The first song of the heavenly choir is sung by the four living creatures (Revelation 4:8). They sing not of creation or redemption, but of God Himself. The song is an intricate knot of intersecting structures. There is, first, a simple chiasm: A. Triple “holy” B. Three titles: Lord, God, Pantokrator A’. Triple name: “He who was, is, comes” This is equally a triad of triads, a trinity of trinities, and perhaps is to be linked with the Triune name:... Read more
John is caught up to the heavenly temple (Revelation 4), and it’s not surprising that he sees a “sea” in front of God’s throne. The sea is a recognizable peace of temple furniture. Further, the sea corresponds to the “waters above” that were caught up above the firmament on the second day of creation. Since John is in heaven, it’s not surprising that he would see the heavenly waters from above. There is something of a puzzle, however, in the... Read more
In his classic Leisure the Basis of Culture , Josef Pieper notes that Kant considered knowledge ot be “discursive” rather than “receptive and contemplative.” Against romantics like Jacobi, he insisted that “the law is that reason acquires its possessions through work.” Romantics don’t really do philosophy, but only a counterfeit of philosophy “in which there is no need to work; one only has to attend to the oracle in one’s breast and enjoy it, and so possess that wisdom whole... Read more
Davis convincingly argues that the scene in Revelation 4-5 is a meeting of the divine council, prophet present, to deliberate and pass judgment. What’s the issue before the court? Davis cites this explanation from Adele Yabro Collins: “In the context of the Apocalypse as a whole, it is clear that the problem facing the divine council is the rebellion of Satan which is paralleled by rebellion on earth. Chapter five presupposes the old story of Satan’s rebellion against God which... Read more
In his discussion of the four creatures of Revelation 4, Davis notes the connections between the faces and the four principal tribes of Israel: Judah/Lion, Reuben/Man, Ephraim/Ox, and Dan/Eagle (serpent). He adds, “Scholars who link these insignias with the forces of nature are probably at least partially correct. The insignias of lion, man, ox, and eagle represent the general categories (wild animals, man, domesticated animals, and birds) of all the animal kingdom . . . .therefore they may serve, in... Read more
What is destroyed in Revelation 17-20 is not only the Harlot, but the Harlot-with-Beast. False Israel and the apostate, bestial oikoumene collapse together. And this composite reality has a single replacement – the Bride that comes down from heaven, who becomes not just the replacement for the Harlot but for the whole Harlot-with-Beast complex. The church is not only the new Bride, but the new oikoumene . The coming of the Bride is the beginning of the “ecumenical” age. Read more
In his The Heavenly Court Judgment of Revelation 4-5 , Dean Davis notes the repetition of the word “name” in Revelation 1-3, and connects it with the temple-name theology of the Old Testament. He concludes that “The ‘name’ is now localized on the believer. It includes not only God’s name and Christ’s new name but also the place where the divine presence is, namely, the city or new Jerusalem. This results in making the believer(s) the ‘temple’ in which the... Read more
Each of Jesus’ seven letters to the churches in Revelation 1-3 ends with a promise to the “victors” ( ho nikon ). The blessings form a progression in various ways – they link up with different stages of the OT, and they also form a progression toward enthronement with Jesus. To whit: To Ephesians: Tree of life. To Smyreans: Having eaten from the tree of life, they are delivered from the second death. To Pergamumeans: Having eaten life and having... Read more
In his discussion of baptismal debates in early New England, Holifield emphasizes that for most New England ministers baptism did not constitute the church but served rather to confirm and seal a covenant that was created by the voluntary agreement among the members of the body. Nor did they believe that an individual person was made a member of the covenant community by virtue of baptism. Richard Mather was explicit that he did not believe the church was “made by... Read more
One of the curiosities in Holifield’s study is the appearance of a Protestant form of what Louis Bouyer and others have called “mysteriological piety” among Puritans. Here, for instance, is Holifield’s summary of Perkins’s interpretation of the rite of the Supper: “Taking up the elements, the minister sealed and proclaimed the activity of God in electing his Son as a Mediator. By blessing the elements, thus separating from their common unto a holy use, he confirmed and taught that God... Read more
Leithart
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