Top 12 of CiHD: #3

For a summary of what I’m hoping to accomplish in this blog series (the first week of every month of 2018), I recommend reviewing my explanation here.

This month in the Top 12 Blog Posts at Covered in His Dust, we’ll look at the third-most-viewed post. And again, like last month, there is a little bit of a disclaimer. If I would have been true to the “twelve most-viewed posts” on my blog, then nine out of those twelve posts would have been posts on the book of Revelation. Instead of making this series a review of my thoughts on Revelation, I chose to pick the most viewed of my Revelation posts, which happens to be my introductory thoughts and a great place to have a conversation. You can read the original post here.

In this series, as we look at each post, I want to ask three questions: why, what, and what else? Why do I think these posts got so many views; why were others drawn to them? What do I hope people found when they got here; what do I hope they heard? Finally, what else have I learned about this; what else would I say about these ideas?

WHY THIS POST?

I don’t think there is any reason to doubt or wonder why this post (and apparently eight others) made the list. We have an infatuation with the book of Revelation. I mean, just let the idea sink in. One of the most recently written sections of my blog is on the book of Revelation. The series has only been up for just under two years, yet the posts on Revelation overwhelmingly dominate the most-viewed list.

I’m not sure there has ever been a book of the Bible so ripe for sensational reading (and mis-reading), more misunderstood, bringing more anxiety, and usurping the rest of the teaching of Scripture like that of Revelation. As I allude to in the original post, it would seem that there are two dominant groups in terms of studying this book. Either you feel like the book is so crazy and confusing that you refuse to engage it — or you are obsessed with the future forecasting, absolutely certain that you are reading it correctly, and you are so committed to your interpretation that you will undoubtedly break fellowship with other believers over its content.

It’s ridiculous. And both extremes seem unbelievably foolish and destructive to me.

WHAT DO I HOPE THEY FOUND?

I hope the reader found an objective and respectable hermeneutic grounded in critical thinking, legitimate history, and backed by biblical scholarship. If the reader was a member of the “I Don’t Read Revelation” camp, then I hope they were given some tools and a little hope that, in fact, this book is worth giving a second chance.

If the reader was a member of the “Revelation or Bust [Someone’s Face]” camp, then I hope they realized their position was more asinine than they’ve realized and were able to be honest about the unbelievable complexity of the book and the problems we have to face when we interpret it. All in all, no matter the reader, I hope we always approach the Bible with a sense of reverence and humility, while still being unintimidated by the task.

WHAT ELSE WOULD I SAY?

If I were to say something in addition to what I’ve already written it would be an encouragement to truly examine the way we approach and interpret the scriptures. Brothers and sisters, it matters. And I’m not saying it matters because of some childish commitment to orthodoxy. I’m saying it matters because of the implications.

Around the same time I wrote this series, our church was preaching through a series on the book of Revelation. It was insane. While I enjoyed the series immensely, my comrade Aaron Couch swears he will never preach through the book again. I saw things in people that concerned me deeply.

First, I saw people absolutely gripped with fear. If we know anything about the other 65 books of the Bible, we know this is not the posture that the gospel, the Church, or God is supposed to invoke in others. However, we’ve cloaked the discussion of the “End Times” in so much doomsday, apocalyptic, fire-breathing, demonic nonsense that people can’t even think straight when they start thinking about the return of Jesus and “the end of the world.” How did we get here?

And second, I have never seen so much rage come out of people that I have had fellowship with for years. All of a sudden our relationships were in jeopardy, our friendships rendered meaningless, and many found other churches. The only thing that even begins to rival the work of this book is the topic of politics (an issue I won’t even begin to touch here). We have some serious idolatry issues in these areas. Its horribly out of whack. We can talk about racism, loving our enemies, the glory of the empty tomb… and we get nothing. Nobody is sweating or has spit in their beard. Nobody is leaving the church and writing emails laced with profanity. But you mention some other idea about Revelation…

We are followers of Jesus. We should have a Christocentric theology (meaning that our theology should center around Jesus). Nothing should be more important than the teachings of Jesus. Not politics. Not eschatology. Not philosophy. Not Torah. Not Paul’s letters. And not Revelation. Not crazy YouTube videos about how some unaccountable Messianic Rabbi is convinced he broke the “Bible Code” and figured out the date the world comes to an end. Not some slick presentation on Blood Moons and the ancient Jewish calendar. Not the current events and how they line up with misinterpreted prophecy.

