Revelation 1:4-8
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- Reading the Text:
- NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
- Greek Interlinear Bible, ScrTR, ScrTR t, Strong, Parsing, CGTS, CGES id, AV.
- The Bible Gateway: NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
- The Blue Letter Bible - KJV, alternate versions, Greek text with concordance, commentaries.
- The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary, exposition & sermons.
- Historical References, Commentary and
Comparative Texts:
- "Jesus' Apocalyptic Return," The Jesus Database, an online annotated inventory of the traditions concerning the life and teachings of Jesus. Dr. Gregory C. Jenks, FaithFutures Foundation.
- Chapter III, The Epistle of Ignatius to the Smyrnaeans, Ignatius of Antioch (c. 110). (Longer Version only - 4th cent interpolation)
- Chapter XIV, Adversus Judaeos, Tertullian (c. 198)
- I.6, Paedagogus, Clement of Alexandria (c 200)
- Chapter VII, Exhortation to Chastity, Tertullian (c. 210)
- Chapter LI, On the Resurrection of the Flesh, Tertullian (c. 211)
- Chapter XVII, Against Praxeas, Tertullian (c. 213)
- Chapter VII, On Monogamy, Tertullian (c. 215)
- I.II.10, First Principles (De Principiis), Origen. (c.225)
- I.34-35, Commentary on the Gospel of John, Origen. (c.228)
- V.2, VII.25, Ecclesiastical History, Eusebius of Caesarea, (c. 320).
- From the
Geneva Notes.
- "I am he before whom there was nothing, indeed, by whom everything that is made, was made: and I shall remain though everything else should perish."
- From
Matthew
Henry's Commentary.
- "There can be no true peace, where there is not true grace; and where grace goeth before, peace will follow."
- From
Wesley's
Notes.
- "Three glorious appellations are here given him, and in their proper order. He was the faithful witness of the whole will of God before his death, and in death, and remains such in glory. He rose from the dead, as "the first fruits of them that slept;" and now hath all power both in heaven and earth. He is here styled a prince: but by and by he hears his title of king; yea, King of kings, and Lord of lords." This phrase, the kings of the earth, signifies their power and multitude, and also the nature of their kingdom. It became the Divine Majesty to call them kings with a limitation; especially in this manifesto from his heavenly kingdom; for no creature, much less a sinful man, can bear the title of king in an absolute sense before the eyes of God."
- From the
Commentary on the Whole Bible
(Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
- ""He was the faithful witness, because all things that He heard of the Father He faithfully made known to His disciples. Also, because He taught the way of God in truth, and cared not for man, nor regarded the persons of men. Also, because the truth which He taught in words He confirmed by miracles. Also, because the testimony to Himself on the part of the Father He denied not even in death. Lastly, because He will give true testimony of the works of good and bad at the day of judgment" [RICHARD OF ST. VICTOR in TRENCH]."
- From
The
People's New Testament, B.W. Johnson, 1891.
- "I am the Alpha and the Omega. The first and last letters of the Greek alphabet; hence "the beginning and the end." All begins with God and he closes the drama of earthly history."
- Contemporary Commentary, Studies, and Exegesis:
-
- "On 'Doubting Thomas' Sunday, it is hard to entertain the possibility of preaching on another text. Revelation 1:4-8, however, gives us three good options."
-
- "...the violence and greed of our culture in fact do test our faith, sometimes in shocking and unexpected ways. So preaching this text requires us to search out particular, local points of conflict and opposition to the reign of Christ in the immediate realities of our congregations."
-
"First
Thoughts on Epistle Passages in the Lectionary,"
Easter 2, William Loader, Murdoch University, Uniting Church in
Australia.
- "In the beginning: God; in the end: God; in the midst of life: God. These are less statements about time and place as they are statements of hope and trust."
- "The Art of Final Judgment," study guide, Robert B. Kruschwitz, (other resources at) "Heaven and Hell," Christian Reflection, The Center for Christian Ethics at Baylor University, 2002.
-
"What Kind of King?" William Dyrness, The Christian Century,
1994.
- "While we celebrate God's reign among his people we are still all too painfully aware of the many challenges ranged against this rule."
- "John's Vision of Christ the King," Rev. Bryan Findlayson, Lectionary Bible Studies and Sermons, Pumpkin Cottage Ministry Resources. Includes detailed textual notes.
-
"Royal Choice," Keith D. Herron, The Christian Century,
2006.
- "If Jesus is king not just once a year and on a throne but throughout all of time and in every place, then we don't have to be king, or seek another king."
-
"Anticipating the End," Larry Broding's Word-Sunday.Com:
A Catholic Resource for This Sunday's Gospel.
- "How do you anticipate the coming of the Lord? How does such anticipation affect your worship?"
- Excerpt (Revelation 1) from Ian Boxall, The Revelation of Saint John, Black's New Testament Commentary, Hendrickson, 2006. (Scroll down for link to sample chapter.)
- Excerpt (Revelation 1) from George B. Caird, The Revelation of Saint John, Black's New Testament Commentary, Hendrickson, 1993. (Scroll down for link to sample chapter.)
