(avg. read time: 36–72 mins.)
The grand story of Revelation extends far beyond its narrative timeframe, for its use of the OT shows how it is bringing the grand story of Scripture to fruition. As Peter J. Leithart aptly states:
Revelation is a book of the Bible, and it operates within the world and history described in the OT and NT. Creation, fall, flood, Babel, Abraham, Sodom, Egypt, plagues, exodus, conquest, temple, tabernacle, kingdom, exile, Elijah, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, return, rebuilding: These [sic.] books, people, and events provided the coordinates of John’s imagination, long before he was swept up by the Spirit to see visions of God. He did have an ecstatic visionary experience, but what he saw reflected the events and institutions of the Bible, and when he recorded them he naturally recorded them in the vernacular he knew, the vernacular of the Scriptures.1
In this post, I plan to track OT motifs and images through each chapter of Revelation, though of course certainly not comprehensively (as there is no agreement on just how much of Revelation reflects the OT per se, I do not treat repeated images and language at each separate instance they appear, and I have already explored further in my Trinity series). Typically, I try to give a brief overview of this grand story as each chapter articulates aspects of it, though on occasion I go into greater detail to point to more resonances and levels of significance. This is something of a preview of more detailed work I would like to do for the commentary if I get the chance.
Chapter 1
For ch. 1, we have two dense clusters of concepts and images in addition to two appellations that are especially significant for the examination here. First, in 1:5–7 John speaks of the effects of Jesus’s blood and exercise of his Lordship, and he describes Jesus’s coming in a way that evokes multiple OT passages. Statements about Jesus’s blood are standard in the NT, usually as referring to the sacrificial, redemptive, purifying, and covenant-making nature of his death. Exodus 24 is an especially significant text in the NT in providing context for this, but one can also point to various parts of the sacrificial system, and especially the Day of Atonement (see Lev 16–17 in particular). This imagery describes how Jesus has instituted the new covenant by his blood and constituted the new covenant community.
And what he has made that new covenant community bears another link to the OT: a kingdom and priests. The book invokes this image multiple times hereafter, explicitly in 5:10 and with some more extensive description in 20:4–6 (cf. 3:21 and 22:5). In short, John is saying that Jesus has already accomplished—and will yet consummate this goal further in the anticipated future—making his covenant community into the fulfillment of God’s covenant community as articulated in Exod 19:4–6. God spoke these words to Moses to say to the Israelites after they arrived at Sinai subsequent to the exodus out of Egypt. As is typical in these statements of covenantal relationships, the statement of who God is and what God has done is the foundation for covenant communal identity and covenant communal responsibility. This is as true for the Revelation text as it is for the Exodus text, though I have only referenced here the portion that had more to do with OT imagery. This connection between the holy rule of Christ and the holy rule of his people here is also similar to the scene in Dan 7 where the vindicated son of man represents the holy people of God and their rule over his world, along with the reception of glory and dominion.
Speaking of which, the first line in v. 7 is linked with a Greek version of Dan 7:13 (ἰδοὺ μετὰ τῶν νεφελῶν … ἐρχόμενος), with some adaptation of course. This language connects Jesus with the Son of Man figure, and this will not be the last time that language and imagery from Dan 7 appears in Revelation, even in this chapter. The reference to the people seeing the one they pierced has obvious connections to Jesus’s crucifixion, but it also draws on the language of Zech 12:10 describing the house of David and Jerusalem looking on the one they pierced (i.e., God) and mourning. This takes place in a scene preparing for God’s coming to Jerusalem to save his people, judge the wicked, and assert his kingship over the world. Again, these texts subtly but clearly affirm that Jesus is the fulfillment of these long-held hopes for deliverance, justice, and the divine kingdom. John likewise evokes these hopes in his earlier description of Jesus as the firstborn from the dead (i.e., by resurrection) and the ruler of all kings, though the language here is not especially reminiscent of any particular OT passage; they are simply statements of eschatological hope held in common with the earlier scriptural witnesses and their audiences.
Second, the imagery from Daniel continues in the narration of John’s first vision in 1:12–20. Near the beginning of John’s vision (Rev 1:13–15), he sees one like a son of man walking in the midst of seven golden lampstands, wearing a long robe girded with a golden sash, with a head and hair white like wool and snow, eyes like a blazing fire, feet like glowing burnished bronze, and a voice like the sound of many waters. The reference to one “like a son of man” is another clear reference to the figure in Dan 7, who in the fullness of time would come to be known as Jesus, the one who would call himself the Son of Man in his own teaching (so distinctively that despite his plethora of self-references in this way, the term only appears outside of the Gospels in Acts and Revelation). Likewise, the imagery of having the hair of his head be white like snow derives from the description of the Ancient of Days in Dan 7:9 (other language is also drawn from there with less precise equivalence). The golden lampstands also evoke sacred space imagery of the tabernacle and temple, though here it is in reference to the heavenly counterpart. The attire he wears is either priestly, even as later imagery in Revelation implies (15:6), or more generally majestic. The eyes of blazing fire and feet like burnished bronze derive from and expand on imagery in Dan 10:6 to describe the angel who appeared to Daniel to give him his last message to record. The voice like the sound of many waters recalls the description of God’s voice in Ezek 1:24 and 43:2. In short, Jesus draws together kingly, priestly, and prophetic hopes and fulfills them all as the one who shares God’s authority, functions as the true high priest enabling people to have communion with God, and is more glorious in appearance and authoritative in speech than any angel who gave a message to a prophet. He is the unifier of all of salvation history and its various institutions.
Such a theme receives confirmation from two other appellations in this chapter as well. First is the tripartite “the one who was, is, and is coming” (along with its variation), which appears in full three times, along with a parody rendition in 17:8 (1:4, 8; 4:8). This is rather clearly related to how God identified himself in Exod 3:14 (“I Am that I Am”), and John has even broken the Greek grammar in 1:4 to make this connection like it is the proper name of “the one who is” and so on (such that the nominative participle follows a preposition that otherwise takes a genitive object). The one who always was and the one who always is—the one who acted in the past and the one who is acting now—will also be the one who comes to consummate action in the future. Second is the Alpha and Omega title, which became popular in subsequent Christology, that also appears three times in this book (1:8; 21:6; 22:13; cf. 11:17). This name that signifies that God and Christ is the beginning and the end, the first and the last, implies that he unifies salvation history. He was there at work from the beginning—that is, from creation—and he will be there to bring about the completion of it all. He is the all-encompassing one for the grand story of history (cf. Isa 44:6; 48:12).
Chapters 2 and 3
The letters to the seven churches in chs. 2–3 contain several references to the OT, either in the description of Christ, the description of adversaries to the churches, and the description of the reward they will receive if they conquer. For the sake of simplicity, I deal with these categorically. Most of the descriptors of Christ are carried over from chapter 1, so I need not comment on them here. The two exceptions that require comment in light of our OT focus are in 3:7 and 3:14. The first case draws its language from Isa 22:22. G. K. Beale in particular has done more work on this text than I can reproduce here in various writings, but a few points are worth noting. First, Eliakim is the model of the faithful steward who will be rewarded with exaltation and authority, in a small way previewing Christ, what Christ has done for his Church, and what Christ will yet do for his Church. Second, he is given absolute authority over the house of David as signified by his key that opens what no one will shut and shuts what no one will open, again previewing Christ’s ultimate authority over his house and his work as judge and deliverer. Third, as the targumist recognized, the reference to the robe and the sash has priestly overtones as well, though it also works as an indication of investment with authority. If there is an intention to evoke the priestly overtones, it would fit with the earlier noted picture of Christ walking about in sacred space supremely fulfilling the functions of the high priest. Fourth, Eliakim is portrayed as a firm foundation—to mix the metaphor of the passage—for his house, whereas Christ is the firm foundation and generative head of his house that is truly eternal, for his house is the Church.
The second description of Christ we will comment on here comes from 3:14. As in 2 Cor 1, we see in this text and the rest of the letters that all of God’s promises have their “Yes” in Jesus. Hence, Jesus calls himself the Amen in 3:14 (in accordance with one of God’s descriptions in Isa 65:16). The affirmation that he is the Faithful and True Witness resonates with the rest of Revelation, but it also evokes declarations about God from the OT of him as trustworthy/faithful and true (Exod 34:6; Num 14:18; Deut 32:4; Pss 19:7–9; 86:15; 145:13; Isa 65:16; Dan 2:45). I have addressed these points and others in more detail in my series on the Trinity in Revelation, so I leave aside further comment here.
