The Book of Revelation: Apocalypse and EmpireAbout seventy years after the death of Jesus, John of Patmos sent visionary messages to Christians in seven cities of western Asia Minor. These messages would eventually become part of the New Testament canon, as The Book of Revelation. What was John's message? What was its literary form? Did he write to a persecuted minority or to Christians enjoying the social and material benefits of the Roman Empire? In search of answers to these penetrating questions, Thompson critically examines the language, literature, history, and social setting of the Book of the Apocalypse. Following a discussion of the importance of the genre apocalypse, he closely analyzes the form and structure of the Revelation, its narrative and metaphoric unity, the world created through John's visions, and the social conditions of the empire in which John wrote. He offers an unprecedented interpretation of the role of boundaries in Revelation, a reassessment of the reign of the Emperor Domitian, and a view of tribulation that integrates the literary vision of Revelation with the reality of the lives of ordinary people in a Roman province. Throughout his study, Thompson argues that the language of Revelation joins the ordinary to the extra-ordinary, earth to heaven, and local conditions to supra-human processes. |
Contents
| 1 | |
| 9 | |
The Script Wholeness and the Language of the Book of Revelation | 35 |
The Stage Roman Society and the Province of Asia | 93 |
The Play The Apocalypse and the Empire | 169 |
Recent Theories about the Social Setting of the Book of Revelation | 202 |
Abbreviations | 211 |
Notes | 213 |
Works Cited | 241 |
Additional Sources | 251 |
Subject Index | 255 |
Index of Ancient Sources | 263 |
Index of Modern Authors | 265 |
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Common terms and phrases
angel apocalypse Applebaum Asia Minor Asian Augustus Babylon beast blood Book of Revelation Broughton 1938 century chapter Christ Christians cities of Asia cognitive conflict connection contrast crisis dimensions Dio Cassius Dio Chrysostom divine Domitian Domitian's reign early Christian earth elements emperor empire Enoch Ephesus eschatological evil example faithful Flavians genre heaven heavenly worship homologies Ignatius images imperial cult inscription Jerusalem Jesus Jewish Jews John John's Judaism king knowledge Kraabel Lamb Laodicea letter literary liturgical Loeb Lord MacMullen 1966 Magie metaphoric Nerva Nicolaitans Paul Pergamum persecution Plin Pliny Pliny's political prophets province of Asia reality refers relations religious Roman Rome Sardis Satan scene Schüssler Fiorenza seer seer's language seer's world seven churches situation Smyrna social boundary spatial status structures Suetonius symbols synagogue Tacitus temple throne Thyatira tion Titus Trajan transcendence transformation tribulation urban Vespasian vision words writes Yarbro Collins
Popular passages
Page 56 - I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.
Page 55 - ... and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood...
Page 48 - Weep not; lo, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.
Page 63 - Apocalypse' is a genre of revelatory literature with a narrative framework. in which a revelation is mediated by an otherworldly being to a human recipient. disclosing a transcendent reality which is both temporal. insofar as it envisages eschatological salvation. and spatial. insofar as it involves another. supernatural world
Page 42 - After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree.
Page 67 - The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever.
Page 188 - When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, 'How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood...
Page 60 - And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces and worshipped God, saying, Amen, blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honor, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever, Amen.
Page 55 - Look, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of Him. So shall it be! Amen. 8 "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord GOD, "who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.
Page 172 - I John, your brother, who share with you in Jesus the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance, -was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.