The Apocalypse of St. John: A Revelation of Love and Power

by Lawrence R Farley

Overview

The Book of Revelation has inspired controversy ever since it was written in the first century. It was the last book to be accepted into the New Testament canon, and today a myriad of mutually contradictory end-times speculations claim to be based on its teachings. Fr. Lawrence Farley provides a sober, patristic interpretation that reads Revelation in its proper context of Jewish apocalyptic literature. He demonstrates that the most important lesson we can learn from Revelation today is the need to remain faithful in a time of widespread hostility to the Christian faith.

One volume in "The Orthodox Bible Study Companion" series. This series was written for the average layperson, for the nonprofessional who feels a bit intimidated by the presence of copious footnotes, long bibliographies, and all those other things which so enrich academics. Working from a literal translation of the original Greek, this commentary examines the text section by section, explaining its meaning in everyday language. Written from an Orthodox and patristic perspective, it maintains a balance between the devotitonal and the exegetical, feeding both the heart and the mind.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781936270408
Publisher:	Ancient Faith Publishing
Publication date:	12/07/2005
Series:	Orthodox Bible Study Companion
Pages:	244
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.55(d)

About the Author

Archpriest Lawrence Farley is the pastor of St. Herman of Alaska Orthodox Church (OCA) in Langley, B.C., Canada. He received his B.A. from Trinity College, Toronto, and his M.Div. from Wycliffe College, Toronto. A former Anglican priest, he converted to Orthodoxy in 1985 and studied for two years at St. Tikhon's Orthodox Seminary in Pennsylvania.

Table of Contents

/Introduction to the Series

A Word about Scholarship and Translation / 9

Key to the Format of This Work / 11

Introduction to the Apocalypse of St. John

The Apocalypse of St. John / 13

Author and Date / 14

The Purpose of the Apocalypse / 15

The Apocalypse as Genre: True Vision or Literary Device? / 17

The Apocalypse and the Fathers / 19

I. Opening (1:1–20) / 23

1. Introduction (1:1–3) / 23

2. Episolary Greeting (1:4–6) / 27

3. The Things John Saw: The Vision of Christ’s Glory (1:7–20) / 30

II. The Things Which Are: Messages to the Seven Churches of Asia (2:1—3:22) / 37

The Structure of the Messages to the Seven Churches / 37

1. To the Church at Ephesus (2:1–7) / 39

2. To the Church at Smyrna (2:8–11) / 43

3. To the Church at Pergamum (2:12–17) / 45

4. To the Church at Thyatira (2:18–29) / 49

5. To the Church at Sardis (3:1–6) / 53

6. To the Church at Philadelphia (3:7–13) / 56

7. To the Church at Laodicea (3:14–22) / 61

III. The Things Which Will Take Place Hereafter: Visions of Judgment, Persecution,

and Triumph (4:1—11:14) / 67

1. The Worship of God, the Creator (4:1–11) / 67

2. The Worship of the Lamb, the Redeemer (5:1–14) / 72

3. The Opening of the Seven Seals (6:1–17) / 78

4. Interlude: The Church Sealed and Prepared for the Conflict (7:1–17) / 90

5. The Opening of the Seventh Seal: Final Wrath Begins—The Seven Trumpets (8:1—9:19) / 101

The Seven Trumpets and the Language of the Apocalyptic Genre / 101

6. Interlude: John Eats the Little Book and Measures the Temple; the Church Preaches the Gospel

through Persecution (10:1—11:14) / 114

IV. The End of All Things (11:15—18:24) / 127

1. The Blowing of the Seventh Trumpet: The Last Outpouring of Wrath Begins (11:15–19) / 127

2 Interlude: Signs in Heaven—The Church Is Persecuted by the World (12:1—15:4) / 129

3. The Seven Bowls: The Final Plagues of Judgment (15:5—16:21) / 168

4. The Judgment of Babylon the Great (17:1—18:24) / 177

V. The New Beginning (19:1—22:21) / 191

1. The Second Coming of Christ: The Final Victory (19:1—20:15) / 191

2. The New Jerusalem: The Church’s Inheritance and Reward (21:1—22:5) / 210

3. Conclusion (22:6–20) / 222

4. Epistolary Blessing (22:21) / 229

A Practical Conclusion / 229

Excurses:

On the Beatitudes of the Apocalypse / 26

On the Wrath of the Lamb / 88

On the Church as Israel / 93

On the Transformation of Rome and the Rise of the Beast / 144

On the Beast of the Apocalypse and the Final Antichrist / 151

On the Apocalyptic Church as Martyric / 156