Revelation as the Climax of the NT
(avg. read time: 19–38 mins.)
Much has been written on the links between Revelation and the OT, as Revelation presents the visions therein as bringing the OT to its long-anticipated climax. I even made my own survey on this topic in the last post. But what has been less explored is how Revelation also serves as a canonical climax to the NT. This is not only because of the Apocalypse’s position in the NT canonical order, but also because there are many links between it and the rest of the NT. Unlike the links with the OT, these are not necessarily (or even likely) deliberate links to texts on the part of John, but they still show how he symphonizes with the NT in spite of his remarkable stylistic differences.
One of the ways in which Revelation serves as a climax of the NT is something we have already reviewed extensively in the recent series: its theological presentation of the Trinity. For as much as the rest of the NT declares Jesus’s worshipfulness, Revelation is the book that most extensively portrays him being worshiped in the heavens as essential to worshiping the one God. God the Father and Jesus, as well as the Holy Spirit, are distinguished, but they are all treated as one God. This is the same throughout the NT as writers and speakers refer to “God” and the “Lord,” usually with reference to the Father and the Son, respectively, but without the sense that they are two gods (Mark 16:19; Acts 2:36; 20:21, 24; Rom 1:7; 5:1, 11; 7:25; 8:39; 10:9; 14:6; 15:6; 1 Cor 1:2–3, 9; 6:14; 8:6; 15:57; 2 Cor 1:2–3; 11:32; 13:14; Gal 1:3; Eph 1:2–3; 5:20; 6:23; Phil 1:2; 2:11; 1 Thess 1:1, 3; 3:11, 13; 5:9, 23; 2 Thess 1:1–2, 8; 2:13, 16; 1 Tim 1:2; 2 Tim 1:2; Titus 1:4; Phlm 3; 1 Pet 1:2; 2 Pet 1:2; 2 John 3; Jude 21, 25). Throughout Revelation, Jesus is often designated as “Lord” (1:10; 11:8; 14:13; 17:14; 19:16; 22:20–21), and even “Lord God” (1:8), but the fact that it can also refer to the Father (4:8, 11; 11:15, 17; 15:3–4; 16:7; 18:8; 19:6; 21:22), or it may be ambiguous (6:10; 11:4; 22:5–6 [cf. 1:1]), shows that both are being worshiped with the same name that there is but one of, according to the affirmation since the OT that there is one God and one Lord (Deut 6:4). Even the letter opening of 1:4–6 is more fully Trinitarian than other letter openings from the NT that refer to God and Jesus as the source of grace and peace (Rom 1:7; 1 Cor 1:3; 2 Cor 1:2; Gal 1:3; Eph 1:2; Phil 1:2; 1 Thess 1:1; 2 Thess 1:2; 1 Tim 1:2; 2 Tim 1:2; Titus 1:4; Phlm 3; 1 Pet 1:2; 2 Pet 1:2; 2 John 3), while Revelation also refers to the Holy Spirit/seven spirits of God. Obviously, much, much more could be said of how the Father, Son, and Spirit are related and how this resonates with the rest of the NT, but we will not be revisiting everything covered in the aforementioned series.
The opening of the book refers to the “revelation of Jesus Christ.” Elsewhere in the NT, such a phrase is an objective genitive, where Jesus is the one being revealed, or is the content of the revelatory action (1 Cor 1:7; 2 Cor 12:1; Gal 1:12; 1 Pet 1:7, 13; 4:13; cf. Rom 2:5; 8:19; 16:25). In this case, however, the genitive phrase has more of a sense of source. It came from Jesus Christ. But he is the intermediate source in that God the Father gave it to him. And it is about the climactic events yet to come in which Jesus will bring his work as the executor of God’s will to fruition.
Moreover, John says that he made it known by sending his angel to John, which is in concord with scattered OT texts that refer to the angels as “his” or “God’s” (cf. Gen 24:7, 40; Job 4:18; Pss 91:11; 103:20; 148:2; Dan 3:28; 6:22). Revelation 1:1 says that “his angel” is the angel Jesus sent, and 22:6 declares, “These words are trustworthy and true, and the Lord, the God of the Spirit of the prophets, sent his angel to show to his servants what must happen soon/quickly.” In light of the parallel with Rev 1:1, as well as 22:16, this could be a reference to the Son, but it is ambiguous in the text itself, and the angels are also described as the Father’s, of course, particularly in 3:5 when Jesus promises to confess the victorious one’s name “in the presence of my Father and his angels” (3:5). Each of these uses comports with statements elsewhere in the NT. The presence of the angels in the final judgment implied by 3:5 is shown in Matt 25:31–46, and the reference to something happening “in the presence of my Father and his angels” especially resonates with texts in Mark 8:38; Luke 9:26; and 12:8. Otherwise, Jesus refers to the angels as his in Matt 13:41; 16:27; and 24:31 // Mark 13:27, and this expression also appears in Acts 12:11 and 2 Thess 1:7. The Gospel texts also refer to Jesus as “sending” his angels, which is a divine prerogative, and matches what we see in Revelation.
