Apocalypse and Allegiance: Worship, Politics, and Devotion in the Book of Revelation

By J. Nelson Kraybill

In this lively introduction, J. Nelson Kraybill shows how the book of Revelation was understood by its original readers and what it means for Christians today. Kraybill places Revelation in its first-century context, opening a window into the political, economic, and social realities of the early church. His fresh interpretation highlights Revelation's liturgical structure and directs readers' attentions to twenty-first-century issues of empire, worship, and allegiance, showing how John's apocalypse is relevant to the spiritual life of believers today. The book includes maps, timelines, photos, a glossary, discussion questions, and stories of modern Christians who live out John's vision of a New Jerusalem.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
• Release date: Apr 1, 2010
• ISBN: 9781441212559

J. Nelson Kraybill

J. Nelson Kraybill (PhD, Union Theological Seminary in Virginia) has served as president of Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary and has taught the book of Revelation for more than twenty years on four continents. He is the author of Imperial Cult and Commerce in John's Apocalypse and frequently speaks in ecclesial and academic settings on biblical themes of discipleship, peacemaking, leadership, and mission. Kraybill lives in Elkhart, Indiana.

Book preview

10:1.

1

A Prophet in Trouble

Read Revelation 1:1–20

I was in the spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet saying, Write in a book what you see and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamum, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.

Then I turned to see whose voice it was that spoke to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands I saw one like the Son of Man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash across his chest. . . . When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he placed his right hand on me, saying, Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living one. I was dead, and see, I am alive forever and ever; and I have the keys of Death and of Hades. (1:10–13, 17–18)

Most of what we know about the author of Revelation we must infer from the text of his vision:

I, John, your brother who share with you in Jesus the persecution and the kingdom and the patient endurance, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. (1:9)

John apparently is in trouble, since he mentions persecution in these words of self-introduction. As his vision unfolds, it becomes evident that he expects that much of the Christian church will soon be in peril as well. One believer at the city of Pergamum—Antipas—has already suffered martyrdom (2:13). Later, John sees a vast multitude of saints who have come out of a great ordeal (7:9–17). Storm clouds are on the horizon for the whole Christian church.

Fig. 1.1. The harbor on the Island of Patmos.

In these difficult circumstances, the author turns to worship. I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, he says, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet (1:10). John’s experience of God does not sneak up on him unawares. He is in the Spirit, in an attitude of waiting on God. The fact that his vision comes on the Lord’s day (presumably Sunday)1 suggests that he, like other early Christians, has a weekly rhythm of corporate worship and prayer. There were emerging patterns of worship in the early church, and the Spirit of God moved within that structure.

Worship Is a Spiritual Dance

Like Moses encountering God in the desert (Exod. 3), worship in Revelation unfolds in a kind of spiritual dance, with God and mortal alternating parts. Just as Moses saw a burning bush and turned aside to engage the divine (Exod. 3:3), John hears a voice and turns to engage the Son of Man (Rev. 1:12). When Moses turned toward the mysterious fire, God spoke again and told him to remove his sandals. This alternating initiative between God and Moses continued until Moses received the message and the mandate to confront Pharaoh, greatest ruler in the world known to the people of Israel. Similarly, a voice startles John. He turns, Christ appears, and John falls to the ground. Christ places a hand on John and gives him a message to the churches.

Would we even know about Moses or John if either had ignored the initial signs of God’s presence? For both, experience of God happens in a deserted place: beyond the wilderness for Moses, and on a remote island for John. These venues suggest escape (from Egypt, for Moses) or abandonment (by God, for John). In each case God visits a person who has reason to feel lonely, angry, or afraid.

Fig. 1.2. This mosaic appears above the entrance to the Monastery of the Apocalypse on the island of Patmos. Legend holds that John received his vision in a cave now enclosed by the monastery. Here John dictates to a scribe what he sees.

John says he is on the island of Patmos (see figs. 1.1; 1.2; 1.3) on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus (Rev. 1:9 RSV). Although we have no record of the Roman government sending people into exile specifically at Patmos, we know that other small islands nearby in the Aegean Sea were used for this purpose.2

Eusebius, a fourth-century church historian, records an early Christian tradition that Emperor Domitian banished John to Patmos in AD 95.3 As becomes evident in his vision, John communicates the gospel in ways that challenge or offend people who support Roman rule. It is possible that John has gone to Patmos on a preaching mission, but it is more likely that he has fled there to save his life, or has been sent into exile there by the provincial government, which serves at the behest of

Reviews for Apocalypse and Allegiance

[xuebi-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A commentary on the book of Revelations that for once is not about pre-millennial prophecies imported into the present day, but rather one that deals with the social and political environment at the time St John was writing. A valuable book today therefore not only for understanding Revelations in its historical context, but also on how a Christian is to live as an "alien, an exile in a foreign land".