Nothing before Jesus. Jesus came so we would be one (John 17) and that through this oneness the world would know who He is. Jesus came to teach us how to chase down prodigal sons and welcome the sinner. Jesus came to tell us how to appropriately read everything else — including Torah and the book of Revelation. Jesus came to teach us how to forgive and live at peace. Jesus spoke very little about how the world would end.

I think that was on purpose.

Top 12 of CiHD: #7

For a summary of what I’m hoping to accomplish in this blog series (the first week of every month of 2018), I recommend reviewing my explanation here.

We continue our look at the Top 12 Blog Posts at Covered in His Dust by introducing the seventh most viewed post in the history of the blog. This is the first post I ever wrote for this more-than-four-years journey; it was written all the way back in February of 2013 and served as the launching point for my entire body of work. It is titled “SABBATH: A Trust Story” — and you can find it here.

In this series, as we look at each post, I want to ask three questions: why, what, and what else? Why do I think this post got so many views; why were others drawn to it? What do I hope people found when they got here; what do I hope they heard? Finally, what else have I learned about this; what else would I say about these ideas?

WHY THIS POST?

First of all, I’m super happy to see that this post made it onto the “top 12” list. This is the foundation of my entire body of work. The first time this idea was presented to me, it changed everything. I began to orient my entire theology around this idea. It was the approach that I believed (and still do) maintains the most hermeneutical integrity, logical consistency, and compelling potency.

There are a lot of reasons people might have found this post. They may have been researching Genesis 1 and the creation narrative. They might have been trying to study Sabbath. I know this particular post has been shared by many, many students and people connected to my ministry. People who know me well know this lesson is where it all begins and where it all keeps circling back to.

For me, this is it. It doesn’t matter so much to me why they got here — but I’m thrilled they did.

WHAT DO I HOPE THEY FOUND?

This concept is the result of me piecing together two separate teachings that impacted me and changed my theology forever. The many questions and observations I had compiled over years of study and Bible college education finally found expression, and over the course of a few years I was able to package them in a way that finally “clicked.”

To give appropriate credit, the first teaching was one I heard in person at the Black Sheep in Colorado Springs. It was the Everything Is Spiritual tour by Rob Bell, and I got to see an earlier version with additional material that never made it into the recording. This was before Bell’s more provocative days when he became such a controversial figure. I also listened to a sermon from Mars Hill Bible Church on August 16, 2009, that finally dropped the last few pieces into place for me intellectually.

What had bothered me for years was the fact that almost all schools of Protestant theology I had been exposed to had made the story of Christian theology about the entrance and removal of sin. As I studied the Text, though, the story seemed to be about something much wider, deeper, and comprehensive than that. Sin was certainly a part of the story, but it seemed not to be taking its proper place in a larger theological narrative — it had become the narrative.

To hear a teaching that spoke of the importance of beginning where God started His story and ending where God ended His story was like throwing the lights on in a dark room. I realized the theology I had been handed started a tad late in the biblical story. Even if Genesis 3 was only a couple chapters later, skipping the first story (or rendering it irrelevant because of the second) was a major theological faux pas.

Obviously, I want to keep writing about this, but that is what my four-and-a-half-year blog series was for. Suffice it to say that I hope people found a refreshing way to reframe the biblical narrative, and perhaps a different way to begin to understand God.

WHAT ELSE WOULD I SAY?

I’m not sure there is much I would add to this post. It’s relatively thorough. Over the years, I have continued to learn, shape, and adapt this teaching in different ways. There might be nuances I would approach differently, but I would be nitpicking. There is a lot of material here to get introduced to beyond just the theological shift. This whole teaching is bathed in a combination of historical-contextual and literary hermeneutics. There are conversations about chiasms and other Hebraic literary devices. There is a lot in this post!

I can also appreciate the way Rabbi David Fohrman’s teachings have shaped the material in this post (and even more so over the following years). I would certainly recommend his online academy (Aleph Beta) for those looking to learn more from an orthodox Jewish perspective. While Fohrman is not a follower of Jesus at all, his approach will help one become familiar with how Jews interact with the Text, and his conservative perspective will temper the progressive overtones of a voice like Bell for those who struggle to accept that.

Overall, I’m thrilled to have this make the list. Here’s to trusting the story!

Top 12 of CiHD: #8

For a summary of what I’m hoping to accomplish in this blog series (the first week of every month of 2018), I recommend reviewing my explanation here.