Another aspect of the opening that connects to the rest of the NT is that John is said to testify to “the word of God” and “the testimony of Jesus Christ” (1:2). The same pair appears in 1:9 and 20:4 and the phrase “word of God” by itself also appears with a similar sense in 6:9, where it is also paired with “testimony.” In each of these cases, it is a reference to the gospel (cf. Luke 5:1; 8:11–15, 21; 11:28; Acts 4:29, 31; 6:2, 7; 8:14, 25; 11:1; 12:24; 13:5, 7, 44, 46, 48–49; 15:35–36; 16:32; 17:13; 18:11; 19:10, 20; 2 Cor 2:17; 4:2; Phil 1:14; Col 1:25; 1 Thess 1:8; 2:13 [2x]; 2 Thess 3:1; 2 Tim 2:9; Titus 1:3; 2:5; Heb 13:7; 1 Pet 1:23). (See here for more.) The first phrase identifies God as the source of the gospel, as it is his life-giving word, the story through which he gives everlasting life that goes beyond his initial gift of life. God is also the source of this word in that the word that is the gospel is the execution of his will by the executor of his will that he sent into the world. The second phrase is more of an objective genitive (at least in the usage of Revelation), where Jesus Christ is the object of the action of testimony. One could also think of it as the testimony “about” Christ, so that Christ is the content of the testimony. The word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ are one and the same in concerning the gospel. The word that comes from God is about Jesus Christ, as Jesus was, is, and will be the executor of God’s will. The latter phrase also appears in similar terms in Rev 11:17; 12:11, 17; and 19:10. The proclamation of the gospel is described in similar terms as testimony, especially in Johannine literature, whether by Jesus himself (John 3:11, 31–32; 4:44; 5:31; 7:7; 8:13–14, 18; 13:21; 18:37; cf. 1 Tim 2:6; 6:13), by God about Jesus (John 5:32, 34, 36–37, 39; 8:18; 1 John 5:6–11; cf. Acts 10:43; Heb 10:15), or by others about Jesus (John 1:7–8, 15, 19, 32, 34; 3:26; 4:39; 12:17; 15:27; 19:35; 21:24; 1 John 1:2; 4:14; cf. Luke 24:48; Acts 1:8; 2:32; 3:15; 4:33; 5:32; 10:39, 41; 13:31; 22:15, 18, 20; 23:11; 26:16, 22; 1 Cor 1:6; 2 Tim 1:8). What we proclaim in the gospel comes from the will, plan, and promise of God, and the achievement of the same is nothing other than the faithful, loving fulfillment of God’s word by God’s Word.
Revelation also comports with the NT in how it presents its summary of the central gospel narrative. I have already reviewed this in my series on the three-stage gospel narrative in the NT, including the final entry on Revelation. Crucially, the gospel pattern is presented as the pattern of the victorious life of the faithful Christian. John refers to Jesus as a faithful witness (1:5; 3:14), which, in the context of Revelation as a whole, implies his faithfulness and testimony was unto death, specifically leading directly to his death (cf. Antipas in 2:13, the two witnesses in 11:3, and the blood of the witnesses in 17:6). But even if that were not so, his death and its efficaciousness in dealing with sin are still invoked beginning in 1:5. While one could argue, accurately, that this conquest characterizes Jesus’s life as a whole through the lens of Revelation, the action that most fittingly crystallizes that conquest is his resurrection after being a faithful witness unto death. Such an interpretation also makes sense in light of the juxtaposition of conquest and session on the heavenly throne. It is rather common in the NT for reference to the resurrection to be in proximity to reference to the exaltation (Matt 28:18; Acts 1:3–11; 2:31–36; 5:28–32; 7:55–56; 13:30–39; 17:31–32; Rom 1:1–4; 8:34; 1 Cor 15:20–28; Eph 1:17–23; Phil 3:18–21; Col 1:18–20; 2:11–15; Heb 2:5–12; 7:23–27; 12:2; 1 Pet 1:18–21; 3:18–22). In Revelation itself, this link is first made in 1:5. The same gospel progression is also shown, in a more implicit way, in 1:17–18. And as Jesus states in 3:21, this is the same progression for those who adhere to and identify themselves by the gospel when they are faithful followers of Jesus. They can expect the goal of their story to be the same as the goal of this story.
The description of God as the one who sits on the throne, or of God’s throne in general, is certainly the most distinctive emphasis of Revelation’s theological presentation (1:4; 3:21; 4:2–3, 5, 9–10; 5:1, 6–7, 11, 13; 6:16; 7:9–11, 15; 8:3–4; 12:5; 14:3; 16:17; 19:4; 20:11; 21:5–7; 22:1, 3). But even here, Revelation is amplifying what we have seen elsewhere in the NT (Matt 5:34; 23:22; Acts 7:49; Heb 1:8; 4:16; 8:1; 12:2). Likewise, what the rest of the NT presents in terms of Jesus being at the Father’s right hand in heaven (Matt 22:43–45 // Mark 12:35–37 // Luke 20:41–44; Matt 26:64 // Mark 14:62 // Luke 22:69; Acts 2:33–36; Rom 8:34; Eph 1:20–23; Col 3:1; Heb 1:3, 13; 8:1; 10:12–13; 12:2; 1 Pet 3:21b–22) is presented in Revelation in terms of the Lamb sharing in God’s throne (1:5; 3:21; 5:8, 10; 7:17; 11:15; 12:5; 19:15; 22:1, 3) or otherwise being presented in proximity to it (5:13; 7:9–10).