The adversaries described with OT references appear in the letters to Pergamum and Thyatira. In the former case, the adversaries hold to the teachings of Balaam, who put a stumbling block in front of Israel in the form of fornication and idolatry (specified here as eating food sacrificed to idols). This story is related in Num 25 as the climactic failing of the Israelites prior to entering the promised land. Thousands died as a result of their unfaithful actions, and it was only stopped by the famous zeal of Phinehas. As the rest of the passage indicates, this is a warning against the self-destructive power of their conduct and how zealous faithfulness, here described as repentance, is the required remedy. It is also a story of falling right before the finish line, as the journey to the promised land finished not long after this. It is thus also an eschatological warning on par with Heb 3–4 about failing to enter God’s rest and failing to receive God’s promises because they decided to trade their inheritance for a mess of pottage.
The reference to Jezebel in the letter of Thyatira scarcely needs expansion. She is the quintessential figure for idolatrous adultery in Israel’s history. She has re-emerged here either in the persona of a teacher/prophetess or her name is given to a demonic influence (the verb πλανάω only applies elsewhere in Revelation to Satan and his minions). Either way, a major enemy of historical significance offers a resistance of enticing deception against this congregation and the congregation is instructed to persevere so that they may participate in God’s final victory over her.
The rewards are where the most frequent OT references appear in these chapters. The promise to be able to eat from the tree of life in the paradise of God looks forward to a fitting inclusio of the grand biblical narrative in which humans began with access to the tree of life and presence in the paradise of God, followed with loss of access and exile, and concluding with return and everlasting life in and by the presence of God. References to the tree of life are fairly common in the biblical and extra-biblical texts, showing the importance of this tree and what it signified in eschatology at the time (Gen 2:9, 16–17; 3:22–24; Prov 3:18; 11:30; 13:12; 15:4; Ezek 47:12; 1 En. 25:4–6; 2 En. 8:2–8 [J recension]; 4 Ezra 8:52; Apoc. El. 5:6; T. Levi 18:11; T. Dan 5:12–13; T. Jac. 7:22–25; LAE 42; Apoc. Mos. 28:4; Ps.-Philo 12:8; Pss. Sol. 14:3; 1QH VI, 14–18; VIII, 5–6).
The promise to Smyrna, like the promise to Laodicea, has more resonance within Revelation itself and within the new covenant reality than it does with the OT, although it is indirectly connected to the latter. The next promise, to Pergamum, has two aspects to it: to receive the hidden manna and to receive a white stone with a new name on it. Manna was God’s miraculous provision during the wilderness wandering and it could serve as a synecdoche for the people of God’s dependence on God and God’s loving grace in providing for his people’s needs. This primary example of that truth to which the people had looked back for so long was itself but a pointer to something greater, as Jesus shows in John 6. While the white stone is not based on OT imagery, the phenomenon of God changing people’s names was certainly well known, to the point that name changes—or simply a name designation—signified change in fate, particularly in terms of promises of judgment and salvation. Especially notable links in this regard are Isa 56:5 and 62:2, as well as how the names of Hosea’s children, which are then reversed in their significance in ch. 2 in God’s promise of salvation.
The promise to Thyatira draws language from Ps 2:8–9, which I have commented on in my series on the Trinity. As such, I do not spend much time on it here, except to say that Jesus extending this declaration of his own royal authority over all the nations as God’s ideal king as a promise to his followers implies a participatory character to following Christ, especially in terms of participating in the gospel story (as is made more explicit in 3:21). Because of the participatory link that Christians have with Christ by virtue of his love in them—love being the spine that connects the body to the head—his victory becomes their victory, his rule their rule, and his inheritance their inheritance. The promise of receiving the morning star may have a similar meaning in light of 22:16 and both passages appear to draw from Num 24:17 in linking the promised ruler with a star. Jesus, as the true Messiah, is not only the representative of his people, but he is also their incorporator who enables them to participate in him.
The promise to Sardis about being clothed in white robes fits better with the rest of Revelation as the raiment of the faithful (3:18; 4:4; 6:11; 7:9, 13–14), but the promise of having one’s name kept in the book of life certainly does resonate with the OT (Exod 32:32–33; Ps 69:28; Isa 4:3; Dan 12:1; Mal 3:16) and the motif will continue to appear throughout Revelation (13:8; 17:8; 20:12, 15; 21:27). Such was the consequence of persevering faithfulness in the old covenant as in the new, though now it has the extra resonance of the life being everlasting resurrection life (as in Dan 12). This book thus serves as a reservation list for those who will inherit the promises of God as well as a history of the life of God’s image bearers—that is, the history of God’s action in his people—from beginning to end.
Finally, the promises to the church in Philadelphia of being made a pillar in the temple of God, having names written on them, and of being in the new Jerusalem have many OT links. While the specific promises of being made a pillar in the temple or people having these names written on them almost never explicitly appear in the OT (the small exception being Isa 44:5), these promises nevertheless draw on similar ones in the OT and appeal to a theological environment in which these promises are reiterated and expanded. All of these promises indicate consummate communion with God foreshadowed in the old covenant and hoped for all along since the expulsion from Eden. The notion of having God’s name written on the people fits with common statements of the covenantal relationship as a statement of confession or as a promise of restoration, which is some variation on, “They will be my people and I will be their God” (Exod 6:7; 29:45–46; Lev 26:12; Deut 26:18–19; Jer 11:4; 24:7; 30:22; 31:1, 33; 32:38; Ezek 11:20; 14:11; 34:30; 36:28; 37:23, 27; Hos 1:9; 2:23, 25; Zech 8:8; 13:9; cf. Rev 21:3, 7). Likewise, some of the most vivid images of hope in the prophetic and Second Temple writings concern the new temple and the new Jerusalem (Isa 2:1–4//Micah 4:1–5; Isa 49:8–26; 51–52; 60–62; Jer 30:18–22; 31; Ezek 40–48; Zech 8; 14; Tob 13:15–17; 14:5–7; 1 En. 90:28–29; 91:13; Sib. Or. 3.265–294, 702–704, 718, 772–774; 5.420–428; 4 Ezra 9:38–10:55; 2 Bar. 4; T. Dan 5:12–13; Jub. 1:15–18; Pss. Sol. 17:11–46; 4QFlor I, 1–9; 11QTa XXIX, 7–10; XLV, 12–14; XLVII, 3–4, 10–11; LII, 19–20; LIII, 9–10 [cf. 2QNJ ar; 4QNJa ar; 11QNJ ar]). Naturally, I have occasion to return to these points in more detail later, so I will not belabor the point here. For now, suffice it to say that these statements of God’s promises have a long history of significance and some version of them occupies a central place in many visions of hope.
Chapter 4
The description of God’s appearance in chapter 4 is not exactly the same as Ezek 1 (the Merkabah), but it is reminiscent of it enough to evoke it, using these cues of glorious appearance to convey that this one that John is seeing is the same God who overwhelmed the senses of Ezekiel and gave him his great prophecies, to which Revelation has had and will have extensive recourse. Likewise, the four living creatures harken back to the same vision in Ezekiel, with some elements drawn from the other famous prophetic theophany in Isa 6. In fact, what the four creatures sing in praise of God is a new rendition of Isa 6:3. Many have suggested that the twenty-four elders on the twenty-four thrones signify the combination of the twelve fathers of Israel and the twelve apostles, emphasizing the continuity of the true and faithful old and new covenant communities and the unity of salvation history before and after the earthly incarnation of Jesus. (Alternatively, though I am less convinced of this, the twenty-four elders could be signifying a heavenly priesthood of subordinates to Christ that reflect the twenty-four courses of priests in Israel [1 Chr 24:1–19].) In all of these ways, John shows that the God whose glory he glimpsed and who revealed to him what is to come is the same God whose glory was glimpsed in the famous theophanies of the past and whose promises are continuous with and expansive upon the promises given to these great prophets and ancestors. And this God has one people throughout salvation history, just as his acts across salvation history form a unity.