As we continue our look at the Top 12 Blog Posts at Covered in His Dust, we will examine the post that got the eighth most views in the history of the blog. This brings us back to the pastoral letters of John and my post on 2 John. It was titled “2 JOHN: the ‘Woman’” — and you can find it here.

In this series, as we look at each post, I want to ask three questions: why, what, and what else? Why do I think this post got so many views; why were others drawn to it? What do I hope people found when they got here; what do I hope they heard? Finally, what else have I learned about this; what else would I say about these ideas?

WHY THIS POST?

If you have been following along and noticed that we hit 3 John and then 1 John, you might have thought it weird that the book of 2 John got skipped. Well, after a quick break to talk about atonement, we are back to round out our journey through the letters of John. As before, I am taken aback that these posts found themselves on the list. Whether it is the fact that people are doing studies in Johannine literature or that the name “John” is a thoroughly Googled name… I’m a little struck at the number of views here. I certainly never finished writing on the letters of John and thought to myself, “Now that was a good one!”

However, if there is one element that might have caused 2 John to rise above the other two pastoral letters, it is the great discussion about the nature and identity of this “woman” who John directs his letter to. Any search for “who is the woman mentioned in 2 John” could have led a reader to this post.

WHAT DO I HOPE THEY FOUND?

First, I hope they found a concise and well-presented argument for the different opinions on the identity of the woman/audience of 2 John. If I did my job, I hope that by pulling out a few key references in the letter, we noted how much credence there is to the different options. I also hope they didn’t sense me swaying the conversation toward my favorite option (more on that below); without a personal “dog in the hunt,” I wanted to let the potential Bible student use their own research to make a choice they felt good about.

In addition to this, I also hope that by asking these questions and provoking critical thinking without resolution that I encouraged a better way of engaging the biblical text. I do not mean this merely from a textual criticism perspective, for cold textual criticism is shallow and lacking in any power. But there is something to learn by engaging the Text from a place of critical (and yes, even western) thought. It causes us to become more intimate with the Text, grow closer to the God speaking through it, and consider the message He may be imparting to us through the original author’s intent.

WHAT ELSE WOULD I SAY?

There isn’t much I would add to the existing conversation. That is, of course, except my own favorite opinion. Now that the original conversation has run its course and I don’t have to worry about influencing the student/thinker, where do I personally land on the opinion? I love the third option, of course. I think John could have easily written and sent the letter to a prominent woman and her family in the church. In fact, I have a personal hunch that this woman was the leader of the larger church John wishes to speak to. We know from Paul’s writings (particularly letters like Romans) that the early church didn’t balk at placing women in places of leadership in the church. Knowing John’s role of leadership in the church of Asia and Asia Minor, I would imagine he followed suit.

But to cloak a deeper message within the trappings of surface-level reading would be exactly like John in his other writings. One of the things we find consistent within Johannine literature is a multi-layered approach to his writing where the reader keeps peeling back one layer after another to find John’s larger point being applied at deeper and deeper levels. We see John doing this all throughout his gospel and the book of Revelation. Many scholars have argued against the idea that the Apostle John penned all of the letters that are written under his name. Looking at 2 John, I would argue that the same John wrote the gospel, the letters, and Revelation. While I’m no Greek scholar, I see a lot of similarities in the style of writing.

Top 12 of CiHD: #10

For a summary of what I’m hoping to accomplish in this blog series (the first week of every month of 2018), I recommend reviewing my explanation here.

We’ll continue our look at the Top 12 Blog Posts at Covered in His Dust by going over my tenth-most-viewed post of all time. With the last post being on 3 John, maybe it shouldn’t be surprising to find 1 John next on the list. The post is titled “1 JOHN: Love and Truth,” which I wrote on September 21, 2016. Much like the post on 3 John, this post discussed the very Johannine (or “of John”) themes of love and truth. You can read the post here.

In this series, as we look at each post, I want to ask three questions: why, what, and what else. Why do I think this post got so many views; why were others drawn to this post? What do I hope people found when they got here; what do I hope they heard? Finally, what else have I learned about this; what else would I say about these ideas?

WHY THIS POST?

If I had to guess (which is what this section is all about), I would assume that what drove people to this post was its connection to the writings of John and Essene literature. In the last few decades, there has been an immense amount of study surrounding the Johannine books, John’s style of writing, and the way he utilizes the themes found in his writings. While there is (always) a lot of debate about authorship, these themes seem to show up throughout his gospel, the letters, and even the book of Revelation.

