In Revelation 21-22 in Light of Jewish and Greco-Roman Utopianism, Eric J. Gilchrest offers a creative and compelling reading of Revelation 21-22 as understood through the lens of ancient utopianism. The work is in two parts beginning with a detailed portrait of ancient utopianism based on Greco-Roman and Jewish traditions. The portrait sketches the “topography” of the utopian landscape, which includes a thorough account of various traditions using fourteen utopian topoi or motifs. The author then moves to a description of Revelation’s new Jerusalem in light of these two utopian traditions. With sensitivity to how this text would have been read by each utopian perspective, the author constructs a unique reading of a classic passage that highlights the variety of ways the text originally may have been heard.

Pairing depth of scholarship with contemporary application, the authors of From Pentecost to Patmos have produced a unique introductory New Testament textbook. Craig Blomberg and Darlene Seal provide the context and clarity that readers need to better understand Acts through Revelation, showcasing the historical, linguistic, and theological implications found in each book. This second edition includes expanded footnotes and a lengthier, up-to-date introduction to Paul. Newly added review questions, maps, and diagrams enhance the scholarship and make the resource truly user-friendly.

This book is meant to be a companion and guide through what many deem to be the most perplexing book of the New Testament. As such, it introduces the reader to the kind of literature Revelation is, how to interpret its pervasive symbolism, and sees it as a response to the unique circumstances of seven historical churches in first-century Asia Minor living under the shadow of the Roman Empire. This companion pays special attention to the literary context and flow of argument of John’s unique book, while also giving attention to the effect the visions would have had on the first churches. It also pays attention to the more perplexing details of the text. Revelation was primarily a book that called the churches to maintain their faithful witness in the face of a hostile environment. It also continues to speak to the church today, though perhaps not in the way we often think.

According to Bruce Ashford and Craig Bartholomew, one of the best sources for regaining a robust, biblical doctrine of creation is the recovery of Dutch neo-Calvinism. Tracing historical treatments and exploring theological themes, Ashford and Bartholomew develop the Kuyperian tradition's rich resources on creation for systematic theology and the life of the church today.

In an effort to bring the (im)practicalities of John’s command for withdrawal from cultural participation in 18:4 to the forefront of scholarly discourse, this book reconstructs the marble economy of ancient Ephesus and proceeds to read Revelation by foregrounding the daily lives of its marble-workers. This book argues that Ephesus was a major center of the marble economy in the Roman world and that the infrastructure that went into creating, building, and sustaining such an enterprise generated the need for a large workforce. Anna M. V. Bowden further demonstrates that the majority of marble-workers endured poor working conditions and struggled on a daily basis to ensure subsistence. Finally, Bowden explores the ways marble-workers participated in empire “through the work of their hands” (9:20) and questions John’s characterization of marble-workers as idolaters, sorcerers, murderers, fornicators, and thieves. Bowden concludes that the praxis Revelation requires from its audience of complete withdrawal is pragmatically not sustainable and is ultimately a manifesto leaving marble-workers jobless, hungry, and with a heightened risk for malnutrition, disease, injury, and even death.

In this landmark commentary, Craig R. Koester offers a comprehensive look at a powerful and controversial early Christian text, the book of Revelation. The author provides richly textured descriptions of the book’s setting and language, making extensive use of Greek and Latin inscriptions, classical texts, and ancient Jewish writings, including the Dead Sea Scrolls. Rather than viewing Revelation as world-negating, Koester focuses on its deep engagement with social, religious, and economic issues while addressing the book’s volatile history of interpretation. The result is a groundbreaking study that provides bold new insights and sets new directions for the continued appreciation of this text.

The Oxford Handbook of Postcolonial Biblical Criticism is a comprehensive treatment of a relatively new form of scholarship-one of the most compelling and contested theories to emerge in recent times, and a topic that actively seeks to expand the ways in which the Bible can be studied, interpreted, and applied. Generally speaking, postcolonialism aims to critique and dismantle hegemonic worldviews and power structures, while giving voice to previously marginalized peoples and systems of thought. This approach, often varied in form, has inevitably engaged with the text and reception of the Bible, a scripture that Western colonizers introduced to-and often imposed upon-their colonial subjects. With a globally diverse list of contributors, the Handbook aims to cover the perspective and context of the authors of the Bible, as well as the modern experiences of imperialism, resistance, decolonization, and nationalism. Moreover, the volume includes both a theoretical overview and an exploration of how the field intersects with related areas, such as gender studies, race, postmodernism, and liberation theology.

The Book of Revelation is the last book in the canon of the New Testament, and its only apocalyptic document, though there are short apocalyptic passages in various places in the gospels and the epistles. This second of two volumes on Revelation offers a systematic and thorough interpretation of the latter chapters of the book. Revelation brings together the worlds of heaven, earth and hell in a final confrontation between the forces of good and evil. Its characters and images are both real and symbolic, spiritual and material, and it is frequently difficult to know the difference between them, Revelation's cryptic nature has ensure that it would always be a source of controversy. This commentary focuses on the theological content, gleaning the best from both the classical and modern commentary traditions and showing the doctrinal development of Scriptural truths. Scholarship on the book of Revelation has nonetheless not only endured, but even captured the imagination of generations of Bible students, both professionals and laypeople alike. Through its focus on the message of the book through scholarly analysis, this ITC reconnects to the ecclesial tradition of biblical commentary as an effort in ressourcement, though not slavish repetition.

The symbolism of Revelation has puzzled readers for centuries. Every generation falls prey to extreme views of interpretation. Even worse, they minimize the importance of John’s Apocalypse by not teaching or preaching from it. Yet Revelation is a profound work of New Testament theology and warrants a close study. John expects and prepares believers to follow the Lamb through suffering and possible martyrdom. The problem is centered on what the symbols mean. Are they literal? Are they symbolic? Do the images refer to events and people in the first century, or to the last days of planet earth? Moreover, how is the book structured? Is it one vision, four visions, or more? Are the visions linear or recapped? Lions, Locusts, and the Lamb: Interpreting Key Images in the Book of Revelation demonstrates a way to unlock John’s structure and unravel his symbols. The key is to follow a logical step-by-step interpretive approach that accents the historical, cultural, intertextual, extratextual, and particularly intratextual allusions and connections. The result is a book that delivers the basic meaning of three hundred images and categorizes them into an accessible guide for teachers, preachers, and readers of Revelation.

Explains why apocalyptic thought, despite often being dismissed as bizarre, has persistent appeal in political life.