- "The Living Presence of Christ in the Church," God's Song of Revelation: From Easter to Pentecost in the Apocalypse, Wendell W. Frerichs , Word & World Texts in Context, Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary, 1986.
- "Revelation Texts in Easter," Mary Hinkle, Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary, Pilgrim Preaching.
-
-
"A Different Kind of Seeing,"
Expository Essay,
Revelation 1, Dr. William R. Long.
- "In our day I think that Revelation most speaks to those who have experienced and understood incredible cruelty and pain."
- "'The Lamb Who Was Slain Has Begun His Reign. Amen!' Texts from the Revelation to John for the Sundays of Easter," James H. Burtness, Word & World, 1992.
- "The Prologue
(Revelation 1:1-8)," by J. Hampton Keathley III at the Biblical Studies Foundation.
- "For His present ministry??who loves us.? The Greek text uses one article with two adjectival participles which descriptively portray the person, work, and ministry of the Lord. Literally??the one who loves, ? and who released us, ?? The construction of the Greek text ascribes Christ?s love for us as a constant quality and characteristic. It speaks of His constant care and ministry on our behalf."
- Environmental & earth-centered reflections from the Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota Environmental Stewardship Commission.
-
"First Thoughts on Year B Epistle Passages in the Lectionary," William
Loader, Murdoch University, Uniting Church in Australia.
- "The elaborate imagery about Jesus comes from the world of courts and kings, and the rituals which accompanied them. It was a way of saying: God has underlined that this Jesus really was the valid exponent of what God's being and doing, his going and his coming, is about."
-
- Articles & Background:
- "The Introduction to the Book," from The Most Revealing Book of the Bible, Vernard Eller.
-
What Shall We Believe, Aurelia T. Fule, 1987. Full text online at
Religion Online.
- "A detailed analysis and critique, by a Reformed theologian, of what preachers like Jerry Falwell are saying about 'the last things.'"
- Recommended articles
from ATLAS, an online collection of religion and theology journals, are
linked below.
ATLAS Access options are available for academic institutions, alumni of
selected theological schools, and clergy/church offices.
- Bandstra, Andrew J.,
"'A Kingship and Priests': Inaugurated Eschatology in the Apocalypse,"
Calvin Theological Journal, 1992.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Blevins, James L.,
"Revelation 1-3," Review and Expositor, 1990.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Blount, Brian K.,
"Reading Revelation Today: Witness as Active Resistance,"
Interpretation, 2000.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Burtness, James H.,
"'The Lamb Who Was Slain Has Begun His Reign. Amen!' Texts from the Revelation
to John for the Sundays of Easter," Word & World, 1992.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Brighton, Louis A., "Christological Trinitarian
Theology in the Book of Revelation," Concordia Journal, 2008.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Charles, Gary W.,
"Diving into Wonderland: Preaching Revelation in the Mainline Pulpit,"
Journal for Preachers, 2006.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Cook, W. Robert,
"The 'Glory' Motif in the Johannine Corpus," Journal of the Evangelical
Theological Society, 1984.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Dyrness, William,
"What Kind of King?" The Christian Century, 1994.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Fiorenza, Elisabeth Schüssler,
"Redemption as Liberation: Apoc 1:5f and 5:9f," Catholic Biblical
Quarterly, 1974.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Frerichs, Wendell W.,
"God's Song of Revelation: From Easter to Pentecost in the Apocalypse,"
Word & World, 1986.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Hauerwas, Stanley,
"Embodied Memory," Journal for Preachers, 1996.
(Sermon)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Herron, Keith, D., "Royal Choice," The Christian
Century, 2006.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Lewis, David I., "Homiletical Helps on LW Series B -
Epistles," Concordia Journal, 2007. (Section on this text begins on
p. 412.)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Siker, Jeffrey S.,
"Revelation 1:4-9, Between Text & Sermon," Interpretation, 2007.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Thompson, Leonard,
"Lamentation for Christ as a Hero: Revelation 1:7," Journal of Biblical
Literature, 2000.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Thompson, Leonard,
"Son of God, Seed of David: Paul's Messianic Exegesis in Romans 2:3-4,"
Journal of Biblical Literature, 2000.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
- Bandstra, Andrew J.,
"'A Kingship and Priests': Inaugurated Eschatology in the Apocalypse,"
Calvin Theological Journal, 1992.
- Reviews:
- Sermons:
- "Saltwater Apocalypse," the Rev. Eugenia Gamble, Day 1, 1997.
- With Children:
- "I Am Alpha and Omega," Sunday School Lessons: Family Bible Study, art projects, music, stories, etc.
- Drama:
- Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
- Images for this week's readings, Pitts Theology Library Digital Image Archive.
- Hymns and Music:
- Hymns with Scripture Allusions: Revelation 1:5, 7, 8. The Cyber Hymnal.
- Hymnal Scripture References, The Lutheran Hymnal, Lutheran Worship.
- At Digital Hymnal (midi files, guitar chords, karaoke files, projection text):
- Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
- Study Links and Resources for the Book of Revelation