Chapter 5
The multiple ways of referring to Jesus in ch. 5 (5:5, 8) harken back to OT texts as well. The lion of the tribe of Judah recalls the description of Judah in Gen 49:9. In other words, he is the ideal representative of Judah, the fulfiller of Judah and the promise of kingship to him, as his throne is far above any that Judah could have imagined of one of his descendants. He is the exalted, strong, and dangerous one who rules with power and authority in fulfillment of what God promised to Judah through Jacob.
The root of David is a variation on the root of Jesse in Isa 11:1, 10. That is, Jesus fulfills the promise of a king who has the Spirit resting on him, who righteously judges, brings peace to the land (i.e., shalom), deluges the world with the knowledge of God, and reunites the people of Israel through return and new exodus. The way in which he has fulfilled and will fulfill this promise is not quite like what anyone expected, but it has come to be and will come to be nonetheless. More indirectly, this language recalls the numerous promises in which David features in the OT hope as the ultimate fulfillment of the Davidic covenant and the new actor on the stage of salvation history who served as the means of effectuating the grand promises of the Israelite covenant by purifying the nation of Israel, defeating its enemies, and unifying its scattered people (Ps 132; Isa 9:1–7; 11; 55:1–5; Jer 23:5–8; 30:1–3, 18–22; 33:14–26; Ezek 34:23–31; 37:19–28; Hos 3:4–5; Mic 5:2–15). Later works of the Second Temple period would similarly present this figure as one who would effectuate God’s faithfulness (T. Jud. 24; 4QcommGen A V, 1–4; 4QDibHama 1–2 IV, 5–8), deliver Israel from enemies and diaspora (T. Naph. 8:2–3), or as having both roles (T. Sim. 7:2–3; Pss. Sol. 17:21–46; 4QpIsaa III, 11–24; 4QFlor 1 I, 7–13). Jesus is all of this and more, which contributes to the claim that he is worthy to open the scroll containing the proclamation of God’s will for the future.
The lamb imagery derives from several OT texts, but in general it conveys paschal imagery, sacrificial imagery, or both. In this case, it is likely that the latter is foremost, which would, of course, fit the point made in many NT texts concerning how Jesus fulfills the sacrificial system. Also, the fact that lamb still bears the appearance of being slaughtered while still living could resonate with the Gospel according to John in particular—as well as secondarily with Luke—given the emphasis on the marks of crucifixion that Jesus bore after his resurrection. Just as in Revelation, these scars are not the marks of something lost but of something conquered. Just as Jesus fulfilled Scripture by his death and resurrection and bore the marks of that victory he enacted by resurrection and ascension, so too will those in union with him bear the marks of his victory at the fulfillment of the ages.
One final resonance to note here is the reference to the myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands of angels who praise the Father and the Lamb (5:11). Such descriptions of a multitude of angels resonate with two types of scenes in the OT. One, both Deut 33:2 and Ps 68:17 describe God as coming forth from Sinai with so many others, though they are not explicitly described as angels. In both cases, the imagery is one of a Divine Warrior coming out to protect his people and defeat his enemies. Two, and more fully, Dan 7:10 refers to this number of God’s servants attending him during the judgment scene in which God will pour out his climactic dispensation of justice in condemnation of the wicked and vindication and exaltation of the righteous ones, his people. While the Revelation text does not portray either kind of event happening in this case, it is anticipating both the action of the Divine Warrior and the final judgment (as well as others along the way). For more on the references to God in chs. 4–5 and their links to the OT, see my series on the Trinity.
Chapter 6
Chapter 6 does not have as many OT connections as the later heptads of judgment, but there are a few nonetheless. The four horses mostly resemble the colors, though not the precise symbolism, from Zech 6:1–8 and the vision of the four chariots. These horses and their horsemen do not go out to patrol the earth, though, but to judge the earth. Their judgments of war, famine, and plague/death are standard threats throughout history and standard features of judgment in the OT. The judgment at the release of the sixth seal is particularly full of vivid OT threats of judgment that are not as common. Earthquakes (Isa 13:13; 24:19; 29:6; 64:1–3; Jer 4:24; Ezek 38:19; Joel 2:10; 3:16; Hag 2:6–7; Zech 14:4–5), the sun turning black (Isa 13:10; Ezek 32:7; Joel 2:10, 31; 3:15; Mic 3:6), the moon becoming like blood (Joel 2:31), signs in the stars (though it is usually the stars not shining rather than falling to the earth), and the sky rolling up like a scroll (Isa 34:4) combined present an emphatic statement that the climactic divine coming in judgment—not for any one nation, but for all of them—is approaching, but it is not yet here.
Chapter 7
The twofold vision in ch. 7 has multiple connections with the OT, some obvious and some subtler. The notion of angels being authorized to mark the faithful with seals on their foreheads links to Ezek 9:4, where an angel marks the faithful on their foreheads to prevent them from being swept up in the destruction. The seal has a similar function here, though it also serves as the positive contrast to the mark of the beast in 13:16–18.
I will not get into great depth about the 144,000, for as much ink as has been spilled on that matter, but I want to make a few basic points here. One, the number itself is a combination of numbers significant to Revelation, as it is the product of 12, 12, and 1,000 (itself the product of 10, 10, and 10). It is a sort of uber-completeness of Israel and of salvation history, a capstone figure summarizing its entirety, not least because these 144,000 have borne witness to the Messiah, the climax of salvation history in person. The twelve tribes have obvious connections to the OT, though why Dan is not included remains a mystery. The use of “Joseph” instead of “Ephraim” may owe something to continuity with Ezekiel 37:16, 19 with its promise of return, reconciliation, and reunion. As John sees it, literally, these great aspects of the promise in Ezekiel cannot find their fulfillment outside of union with Jesus, outside of following him as a servant.
Outside of the reference to the 144,000, two other promises from Isaiah play a formative role in the language of ch. 7, specifically 7:16–17. The promises that the uncountable multitude will hunger and thirst no more, the sun and scorching wind will not strike them, and the Lamb will lead them to springs of the water of life are expansions on Isa 49:10. Notably, it is the Lamb here who is the shepherd of the people who are not returning to the Zion of the present age, but to the new Zion, the new Jerusalem that is coming. They are coming to their inheritance for which they have been prepared and the Lamb who is the Shepherd will make sure that none of the forces that bear down upon mortals in the present time will have any power over those conformed to his image. Likewise, in anticipation of its fulfillment in 21:4, the promise presented here that God will wipe away every tear from their eyes is straight from Isa 25:8, where the promise is in the context of the eschatological feast. Also interesting is that this promise follows immediately after the promise of swallowing up death, a hint to God’s consummate victory over death by resurrection and giving everlasting life. Though that idea is not explicitly present here, the notion of participating in God’s victory in Christ naturally implies the conquest of death as a fait accompli (7:14).
Chapter 8
As noted before, the judgments in ch. 8 have plenty of resonances with OT. The first one, of hail and fire mixed with blood being cast down to earth, has a clear link with the seventh sign of judgment on Egypt (Exod 9:13–35, esp. 23–24). Thereafter, hail and fire would become images of God’s action and creation’s response (Pss 18:12; 148:8; Isa 30:30; Ezek 38:22). Once again, we see a kind of inclusio taking place here as the judgments against Egypt prior to the exodus are recapitulated in amplified form prior to the climactic judgment and deliverance. Likewise, the sea being turned to blood obviously recalls the Nile being turned to blood in the first sign of judgment on Egypt (Exod 7:14–25; cf. Pss 78:44; 105:29). The fourth trumpet signaling the darkening of the sun, moon, and stars by a third has a distant resonance with the darkening of Egypt, but it is more directly linked with phenomena referenced in prophecies in Isaiah (13:10), Ezekiel (32:7), and especially Joel (2:10, 31; 3:15), though none of them specifically reference the portion of a third. This portion makes sense in this context as an increment prior to the full darkening later in ch. 16. The third trumpet signals a judgment that does not connect with a judgment on Egypt, but it is one described by Jeremiah (9:15; 23:15) and represents a reversal of one of the key miracles of the wilderness wandering (Exod 15:22–23).