Also significant in the opening is the reference to Jesus as “the firstborn from the dead” (1:5). This is reminiscent of the reference to Jesus as “first fruits” in 1 Cor 15:20, but it is especially close to Col 1:18 (cf. Rom 8:29). The language not only expresses his preeminence, but also indicates that there are more of the dead who will rise. In Col 1:18 this is indicated by the reference to Jesus as head of the body that is the church and that in a similar way his “birth” out of death is the first of others. In Rev 1:5 this is indicated by the reference to Jesus as the faithful witness, implying that other faithful witnesses will become like him in being born from the dead in the event of resurrection. This future is secured by Jesus already blazing the trail in his death and resurrection and by his blood that liberates those who follow him from their sins. Indeed, Jesus’s resurrection enables and ensures all of his action that brings about the future salvation, not least because his resurrection is connected to his exaltation to ruling over the world. The future is in his hands. The believers simply must persevere to inherit that future.
This opening also introduces a motif from Revelation that resonates with the rest of the NT. That is, Jesus is said to release us from our sins by his blood (1:5), to purchase us as a people by his blood (5:9; 14:3–4), to sanctify us by his blood (7:14), and to give us participation in his victory by his blood (12:11). All of these elements resonate with statements throughout the NT to these various effects (Matt 26:28 // Mark 14:24 // Luke 22:20 // 1 Cor 11:25; Acts 20:28; Rom 3:25; 5:9; 1 Cor 6:20; 7:23; 10:16; Eph 1:7; 2:13; Col 1:20; Heb 9:11–28; 10:19, 29; 12:24; 13:12, 20; 1 Pet 1:2, 19; 2 Pet 2:1; 1 John 1:7). While John 6:53–56 is at a further remove from these particular ideas, it is notable how the text provides the ground of participation in the victory of Christ through the expression of union with Christ through “eating his flesh and drinking his blood.” (I have examined how John 6 relates to John’s theology of resurrection elsewhere.)
The outcome of Jesus’s work making us a kingdom and priests to God obviously derives from the OT, as we have observed in the previous post, and as further illustrated by the similarity of 1:6 to 1 Pet 2:5 and 9. But it also owes something to the NT emphasis, especially in the Gospels, on the coming of the kingdom of God in Jesus (outside of the Gospels, see Acts 1:3, 6; 8:12; 14:22; 19:8; 20:25; 28:23; Rom 14:17; 1 Cor 4:20; 6:10; 15:24; 5:21; Eph 5:5; Col 1:13; 4:11; 1 Thess 2:12; 2 Thess 1:5; 2 Tim 4:1, 18; Heb 12:28; Jas 2:5; 2 Pet 1:11). Beyond 1:6 and the similar 5:10, one can see this in how John describes himself as a fellow participant in the kingdom (1:9) and the declaration of the kingdom and dominion of God and Christ (11:15; 12:10).
Revelation is also climactic in its culminative view of what will go on “forever.” On the one hand, various NT authors call for God to be glorified forever (Rom 1:25; 9:5; 11:36; 16:27; 2 Cor 11:31; Gal 1:5; Eph 3:21; Phil 4:20; 1 Tim 1:17; 2 Tim 4:18; Heb 13:21; 1 Pet 4:11; 5:11; 2 Pet 3:18; Jude 25). Revelation joins this chorus and narrates how God will bring about everlasting worship (1:6, 5:13; 7:12). On the other hand, the NT, especially in the Gospel according to John, declares the promise of everlasting life that extends from God’s own eternal life, as the former shares in the latter (John 3:15–16, 36; 4:14, 36; 5:26, 39–40; 6:27, 33, 35, 40, 47–51, 53–54, 57–58, 63, 68; 8:12, 51; 10:10, 28; 11:25–26; 12:25, 50; 14:6, 19; 17:2–3; 20:31; Acts 17:25; 1 Tim 1:17; 6:13, 16; Heb 5:6; 6:20; 7:16–17, 21, 24, 28; 13:8; 1 John 2:17). This is something Revelation grounds in God’s eternal life as well (1:18; 2:8; 4:9–10; 10:6; 11:15; 15:7; 22:5; cf. 2:7, 10; 11:11; 21:6; 22:1–2, 14, 17, 19).
I have noted before how the imagery of 1:7 is linked to both Dan 7:13–14 and Zech 12:10. But it is also similar to other NT texts. It is especially close to Matt 24:30, which evokes both texts. It also resembles NT texts referring to Jesus coming on the clouds in Matt 26:64 // Mark 14:62 and Mark 13:26 // Luke 21:27 (cf. 1 Thess 4:17).
