The journey continues...
________________
10:1 And I saw another strong angel descending from the sky, having been wrapped in cloud. And the rainbow on his head and his face [were] as the sun, and his feet [were] as pillars of fire. 2. And [he was] having in his hand a little scroll that had been opened, and he placed his right foot on the sea and the left on the land.
As with the seven seals, we get an interlude between the sixth and seventh trumpets. In Revelation 7, we had a vision of all believers who had endured through the "great ordeal," this current age in which we await Christ's return. [1] So each intermission in Revelation has something to say to the church in this period of tribulation we are in between Christ being "snatched into heaven" (12:5) and the final judgment.
In three chapters, we will see a beast from the sea and a beast from the land. This apparently huge angel has one foot on sea and one on the land. The rainbow, cloud, and sun-face recall Ezekiel 1:26-28, where these are associated with a "theophany," an apparence of God to Ezekiel.
But this angel is not said to be Christ, nor is Christ ever called an angel in the book of Revelation. [2] It's another reminder that while Revelation draws many ingredients from the Old Testament, it cooks its own recipes.
The scroll is also drawn from Ezekiel, in this case Ezekiel 2:9-10. Unlike the scroll in Revelation 5, this one is already opened. It is not likely the same scroll as Revelation 5, because this one is a little scroll. Some, like Robert Mounce, argue that its contents are given in the chapter that follows. [3]
3. And he cried with a great voice like a lion roars, and when he cried, the seven thunders spoke with their own voices. 4. And when the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write, and I heard a voice from the sky saying, "Seal up what the seven thunders spoke and do not write them."
It is a true puzzle why, in a book where Christ tells John to write down the vision, he is expressly told not to write down what these seven thunders say. It is a reminder that we do not have the authority to know everything. Some of the great interest in the book of Revelation is a thirst for secret knowledge, to know what others do not know. At the very least, this moment is a reminder that we do not get to know everything.
Some think the idea of seven thunders is modeled on Psalm 29, where the voice of Yahweh is mentioned seven times, at least once in thunder. However, this seems a stretch. It is often noted that the article specifies these as the seven thunders, suggesting that this is imagery that John's community already was acquainted with.
In this regard, it is tempting to see a connection between John as a "son of thunder" (cf. Mark 3:17) and these thunders. Were these seven revelations associated with John that were too volatile to put in writing? But that is a purely speculative thought.
5. And the angel that I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised up his right hand to the sky. 6. And he swore by the One living forever and ever, who created the heaven and the things in it and the earth and the things in it and the sea and the things in it. [He swore] that delay [4] will be no longer.
Daniel 12 seems to stand in the background of this image. A man clothed in linen, standing on the bank of a river, lifts his right and left hands toward heaven and swears by the One who lives forever.
What he swears, however, is that there will be a period to wait consisting of "a time, times, and a half a time." This is of course language we will soon encounter in Revelation 12:14. So, while Daniel looks from the standpoint of the beginning of that period, Revelation 10:6 looks to the time at the end of that time.
Most scholars of course think Daniel had in mind the period of the Maccabean revolt from 167-164 BC. But Revelation, as usual, cooks its own recipe with the Old Testament ingredients. We will soon argue that this three-and-a-half year period represents this current age, the time between the snatching of Christ to heaven (Rev. 12:4) and his return in final judgment.
The delay of Christ's return has troubled believers since the time of the very first disciples. By any reckoning, 2000 years is quite a surprise. The easiest accommodation is to see the end of delay here as a comment on the end times rather than John's own day. That is, to locate the end of delay to the time when the period of the great ordeal is ending. Whether John himself would have anticipated such a long wait is another question.
The King James Version interpreted verse 6 philosophically, "time shall be no more." But this is not the way the book of Revelation generally uses the word chronos. [5] There will be activity in eternity, so even if it is not the same as our current earthly time, by definition the kingdom will at least have its own time.
The martyrs in Revelation 6:9-11 were wondering how long it would be until God would finally bring justice to the empire that put them to death. Habakkuk also asked the Lord "How long?" God answered that prophet that judgment would not be delayed (Hab. 2:3). That passage almost certainly stands in the background of this statement here as well.
7. But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, whenever he is about to sound the trumpet and the mystery of God was finished, as he announced the good news to his own servants, the prophets.
Perhaps here we get a hint of what the seven thunders said. The "mystery of God" is accomplished in the judgment. So in that sense, perhaps the whole book of Revelation is letting us in on the secret revelation that was not written down in that moment.
We are reminded that we are in an intermission between the sixth and seventh trumpet. I have left the aorist tense of "was finished" in place to point out the emphasis. It is what we might call a "proleptic" or "futuristic aorist," where a future event is announced with such certainty that it is rendered as an event that is already accomplished.
The accomplishment of justice is part of the good news, the gospel. John looks back to the Old Testament prophets and the coming restoration that they announced. We think especially of Isaiah 52:7, where the prophet announces the good news of Israel's salvation. The judgment of the wicked world is more than judgment. It is also the full arrival of the kingdom of God.
It is of course also possible that John has New Testament prophets in view as well. When Ephesians 2:20 talks about prophets as the foundation of the church, it almost certainly had New Testament prophets in view. There is a tendency to underestimate the role that such prophets played in the early church. However, in this instance, it is perhaps more likely that the prophets of the Old Testament were in view.
8. And the voice that I heard from the sky again speaking with me and saying, "Go. Take the scroll that has been opened in the hand of the angel standing on the sea and on the land." 9. And I went away to the angel saying to him to give to me the little scroll. And he says to me, "Take and eat it. And it will be bitter in your stomach, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey."
The obvious background for this imagery is Ezekiel 2-3, in which the prophet is told to eat a scroll that tastes sweet as honey. However, in Revelation's "cooking," the scroll then becomes bitter in his stomach. It is perhaps a reminder that the judgment of the world is bitter sweet. On the one hand, it is sweet for justice to be done. And yet, the devastation of the wicked should give us no pleasure.
The ordeal that the faithful must endure is also bitter. If Revelation 11 gives us the content of the scroll, then we can see that what the "two witnesses" must endure has its own share of bitterness.
John asks for the angel to give him the scroll, but the angel tells John to take it. Perhaps there is some emphasis here on the fact that we are active in our acceptance of our mission and the persecution that may accompany it. We do not merely endure it. We embrace and move forward in it.
10. And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and I ate it, and it was in my mouth as sweet honey and when I ate it, it was bitter in my stomach. 11. And they say to me, "It is necessary for you again to prophesy about many peoples and nations and tongues and kings."
The fact that eating the scroll leads to the charge to continue to prophecy about many peoples and nations, tongues and kings suggests that the words that follow in Revelation 11 are in fact the content of the scroll. The taste of the scroll is exactly as the angel had predicted.
The scope of the judgment goes beyond Rome. Just as the kingdom will see people from every "nation, tribe, people, and language" (Rev. 7:9), so many peoples and nations and languages will be judged for their wickedness. This verse adds "kings" to the list, clearly indicating that the judgment goes beyond Rome. [6]
[1] So also Mounce, Revelation, 199.
[2] Robert Mulholland disagrees, seeing the angel almost certainly as Christ. Revelation, 200.
[3] Mounce, Revelation, 210.
[4] Literally, "time will be no longer." But the sense is not the end of time in some philosophical sense. The point is that time has run out. There will be no more delay.
[5] Cf. 2:21, 6:11, and 20:3.
[6] Although Mounce takes this to anticipate the kings of Revelation 17:10-12. Revelation, 211.
No comments:
Post a Comment