Chapter 9
Chapter 9 presents us with only two trumpets and their associated judgments, and the language is mostly original to this text. Even so, some elements draw from the OT. First, while locusts were a threat on such a scale that they could lead to famine, in the biblical framework—as well as in other religious frameworks of the time—locusts could be a symbol of destructive judgment on a land. In the case of Israel, this significance derives especially from their role in the eighth sign of judgment on Egypt (Exod 10:1–19). Though the descriptors of the locusts here are generally unique (minus the lion’s teeth and the links to horses and chariots; cf. Joel 1:6; 2:4–5), the scene and the opportunity for repentance it presents (as stated at the end of the chapter) bear some resemblance to Joel 1–2, where what is coming to lay waste to the country is described as an army of locusts. Once again, a past picture of judgment is amplified in keeping with the amplified scale of the context.
The name of the locust king, the angel over the abyss, is Abaddon in Hebrew and Apollyon in Greek. In biblical Hebrew, Abaddon is often used in conjunction with Sheol or death (Job 26:6; 28:22; 31:12; Ps 88:11; Prov 15:11; 27:20), and so it makes sense that this angel’s name should reflect the realm over which he has charge. The name Apollyon is not exactly paralleled in the LXX translations of these texts (where the term is ἀπώλεια), but they are clearly related terms. As with the fourth horsemen, this image shows that the realm and force of death and destruction is ultimately under God’s control, and it is here impinging on the realm of earth in a drastic way. The control over death here is further demonstrated by the fact that death will be denied to those who seek it.
This judgment and the one that follows at the sixth trumpet presumably would cease if the opportunity for repentance was taken, but tragically it is not. Those who worship idols are progressively becoming more like them by having eyes that do not see and ears that do not hear (Isa 6:9–10; 44:18; Jer 5:19–21; Ezek 12:2). Furthermore, they are living beings, but cannot walk as God made them to walk. Both those who follow God and those who follow idols perfectly illustrate that you become like what you worship. Those who go after other images find themselves becoming less like the one whose image they were created to bear, and so they become less and less willing and able to repent and accept that one’s way of walking, living, moving, and having being. Naturally, the more people live in rebellion against the one who made them and the purpose for which they were made, the less they become what it means to be truly human. This observation here anticipates what will become even more starkly apparent when the idol in question is the image of the beast.
Chapter 10
The vision of the great angel in ch. 10 does not require too much comment on this front. None of the descriptors quite match any other angelic reference in the OT, though some of them—wrapped in a cloud, rainbow over the head, and the pillar of fire—draw from OT theophanies or other descriptions of divine “appearance.” At the same time, it is worth noting that 10:5–6 reflects what the angel in Dan 12:7 does before he describes how long a period of time will last. Of more interest for my purposes is what he holds and what John is told to do with it. John must receive a scroll from the mighty angel and eat it. Once again, this image of a prophet eating a scroll first appears in Ezek 3:1–3 (as one of the less strange things he has to eat). The description here is expanded as the scroll not only tastes sweet as honey in his mouth, but also bitter in his stomach. John is in continuity with the prophets, especially Ezekiel, in what he must do as a prophet of God and what he must proclaim, although what he has to proclaim is even greater in light of the Christ who has already come once.
Chapter 11
While that chapter had but a few OT resonances, ch. 11 has many more of them. The measuring rod and the measuring of the temple is once again drawn from Ezekiel (40–48), though it is not nearly as detailed here as there, the purpose is different, and it is linked to an earthly temple that is already present rather than one that is envisioned as a future construction. In this context, the measurements are not part of concretizing the hoped-for new temple and even the new land, as they are in Ezekiel. It is as much about what is not measured as what is measured, and it signifies the conflict that will surround the area. What the measurements are is not important here like it will be in Rev 21 where the true new Jerusalem without a temple comes down to earth. But once again, we will address that when we come to it.
The analogy of the two witnesses to two olive trees and lampstands comes from Zech 4. Those images in Zechariah served to present a message of assurance to Zerubbabel that God would fulfill promises through him. In Revelation, these two witnesses prophesy by pronouncing judgment on the world and testifying to the one of Zerubbabel’s line who is far greater than him. He is the prime executor of God’s will and God’s promises with the power, authority, and faithfulness to exercise God’s inexorable faithfulness to the grand promises.
The two witnesses themselves evoke associations with Elijah and Moses, probably the two most highly regarded prophets in Israel’s history (at least in terms of their actions, as Elijah did not record any prophecies that would have long-term effects on Israel’s hope and theology). After all, they have the authority to shut the sky to prevent rain—like Elijah—and to turn water to blood—like Moses—and to strike the earth with every kind of plague—again, like Moses. Much like when Moses and Elijah appeared during the Transfiguration ultimately to give way to Jesus (like the Law and the Prophets they represented), so too the two witnesses exist to point beyond themselves to their Lord.
The reference to Jerusalem (“where also their Lord was crucified”) as Sodom and Egypt is unique, at least in combination (cf. Isa 1:10 and comparisons of the people to Sodom). These names signify how what was supposed to be the holy city where the temple of God is has instead become a repugnant site of rebellion, an enemy to the purposes of God (like when Jesus called Peter “Satan” for rebuking him about his foretelling of his crucifixion). Like Sodom, it will be destroyed to make way for the new Jerusalem. Like Egypt, God’s people will be delivered out of there into the new promised land (the new creation) and the new holy city.
The scene in ch. 11 closes with reference to the temple in heaven and the ark of the covenant therein. Obviously, these cultic features derive from the OT, though the notion of a heavenly correspondent to the temple and ark were not explicitly articulated in the OT. At most, there are hints, such as Exod 25:40, where a pattern is given to Moses for the tabernacles. And while many scholars have been inclined to read this later notion of a heavenly temple counterpart to the earthly one in light of Plato and Philo—especially in Hebrews—it is better to understand the heaven/earth contrast in the context of present age/eschatological age contrast. This point is true in Hebrews as well, but it is even more vividly portrayed in Revelation. The heavenly temple is not the “Form” that belongs to the world of ideas to which the earthly temple is necessarily but a material parody; rather, this heavenly temple signifies the eschatological reality for which the earthly sanctuaries were types, and it signals what will be united together with earth in the holiest of matrimonies to come.
Chapter 12
Chapter 12 has many links to the OT. The woman who bears the child has multiple levels of meaning. The woman represents the people of Israel as often described in the scriptures. The sun, moon, and stars are often used in apocalyptic imagery, in part because of the significance traditionally ascribed to them throughout the surrounding cultures in terms of effecting/affecting one’s fate, which is described in the astrological terms of a set of zodiac signs. But there is also the sense even in the Genesis creation narrative that the celestial bodies serve as signs and as markers of seasons (i.e., sacred time; Gen 1:16; cf. Isa 13:10; Jer 31:35; Ezek 32:7; Joel 2:10; 3:15). They would thus be effective symbols for visionary literature to ensure people paid attention. However, as the text specifically mentions the sun, moon, and twelve stars, it is difficult to avoid the conclusion—especially in light of the multitudinous allusions to Israel and Israel’s scriptures throughout Revelation—that there is a connection to Israel here. It is reminiscent of Joseph’s dream portending his exaltation in comparison to the other eleven stars (his brothers) and the sun and moon (his father and mother; Gen 37:9). The stars had also been associated with the great patriarchal promises of descendants, though obviously they were not limited to twelve in those instances (Gen 15:5; 22:17; 26:4; Exod 32:13; Deut 1:10; 10:22; 28:62; 1 Chron 27:23; Neh 9:23). The famous text concerning the star of Jacob in Num 24:17 with its messianic connotations may also provide another level of significance here (cf. Dan 12:3). In any case, it is clear that this woman is of cosmic significance.
Of course, another reason the image of the woman with these heavenly accoutrements points to Israel is because Israel was at times pictured as a woman, including as a barren woman whose womb is made fruitful and as a woman in labor pains (Isa 26:17–18; 54; 66:7–8; Jer 4:31; 6:24; 13:21; Mic 4:9–10). Hosea also presents Israel as a woman, but since that fits into an overall picture in which Israel is an unfaithful spouse to God as Gomer is to Hosea, it is not appropriate here. Likewise, the aforementioned Jeremiah texts use this imagery for the travails and pains that are forthcoming for Judah, thus they are not relevant here either. The Isaiah and Micah texts, however, use this imagery for Israel and Daughter Zion to describe a forthcoming new situation of deliverance, like birth pangs that bring forth a new life into the world. Given the rest of the scene in this text and the actual situation surrounding the birth of the child, the image of a woman ready to give birth is fitting for the people of God in trouble eagerly awaiting deliverance.