Also of modern interest is the study of the Essenes, arising from the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls. With that find, the archaeological world has become more and more aware of the theology driving those in the Essene community. The preeminence of “sons of light” in their literature is striking and significant, and many have wondered how deeply connected Jesus and his disciples were to the Essene world. It is possible that further study of these connections drove people to my blog (not to mention the disappointment of finding somebody they can’t quote in their papers).

WHAT DO I HOPE THEY FOUND?

I hope they found some ideas to propel their study forward. We often read letters like 1 John with a matter-of-fact, straightforward approach, without asking the same questions that have become a part of our hermeneutic as we read the Text. Wasn’t John a Jewish rabbi? Was John more like a first-century Jew or a twenty-first-century theologian? How does this impact the way we study and read his writings?

Because of this, context matters. If John is working off of some deep Essene roots, or writing to a world that understands these dominant teachings, then this would be significant. I’m not even sure we have enough knowledge at this point to make that case, but it certainly matters as we think about interpreting John’s authorial intent. But even with a surface level exegesis, we have a clear movement that John is working with here. If we are to be followers of Jesus, then we are to walk as he walked. John says, “Whoever claims to be in him, must walk as Jesus walked.” He also says God is light and so we must be people of the light.

What does it mean to walk in the light? To say that we ought to be like Jesus is easy enough, but what exactly does that mean to John? John will spend the bulk of his letter talking about love. John connects this idea to walking in the light. If someone says they are in the light, but they do not love their brother, they are lying. John connects this idea to walking as Jesus walked. John connects love to light, love to truth, and love to Jesus.

These are the ideas I hope people found when they got here.

WHAT ELSE WOULD I SAY?

There is much in 1 John that I am still trying to nail down. For instance, what is up with 1 John 5:6–8? Not only is the content difficult to deal with, but we have all kinds of manuscript issues throughout history surrounding this passage. Google it and see what I’m talking about. Then get back to me when you have that all nailed down, because I’m still curious. I’ve been handed some great tidbits and good ideas, but I’m still trying to figure it out.

But one of my favorite passages in the New Testament is 1 John 4:12, which says, “No one has ever seen God, but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” For all of the depth in John’s writing, I have always felt like the miles of depth that lie in this verse come from its profound simplicity. There is this somewhat consistent thought throughout Scripture that God has not or cannot be seen. Why is this? Good western question. Maybe because God is spirit and without form or maybe because of His greatness, purity, and transcendent holiness. Perhaps it’s just because God is far too big to be contained in our world (hence the beauty and mystery of the incarnation).

So we cannot see God in the same way we can see other people or things in this world. Now the apologist in me immediately wants to start talking about all of the evidence for God around us — natural revelation or eternity set in the hearts of men. But John goes on to speak of evidence we far too often overlook. If God is light and if God is love, then when we love each other, people have the opportunity to see God. What a beautiful idea.

REVELATION: The Woman on a Beast

And as John begins to bring this epic showdown to a close, we find the villain entering on cue. Revelation 17:

One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits by many waters. With her the kings of the earth committed adultery, and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.”

Babylon, the image driving the end of this apocalyptic vision from John, is often pictured in the prophets as a prostitute who lures the nations into her adultery. One would think of Isaiah 23 or Jeremiah 51 as direct references that would have particular relevance to this conversation. Babylon becomes the apocalyptic image for kingdoms of evil. Just as Babylon terrorized the people of the Old Testament and fell into disrepair, so would every kingdom spoken of in apocalyptic imagery. The fall of Babylon becomes a foreshadowing of what happens to empire in every form.

Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. The name written on her forehead was a mystery:

BABYLON THE GREAT
THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES
AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.

I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus.

It’s hard to miss the parallel John is drawing between the old stories and prophecies against Babylon and her first-century counterpart — Rome. Her fall is inevitable, and she is far from a metaphor. The people of God have felt her cruelty; she is drunk on the blood of the martyrs.

When I saw her, I was greatly astonished. Then the angel said to me: “Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery of the woman and of the beast she rides, which has the seven heads and ten horns. The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss and go to its destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast, because it once was, now is not, and yet will come.

“This calls for a mind with wisdom. The seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits. They are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he does come, he must remain for only a little while. The beast who once was, and now is not, is an eighth king. He belongs to the seven and is going to his destruction.”

