The Identities of the Beast from the Sea and the Beast from the Land in Revelation 13

By Joseph Poon and James Crossley

This book aims to identify the beast from the sea and the beast from the land in Revelation 13 by studying their unique link together with the dragon in Revelation 12: the land beast is subordinate to the sea beast, which in turn is subordinate to the dragon. The early sections of the book provide a review of previous scholarship, the influence of Daniel 7 in understanding Revelation 13, and the Leviathan-Behemoth motif in several apocalyptic writings.
 
The core of the book, however, seeks to demonstrate that the relationship of the two beasts and the dragon fits well with the tripartite hierarchy that Georges Dumezil has discovered as one of the dominant structures of relationships in Indo-European mythological traditions. In congruence with the criteria of the three hierarchical levels in Dumezil's system, the dragon concerns the ultimate sovereignty in a supernatural sphere, while the sea beast and land beast are found, respectively, as a warlike figure in a war context and as a figure relating to the economic theme. Based on this finding, the book concludes that the two beasts represent the imperial power and the imperial cult, as most commentators believe.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pickwick Publications
• Release date: Mar 13, 2017
• ISBN: 9781498244497

Joseph Poon

Joseph Poon earned his master's of divinity degree from McAfee School of Theology, Mercer University, in 2007, and his PhD in biblical studies from the University of Sheffield in 2012. He is currently pursuing further research training in ancient history and classics.

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The Identities of the Beast from the Sea and the Beast from the Land in Revelation 13

Joseph Poon

Foreword by James Crossley

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THE IDENTITIES OF THE BEAST FROM THE SEA AND THE BEAST FROM THE LAND IN REVELATION

13

Copyright ©

2017

Joseph Poon. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical publications or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Write: Permissions, Wipf and Stock Publishers,

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Pickwick Publications

An Imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers

199

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8

th Ave., Suite

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www.wipfandstock.com

paperback isbn: 978-1-62564-445-9

hardcover isbn: 978-1-4982-8760-9

ebook isbn: 978-1-4982-4449-7

Cataloguing-in-Publication data:

Names: Poon, Joseph.

Title: The identities of the beast from the sea and the beast from the land in Revelation

13

.

Description: Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications,

2017

| Includes bibliographical references.

Identifiers:

isbn 978-1-62564-445-9 (

paperback

) | isbn 978-1-4982-8760-9 (

hardcover

)| isbn 978-1-4982-4449-7 (

ebook

)

Subjects: LCSH: Bible. Revelation, XIII—Criticism, interpretation, etc.

Classification:

LCC BS2825.A2 P75 2017 (

paperback

) | BS2825 (

ebook

)

Manufactured in the U.S.A.

02/08/17

Scripture quotations are from Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright ©

1946, 1952

, and

1971

National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Table of Contents

Title Page

Foreword

List of Abbreviations

Chapter 1: Introduction

A Review of the Scholarship on the Topic

Language and Imagery

Methodology

Significance of the Thesis

Structure of the Thesis

Assumptions, scope, and limits

Chapter 2: A Study of the Prominent Imagery in Daniel 7 as It Relates to Revelation 13

The Chaoskampf Tradition in Recent Scholarship

The Ugaritic Myth Known as the Baal Cycle

Four Beasts Coming up out of the Sea

Conclusion

Chapter 3: The Leviathan-Behemoth Motif in the Second Temple Apocalypses

4 Ezra 6:49–52

2 Baruch 29:4

1 Enoch 60:7–10, 24ab

Apocalypse of Abraham 10:10; 21:4

Ladder of Jacob 6:13

Conclusion

Chapter 4: An Examination of the Tripartite Ideology in Revelation 12 and 13

Revelation 12 and 13

A Brief Review of the Structure of the Book of Revelation

The Link between Revelation 12 and 13

The Hierarchical Relationship of the Three Figures in Revelation 12 and 13

The Tripartite Ideology in the Ancient World

The Hypothesis of the Tripartite Ideology of Georges Dumézil

Evidence for the Tripartite Ideology in the Structure of Roman Society

Evidence for the Divine Triad in the Roman Pantheon

The Great Temple of Capitoline Triad, Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva

Capitolia: Shrines of Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva

Conclusion

Chapter 5: The Identities of the Two Beasts

The Identity of the Beast from the Sea

The Date of Revelation

The Identity of the Beast from the Land

Conclusion

Chapter 6: Summary

Bibliography

This book is dedicated to Blanche Yan

Foreword

Joseph Man-Kit Poon is a rarity among contemporary New Testament scholars in that he is prepared to challenge consensus thinking as a historian with no obvious theological line of attack or defense. Combined with his attention to detail, this independence of mind contributed to his much-deserved award as a PhD student at the European Association of Biblical Studies for the outstanding paper in New Testament studies (based on the topic of this book). But Poon does not provoke for provocation’s sake. Rather, he always thinks long and hard about his research with honesty and integrity. It should not be forgotten that this study is a fitting testament to a scholar who has always shown dedication and has always worked hard.

In this book he looks beyond the conventional contexts for understanding Revelation 12 and 13 (Leviathan, Behemoth, Daniel 7) to combine them with issues surrounding hierarchical and tripartite structures in ancient ideological systems. As is well known, contemporary scholarly tendencies stress the importance of reading New Testament texts in the context of Roman imperialism but what studies such as Poon’s do is to suggest that we need to go beyond situating texts as either pro- or anti-Empire and further examine the complex structural issues at play in ancient imperialism and how New Testament texts might have engaged with them. While there are broader issues at play for the study of Christian origins more generally, scholars of Revelation will find this book particularly fascinating as Poon combines his interdisciplinary thinking with traditional exegesis. Anyone working on a close reading of Revelation 12 and 13 in its ancient context will have to reckon with Poon’s provocative reading.

James Crossley,

Professor of Bible, Society and Politics,

St Mary’s University,

Twickenham, London

List of Abbreviations

ABD Anchor Bible Dictionary. Edited by David Noel Freedman. 6 vols. New York: Doubleday, 1992.

AJA American Journal of Archaeology

ANET Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament. Edited by James B. Pritchard. 3rd ed. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1969.

APOT The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament. Edited by R. H. Charles. 2 vols. Oxford, 1913.

BA Biblical Archaeologist

BASOR Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research

Bib Biblica

BMC British Museum Catalogue: A Catalogue of the Greek Coins in the British Museum. Edited by R. S. Poole et al. 29 vols. London: British Museum Trustees, 1873–1927.

BT The Bible Translator

CBQ Catholic Biblical Quarterly

CIG Corpus Inscriptionum Graecarum. Edited by August Boeckh. 4 vols. Berlin, 1828–1877.

CIL Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum. Berlin, 1862–.

CPJ Corpus Papyrorum Judaicarum. Edited by Victor A. Tcherikover and Alexander Fuks. 3 vols. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1957–1964.

CTA Corpus des tablettes en cunéiformes alphabétiques découvertes à Ras Shamra-Ugarit de 1929 à 1939. Edited by Andrée Herdner. Paris: Geuthner, 1963.

EncJud Encyclopedia Judaica. 16 vols. Jerusalem, 1972.

ETL Ephemerides Theologicae Lovanienses

ExpTim Expository Times

GRBS Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies

HAR Hebrew Annual Review

HSCP Harvard Studies in Classical Philology

HTR Harvard Theological Review

IEph Wankel, Hermann, et al., eds. Die Inschriften von Ephesos. 8 vols. Bonn: Habelt, 1979–1984.

IGRR Inscriptiones graecae ad res romanas pertinentes. Edited by René Cagnat et al. 3 vols. Paris: Leroux, 1906–1927.

IK Inschriften griechischer Städte aus Kleinasien. Edited by Helmut Engelmann. Bonn: Habelt, 1972–.

ILLRP Inscriptiones latinae liberae rei publicae. Edited by Attilio Degrassi. 2 vols. Biblioteca di studi superiori 23. Florence: La Nuova Italia, 1957–1963.

ILS Inscriptiones latinae selectae. Edited by Hermann Dessau. 3 vols. in 5 parts. Berlin: Wiedmann, 1892–1916.