To be more specific, the people of God come to a focal point of sorts in the young Mary in the story leading up to Christmas, which Matthew signifies by his citation of texts fulfilled because of her (besides Isa 7:14, note Mic 5:2–3), and which Luke signifies by his reference to the Magnificat as a song from Mary (not to mention the other ways in which Luke focuses the story on Mary until Jesus is born). The people of God are certainly the origin of the Messiah, and Daughter Zion and all the hopes she bears certainly fits as a symbolic woman, but Mary is most directly the mother of Jesus and thus most directly the one the whom these symbols apply to in the context of Christmas. This young lady (perhaps a younger teenager at the time) from the tiny village of Nazareth, having become an obedient servant to God’s will, has been drawn into a story on a cosmic scale in which her labor will be the great turning point, as the union of God and human comes forth into the world. The glory of her role in salvation history is fittingly symbolized by her clothing in heavenly splendor and her victor’s crown of heavenly luminaries.
Why, then, is Satan described in this fashion? On one level, dragons are archetypal and have representations in many cultures as powerful, intimidating creatures associated either with regal power or the forces of chaos (depending on the culture). But given the importance of the OT context to the text and imagery of Revelation, it is worth considering what shape that collection of texts gives to this image. The base image of the dragon resonates with the figure of Leviathan, the dragon of the sea that is the chief representative of the forces of chaos (cf. Ezek 32:2). In Job 41; Pss 74:14; and 104:26 Leviathan is part of the realm of creation that ultimately submits to God’s will, which is a stark illustration of God’s power and sovereignty in the ancient context (cf. Amos 9:3). Interestingly, Israel lacks a conflict component to its extant creation narrative precisely because even Leviathan is seen as powerless before God, no matter how much fear and trepidation the monster may inspire in humanity. In Isa 27:1, God’s destruction of Leviathan is part of God’s promised redemption of Israel. This image follows the reversal of death in 26:19 and fits in the larger context of return and reconstitution of the people of God. Any power that would offer resistance to God’s redemptive and re-creative will is thus destroyed or subdued; Leviathan is no exception. Likewise, Isa 51:9 refers to the great dragon as Rahab, the one who God cut to pieces, an action that serves as a precedent for the promised new exodus (Isa 51:11). God’s future action will thus be a recapitulation and amplification of God’s creative subduing of Leviathan. On a different note, Dan 7:7 does not refer to the climactically dangerous fourth beast as a dragon, but its description of having ten horns contributes to the image of the dragon. The seven heads are not from any biblical precedent, even though Leviathan has multiple heads. The use of “seven” is, of course, not unusual here as the number has important symbolic value and pervasive presence across Revelation (fifty-five times in thirty-one verses to be exact).
As an aside before I move on, I am not so sure as I once was that the reference to the dragon as the ancient serpent is meant to evoke Gen 3. It is almost impossible for people with even a modicum of biblical literacy to avoid linking that language to Gen 3, and it is certainly possible that this resonance is there at some level, thereby identifying Satan as the serpent in that story (another association that is difficult for people to avoid). To make this argument would be to engage in a sort of apocalyptic hermeneutic that is certainly similar to Revelation in general, so it has that going for it. I simply do not find it convincing because in some of the aforementioned texts the dragon/Leviathan is also referred to as a serpent. At best, it is an echo, rather than something formative for the text as a whole.
There is no mistaking who the child is. Already in Rev 2:26–28, the rod of iron signifies the authority that Jesus received from the Father that he will also bestow on those who conquer. This image is drawn from Ps 2:9, in the midst of a royal psalm in which God declares the king as his son, the nations as the king’s inheritance, and the power he gives over them through the image of the rod of iron. The royal Messiah, as the ideal king, would fulfill these words in a way no other king had before (cf. Pss. Sol. 17:23–24). Naturally, Jesus is this Messiah (and the unique Son of God), as shown in Rev 2 (see also 2:18) and later reaffirmed in Rev 17:14; 19:16. Though the draconian usurper attempts to consume the one who would be his conqueror (3:21; 5:5; 12:11; 17:14) and King of Kings, God snatches him away to himself. On the level of the Christmas story, this action would signify the escape of Jesus’s family to Egypt via God’s protection. However, the description here essentially condenses the entire Christ narrative so that his birth leads directly into his ascension/accession to the throne. From this perspective after the Christ event has already unfolded, the promised goal of the story, including the eucatastrophe of the Jesus’s personal conquest of death by resurrection, is already contained within its beginning. Just as Matthew and Luke (as well as John in his own indirect way) front-load their narration of the Christmas narratives with eschatological significance, Revelation likewise sees the end in the beginning and tells the story accordingly. There is no need here to progress through the entire incarnational story, its end is already known and regularly confessed by the author and his readers, so the end and the beginning might as well be tied together in this retelling. Is that not how the creeds proceed as well?
Another link with the OT is Michael, the important angelic character who only appears here in Revelation. Though his role would expand in extrabiblical literature in correlation with the expansion of angelology after the OT, in Daniel (10:13, 21; 12:1), he is designated as the prince and protector of the people of Israel. Given the already noted symbolism of the woman as the people, it makes sense for Michael to appear here to protect the woman, as well as to lead God’s army against Satan. His involvement here is once more an illustration of the scale of the action transpiring on both heavenly and earthly levels.
When the woman is given eagle wings to fly away, the description evokes two important texts that are the only times in the OT when God gives Israel such wings: Exod 19:4 and Isa 40:31. Respectively, these texts refer to the exodus and the new exodus. Obviously, John sees the latter as happening in and through Jesus. However, the new exodus does not lead immediately into the new promised land/new creation; there is an intermediate time in the wilderness, during which God provides for the woman as he provided for Israel in the wilderness wandering. Though it would take me too far afield here to present arguments for this, I think that John hints at this conception of the present time as being between new exodus and new creation at several points throughout Revelation.
Also of interest is the amount of time the woman is nourished in the wilderness. In particular, the length of time stated in 12:14 is paralleled only in Daniel (7:25; 12:7). This is the length given to the time of trouble, during which the climactic king of the fourth beast/last earthly kingdom is allowed power over the saints and to act in ultimately fruitless defiance against God. Such is a perfectly fitting description of what will happen when the dragon exercises power through the coming beasts. Conversely, for all the suffering of that time, the promise is that God will sustain the people by being with them at every step and bring them through this suffering out the other side into resurrection life.
Chapter 13
The connections with Daniel continue to pile up in the next chapter with the emergence of the beast from the sea. This beast is, in fact, a conglomeration of the four beasts that come out of the sea in Dan 7. While seven heads and ten diadems link this beast to the dragon, the ten horns are from the fourth beast (7:7, 20, 24), the appearance like a leopard is from the third beast (7:6), the feet like a bear come from the second beast (7:5), and its mouth being like a lion’s mouth comes from the first beast (7:4). This beast thus sums up all the others in himself and represents their capstone. Interestingly, the representative of the saints that receives the kingdom of God is one like a son of man, in contrast to the representations of these four kingdoms as beasts. I may be reading too much into this, but perhaps in addition to the beasts signifying power, violence, and ferocity, the symbolism could mean that in the defiance of these kingdoms against God, they dehumanize themselves—that is, by denying that they were created by God to bear the divine image—and are thus best represented as freakish beasts. The kingdom of God and the saints who inherit it, on the other hand, represent what it means to be truly human, to bear God’s image in representational obedience in accord with God’s creative purpose. As such, this capstone kingdom combines the defiant and dehumanizing evils of all that came before it, but the kingdom that conquers it will be the kingdom that combines and fulfills all that God has declared and promised from creation unto the end of this age.
The connections with Dan 7 continue as the beast utters arrogant and blasphemous words (7:8, 25; cf. 11:36) and wages war against the saints so as to overcome them for a time (7:21, 24–25; cf. 8:23–25; 11:28–35). Again, this beast is taking on the role of the king of the last kingdom (before the kingdom of God) in Daniel, and thus John is preparing his readers for what his fate will be before he even declares it. Those who share the beast’s fate will be all the people of the earth who succumbed to his compulsion to worship him (much like the situation in Dan 3, where once more the outcome “spoils” the outcome of its parallels later in Daniel and in Revelation). These people will be the ones whose names are not written in the Lamb’s book of life (cf. Dan 12:1) and so we see here the obverse of what I have already noted concerning the book of life and its role in the story of Revelation. Finally, just as having one’s name written in the Lamb’s book of life is concomitant with having the seal of God on one’s forehead, not having one’s name written in the book and having the mark of the beast on one’s forehead or right hand is the dark parody opposed to the action of the true God.