This is one of those paragraphs that people will interpret many different ways. We have to try to identify the heads and the horns and make sense out of the passage above using past kingdoms, Roman emperors, or other ideas. Some will use this passage to make the case for an earlier date (or even a later date) for Revelation. Some will immediately jump to the future (or modern day) and start making sense out of it all. I’m not going to try to make sense out of it here, as I’m still working on it myself. I simply don’t have any answers at this point in my study, but I can say with confidence, after what we have looked at, that I want to use a consistent hermeneutic — not assume that this is speaking of the future.

And yet the one thing that cannot be denied is John’s point that this beast represents Satan and his relationship with Rome. Rome was known far and wide (as well as throughout history) as the “city on seven hills.” By saying that this beast’s seven heads are seven hills on which the harlot sits is a clear identification of Rome. So even though we may have some questions about the details, the big picture is easy to work with.

“The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast. They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast. They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”

Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages. The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire. For God has put it into their hearts to accomplish his purpose by agreeing to hand over to the beast their royal authority, until God’s words are fulfilled. The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth.”

However, Satan will ruin this harlot. He will leave her destroyed, for that is what the beast does — even to those who swear their allegiance to the beast.

There are a few things we know for sure, but John presents at least two clear points. First, the Lamb will triumph. Though the beast wages war and the battle looks lopsided, there will be no contest, for the Lamb is the Lord of lords and the King of kings. He wins, John says, period. Second, the harlot will be ruined by the beast. Empire will always lead to the same end; evil cannot sustain itself. It does not belong in God’s created order. The great city (i.e., Rome) that rules over the earth, though it looks to be unstoppable, is part of a system that cannot last. It will come tumbling down.

The jury is back. The verdict is in. While the buzzer hasn’t sounded yet, the outcome is clear.

John invites God’s persecuted people to believe it — and overcome.

REVELATION: Mother and Dragons

We are now prepared to get into the twelfth chapter of Revelation, so let’s dive right in:

And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days.

Now that we realize John is consistently and constantly placing Text into context, we want to think of the Hebrew Scriptures and ask the pressing question, Who is this woman? The answers to this question don’t tend to be quite as futuristic and far-fetched. Most Christian interpretation will sit solidly on this being a direct reference to Jesus. I don’t believe that is incorrect, but let’s make sure we are keeping the larger picture in mind and exhausting the possibilities; as we’ve seen, this will help us catch more of the depth of John’s point.

The woman could be a reference to Mary and Jesus. There appears to be an element of this meant to employ a more literal picture in the apocalyptic imagery. She gives birth to a child who is snatched up to heaven and to his throne. Then she escapes into the wilderness. At that point, the image seems to break down if we continue to hold to Mary as a more literal character in this story.

The woman could be the nation of Israel. As we’ve noted before, Israel is very often referred to as a bride. The people of God will be the ones who give birth to the Messiah. We might think of that famous passage about a branch coming from Jesse’s stump. This would make more sense in that she wears a crown of twelve stars and gives brith to a child who will shepherd the goyim (Gentiles).

The woman could, in a very similar fashion, be the early Church (both Jew and Gentile). This would also make sense with the reference of twelve stars, and both this and the previous option would make much more sense in regards to fleeing into the wilderness. This particular option is not as clean of a connection when it comes to giving birth to the child.

There are other options, as well — even the idea that the woman is Eve. This would also make great sense; the picture becomes more and more metaphorical, but it seems to allude to Genesis 3 and the declaration that the woman’s seed will defeat the serpent. Of course, this prophecy would be in the mind of Jews for all of the aforementioned options.

Next, who is the dragon? If we stay true to our hermeneutic, this is an easy question. Our hermeneutic (the only one I believe makes sense) says these are not vague references to the unknown future, but instead — in keeping with the apocalyptic genre — well known images that help communicate the point into the current context. The dragon represents the empire of Rome. Or, to go back to our earlier language, the dragon represents Empire.

Finally, the woman is on the run and in hiding for a season. This is the same reference to 1,260 we saw before — an apocalyptic way of saying a significant amount of time, but it won’t last forever.

Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!”

Now, some may say, “Ah ha! The dragon is Satan! Why are you picking on Rome?” But as we’ve seen in our study of Pergamum, John has no problem connecting and equating the devil and the empire of Rome. John understands that Rome (in general) is the personification of evil and the main agent doing the work of what they would call “Satan.” This is not unique to Revelation and can be found in many other apocalyptic writings in the period of Roman oppression.