JAOS Journal of the American Oriental Society

JAS Journal of Asian Studies

JBL Journal of Biblical Literature

JÖAI Jahreshefte des Österreichischen archäologischen Instituts

JSJ Journal for the Study of Judaism in the Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman Periods

JSNT Journal for the Study of the New Testament

JSOT Journal for the Study of the Old Testament

JTS Journal of Theological Studies

KTU Die keilalphabetischen Texte aus Ugarit. Edited by Manfried Dietrich, Oswald Loretz, and Joaquín Sanmartín. AOAT 24/1. Neukirchen -Vluyn, 1976. 2nd enl. ed. of KTU: The Cuneiform Alphabetic Texts from Ugarit, Ras Ibn Hani, and Other Places. Edited by Manfried Dietrich, Oswald Loretz, and Joaquín Sanmartín. Münster: Ugarit-Verlag, 1995 ( = CTU).

NovT Novum Testamentum

NTS New Testament Studies

NZ Numismatische Zeitschrift

OGI Orientis graeci inscriptiones selectae. Edited by Wilhelm Dittenberger. 2 vols. Leipzig: Hirzel, 1903–1905.

Or Orientalia

OTP Old Testament Pseudepigrapha. Edited by James H. Charlesworth. 2 vols. New York: Doubleday, 1983.

OTS Oudtestamentische Studiën

RS Ras Shamra

Sardis Sardis: Publications of the American Society for the Excavation of Sardis. Edited by W. H. Buckler and David M. Robinson. Vol. 7. Greek and Latin Inscriptions. Part 1. Leyden: Brill, 1932.

SEG Supplementum epigraphicum graecum

UF Ugarit-Forschungen

UT Ugaritic Textbook. C. H. Gordon. AnOr 38. Rome, 1965.

VT Vetus Testamentum

ZNW Zeitschrift für die neutestamentliche Wissenschaft und die Kunde der ālteren Kirche

ZPE Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik

1

Introduction

The book of Revelation is one of the most controversial biblical writings in the history of Christianity. This is not only because the composition of this literary piece is so unique that commentators can hardly reach a consensus on its structure and arrangement, but also because the fascinating and bizarre imagery and metaphors in the book always lead to opposing perspectives in interpretation. Within this work, chapter 12 has a unique role in particular, since the combat myth in the chapter points toward an ultimate divine battle in a cosmological context that appears to be central to the book. Chapters 12 and 13 are interrelated, however. Most commentators are aware of the relationship between the two chapters and see the dragon as the link between them. However, there is a more fundamental element of interrelationship between the two chapters that scholars rarely explore, that is, a tripartite hierarchical structure between the dragon and the beast from the sea and the beast from the land. In chapter 13, the dragon gives his power, throne and great authority to the sea beast, which in turn is allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. Similarly, the beast from the land exercises all the authority of the sea beast on its behalf and makes the world worship the sea beast. Thus, the land beast is subordinate to the sea beast, which in turn is subordinate to the dragon. This structure does not belong to biblical or extra-biblical traditions but to the Indo-European mythological tradition. In this structure, each figure is found in a specific context in accordance with its nature.

The present thesis aims to identify the beast from the sea and the beast from the land, employing the model of the tripartite ideology. Many recent scholars have studied the topic, and their advanced scholarship has resulted in a considerable level of accomplishment. In identifying the two beasts, commentators tend to focus on their characteristics, for instance, the seven heads (13:1), mortal wound (13:3), and the number six hundred sixty-six (13:18), as well as their parallels to Dan 7, for example, a mouth speaking great things and forty-two months (Rev 13:5; cf. Dan 7:8, 20, 25). This approach usually results in the conclusion that the sea beast symbolizes one of the Roman emperors and the land beast represents a figure relating to the imperial cult. While this approach contributes to identifying the two beasts, it cannot explain why the land beast is subordinate to the sea beast, which in turn is subordinate to the dragon. Using the template of the Indo-European tripartite ideology, the present thesis aims to demonstrate that the dragon, the sea beast and the land beast are arranged in accordance with the tripartite hierarchical structure, and that the three figures correspond to the three functions in that hierarchy. Thus, the thesis studies the topic through another trajectory that biblical scholars rarely explore on the one hand, and on the other, through this approach, it confirms the scholarship that they have brought to bear on the topic.