Yet another theme in the NT that Revelation brings to its culmination is that of perseverance in suffering faithfulness. This is part of the gospel pattern noted earlier. But more broadly, I have examined this theme in a series, including a final entry on Revelation. It is the climactic narrative representation of the theme, as it expresses both the culmination of suffering and the consummative vindication and exaltation of the suffering faithful, befitting the aforementioned gospel pattern. No other text more thoroughly presents the NT theme of the pressures of assimilation against the call to allegiance to God in Christ by the submission to and empowerment of the Holy Spirit. (A minor aspect of this is how this pressure to assimilate manifests in the pressure regarding food offered to idols in 2:14 and 20. This is not necessarily brought to a climactic resolution, except a part of the general theme here, but it is notable how this shows it being at home with other parts of the NT, as we see it being a live issue also in Acts 15:20, 29; 21:25; 1 Cor 8; and 10.) Furthermore, as I have observed previously, and as I will explore in more detail next time, Revelation brings to a climax the victory language of the NT, which primarily appears in Johannine literature, through its presentation of participatory victory in the cosmic conflict of its grand narrative.
Revelation is noteworthy for having one or two of the rare cases outside of the Gospels that Jesus is referred to as “Son of Man” or, in this case, “one like a son of man” (1:13; 14:14). I say “one or two” because it is debatable whether or not 14:14 refers to Jesus, but if it somehow does not refer to Jesus, it is presenting an angel in Christomorphic terms in light of ch. 1. As I have shown on multiple occasions, the vision of ch. 1 is presented in terms especially reminiscent of the imagery of Dan 7, and so its language is more directly akin to the OT reference. Nevertheless, the fact that Jesus distinctively presented himself as the Son of Man in ways that showed this language was crucial to his self-conception and self-presentation (Matt 8:20 // Luke 9:58; Matt 9:6 // Mark 2:10 // Luke 5:24; Matt 10:23; 11:19 // Luke 7:34; Matt 12:8 // Mark 2:28 // Luke 6:5; Matt 12:32 // Luke 12:10; Matt 12:40; 13:37; 16:13; Matt 16:28; Matt 17:9 // Mark 9:9–10; Matt 17:12, 22 // Mark 9:31 // Luke 9:44; Matt 20:18–19 // Mark 10:33–34 // Luke 18:31–33; Matt 20:28 // Mark 10:45; Matt 24:27–31 // Mark 13:24–27 // Luke 21:25–28; Matt 24:39 // Luke 17:26; Matt 24:44 // Luke 12:40; Matt 26:2, 24 // Mark 14:21 // Luke 22:22; Matt 26:45 // Mark 14:41; Mark 8:31; 9:12; Luke 6:22; 11:30; 19:10; 22:48; John 3:13–14; 6:53, 62; 8:28; 9:35; 12:23, 34; 13:31), and that he would regularly refer in his eschatological teaching to what the Son of Man would do (Matt 13:41; 16:27 // Mark 8:38 // Luke 9:26; Matt 19:28; 25:31–46; Luke 12:8; 17:22, 24, 30; 18:8; 21:36; John 1:51; 5:27; 6:27), means that Jesus’s self-presentation in his earthly life correlated with his heavenly revelation to John. This is also comports with how the heavenly revelation to Stephen in Acts 7:55–56 refers to him as the Son of Man, which is the only other text outside of the Gospels and Revelation to refer to him in such a fashion (see here and here for more details). Although the terminology is not exactly widespread in Revelation, not least since John has other ways of referring to Christ, we can see how the presentation here is of Christ’s self-presentation coming to realization in his execution of God’s will and his enabling of the faithful to share in God’s reign. The last point in particular is one we will return to later.
The other links between ch. 1 and the rest of the NT can be briefly noted. One, the reference to the Lord’s day/Sunday (1:10) fits the early indications of Sunday being a day of worship (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor 16:2; cf. Did. 14; Barn. 15:8–9; Gos. Pet. 35 [par. 9], 50 [par. 12]; Ign. Magn. 9:1; Justin, 1 Apol. 67). Two, the references to the sword coming from Jesus’s mouth (1:16; 2:12, 16; 19:15, 21) is similar in rather broad terms to how the word of God is described in Heb 4:12. Three, the description of Jesus’s face shining like the sun in its power (1:16) is reminiscent of Matthew’s description of Jesus’s transfiguration (Matt 17:2).