Chapter 14
Chapter 14 has a few images drawn mostly from Isaiah. First is the declaration that, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great,” which expands on a similar statement in Isa 21:9. But instead of pointing to how all of Babylon’s idols lie on the ground, this text declares that Babylon will draw in and implicate others in her adulterous idolatry, thus they too will receive God’s wrath against that which corrupts and destroys creation. This text is also the first reference to Babylon in Revelation, though the name becomes more prominent soon after (16:19; 17:5; 18:2, 10, 21). I have addressed Babylon in Revelation and the many OT links to the descriptions of her in my recent post on the subject, so I will not be reiterating everything here.
The combined images of the wine and winepress of God’s wrath with the cup of God’s anger combines images from several texts, especially Isa 63:1–6 and Jer 25:15–29 (cf. Isa 49:26; 51:17, 22; Joel 3:13), and it continues further in Revelation (16:19; 17:2; 18:3; 19:15). In most of these texts, the punishment is severe, but temporary. In the Isa 51 texts, the imagery is brought up only for the Lord to declare that the time for drinking from wrath is over for Israel. But there is no such relief here. This scene of the angels reaping the harvest of the grapes of wrath from the earth and casting them into the winepress of God’s wrath is imagery anticipating the climactic outpouring of wrath to come. It is a jolting image warning people to repent when they can while also illustrating the seriousness with which God takes sin, that his wrath will not be postponed forever. Those who insist on destroying the world and themselves in defiance of God and God’s creative purpose will eventually get exactly what they want as they are sentenced to destruction, being no longer able to inherit the everlasting life that God intended for humanity from the beginning.
The description of this punishment in terms of fire and sulfur is also drawn from the OT, most vividly in the punishment of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 19:24) and Isa 34:8–10 (cf. Ps 11:6; Isa 30:33; Ezek 38:22). I will not dwell here on the exact nature of the punishment and how this text fits with others describing the fate of the wicked, but I should note that this imagery signifies the destruction and burning stench of their fate, making it a spectacle akin to Isa 66:24 and the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah. This description of their fate—along with the note that it will be a lake that burns with fire and sulfur—appears again in 21:8, and it is also the fate designated for the leaders of the wicked and rebellious: the dragon and the two beasts referenced in ch. 13 (19:20; 20:10). And, again like Isa 66:24, it is the fate that is in direct contradistinction to the new creation.
Chapter 15
Chapter 15 does not present much material I have not already addressed in the course of this analysis. The only extra point I can make concerns the reference to the song of Moses in 15:3. This song in itself does not borrow significantly from either Exod 15 or Deut 32, but the fact that it is described as a song of Moses and the Lamb shows the unity of the people of God across history as Moses joins the people of the new covenant in praising Jesus. It also thus has significance as a song celebrating both the new exodus (as Exod 15 commemorated the original exodus) and the new creation/promised land (as Deut 32 precedes the entrance into the promised land).
Chapter 16
Chapter 16 shows yet more signs of drawing from the OT, especially that part concerned with Moses. The outpouring of the first bowl that causes boils to break out on people is an amplification of the sixth sign of judgment on Egypt (Exod 9:8–12). The second and third bowls of turning seas and rivers to blood are further intensifications of an already noted connection to the first sign of judgment on Egypt. The fourth bowl of the sun scorching the inhabitants of the earth bears no connection to the judgments on Egypt nor to any particular scene from the OT, since the wind is more often referred to as scorching, rather than the sun per se. But its other extreme in the darkness over the beast’s kingdom is clearly connected to the ninth sign of judgment on Egypt (Exod 10:21–29). The notes about the lack of repentance in this context (16:9, 11) also resonate with the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart in the lead-up to the exodus (Exod 7:13–14, 22; 8:15, 19, 32; 9:7, 12, 34–35; 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10). I have already noted connections made by the earthquake and hail from the outpouring of the seventh bowl, though of course there is an increase in magnitude on both counts here. Interestingly, the division of the great city into three recalls Ezek 5 and the judgment on Jerusalem. The drying up of the Euphrates at the outpouring of the sixth bowl may be a parody of the exodus, though it is more resonant with the drying of the Jordan when Israelites crossed into Canaan. Instead of this drying up being a means of crossing over to receive the inheritance of God’s promises, it is a means for those people that have made themselves enemies of God to assemble in defiance and for destruction. This fact further reflects the tenor of the whole chapter in which the signs of judgment against Egypt have been amplified as judgments against the beast’s kingdom in anticipation of the actions of God that will surpass the exodus as the model is surpassed by the thing modeled.
Chapters 17 and 18
I have addressed the OT links with ch. 17 elsewhere in my post on the harlot of Babylon, so I will not be reiterating everything here. The only other element worth noting in this chapter that has not been addressed previously is the ten horns. The beast with seven heads and ten horns has been a consistent picture since the dragon was described as such in ch. 12. But only here does the angelic companion give an interpretation of the ten horns. Like in Dan 7:24, the ten horns are ten kings, and the beast of ch. 13 is distinguished from them, being the one to whom they will yield power. The scenery has changed, but John is fundamentally using the same language to describe what is coming as fulfillment of Dan 7, with all of the consequences thereby entailed.
Chapter 18 makes more extensive and deeper links to Babylon passages in the OT. Besides what I have already noted about the declaration, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great,” the imagery of the wine of wrath, and in the elements mentioned in my post on the harlot of Babylon, the first note of similarity is Babylon’s fate of human desertion. It is to become a dwelling place of demons and a haunt for unclean spirits, unclean birds, and unclean beasts. This statement resembles the foretold fate of Babylon in texts such as Isa 13:19–22; Jer 50:39–40; 51:37, and 43 (cf. Isa 34:11–15; Jer 9:11; 10:22; Mal 1:3–4). The call to God’s people to come out of her resembles what we see in the prophecies against Babylon in Jer 50:8; 51:6–7, and 45. These two statements are also linked together by their contexts, which speak of Babylon’s sins and idolatry, as well as the consequence of God’s wrath. The note about remembering iniquities is actually drawn from passages about Israel concerning the remembrance of iniquities and consequent punishment (Ps 109:14; Jer 14:10; Ezek 33:13; Hos 8:13; 9:9; cf. Ezek 3:20; 18:24) or not remembering iniquities as a by-product of forgiveness (Pss 25:7; 79:8; Isa 43:25; 64:9; Jer 31:34; Ezek 33:16; cf. Deut 9:27). Her statement that, “I rule as a queen; I am no widow, and I will never see grief,” is essentially a new rendition of Isa 47:8, where Babylon makes a similarly arrogant statement about the assurance of her place and that she will never suffer as she has made others suffer. The description of desolation in 18:22–23 is similar to others in Jeremiah, especially 25:10 (cf. 7:34; 16:9; 33:10–11), though in those contexts they apply to Jerusalem and the towns of Judah. The further difference is, of course, that in the case of “Babylon,” this desolation is permanent. Interestingly, the elements involving the merchants, sea trade, and economic prosperity appear to be drawn more from a lament concerning Tyre in Ezek 27:12–24.
Chapter 19
The scenes in ch. 19 present both links to specific texts and general references to the story of salvation history up to this point. The wedding supper of the Lamb appears to develop the eschatological feast of Isa 25:6–10. It has thus been given greater specificity as not simply a general feast in celebration of God’s deliverance, but as the feast celebrating the wedding of the Lamb to his bride, which is a reference to the new Jerusalem, that is, the new creation and the Church who are the residents of the same. It is a feast celebrating the consummation of the new creation that will be declared shortly. The bridegroom himself appears here as a rider on a white horse. His name, given as “Faithful and True,” is not a reference to any specific text (the closest one in the Greek, as far as I am aware, is Deut 32:4), but is rather a summary of God’s characteristic action revealed in history (I also review other texts related to this in my series on the Trinity in Revelation). God makes grand promises and is faithful to keep them; his word is truth, and his action is reliable; his power serves to guarantee that he will make his word come true; thus, his faithful love is inexorable. Jesus, the executor of God’s will, thus bears this name as he is in his very person the bearer of God’s faithfulness and truth. He has already fulfilled and is fulfilling many wonderful promises God has made, and so we can have confidence that the rest will yet have their “Yes” in him as well (cf. 21:5). His other name of “Word of God” similarly speaks to this aspect of his revelation. This phrase appears often in the OT and Second Temple literature, and it is also the title applied to Jesus in John’s prologue, and I can hardly begin to lay out its significance here (I have explored it to some extent in the series on the Trinity, though one should also see here, here, here, and here). The short of it is that the Word can refer to God’s declaration, promise, or plan (or even the logic and thought surrounding them) that has creative, revelatory, and salvific power. And as John tells us in the Gospel, Jesus is this Word in the flesh, in person. Thus, in line with his other names, he is the unifier of salvation history, the plan of God uttered and enacted, the speech and the act of God that brings God’s purposes into fruition and climax, as this scene and others following it narrate.