A Review of the Scholarship on the Topic

There is a long history of interpretation that holds that the sea beast and the land beast in Rev 13 represent the Roman Empire, or one of the emperors, and the imperial cult, respectively. Interpretation usually involves source critical analysis and allusions to Dan 7. As early as the nineteenth century CE, German scholars divided Rev 13 into two distinct sources with various degrees of cutting and pasting of different phrases depending on the scholar. Karl Erbes discerned in 13:1–18, along with 12:1–13, 18 and 14:9b–12, a Christian apocalypse that reflected Caligula’s plan to establish his statue in the Jerusalem temple.¹ Friedrich Spitta, by removing a number of fragments in Rev 13 as well as adopting the reading 616 (v. 18),² restored in 13:1–8 a Jewish apocalypse describing the social conditions in Palestine in 39–41 CE during the reign of Caligula, with references to his critical illness (v. 3), his plan to set up his statue in Jerusalem (v. 6) and the worship offered to him (v. 8).³ Erbes identified the land beast as the Magi at the court of Caligula, whilst Spitta, taking up the reading ἑξακόσιοι δέκα ἕξ, six hundred sixteen (13:18),⁴ identified it as Simon Magus, a magician who was believed to have brought statues to life or at least to have made them speak.⁵

Wilhelm Bousset discerned in Revelation a number of sections that reflected existing fixed documents, such as 12:1–17 and 13:1–18. The vision in 12:1–17 was derived from eastern mythology. The visions of the two beasts in 13:1–18 were, on the whole, the work of the final redactor of the Apocalypse.⁶ In the formation of 17:1–18, the final redactor reworked the passages in vv. 1–7, 9–11, 15–18, which reflected an original Jewish source from Vespasian’s time, by adding certain clauses in vv. 6, 9, 11, and contributed vv. 8, 12–14 to the chapter. The Jewish source and the redactor’s contribution reflected two variants of the legend of Nero’s return.⁷

According to Julius Wellhausen, the fragments in 13:1, 2, 4–7a, 10ab dealt with the desolation of the Jews after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 CE,⁸ and said that the beast from the sea referred to the Roman Empire. And the texts in 13:11a, 12abc, 16b, 17, 18 were from another source of uncertain date there to introduce the legend of Nero’s return (v. 18) and the beast from the land (v. 11a),⁹ who was the false prophet represented by the provincial state officials. The rest of the chapter (13:3, 7b–9, 10c, 11bc, 12d, 13–16a, 17b) were works of the final editor.¹⁰ For Wellhausen, instead of ἄλλο θηρίον, another beast (13:11), it read εἰκών, image, since the beast and its image are mentioned together on many occasions later on in the book (14:9, 11; 15:2; 16:2; 19:20; 20:4).¹¹ He discerned two sources in 17:1–18. The first source consisted of vv. 3–4, 6b–7, 9, and 10, omitting some fragments.¹² The second source consisted of vv. 11–13, 16, and 17, leaving out some phrases.¹³ The pieces of text in vv. 1b–3 belonged to either source.¹⁴

In Johannes Weiss’ scheme, 13:1–2, 3–7 came from a Jewish apocalypse written in 70 CE. Since 12:18 was a redactional piece linking chapters 12 and 13 through the activity of the dragon, 13:2b and 4a belonged to the same redactional gloss as 12:18 as they went on to introduce the superiority of the dragon over the beast.¹⁵ The vision in 13:11–18 originally dealt with a false prophet, but in the final form of the chapter, was transformed to represent the priesthood of the imperial cult symbolized by ἄλλο θηρίον, another beast. By means of some additions, the final editor united the two sources and made the entire chapter refer to the Roman Empire, the legend of Nero’s return and the imperial cult.¹⁶