I have explored John’s letter to the Ephesians elsewhere, so I will not be reiterating everything here. But it is notable that one aspect of its language that resonates with the NT beyond what we have noted already is its reference to “apostles” (2:2). In this case, John is referring to the Ephesians testing those who called themselves apostles but are liars. Apostles, as such, are only referenced in the NT in connection to those Jesus as sent out and who are chief authorities in the early Church, especially the Twelve (Matt 10:2; Mark 6:30; Luke 6:13; 9:10; 11:49; 17:5; 22:14; 24:10; Acts 1:2, 25–26; 2:37, 42–43; 4:33, 35–37; 5:2, 12, 18, 29, 40; 6:6; 8:1, 14, 18; 9:27; 11:1; 14:4, 14; 15:2, 4, 6, 22–23; 16:4; Rom 1:1, 5; 11:13; 16:7; 1 Cor 1:1; 4:9; 9:1–2, 5; 12:28–29; 15:7, 9; 2 Cor 1:1; 11:1, 5, 13; 12:11–12; Gal 1:1, 17, 19; 2:8; Eph 1:1; 2:20; 3:5; 4:11; Col 1:1; 1 Thess 2:6; 1 Tim 1:1; 2:7; 2 Tim 1:1, 11; Titus 1:1; Heb 3:1; 1 Pet 1:1; 2 Pet 1:1; 3:2; Jude 17). Paul had to deal with the problem of false apostles in 2 Corinthians, and John is addressing a similar issue here with those falsely calling themselves apostles. Later, apostles are listed with God’s saints and prophets as those called to rejoice over Babylon’s judgment because they who were persecuted by her were vindicated (18:20). The only other reference to the apostles is a fittingly climactic one, as the apostles are not only vindicated but exalted with their names being borne on the everlasting foundations of the new Jerusalem (21:14).
The next letter to Smyrna introduces an element that is key to Revelation that sets it apart from the OT: the focus on conflict with the devil/Satan (2:9–10). The adversary is only briefly mentioned in the OT, but in the NT we see much more of spiritual warfare of Satan with Jesus (Matt 4:1–11 // Mark 1:12–13 // Luke 4:1–13; Matt 12:25–30 // Mark 3:23–27 // Luke 11:17–23; Matt 13:19 // Mark 4:15 // Luke 8:12; Matt 13:38–39; Luke 10:18; 13:16; Luke 22:3, 31; John 8:44; 13:2, 27; Heb 2:14; 1 John 3:8) and the faithful (Matt 6:13; John 17:15; Acts 5:3; 10:38; 13:10; 26:18; 1 Cor 5:5; 7:5; 2 Cor 2:11; 11:14; 12:7; Eph 4:27; 6:11–20; 1 Thess 2:18; 2 Thess 2:9; 3:3; 1 Tim 1:20; 3:7; 5:15; 2 Tim 2:26; Jas 4:7; 1 Pet 5:8; 1 John 2:13–14; 3:8, 10; 5:18–19). In the end, the expectation is that Satan will be subject to judgment and the victory Christ has won over him will be consummated as it is completely implemented in the faithful (Matt 25:41; Rom 16:20; 1 Cor 15:24–26; 1 Tim 3:6; Heb 2:14–18; 1 John 3:8). Revelation brings this theme of the NT to its climax because it narrates both the culmination of conflict with Satan, wherein Satan is able to exercise his worldly power against the Christians to much lethal effect (2:13; 3:9; 13), and his ultimate defeat by God in Christ. This is foreshadowed by Michael and his army defeating Satan and his army in the heavenly conflict of Rev 12. But the victory is not fully realized until he has had a time of power on earth through his puppet beasts (13), after which he is thrown into the abyss for the millennium (20:1–3) and then the lake of fire and sulfur for his ultimate destruction (20:7–10).
The promise from the third letter to the church in Pergamum that the one who conquers will receive the hidden manna (2:17) is another case where I have noted the significance in light of the OT. But it is also possible to read this as being illuminated by the NT, particularly John 6 with Jesus saying he will give the bread of life, his flesh, to those who will receive it. Although we cannot prove that there is a one-to-one correspondence in what is said here and John 6, I do not think we can dismiss the association either. The promise of everlasting life, including resurrection to everlasting life, is presented in both texts as fulfilling Scripture (perhaps typologically), and in both cases it concerns what Jesus gives to his followers as fulfilling Scripture. As Jesus was/is/will be the true manna from heaven, the community of believers is the community of the new covenant, the people of the new exodus, and the heirs of the new creation, in amplified fulfillment of what was promised to the ancestors of Israel long ago.
The letter to Sardis includes Jesus’s command to the faithful to be vigilant because he is coming like a thief (3:2–3). Both notions reappear as well in 16:15 in the build-up to Jesus’s glorious appearance in ch. 19. They appear together in multiple places in the NT, particularly in Matt 24:42–43; Luke 12:37–39; and 1 Thess 5:2–6. The exhortation to be vigilant appears without the image of the thief in Matt 25:13; Mark 13:34–35, 37; and 1 Pet 5:8, and the description of the day of the Lord coming like a thief appears without the exhortation in 2 Pet 3:10. Revelation thus continues the build-up from the rest of the NT and narrates the resolution to the expectation for Jesus’s sudden coming.
