Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Foreword
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction: Reading Early Christian Literature in Context
- Part 1 The Graeco-Roaaan World: Context For Early Christianity
- Part Two The Teaching of the Historcial Jesus (27-30 Ce)
- Part Three The Earliest Christian Literature (30-70 Ce)
- Part Four The Christian Literature of the Late First Century (70-100 Ce)
- Part Five Beyond the New Testament: The Making of Christianity and Its Emergence Into the World
- Index
21 - Intimations of the End-Time: the Revelation of John
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 February 2020
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Foreword
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction: Reading Early Christian Literature in Context
- Part 1 The Graeco-Roaaan World: Context For Early Christianity
- Part Two The Teaching of the Historcial Jesus (27-30 Ce)
- Part Three The Earliest Christian Literature (30-70 Ce)
- Part Four The Christian Literature of the Late First Century (70-100 Ce)
- Part Five Beyond the New Testament: The Making of Christianity and Its Emergence Into the World
- Index
Summary
The book of Revelation
Context of the book of Revelation
The book of Revelation was written somewhere along the western coast of Asia Minor, probably in Patmos. The author refers to himself as John, but does not identify himself as a disciple or apostle of Jesus. He was probably a prophet who went from place to place and was therefore familiar with the communities to which he wrote.
An apocalyptic writing coheres with, and answers to, a situation of crisis (cf box: Revelation as apocalypse). The book of Revelation contains indications that it was addressed to Christians being persecuted for the sake of their faith. This persecution resulted from the Christians’ refusal to take part in emperor worship (Rev 13:4,12—IV; 14:9-12; 16:2; 19:20). There were probably also internal religious conflicts, symbolically referred to by means of ‘Nicolaitans’ (Rev 2:6,15) and ‘the synagogue of Satan’ (Rev 2:9).
REVELATION AS APOCALYPSE
To be able to understand the Revelation of John it is imperative to know something about its literary genre. In the first verse the author refers to his book as the apocalypse of Jesus Christ. Books or sections of books of this nature occurred at an earlier stage among Jews. Daniel 7 to 12, for example, belong to the same literary genre. In the Synoptic Gospels the so-called little apocalypse (Mark 13 par) appears. Other well-known apocalypses are 7 Enoch and 4 Ezra.
An apocalypse was regarded by its writer as a revelation received from God by means of an otherworldly messenger (e g an angel). In such a revelation, current, earthly circumstances are interpreted in the light of the transcendent world and of the future. It especially envisages salvation in the future.
Crucial to the understanding of an apocalypse is that it coheres with, and answers to, a crisis situation. By interpreting history in a specific way, it, as it were, draws the attention away from the current depressing situation to the transcendent world and the future. By doing so, it supplies a meaningful frame of reference in which people can see their situation and act.
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- Information
- From Jesus Christ To ChristianityEarly Christian Literature in Context, pp. 227 - 238Publisher: University of South AfricaPrint publication year: 2001