Another connection with the OT separate from these points is the angelic call to the birds to come and feed on the flesh of the corpses of those who made themselves enemies of God. This call resembles Ezek 39:17–20. In Ezekiel, this is the conclusion of a climactic battle—just prior to the new temple, new Jerusalem, and new divisions of the promised land—against a massive coalition assembled by Gog and Magog. This army assembled to destroy the people of God is dealt with effortlessly and becomes nothing but carrion. As it was in that prophecy, so it is here at the coming of Jesus, though, interestingly, Gog and Magog do not appear until later in Revelation. Since this narration is more extended, it is more appropriate for this note to appear here, though the functional equivalent of the battle with Gog and Magog does not appear yet.
Chapter 20
There are a few connections in ch. 20 as well. The thousand years is not particularly resonant with the OT, but—as is typical of numbers in apocalyptic literature—the thousand is significant. As well as being a multiple of ten—one of the other symbolically significant numbers in Revelation—a thousand is a number particularly connected to God’s loving covenantal faithfulness (Exod 20:6//Deut 5:10; Deut 1:11; 7:9; Ps 105:8; cf. 2 Pet 3:8). This point is further supported by the prevalent biblical (and extra-biblical) theme of the vindication and exaltation of the suffering faithful saints, here signified by the saints being enthroned for the thousand years in anticipation of the new creation, the culminating expression of God’s loving faithfulness. The reference to the “first resurrection” is unparalleled in the OT and the NT, though its placement here reflects the placement of the resurrection and kingdom promises in Ezek 37 prior to the narration of the final battle and new temple in Ezek 38–48. It is also expanded by allusion to Dan 7:22 and 27, which seems to serve as a precedent for the saints receiving authority to rule.
The reference to Gog and Magog in the brief note about Satan’s final act of rebellion as joining him in his last pitched battle is in its functionally equivalent place compared to Ezekiel (38–39). However, the description of the outcome of that last battle is much more truncated here, illustrating the significance of this rebellious effort. Furthermore, the idea that Satan and his army are marching on the camp of the saints and the beloved city implies what the later chapters will make clear, that this is still a time of waiting and requires vigilance. But that is soon taken care of as Satan’s army is wiped out, he is condemned to destruction, and the time for final judgment arrives. I have already pointed to the significance of the book of life in the OT and throughout Revelation, and it reaches its ultimate significance here, as it is what declares who is in the right and who stands condemned. The other books opened for judgment harken back to Dan 7 (again), this time v. 10, though the scene here involves the dead in general rather than a specific beast, who in the scheme of Revelation has already received his judgment.
Chapters 21 and 22
When John arrives at the climactic vision starting in ch. 21, he also comes to see many promises and hopes presented in the OT come to fruition. First, the very mention of a new heaven and new earth draws on the vocabulary of promise in Isa 65:17 and 66:22 (cf. 2 Pet 3:13). Of course, like the reference to heaven and earth in Gen 1:1, this phrase is a merism including the totality of created reality; that is, it is the new creation. As the following will clarify, both are made new because of their union with each other, being the fuller reality to which two becoming one flesh in marriage testifies. The differentiated union transforms and fulfills both. Indeed, this was the purpose of God for creation from the very beginning, that heaven and earth should exist in such union as the dwelling place of God with creation. The separation and distinction involved in God’s creative action creates space for differentiated functions and complementary union, which is fully achieved only in the new creation with the union of heaven and earth in holy matrimony. Jesus himself, as the union of God and human, of Creator and creation, is not only the Creator of the new creation, but the blueprint of it, and his own wedding and marriage referenced in this book further demonstrates that fact. As the bridegroom has brought heaven and earth together in his very person, it is only fitting that the bride bring together heaven and earth as well. This is what the Church is—as the children of God, image-bearers and body members of Christ, and temples of the Holy Spirit—and this is what its fulfillment in the new creation will be. The references throughout the prophetic literature to the people—and to Zion herself—as the bride/wife of God are thus brought together in this expectation of the holiest of matrimonies between heaven and earth (Isa 49:14–18; 54; 61:10; 62:1–5; Jer 2:2; 3; Ezek 16; Hos 1–2; cf. Eph 5:21–33). This is where the new Jerusalem comes in as the bride of Christ and the fulfillment of many OT promises and Second Temple expectations that I cited above in reference to the church in Philadelphia. But nowhere else in those texts is the new Jerusalem as extensively intertwined with expectations of the new creation, of the new Jerusalem coming down from heaven as the chief symbol of union of heaven and earth. This city thus represents the culmination and fulfillment of God’s creative purpose, God’s loving covenantal relation to humanity, God’s promises, God’s action in enacting those promises, and all of the expectations that had built up as a result.
There is further occasion for unpacking this point below, but for now there is a different feature of the new creation that calls for comment. Scholars have wrestled with why John mentions that there will be no sea in the new creation. I do not claim to offer the solution to this riddle here, but I do want to make some notes about the OT background informing this notion. One, as I referenced concerning Rev 12 and the dragon, the sea was regarded as a symbol and source of chaos and the chief beast of it. Two, in light of the links with the beast in Rev 13:1—and the four beasts in Dan 7 by extension—it is likely a symbol of doing away with the old order of the world, the old breeding grounds of evil, and all characteristics of evil (cf. Isa 57:20–21). Three, it is possible, in keeping with the recurrent amplification throughout Revelation, that this represents an amplification of the exodus as the sea is not only conquered by being crossed through, but by being eliminated altogether (I mention this simply as a possibility, not one that I regard as especially likely). Four, given that death and Hades have been done away with and that the sea was also a place of the dead in Rev 20:13, the coming of the new creation and the preceding resurrection would entail also doing away with the place of the dead, though this is another point at which Revelation goes beyond the OT context. Still, strong conclusions are elusive here and the OT background is only informative, not decisive, for answering why this note is here. The most that can be said for now is that it probably fits with the overarching story of God overcoming the long-tenured adversaries of God’s people.
This new Jerusalem will also be God’s dwelling place with his people, the bearer of God’s glory, as was always supposed to be the case with creation. The tabernacle and the temple after it were foreshadows of the reality that God had intended for creation from the beginning. Jesus then came and fulfilled the function of these sacred spaces, and the new creation is made according to his blueprint, which makes it a dwelling place fit for God, fit for the proper joining of heaven and earth. Now that the full reality has come, the old expectations for the new temple are ultimately transformed. There is no need for a temple building because God and the Lamb are the new creation’s temple with their manifest presence within it. While new temple expectations are fulfilled in this transformation, there is another strand of OT hope that is also consummately fulfilled in this new Jerusalem, a strand which also framed how Jesus acted and how his disciples would see him. That is, many OT texts express the hope that God would come to dwell among his people in a new way, amplified from the original dwelling in sacred space (Pss 50:3–4; 96:12–13; 98:8–9; Isa 4:2–5; 24:21–23; 25:6–10; 31:4–5; 35:3–6, 10; 40:3–5, 9–11; 52:7–10; 59:15–21; 60:1–3, 19–20; 62:10–11; 63:1, 3, 5, 9; 64:1; 66:12, 14–16, 18–20; Ezek 43:1–7; 48:35; Joel 3:16–21; Zeph 3:14–20; Hag 2:7, 9; Zech 1:16–17; 2:4–5, 10–12; 8; 14:1–5, 9, 16, 20–21; Mal 3:1–4). This consummate reality will also fulfill the aforementioned covenant formula (“They will be my people and I will be their God”) present throughout the OT in a new way because it is re-conceptualized through Jesus. This is, after all, a creation of resurrection and transformation, hence why the promise of Isa 25:8 is repeated and expanded here.