Following the German scholarship, R. H. Charles’ theory, though not recent, is still one of the most important works of English scholarship on the topic. According to Charles, there were two sources behind 13:1–10. The first source included vv. 1abd, 2, 4–7a, 10, and was a Jewish apocalypse originally written in Hebrew around 70 CE. Thus, the beast rising out of the sea (v. 1) represented the Roman Empire, the μῆνας τεσσεράκοντα [καὶ] δύο, forty-two months, and σκηνὴ αὐτοῦ, his dwelling (vv. 5b–6b), referred to the siege of Jerusalem by the Romans and the woeful plight (v. 10) of the survivors.¹⁷ The second gloss consisted of vv. 3c, 8, which were independent translations of the same Hebrew source. The fragments in vv. 3ab, 7b, 9 were the author’s own works.¹⁸ The sources behind 13:11–18 were more complicated. The materials in vv. 11, 12ab, 13–14a, 16b, 17a originated from the same source referring to the ψευδοπροφήτης, false prophet, as the references found later in 16:13; 19:20; 20:10.¹⁹ The two figures in this gloss, however, ἄλλο θηρίον, another beast (v. 11), and τὸ θηρίον τὸ πρῶτον, the first beast (v. 12), were from the final apocalyptist, as well as the additions, οὗ ἐθεραπεύθη ἡ πληγὴ τοῦ θανάτου αὐτοῦ, whose mortal wound was healed (v. 12c), ἐνώπιον τοῦ θηρίου . . . ἀποκτανθῶσιν, in the presence of the beast . . . to be slain (vv. 14b–15), τοὺς μικροὺς . . . δούλους, the small . . . slave (v. 16a) and τὸ ὄνομα . . . ἑξήκοντα ἕξ, the name . . . sixty-six (vv. 17b–18).²⁰ By means of these additions, the false prophet was transformed into a secondary personage ἄλλο θηρίον, another beast, which in the final form of the chapter referred to the priesthood of the imperial cult.²¹ The legend of Nero’s return is found in 13:12c, 14c, and 18.²² On the other hand, like Wellhausen, Charles discerns two sources behind Rev 17. One source consists of vv. 1c–2, 3b–6, 7, 18, 8, 9, and 10.²³ This group of fragments identifies the sea beast with the Roman Empire. Another source consists of vv. 11–13, 16, and 17,²⁴ and reflects the legend of Nero returning from the east.²⁵ In his massive three-volume commentary, David Aune proposes that Revelation was written in three stages. The first stage was the formation of twelve self-contained textual units produced in approximately the 50s and 60s of the first century CE, well before their inclusion in the compilation with the visionary and prophetic narratives.²⁶ The second stage was the composition of the first edition of the Apocalypse from approximately 68 to 74 CE.²⁷ The third stage was the second edition of the work completed near the end of the first century during the reign of Trajan (98–117 CE).²⁸ The combat myth in 12:1–17 and the visions of the sea beast and land beast in 13:1–18 as well as the vision of the whore of Babylon in 17:1–18 were works from the first stage.²⁹

In agreement with Weiss, Aune concurs that 12:18 is a redactional link connecting chapters 12 and 13. Thus, the dragon in that link was not part of either of the two visions in 13:1–10 and 13:11–18 but was introduced into these visions in order to tie them more closely to chapter 12, where it is found eight times (vv. 3b, 4b, 7b [twice], 9a, 13, 16b, 17a).³⁰ With this link, the ensuing fragments referring to the dragon are redactional too, including καὶ ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ ὁ δράκων τὴν δύναμιν αὐτοῦ καὶ τὸν θρόνον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐξουσίαν μεγάλην, And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority (v. 2b), καὶ προσεκύνησαν τῷ δράκοντι ὅτι ἔδωκεν τὴν ἐξουσίαν τῷ θηρίῳ, And men worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast (v. 4a), ὡς δράκων, a phrase describing the land beast speaking (v. 11), as well as καὶ μίαν ἐκ τῶν κεφαλῶν αὐτοῦ ὡς ἐσφαγμένην εἰς θάνατον, καὶ ἡ πληγὴ τοῦ θανάτου αὐτοῦ ἐθεραπεῦθη, And one of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed (v. 3a). This last sentence reflects the legend of Nero’s return.³¹

