Robert Lowery

In the second part we focused on the style of genres of the book. The form shaped the substance in a significant way. Closely related to the genre is the use of symbolism in the book.

III. CONSIDER THE SYMBOLISM OF THE BOOK

I know of no interpreter, denials notwithstanding, who interprets everything in Revelation literally, plain and unadorned. No one believes that Jesus is literally a door or a Lamb or that the Devil is literally a Dragon. There are those who say that anyone who does not interpret Revelation literally is denying its inspired message. This is a bogus perspective. Such accusers themselves do not practice such an approach to language. Once again, we must interpret a book of the Bible naturally in light of its genre. It was the nature of such apocalyptic works in the ancient world to use symbolism.

Rev. 1:1 as translated in the KJV highlights the use of symbolism: “The revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John.” He sent and signified it . . . Unpack one verb, signify. God signified it, that is, God made the message known in signs. As John revealed Christ through the signs in the Gospel, so Christ is revealed through signs in the Revelation!

There are three areas where we need to try to keep the balance.

A. We need to keep the balance between the literal and the figurative. By literal I mean the plain, unadorned meaning of a word; there are no hidden layers of meaning. By figurative, we mean that something may mean something other than its original, natural sense; a word is like an onion and has to be peeled. Truth is expressed in both literal and non-literal or figurative ways.

There is a God and Christ and Spirit and Church and Devil, simply put, but they may be described in fantastic images: God is like jasper and carnelian; Christ is like a lamb; the Spirit is like blazing lamps; the Church is like two witnesses and the Devil is like a dragon or a serpent. John actually saw scorpions, beasts, and locusts, but the emphasis is on the reality they symbolize. John speaks of realities beyond human descriptive experience. He points to something real, but the images are not reality itself.

Moreover, we must interpret the symbols in light of their context, both Old Testament and in the Revelation itself. I don’t read the Book of Revelation with the newspaper in one hand and the Bible in the other. Today’s headlines are not the interpretive key to Revelation. Understanding the meaning John’s readers would have seen in it. We must discover the source of the symbolism and more often than not we will find it in the Bible itself.

Furthermore, we must beware of pressing the details; they may belong to the overall picture or they may be used for dramatic effect. Do not let the big picture be obscured by bits and pieces. Look for the central meaning of the picture. Look for the essence rather than for exactness.

B. We need to keep the balance between truth and parody. Parody is understood as a feeble imitation of the real or of the true. By its very nature, parody assumes that there is truth. On a theological level, the forces of evil acknowledge that there is truth by their very efforts to imitate truth! And this is a feature highlighted in Revelation. Evil often parades or tries to present itself as good.

Consider the parody that goes on in Revelation: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit , the Holy Trinity, are mocked by the Unholy trinity, the Dragon, the Sea Beast and the Earth Beast; the sea-beast has a fatal wound yet lives thereby mocking the Lamb of God who has a fatal wound and yet lives; the earth-beast has horns like a lamb but speaks like a dragon whereas Christ is the Lamb of God and speaks with authority; we read of a tale of two cities, Babylon the great versus the New Jerusalem, the former being a symbol for people who follow the dragon and the other being a symbol for the redeemed people of God; white is associated with both evil (Rev. 6:1f.) and with good (Rev. 19:10f.); Christians are sealed by God (Rev. 7) whereas followers of the Dragon have the mark of the beast (Rev. 13); we read of a Whore who seduces and of a Bride who keeps herself pure; as there are two witnesses testifying to the Gospel there are two beasts opposing the two witnesses of God. Begin to make your own list early and you will marvel at the beauty of the images.

C. We need to keep in balance the plain and the paradoxical. The word “plain” means “clearly understood; evident; obvious” whereas “paradoxical” means “a statement contrary to common belief; a statement that seems contradictory, unbelievable or absurd but may be true in fact.” Surely I do not need to focus on the plain in Revelation: the reality of church, of evil, etc. But consider the images of paradox: a Lamb defeating a Dragon; a Lamb shepherding people; a people following the Lamb wherever he goes; victory achieved by sacrifice. Love, purity, holiness, and faithfulness will defeat all earthly power.

Related posts:

1. Trying to Keep Your Balance: Preaching the Revelation—Some Reflections (Part 3 of 5)