It should also be noted that these references continue to be full of links to the Hebrew prophets. The reference to the dragon being thrown down to earth would make any Jewish reader think of Isaiah and Ezekiel, who prophesied about the king of Tyre and Babylon, two other world powers of their day that relied on their pride and arrogance. These would be fitting connections to make to Rome. Again, we have Text to context.

And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea.

We see more Text to context in that the woman is given two wings of an eagle (“Remember how I carried you on eagles’ wings,” in reference to their deliverance from Egypt [another world power]) and flown into the desert (God said through Jeremiah that He remembers how Israel “followed me through the desert like a bride”). When the dragon pours forth a river like a flood, what do we think of? Noah? The Exodus? Both?

And as the dragon goes to make war against her “offspring,” one cannot help but remember the same passage in Genesis 3 and the declaration that we know how this story is going to end. The chapter (in Revelation) ends right in the middle of the contest between the dragon and God’s people, but the message from Pastor John is clear: “We are in a great spiritual battle. We must stand our ground and continue to walk in righteousness. We’ve been here before and we know how this story ends! Persevere. Overcome.”

REVELATION: Two Witnesses, Two Lampstands, Two Olive Trees

Revelation 11 is one of those chapters where we really get to put our growing knowledge of apocalyptic literature to work. It’s full of numbers, images, and references that make our heads spin. While it typically offers confusion, hopefully we have learned to ask a new set of questions to help us sort it out and put it back into its appropriate context. Let’s begin:

Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months. And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”

First, this setup is a repeat of the prophesy of Ezekiel (check out chapters 40-42), and it won’t be the only direct reference to the major prophet. If this observation is beginning to sound like a broken record, it’s because you’re now starting to notice what should be apparent as we read apocalyptic literature! I know that I’ve said it before, but I really want to help us see this and be reminded appropriately of its significance. John is trying to pull his readers (especially his Jewish readers) back to the message of Ezekiel and let them be encouraged by a prophet who has come before.

But then John moves toward a conversation about two witnesses. I can remember where this conversation took me as a young adolescent who was enamored by the Left Behind series. Theories point toward these fantastical ideas of two individuals who will play a special part in the end times. The problem is that not only are such quick assumptions and conclusions ignorant of authorial intent, they also ignore the context of the passage. Any Jew in the first century who spoke of “two witnesses” would have immediately thought of the two witnesses dominant in Jewish history — Moses and Elijah. You might remember our study of the Transfiguration.

This idea of two authorities bearing witness to the coming of a new Kingdom was far from a new idea. Is this relevant to our interpretation of Revelation? I would certainly think so! But then the passage goes on to give us even more detail:

These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire.

Immediately I notice the reference to these two witnesses having the power to shut up the sky so no rain would fall. And who was it to do such a thing? Elijah. And if you remember from our teaching, who was Elijah quoting when he “bound God to His Text”? Moses. It would seem that John really is working with this idea after all. But not only this, John gave us more details about these two witnesses. In reference to them (John uses “these,” the first word in the passage above), John says they are the two olive trees and the two lampstands. We’ve spoken before about how olive trees and lampstands symbolize the community of God’s people.

One of the things John keeps doing is pulling out visions of two where you would expect there to be one. Instead of there being 12 elders, as you might expect (symbolizing God’s people, the 12 tribes), there are 24. Not only does this match up nicely with the context of the Roman world, but I personally believe it alludes to the “other half” of God’s people. We have noted all throughout our study of the New Testament that the dominant issue being dealt with in the early church is the inclusion of the Gentiles. I believe John throws in multiple references of a “doubled” communal number to point out that God’s people includes both Jews and Gentiles. There are 24 elders, there are two olive trees, and there are two lampstands.

This also means John is inferring that the unified body of Christ — Jew and Gentile together — serves as God’s witnesses in the world. They have power beyond what they know — power to bring life or destruction. Their testimony, lived out as a people, will be as powerful as the testimony of Moses and Elijah.

And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified. For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here!” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them. And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

It seems as though their witness and testimony is useless, because they appear to be destroyed — killed and left for dead. Fitting to the context of the original hearers/readers? Absolutely. This is the world they live in; but John is encouraging them to overcome. He says that later, after three and a half days (exactly half of seven — a Jewish and apocalyptic way of saying, “a significant time, but not forever; there is an end”), they are resurrected and taken to God in the clouds. Rather than being a futuristic recipe for rapture, this is another reference to Elijah.

