Category Archives: Textual studies

So what is the over-arching theme of the Revelation? According to Gorman, In other words, the purpose of the book of Revelation is to persuade its hearers and readers, both ancient and contemporary, to remain faithful to God in spite … Continue reading →

Gorman suggests that we read the Revelation through a combination of three schools of thought. This pastoral-prophetic approach is bound to be closely related to the [poetic and political]. If we read Revelation poetically, concluding that Babylon is not merely … Continue reading →

[From February 2009, with some editing] We have members of my congregation who are firmly persuaded that contemporary Christian music is a sign of the Apocalypse — rather like sword, famine, plague, and wild beasts. It’s just one more way … Continue reading →

Gorman writes, As a prophetic summons to first-commandment faithfulness, Revelation is both a call to worship the true God and a call to forsake all false deities. These two aspects are connected, and both appear in sharp relief at the … Continue reading →

Gorman cites three prominent elements of the Roman empire/religion from Warren Carter — The gods have chosen Rome. Rome and its emperor are agents of the gods’ rule, will, salvation, and presence among human beings. Rome manifests the gods’ blessings—security, … Continue reading →

Gorman explains the ethical background that is likely behind much of the Revelation– As Christian individuals and communities in Asia Minor interacted with family members, friends, business associates, and public officials who did not share their conviction that “Jesus is … Continue reading →

Gorman explains that the Revelation is a form of resistance literature, that is, an encouragement to resist the efforts of Rome to defeat Christianity, either through persecution or by corrupting the gospel with pagan teachings. That is, you cannot be … Continue reading →

The Revelation repeatedly refers to itself as “prophecy.” Many people assume that Revelation is a prophetic book in the sense of predicting, in rather explicit detail, “the way the world will end.” The most popular approach to Revelation, dispensationalism, both … Continue reading →

Gorman suggests that the correct, over-arching perspective on the Revelation is that — … Revelation is (primarily) good news about Christ, the Lamb of God—who shares God’s throne and who is the key to the past, present, and future—and therefore … Continue reading →

Studying the Revelation is like picking a college football team. I mean, no matter which team you pick, you’ve picked against everyone who supports a different team. And people are very loyal to their teams — more loyal to their … Continue reading →