The letter to Philadelphia includes Jesus’s exhortation to hold on to what they have, “in order that no one might take your crown” (3:11). Interestingly, the promise that immediately follows does not describe a crown, which indicates that either this is something they have already been taught about what to expect, or this part of the text resumes the promise of the crown of life from the earlier letter in 2:10. The twenty-four elders who represent the people of God are also said to wear crowns (4:4, 10). The promise and the imagery take up what we see elsewhere in the NT, including the promise of an imperishable crown (1 Cor 9:25), the brothers and sisters being the leaders’ (particularly Paul’s) crown (Phil 4:1; 1 Thess 2:19), the crown of righteousness received on the day of judgment (2 Tim 4:8), as well as the crown of life (Jas 1:12) and the crown of glory (1 Pet 5:4).
The letter to Laodicea features a couple elements in common with other parts of the NT even before it gets to the promise to those who conquer. First, Jesus says that the one he loves he corrects and disciplines (3:19). This is in response to a Laodicean church that has gone far off the path and has become assimilated to the world around it. And this is a reminder that all that has preceded in this rebuke is motivated by love. This also fits with the presentation of discipline for disciples in other parts of the NT, such as 1 Cor 11:32; 2 Tim 2:25; and especially Heb 12:4–11. Two, the image of Jesus being the one who stands at the door and knocks (3:20) resonates with imagery from his Olivet Discourse (Matt 24:33 // Mark 13:29), which is in turn reflected in Jas 5:9, as well as his self-description as the door for his sheep in John 10:7–9.
The letters to both Thyatira and Laodicea promise sharing in the reign of Christ as Christ shares in the Father’s reign (2:26–28; 3:21). I have already noted the OT connections to this promise that it will fulfill, and I have also reviewed it in more detail in my work on the letter to Laodicea. This upholds the participatory union with Christ presented elsewhere in the NT in terms of being seated with Christ (Eph 2:6; Col 3:1). It is also reminiscent of Jesus’s promise presented in Matt 19:28 // Luke 22:28–30 that the twelve would sit on thrones and judge with him. The faithful are presented as occupying their own thrones in Revelation as well (4:4; 11:16; 20:4–6). But where Revelation, especially 3:21, goes beyond these texts is making explicit that our reign participates in Christ’s reign, which is God’s reign (5:10; 20:6; 22:5; cf. 12:10–11).
In chapter 5 we see a crucial transition in how Jesus is presented, as the primary reference to him from here until the last chapter is as the Lamb (5:6, 8, 12–13; 6:1, 16; 7:9–10, 14, 17; 12:11; 13:8; 14:1, 4, 10; 15:3; 17:14; 19:7, 9; 21:9, 14, 22–23, 27; 22:1, 3). Revelation is the primary source for this imagery about Jesus, as he is not actually referred to in such a way that often elsewhere in the NT. A synonymous term with what John uses in Revelation appears in John 1:29, 36; and 1 Pet 1:19 (cf. Acts 8:32). While these references from John and 1 Peter are structurally significant in their respective texts, only Revelation makes this description this prominent. Moreover, he is presented as the Lamb who was slain and yet still stands and occupies the throne, which at least partially explains why he is so frequently referred to as the Lamb once he is first presented that way in ch. 5. That is, the depiction of him as a slain yet living and reigning Lamb is an ever-present reminder of the gospel narrative, as it quite succinctly condenses the three major events into this image.
Also, the fact that lamb still bears the appearance of being slaughtered while still living (5:6) 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 the scriptures 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.
For the next several chapters, there are only brief notes to make. First, the events linked to the breaking of the seals in Rev 6 are broadly similar to Matt 24:4–13 and pars., although the sequence is not identical. Second, Rev 7:2 refers to the “living God,” which is, of course, a resonance with the OT, but this phrase continued to be in use in the NT (Matt 16:16; 26:63; Acts 14:15; Rom 9:26 [Hos 1:10]; 2 Cor 3:3; 6:16; 1 Thess 1:9; 1 Tim 3:15; 4:10; Heb 3:12; 9:14; 10:31; 12:22). Third, the fact that the uncountable multitude of the faithful seen in Revelation consist of every tribe, tongue, people and nation (5:9; 7:9; 14:6; 15:4) is the fruition of Jesus’s commission of proclamation (Matt 24:14 // Mark 13:10; Matt 28:18–20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:44–49; Acts 1:8; cf. John 20:21).
In ch. 11 we find a few connections to the rest of the NT. An understated one is the fact that the two witnesses are described in terms reminiscent specifically of Moses and Elijah. This is obviously linked to the OT, but it is also linked to the NT in that the two witnesses visually representing the Law and the Prophets attesting to Christ in the Transfiguration were Moses and Elijah. That does not mean that these two witnesses simply are Moses and Elijah (a la Left Behind), but it is like they are presented as continuing their testimony in the two witnesses of ch. 11. After all, the same Spirit of the prophets is at work in them and bringing the testimony of the OT and the new covenant to culmination.
Among the most obvious NT connections in Revelation is in this chapter, as it refers to the “great city … where also their Lord was crucified” (11:8). Although the city is referred to “spiritually” as Sodom and Egypt, it is rather clearly Jerusalem. The fate of the two witnesses signifies how they embody the gospel pattern of their Lord’s story in their deaths, but then the rest of their story in this chapter shows how they embody the rest of it as well in their being resurrected and brought up to heaven (11:11–12).
