Seven Congregations in a Roman Crucible: A Commentary on Revelation 1-3While commentaries continue to be published on the book of Revelation, few, if any, attempt to interpret the Apocalypse in light of the political, historical, and cultural setting of John's original audience. The purpose of Seven Congregations in a Roman Crucibile is to provide fresh and illuminating exegesis of Revelation that takes seriously ancient literary and archaeological evidences. This book seeks to bring the reader into the world of John's Apocalypse with pictures of numerous sites and artifacts from the first and early second centuries AD. Moreover, the book also attempts to interpret John and his message through the lens of the Jewish prophetic tradition of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Ezekiel, and other pertinent Second Temple works. Thus John stands in the prophetic heritage of Israel in his attempt to challenge, threaten, admonish, and praise the seven churches of Roman Asia whose members are suffering at the hands of the idolatrous Graeco-Roman culture in which they reside. |
Contents
1 | |
John the Prophet on Patmos | 49 |
Introduction to the Seven Letters | 90 |
The Prophecy to Smyrna | 116 |
The Prophecy to Pergamum | 133 |
The Prophecy to Thyatira | 146 |
The Prophecy to Philadelphia | 173 |
The Prophecy to Laodicea | 184 |
Johns Crisis Real or Imagined? | 199 |
Did Johns Prophecies Fail? | 205 |
Fictive Globalism | 213 |
Bibliography | 229 |
247 | |
253 | |
261 | |
Other editions - View all
Seven Congregations in a Roman Crucible: A Commentary on Revelation 1-3 Richard E. Oster Limited preview - 2013 |
Seven Congregations in a Roman Crucible: A Commentary on Revelation 1-3 Richard E. Jr. Oster No preview available - 2013 |
Common terms and phrases
Aelius Aristides ancient angel antichrist Apocalypse apostles asclepius assimilation associated augustus Aune Balaam Bauckham Beale believers biblical book of Revelation century Christ christology christophany Classical numismatic group coin Commentary copyright holder culture David Dead Sea Scrolls death deities depiction Dictionary divine Domitian earth edited emperor Empire Ephesian Ephesus eschatological example Exod faithful Figure globalism God's goddess gods gospel Graeco-Roman iconography imagery imperial cult inscription interpreters Isaiah Jerusalem Jesus Jewish Scriptures Jews John John’s Judaism kind permission Laodicea Lord Messiah museum Nicolaitans nike numismatic Old Testament Osborne oster Jr Oxford pagan Pergamum permission of Classical perspective Philo phrase Pliny promise prophecy prophetic punishment reference regard reign religious repentance Revelation 1–5 Richard Richard e Roman Asia Rome Sardis seven churches seven congregations seven letters Smyrna spiritual temple theme theology throne Thyatira tion trajan translation University Press victory words worship writes καὶ