In many cities annual festivals were held, especially on the emperor's birthday, and such festivals were supported by people from all walks of life. Sacrifices were offered for the emperor along with local deities, and all citizens were expected to participate —something which Christians were not inclined to do and for which they were often singled out for persecution.

As I have noted in an earlier commentary (Elmer, 2010), Christians in Rome during the reign of Nero had been singled out as "unbelievers". Ridiculed and persecuted, they were blamed for the fire of Rome and executed in large numbers. The memory of that particularly dark chapter in Christian history may also be provide a key for unlocking Revelation.

The Beast...

In the book of Revelation, Rome and its imperial apparatus are represented as a seven-headed "Beast" (Rev 17:9-11; cf. 13:1-10) — which probably alludes either to the city of Rome that was widely acknowledged as being built on seven hills, or to the succession of seven emperors under whom Christianity suffered persecution.

Similarly, the second beast (Rev 13:11-18) may represent the guild of priests of the imperial cult, many of whom served as political and business leaders in the East. The comment in Revelation that no one "can buy or sell who does not have the mark [of the beast]" (Rev 13:17) is probably a reference to the fact that participation in the imperial cult was practically obligatory for doing business in the late first-century trade guilds and financial institutions.

Such allusions are secondary, of course; the primary image here is drawn from Greco-Roman myths of multi-headed monsters of the deep who oppose the powers of the heavens (cf. Rev 13:1). One need only think of the Hydra, a nine headed water-dragon which guarded the springs of Lerna. It possessed the power of regeneration, producing two new heads for each that was decapitated. The creature was eventually destroyed by Heracles who cauterized its neck stumps with a flaming torch.

Emperor Nero: "the most notorious imperial persecutor of Christians".

The motif of the seven-headed beast may have a more concrete reference to the emperor Nero (the most notorious imperial persecutor of Christians) and the turbulent years following his death (68-69 CE) when expectations of his return (or reincarnation) were rife in the popular mind. The belief in Nero redivivus was widespread in the late 60s and early 70s CE (Tacitus, Histories 1.78; 2.8; Suetonius, Nero 57). Like the Hydra, Nero was thought to possess divine powers of regeneration or, more likely, reincarnation (in subsequent emperors); and allusions to the hydra are implicit in Revelation.

In Revelation 13:3 (cf. Rev 13:14) it is stated that one of the heads of the "beast", the antichrist, had received a deadly wound, but lived again and was empowered by Satan to rule the empire (cf. Rev 17:8). This appears to suggest that some believed that the wounded "head" of the empire (Nero) had not been killed as reported, but had escaped and would return to seize Rome.

The specific legend of Nero redivivus is more apparent in Revelation 17, where we find that the Beast Nero risen from the dead and come with a confederate army from the East to destroy "Babylon the Great" (Rev 17:5). Here "Babylon" refers to Rome (cf. Rev 14:8; 16:19; 17:5; 18:2, 10, 21), which is meant to draw a parallel between Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon who, like the latter-day Roman emperor Vespasian (Nero's ultimate successor and in some views, "Nero reincarnate"), had destroyed Jerusalem (586 BCE and 70 CE, respectively).

The dirge over Babylon in Revelation 18 views the current tyrant city as another Babylon. In the dirge, the ultimate victory of God over Rome is assured even while recognizing that Christians for a time must endure the present dominance of its hostile political culture and its idolatrous religious devotions.

Final Reflections...

Revelation has proven a difficult text for Christians to decipher, with many mistakenly assuming that its esoteric language is to be understood as speaking of actual things still to come. Attempts have been made to align its symbolic imagery with events, people and places in our own day. But such an enterprise fails to note that the text was written, not as a pure apocalypse with hidden messages, but as an occasional circular letter addressing specific challenges faced by Christians in the latter half of the first century.

The book of Revelation has been described by scholars as "a trumpet call to faith" (Murray, 2000). For the Christians in the seven churches in Roman Asia addressed by the book, the exaltation of Rome and the popularity of the emperor cult made the living of the Christian life difficult and the future dismaying. They faced constant pressure to conform and join the majority in the celebration of Caesar's divinity.

To yield to such pressure entailed the denial of the Christian faith in its entirety, which was unthinkable. The author of Revelation wrote to strengthen the faith and courage of believers, to prepare them for battle with antichristian forces in the world, and to help them to bear witness to the one true Lord and Savior.

Despite the occasional nature of Revelation, its central message of hope and encouragement remains an important one for us today — in which sense we can speak of the text as prophetic. Or, to put it otherwise, we should not be fooled into imagining that the fantastic "out of this world" imagery in Revelation does not "hide" a relevant message for Christians "in this world [today]".

While many modern Christians do live in difficult circumstances, oppressed by civil authorities and margnalised by antichristian cultures, most of us have the good fortune to live in societies that allow religious freedom. Nevertheless, we too should not lose sight of the fact that such societies can subvert the values for which we stand.

Revelation reminds us that we should not become too complacent such that we fail to speak out or stand up for our values when the surrounding society seeks to persecute and marginalise minorities or elevate the demands of economic growth and wealth over the pursuit of justice, peace and security for all citizens. We may not now worship emperors; but we can often fall into the trap of joining others who do worship on the pagan altars of money, patriotism, politics or some other extreme forms of economic and philosophical rationalism that compromises our hope in a future kingdom of God.

Christians are destined to always be "outsiders" whose constant prayer should be "Come, Lord Jesus!" (Rev 22:20). Or, as another esoteric Christian text, the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas, puts it: when it comes to living in this world, Christians should "become passers by" (Thomas, 43).

Bibliography and Further Reading:
Aune, D.E. (1997), Revelation. WBC; Dallas: Word.
Bauckham, R.J. (1993), The Theology of the Book of Revelation.NTT; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Dunn, J.D.G. (1990), Unity and Diversity in the New Testament: An Inquiry into the Character of Earliest Christianity. London: SCM Press.
Elmer, I. J. (2010), "When in Rome: Conflict between Church and State" Catholica URL: http://www.catholica.com.au/gc0/ie2/148_ie_150710.php
Murray, G.R. Beasley (2000), "The Book of Revelation". In R.P. Martin and P.H. Davids (eds), Dictionary of the Later New Testament and Its Developments. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press.

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©2010Dr Ian Elmer

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