My point is this: it is not reasonable to believe the early readers of Revelation saw this as a futuristic rendering of “things to come,” but instead an obvious play to things past. They realized the message of encouragement John was sending their way.

Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.” And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying,

“We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty,
    who is and who was,
for you have taken your great power
    and begun to reign.
The nations raged,
    but your wrath came,
    and the time for the dead to be judged,
and for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints,
    and those who fear your name,
    both small and great,
and for destroying the destroyers of the earth.”

Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.

And with that, John brings us back to the Great Games, where the two kingdoms are locked in what seems to be an endless struggle and competition. Who will win? John the Baptist announced to us that the Kingdom of God had arrived. Jesus picked up the same banner, telling us the Kingdom was among us. In fact, John says, we do find ourselves in that era where the two kingdoms coexist. But there is coming a time when those kingdoms will be put to the test and judgment will be rendered.

John says that time has now come. Will God’s people stand sure and persevere? This is the question of John’s apocalyptic letter.

REVELATION: Let the Games Begin

Instead of going through Revelation 8 and 9 like a broken record, it might be the perfect time to break up the monotony and point out other very important cultural parallels John is employing. These parallels revolve around the Olympic games.

Started by the ancient Greeks, Olympic Games were a celebration of the Greek Olympiad (mythology of gods) and the power of the Greek empire. Even as the world was Romanized, these tenets carried through, although they became much more imperially minded. One of the things the games celebrated was the place of the gods. As you ran in the games, you were running to extol the glory of whatever god was being represented. Later, in the Roman world, this was applied to your city and country; you ran to prove to the world the greatness of the god of your city. It cannot be overstated that your performance was tied to the god you represented — not your individual talent, as we are used to today.

From what evidence we have about the games, we can piece together a pretty good picture of how things went down. Though it’s certainly been done with some liberty to make the most sense of history (it’s not like we found an ancient program hiding under the bleachers), the picture with its many parts is all there. I originally heard this lesson from my teacher, Ray Vander Laan, and many of those pieces can be found in the works mentioned at the beginning of our Revelation series (authors like Stauffer, Worth, and others).

What follows is a general outline of how they would open the Olympic Games:

1) Presentation of the Emperor — Caesar enters to the acclaim of all those who are gathered in the stands.

2) Herald’s Announcements — The emperor was almost always introduced by the recitation of his mighty deeds and accomplishments.

3) Caesar’s Pronouncements — Caesar would take the opportunity to speak to the cities and regions that were represented. The pronouncements often followed a typical outline: “I’ve heard of your [positive traits], … but I have this against you [negative traits and warnings].”

4) Chorus Sings Imperial Praise — The crowd, dressed in white robes (the accepted attire to attend the games), would sing, led by the 24 priests of the 24 legal Roman religions we’ve discussed before.

5) Games Opened — Another herald would read a scroll, again extolling the greatness of the gods and Caesar, king of kings and god most high; this ushered in the beginning of the competition.

6) Chariot Races — As far as we can tell, the first event was always the same and served as more of a ritual or ceremonial event to kick off the games — the chariot races. The colors of the horses appear to be consistent for each event: black, white, red, and spotted/pale.

7) Trumpets — Trumpets sound and the opening ceremonies are complete.

Let the games begin!

For our astute readers, you have probably already noticed that the opening nine chapters of Revelation are laid out by John exactly like the opening to the Olympic Games. Follow me back through the steps:

1) Presentation of the Emperor — (Revelation 1a) God is presented as the Alpha and Omega, the Almighty.

2) Herald’s Announcements — (Revelation 1b) John hears a voice telling him to write down what he sees: the greatness of God.

3) Caesar’s Pronouncements — (Revelation 2-3) The seven letters to the seven churches, following the “I’ve heard about your [positive traits], … but I have this against you” format.

4) Chorus Sings Imperial Praise — (Revelation 4 & 7) The crowd in Revelation, dressed in white robes, sings, led by the 24 elders.

5) Games Opened — (Revelation 5) The slain lamb is found worthy to open the scroll with seven seals, a scroll with writing on both sides.

6) Chariot Races — (Revelation 6) The horses and chariots appear, with all the colors to match.

7) Trumpets — Trumpets sound and the games begin.

What does all of this mean? It means John is writing his apocalyptic vision against the backdrop of the Olympic Games. In a very real sense, the reader who sees this would understand what John is saying: “We find ourselves in a great olympic competition! Who is going to win?” Throughout his writing, it seems the enemy (Rome, Babylon, the beast, the dragon, etc.) has the upper hand. The book does not dance around the very real persecution and apparent defeat that the original readers are struggling through.