Again, in agreement with Weiss, Aune sees that the two references to the mortal wound, οὗ ἐθεραπεύθη ἡ πληγὴ τοῦ θανάτου αὐτοῦ, whose mortal wound was healed (v. 12c), and ὅς ἔχει τὴν πληγὴν τῆς μαχαίρης καὶ ἔζησεν, which was wounded by a sword and yet lived (v. 14c), are interpolations analeptically referring back to the beast from the sea.³² On the other hand, the noun θηρίον, beast, is found anarthrously only in 13:1 and 17:3; the first occurrence of the beast in each chapter. Following 13:1, the beast is found with the anaphoric article twenty more times before 17:3 (13:2, 3, 4 [thrice], 12 [twice], 14 [twice], 15 [thrice], 17, 18; 14:9, 11; 15:2; 16:2, 10, 13), which in turn is followed by the arthrous noun τὸ θηρίον, the beast, on eight occasions in the chapter (17:7b, 8ac, 11a, 12b, 13, 16a, 17b). Aune sees this association as a seam between Rev 13–16 and Rev 17, which was the work of christianizing additions produced in the second stage of composition.³³ Finally, the gematria reference (v. 18) is an explanatory redactional addition.³⁴

It would be next to impossible to produce a thorough evaluation of the various source critical approaches to the topic in this introduction as there are as many treatments as there are commentators. This brief review highlights some relevant points, however. Scholars using source criticism are in general agreement that the two visions in 13:1–10 and 13:11–18 reflect two sources, each of which is, in turn, a compilation of different fragments, while they differ in how they analyze the materials. Of these bits and pieces, a group of fragments indicates the identity of the sea beast, while some others point to the land beast. The three references to the mortal wound of the sea beast (13:3a, 12c, 14c) are the sources used for identification. However, there are some minor problems. In 13:3a, μίαν ἐκ τῶν κεφαλῶν αὐτοῦ, one of the heads of the beast, seemed to have a mortal wound, but ἡ πληγὴ τοῦ θανάτου αὐτοῦ ἐθεραπεύθη, its mortal wound was healed. Thus, it was the beast, not its head, which recovered from the mortal wound,³⁵ since the second pronoun αὐτοῦ would normally be αὐτῆς, if it referred to μίαν ἐκ τῶν κεφαλῶν.³⁶ In 13:12c and 14c, it was the beast that suffered from the wound too. Taking up the wound upon the beast’s head, some ancient writers identify the beast as Caligula.³⁷ Most modern scholars, however, identify it as Nero.³⁸ The 666 gematria (13:18) is an addition to the chapter. There is little argument among commentators that the best solution to the 666 gematria is the legend of Nero’s return. The land beast is more complicated. On the one hand, it appears to come from the source of the false prophet as it is so expressed in three later passages (16:13; 19:20; 20:10). On the other, it is related to the beast’s image as the beast and its image are mentioned together in many places (14:9, 11; 15:2; 16:2; 19:20; 20:4). In either case, commentators are roughly in agreement that, in the final form of the composition, this figure is primarily related to the imperial cult.

Furthermore, chapter 17, the seven-head conundrum (vv. 8–11) in particular, refers to the legend of Nero’s return, probably from variant versions. The riddle has been understood as a clue to dating the book. Charles,³⁹ Albert Bell,⁴⁰ Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza,⁴¹ and George Beasley-Murray,⁴² and many other scholars have used different systems to enumerate the twelve Roman emperors, from Julius Caesar to Domitian, in order to yield ἑπτά, seven, the number of the emperors in the riddle.⁴³ Scholars, however, rarely reach a consensus concerning the way in which the seven heads are counted, since from antiquity, there had been two systems for enumerating the Roman emperors. Suetonius began his Lives of the Caesars with the biography of Julius Caesar.⁴⁴ Dio Chrysostom and Josephus counted Julius Caesar as the first emperor too, as the two ancients referred to Augustus as the second Caesar (Or. 34.7) and the second emperor of the Romans (Ant. 18.32) respectively. A possible rationale for this view is that since the term Caesar was derived from the name Julius Caesar, it was natural for ancients to consider him the first Roman emperor.⁴⁵ On the other hand, Tacitus began his Annals with Augustus, taking the title princeps as the