We stressed before, as Poythress would put it, that the book of Revelation is not a puzzle book but a picture book. That is, the book’s formal structure is a series of four visions. It is a word picture book (that even includes word sound effects).
If I can simplify something Poythress argues about the way John communicates this revelation without missing the mark, I think he says that the epistle moves from normal messages (7 letters) to more symbolic messages (the seven seals and trumpets), to even deeper symbolic messages (the seven symbols, seven bowls, etc.), to what he calls a “climactic level of integration of symbols” for Rev 21:9-22:5. To put it another way, the communication becomes less direct and more symbolic as the book progresses.
But if you have not already noticed between the last post and this one, the number seven is a prominent pointer to the structure of the book. Poythress observes that there are seven major sevens covering the epistle that form a chiasm: 7 letters, 7 seals, 7 trumpets, 7 symbols (at the center of the chiasm), 7 bowls, 7 words about Babylon, and 7 last things. He says the first and last things are promise and fulfillment respectively. The second and third and the fifth and sixth things concern judgment.
I mention the seven sevens here because it is not the only way the number seven is significant. In Poythress’ outlines of the rhetorical structure of the book he shows how it covers the past (Rev 1:9-20), the present (at the writing of the book, Rev 2:1-3:22), and “what is to be” (Rev 4:1-22:5). Under that last heading there are seven cycles and then an eighth act — the new Jerusalem. I would note that this resembles the creation week plus the eighth day. In the beginning were seven days, the seventh without a concluding formula (Genesis does not say, “and there was evening and there was morning, day seven”), but when it does end then will come day eight (the new heavens and earth). Day eight has begun ahead of time for Jesus Christ. Thus we worship on the first day of the week rather than the seventh (pointing us to day 8).
The seven cycles all include the final judgment. Each cycle begins a little later, the first five ending with the final judgment and the last two beginning before and continuing after it. Each cycle introduces a character/scene, tells us six judgments, gives a promise to the church, and then tells us about the seventh final judgment. The pattern is repeated on a larger level in that the character (the creator and judge) is revealed in Rev 4:1-11, the first six cycles of judgment, then the promise for the saints is Rev 20:1-10, and then the seventh final judgment is the white throne judgment. The main way people err when interpreting Revelation is to miss these patterns and the recapitulations. Later cycles recap things covered in previous cycles. Because the sixth and seventh cycles begin as late as they do these two cycles do not give six judgments but they still follow the pattern: character, judgment, promise, judgment. The seventh judgment in each and the judgment in the last two cycles is the final judgment/second coming. And after the judgment is the new creation.
The number seven is especially appropriate because it conveys the idea of completion and perfection. The book of Revelation amazes me how it can rhetorically point to the eighth day through the use of seven cycles plus one new creation and it can formally point to this end using four visions to the wisdom pattern of three plus one new creation. And we have only scratched the surface.
Thus to return for a moment to the title of the book. It is the book of REVELATION — no s. It is not a book of many revelations. It is ONE revelation. Because so much of the book tells us about the same period of time in different ways it is fitting that we remember that these are different ways of stating the same revelation. And this should also remind us to stick with the big picture. You can get lost in the details of the book and get complicated trying to associate each thing with something when we need to remember the big picture (it is a word picture book after all)– Christ is coming again.
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