The rest of the chapter has mostly general resonance with the NT. One, there is a declaration of the kingdom of the Lord and his Messiah (11:15, 17). This obviously fits with what we have already seen about the kingdom of God, especially in the Gospels, but also more broadly in the NT. By the end of Revelation, this hope will be fulfilled with the everlasting kingdom of the new creation. Two, there is the stated expectation that the dead will be judged (11:18). As we have seen throughout the NT to this point, as well as elsewhere in the OT and Second Temple texts, this is a widespread expectation linked with resurrection. In ch. 20 we will see the actual narration of this event in fulfillment of such expectations. Three, we are told of the opening of God’s temple/sanctuary in heaven (11:19). Of course, this is part of a larger motif in Revelation that we will explore another time (6:9; 7:15; 8:3–5; 9:13; 13:6; 14:15, 17–18; 15:5–6, 8; 16:1, 7, 17). But it is also noteworthy how this presentation of the heavenly sanctuary fits with what we have seen from the author of Hebrews and how he presented Christ’s high priestly ministry in heaven. Even this is a feature of the NT that will bring to narrative resolution, as the new creation is one in which there will be no temple in the new Jerusalem because the manifest presence of God himself is there (21:3, 22). While previously heaven had a sanctuary and the earth was given one as a model of the same, the new creation that is the marriage of heaven and earth will all be sacred space as God dwells among his people in a way like never before. Of course, this itself is in some ways anticipated by Jesus identifying himself as the temple of God in John 2, the imagery linking Jesus as the cornerstone of the temple (Matt 21:42 // Mark 12:10–11 // Luke 20:17; Acts 4:10–11; Eph 2:20–22; 1 Pet 2:4–7), and even in identifying believers as the temple (1 Cor 3:16–17; 6:19; 2 Cor 6:16; Eph 2:20–22).
I will comment on ch. 12 in its NT context more extensively another time, as that will be part of my Christmas series this year (we already explored its resonances with the OT extensively last time). But for our purposes it is sufficient to observe that this presents another angle on the Christmas story, as it shows the heavenly side to the conflict and the apocalyptic investment of significance in the earthly event. It also presents the gospel narrative in such a condensed fashion that the child’s birth is followed by his ascension, which was clearly “built in” for the story considering who the child is.
Chapter 13 does not contain much of significance for our purposes that we have not already addressed indirectly elsewhere. That is, except for one notion. The text makes a reference to Lamb “who was slain from the foundation of the world” (13:8). We see a similar notion in the reference to those whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world (17:8). The key phrase is a way of referring to the event of the initial creation, and it is one that we have noted elsewhere. Most of these texts refer to something put into place, planned, or done even before the foundation of the world (Matt 25:34; John 17:24; Eph 1:4; 1 Pet 1:20; cf. 1 Cor 2:7; Jude 25). And even as Revelation and these other texts point back to creation, Revelation narrates the resolution of this story, including the final salvation of those who are the beneficiaries of Christ’s work from the foundation of the world and even before.
The links of ch. 14 with the rest of the NT have also largely been covered already. Beyond those, two more should be noted. One, the 144,000 are referred to as “first fruits” to God and to the Lamb (14:4). This is another case that resonates with the OT, but it also resonates with descriptions in the NT of the faithful having the first fruits that is the Spirit (Rom 8:23), being the first fruits in being the first converts in a given place (Rom 16:5; 1 Cor 16:15), and of being God’s first fruits of salvation (Rom 11:16; 2 Thess 2:13; Jas 1:18). In Revelation we see not only the first fruits, but the fullness of the uncountable harvest. Two, there is an interesting phrase in 14:12 that describes the task of the faithful as keeping the commandments of God and “the faith/faithfulness of/in Jesus.” A similar phrase appeared in 2:13. It is reminiscent of other genitive faith constructions in Paul’s letters (Rom 3:22, 26; Gal 2:16 [2x]; 3:22; Eph 3:12; Phil 3:9), which could be either subjective (referring to Jesus’s own faith/faithfulness) or objective (referring to the faith/faithfulness that Jesus receives from his followers). This is not a matter we need to adjudicate here, but it is noteworthy that the debatable phrasing appears here and that it is somehow connected to maintaining allegiance to the one at the center of the gospel story that constitutes and shapes the faithful community.
In my post on the harlot of Babylon, I have noted how various aspects of her description resonate with Jerusalem in both the OT and the NT. One more point that is worth revisiting from ch. 17 is how Jesus is referred to as “Lord of Lord and King of Kings” (17:14). He is also declared as “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” in 19:16. A similar description only appears elsewhere in the NT in 1 Tim 6:15 in reference to God the Father, whereas here it more directly applies to God the Son. In Revelation we see the confirmation of his identification as the King who is also the Creator, Judge, and Savior, since his ultimate victory in ch. 19 and following is a result of who he is, being the one who is able to conquer all usurping powers that attempt to destroy his creation and kingdom. This is demonstrated in the gospel story, but the gospel only revealed what was true of who he was all along.