The description of the city also resonates with several aspects of the OT. The measurements or features of it are described with twelve or multiples thereof throughout. Of course, this number (or multiples of it) has been featured several times in Revelation, but never more frequently than here. A significant number for obvious reasons in the OT is now brought to its fullest significance with the climax of covenantal history as all of God’s people throughout the ages are brought into their inheritance so that, in the words of Hebrews, they would not be made complete apart from us (Heb 11:40). The measuring rod is once again utilized here, but not a temple or temple complex, because the whole city, the whole new creation is holy and fulfilling, as the measurements symbolize. The precious jewels, stones, and metals used to describe its appearance are the closest analogies available in John’s day for describing the splendor of God’s glory, which the city bears (21:11), once again signifying its holiness and fulfillment of covenantal history (Exod 40:34–35; Deut 5:24; 1 Kgs 8:11; Pss 24:7–10; 85:8–13; 102:12–17; Isa 4:5; 40:5; 43:1–7; 60:1–3, 19–20; Ezek 10; 11:22–23; 43:1–12). The twelve jewel foundations of this new Jerusalem with the names of the twelve apostles written on them—the names of the twelve tribes were written on the gates—would mostly be familiar for being stones in the priestly breastplate on which were written the names of the twelve tribes (Exod 28:17–21). Jasper, sapphire, emerald, sardius (thought to be carnelian), chrysolite, beryl, topaz, and amethyst overlap in these two lists. The LXX refers to agate and onyx while Revelation refers to chalcedony (a less specific description than agate, since the latter is a type of the former) and sardonyx (a more specific description). The other two stones in either list are unaccounted for. But it remains interesting in either case that these stones would now bear the name of the apostles while the gates, made only of pearl, bear the names of the tribes. The fact that the city bears the names of both shows the underlying continuity of the people of God across covenants. The gates bearing the names of Israel possibly shows that it is by God’s faithfulness to the promises to Israel that this has come to pass and that it is by these promises that people are able to enter. The foundations bearing the names of the apostles possibly shows that it is by the fulfillment of God’s promises through the gospel proclaimed by the apostles and the Church built on their foundation that the city and the community that occupies it has come to be on the new creation of the united heaven and earth.
The last aspects of this vision worth noting connect to Isa 60–62, which also concern the new Jerusalem. The fact that the city has no need for the sun or the moon because God and the Lamb are there to be its everlasting light with divine glory is a direct link to—and expansion of—Isa 60:19–20 (cf. Ezek 43:2, 5; Zech 14:7). The note about the nations walking by its light and the kings bringing their glory into it links to several parts of this text, including 60:3, 5, 11; and 61:6. Finally, the statement that the gates of this new Jerusalem will never be shut also directly connects to Isa 60:11, and while the statement that there will no night there is not explicitly in Isaiah, it is implied by the imagery of the divine light and by the fact that the gates are never shut (which they would be at night). Revelation thus provides further exposition on the scene than Isaiah, at least on this specific point. This new Jerusalem is the fulfillment of this extensive promise of the restoration, exaltation, and “right-wising” of Jerusalem to make it a proper abode for the manifest presence of God. But again, it is grander than—and looks different from—what even Isaiah had declared and from what anyone expected as a result.
Finally, we come to ch. 22 with its final promises concerning the new Jerusalem and the people of God within it, as well as one other connection to the OT that deserves mention. The river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God and of the Lamb is a development of Ezek 47:1–12 (primarily) and Zech 14:8 (secondarily). This is not only an image of renewal, but it is also an evocation of Eden, which is further supported in the rest of the passage. Whereas Ezekiel describes many trees on the banks of this river that provide fruit year-round and leaves to be used for healing, Revelation speaks of one tree, the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit for each month of the year with leaves for the healing of the nations. With this reference to the tree of life, as in the letter to the Ephesians earlier in the book, the story of salvation history has once again come full circle, though now the Garden of Eden has been replaced by the most grandiloquently beautiful of cities, where God dwells with his people. In a single image, this scene presents both the continuity and discontinuity of creation and new creation. It all belongs to one overarching story of God and God’s creation, but the end—or, more properly, the new and true beginning—is not simply a repeat of the beginning; it takes on new qualities in light of what has come in between. But, of course, John, like other authors of the NT, say that this is the story that has been arranged as such from before the foundation of the world (4:11; 13:8; 17:8). God’s will, purpose, and action, embodied in the Lamb and enacted in believers by the Spirit, ultimately undergirds, constructs, and guides this history, and Revelation serves as a final canonical testimony to this foundational belief.
The notion that God’s people will see his face is especially significant in light of the OT, where people expressed amazement or fear at seeing the angel of the Lord face to face (Gen 32:30; Num 14:14; Judg 6:22; cf. Gen 16:13; Judg 13:22), thus theophanies and seeing God’s glory at a remove would replace seeing God’s true face, lest the prophet should die (in addition to the theophanies already noted, see Exod 33:20–23). But in the new creation, there will no longer be a need for this mediation of appearance since, to use Paul’s language, we will see face to face and know fully even as we are fully known (1 Cor 13:12). All the wonder described at a remove, even in this book, will be seen and experienced firsthand.
The note that the saints will reign forever and ever (22:5) brings to a crescendo notes that have been sounded in 1:6; 3:21; 5:10; and 20:4–6. Clearly, this reign is participatory in God’s own reign in his eternal kingdom and does not exist apart from his throne (cf. Exod 15:18; Pss 10:16; 45:6). As noted previously, a similar connection between God’s everlasting reign, the coming kingdom of God, and the reign of the saints appears in Daniel (7:14, 18, 27: 12:2–3). The saints are those who fulfill the fundamental human vocation God designated in Gen 1:26–30, that humans should be priestly kings who rule over the earth as representative stewards of God’s own rule over creation and their eternal fate is thus reflective of that image-bearingness. As this promise of 22:5 is the supreme fulfillment of God’s creative purpose for humanity, it is fitting that it should be the last promise of this vision of the new creation as its counterpart in the old creation was the last part of the Gen 1 creation narrative.
Before I draw this analysis to a close, there is one last connection to the OT that deserves mention, as it is a contrast between two of the great seers of Scripture. While Daniel is instructed to seal up his book until the time is right (Dan 12:4), John is told not to seal up the words of this prophecy (22:10), because it was a word on target for his time and it remains so to this day (as I have covered previously on the resonances of Revelation). Though John’s work may be marked by the typical riddling qualities of apocalypses, it is meant to be an apocalypse—an unveiling or revelation—in the truest sense.
In short, John uses a number of devices, scriptural links, and forms of theological reasoning to convey his grand story that he saw unfold in his visions. He speaks of the fulfillment of long-anticipated promises of God and expands upon the many foreshadows in salvation history to describe thereby the realities of the new covenant and the coming new creation. The promises and warnings of Scripture spoken in days long past are now amplified in light of what has come to pass since then through Jesus and the expanded hope that has come as a consequence. In the process, he emphasizes the underlying continuity and overarching unification of salvation history. Jesus’s life and work did not so much bring about an entirely new story as it served as the denouement and climax of a story that had been going long before the incarnation took place on the plane of history. Likewise, the same enemies—or at least, same ultimate enemies—turn up in the new chapters in which John’s audience lives as in the old ones, as they gear up for a climactic confrontation that will inevitably result in their destruction. In it all, John brings the whole story in its magnificent scope to bear on his audience, to let them know that the rewards they will receive as a consequence of faithfulness will be part of the resolution of the problems that have endured in the grand story since the ancient days. He conveys that we are participants in this grand story, and we are to anticipate our participation in its goal by how we participate in it now. John’s grand story reaches back to the beginning of creation, continues through the story of Israel, incorporates the great promises of God already declared, and is brought to a climax with the new creation where resurrection life reigns and death is no more, the matrimonial union of heaven and earth, and the glorious dwelling of the triune God with the saints in the fulfillment of God’s creative purpose. And that is the grand story of which we are a part by virtue of existence. The only question is what kind of participants we are in this story.
Peter J. Leithart, Revelation 1-11, The International Theological Commentary on the Holy Scripture of the Old and New Testaments (New York: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2018), 4 (emphasis original).