But just as my teacher told me, I think John is saying something more.

He’s saying the way we conduct ourselves in the world is how we tell the world what our God is like. If the games were an opportunity to put your god on display, then the struggle we endure is our opportunity to do the same. The way we persevere, and the way we overcome — the way we run — is what will tell the world who our God is. May we be reminded of the words we studied back in Hebrews:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

REVELATION: Multitudes upon Multitudes

As we go through Revelation 7, let’s spend our time focusing on Text. As Western readers, understanding the importance of cultural context comes more easily, but realizing the prevalence and significance of the Textual remezes is much more difficult.

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. Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land and the sea: “Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.” Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.

From the tribe of Judah 12,000 were sealed,
from the tribe of Reuben 12,000,
from the tribe of Gad 12,000,
from the tribe of Asher 12,000,
from the tribe of Naphtali 12,000,
from the tribe of Manasseh 12,000,
from the tribe of Simeon 12,000,
from the tribe of Levi 12,000,
from the tribe of Issachar 12,000,
from the tribe of Zebulun 12,000,
from the tribe of Joseph 12,000,
from the tribe of Benjamin 12,000.

One quick, unavoidable note about the numbers in John’s reference here: If you’ve been following along, you might remember us talking about the significance of numbers and their qualitative, symbolic properties for Jewish readers. In that discussion we noted 12 is always the number of God’s people (in reference to the 12 tribes of Israel). So, when each tribe in this passage has 12,000 people, you see the statement that there is all of the community of each tribe there (12 x 1000, or God’s people multiplied by absolute, complete community) — not one is missing. This group of 144,000 is the exact number John can use to demonstrate that each and every one of God’s people is present; no one is missing and no one is left out. More could be said here, but I want to move on to Text as I mentioned above.

But where is John getting his material? In order to cinch this up tight, you would have to jump to the end of Revelation, as well, but you can begin to see what John is building toward by reading Ezekiel 45 — another apocalyptic vision of a world restored. Ezekiel uses communal numbers (multiples of 1000) and speaks of each and every tribe getting their land. He also speaks of a temple, just as John will later, but we’ll spend more time on this when we come to it at the end of our study.

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb.”

Not only did John just hearken to the conclusion of the vision of Ezekiel, but to speak of a great multitude holding palm branches would also bring a fitting conclusion to mind. One of the few places where a multitude gathers with palm branches in the Hebrew Scriptures is at the celebration of Sukkoth (the Festival of Tabernacles). If one reads the last chapter of Zechariah, his apocalyptic vision concludes with the picture of all the nations streaming toward Jerusalem to celebrate the great Festival of Tabernacles together. If Zechariah’s vision found its fulfillment, you would have a large multitude holding palm branches and singing Psalms to God.

All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying:

“Amen!
Praise and glory
and wisdom and thanks and honor
and power and strength
be to our God for ever and ever.
Amen!”

Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”

I answered, “Sir, you know.”

And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore,

“they are before the throne of God
    and serve him day and night in his temple;
and he who sits on the throne
    will shelter them with his presence.
‘Never again will they hunger;
    never again will they thirst.
The sun will not beat down on them,’
    nor any scorching heat.
For the Lamb at the center of the throne
    will be their shepherd;
‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’
    ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’ ”

The picture of God wiping away every tear is not a new one to Scripture — not even close (to my own surprise many years ago). The picture is put forth in the prophets time and time again. This picture, as well as the picture of the ransomed people of God gathering for songs of deliverance, can be seen all throughout Isaiah, in chapters 25, 35, 51, and 65, for example (not to mention other prophets). These are all pre-painted pictures, centuries old, that serve as the foundation John builds his writing on. When the original hearers heard his words, they would have immediately had an understanding to start building his teaching on.

They would have started with their history and gone backwards to remember the things they had learned in the past. In this, they would have found hope and progress, even in their extremely hard circumstances. Ironically, we read Revelation and look forward into the future and find anxiety, false pride, and self-righteousness.

I don’t want to be a broken record, but I don’t feel like the horse is truly dead yet (sorry for mixing the metaphors there). I just don’t think we grasp the significance of our Bibles putting Text to context. I fear that if we don’t truly appreciate this fact, we continue to misread, misunderstand, and — most importantly — misapply what the writings of our God-breathed, authoritative pages try to inspire in us.