The same can be said of ch. 19 that most of its links to the rest of the NT have already been discussed, and some of what remains is rather general (like the reference to God’s judgments). But there are still three points worth noting. First, 19:7–8 is the first instance in which the people and promised city of God (the new Jerusalem) are described in terms of being the bride of the Lamb. Most of the links with this notion come from the OT, but the closer one comes from the NT, in that the Church is specified as the bride of Christ in the teaching of Eph 5:21–33 (cf. 2 Cor 11:2), where marriage is supposed to be the revelation of the mystery of the relationship between Christ and the Church. The wedding feast is referred to in ch. 19, and the consummation of this matrimony is narrated in ch. 21 with the new Jerusalem descending from heaven as a bride for her husband who is the Lamb.
Second, when the Spirit is spoken of in chs. 19 and 22, what we see is in line with some texts from Paul. On the one hand, we are told that the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophecy. This is similar to what Paul tells us in 1 Cor 12:3 that no one can say Jesus is Lord but by the Spirit. In both texts, the Spirit is the one who ultimately proclaims and enables the proclamation of the testimony of Jesus that concerns the gospel story. On the other hand, as the book draws to a close, we are told, “The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come.’ Let the one who hears say, ‘Come’ (22:17). Though the Spirit is on the Creator side of the Creator-creature distinction, he also motivates the creatures to speak in entreaty as those eagerly awaiting the coming of their Lord. This is particularly reminiscent of what Paul tells us of how the Spirit intercedes for us as we eagerly await our hope with groanings too deep for words (Rom 8:24–27).
Third, Jesus is referred to as the Word of God in 19:13. We have explored the use of this phrase throughout the NT elsewhere, as noted earlier. But only here and in John 1:1–18 is Jesus directly referred to in this fashion. The John text was primarily in reference to him pre-Incarnation. But here, it is in reference to his work before, throughout, and in the culmination of history. He is the one through whom God’s will for creation was first implemented. He is the revealer of God, especially in his incarnate life and his return. And ultimately, he is the one who will fulfill the plan of God by bringing his salvific will to fruition in raising the dead, executing the final judgment, and establishing the new creation. He is the executor of God’s will from creation to eschaton and beyond.
Chapters 20–22 are themselves the climactic resolution of this book and of the canon. The devil and other forces of wickedness are destroyed in the lake of fire and sulfur (the equivalent of what other books referred to as hell/Gehenna), the final judgment is executed, everlasting life is brought to fruition, creation is made new in the consummation of God’s kingdom, and the new Jerusalem comes down from heaven to earth in the ultimate marriage of heaven and earth. Thus, we have already covered much of what they do in bringing the OT and the NT to the hoped-for climax. But in covering the last links, we will treat these chapters together.
First, death and Hades are said to be thrown into the lake of fire (20:13–14). This is similar to what we read of in 1 Cor 15 of how the last enemy to be defeated is death, after which God’s kingdom will be consummated (vv. 26–28), and that death will be swallowed up in victory when the faithful are made immortal (vv. 54–57). In the same way here, when the faithful are made immortal so that the second death will not harm them (2:6; 20:11; 21:4; cf. 20:14; 21:8), death itself will be destroyed. Naturally, the concomitant reality is the consummation of God’s kingdom in the new creation that is then described in chs. 21 and 22.
Second, although I have already noted the images of God’s giving of everlasting life, one image in particular should be noted. Namely, we should note the references to the water of life (7:17; 21:6; 22:1, 17). Similar imagery in the NT appears only in the Gospel according to John, specifically 4:10–14 and 7:38.
Third, chs. 21–22 feature two vice lists in 21:8 and 22:15 (cf. 9:21 and the more summative 21:27). There are many lists of virtues and vices in the NT. But to focus only on the latter as the closest parallels, one can find such lists in the following: Matt 15:19 // Mark 7:21–22; Luke 6:24–26; Rom 1:28–32; 13:13; 1 Cor 5:10–11; 6:9–10; 2 Cor 12:20–21; Gal 5:19–21; Eph 4:31; 5:3–5; Col 3:5, 8; 1 Tim 1:9–10; 2 Tim 3:2–4; Titus 3:3; Jas 3:15–16; 1 Pet 2:1; 4:3, 15. Naturally, the contents of these lists varied, so it is not as if Revelation is trying to incorporate all of them into some culminative list. But what Revelation does do is serve as a final, forceful reminder of the sins that will exclude one from the kingdom if they are not repented of, particularly as it narrates what happens for those who repent and those who do not. (Even so, to see where the lists overlap with Revelation, note Matt 15:19 // Mark 7:21; Rom 1:29; 1 Cor 5:10–11; 6:9; 2 Cor 12:21; Gal 5:19–20; Eph 5:3, 5; Col 3:5; 1 Tim 1:9–10; 1 Pet 4:3, 15).