Revelation of Jesus Christ: Which God Gave to Him to Show to His Servants What Must Soon Take Place (Revelation 1.1)

Description

This text is an approach to the Book of Revelation. It illuminates the formative years of Christianity, in the social, religious and political situation of mid-first-century Palestine.

Margaret Barker is a former President of the Society for Old Testament Study, and author of numerous works, including The Older Testament, The Lost Prophet, The Gate of Heaven, The Great Angel.

'This is a very exciting and suggestive book. Margaret Barker strips off the varnish applied to the portrait of Jesus Christ by generations of desk bound scholars. She reveals a fresh and startling Christ, but one who is entirely believable in the diversity of first century Judaism which she has so dramatically illuminated.' The Rt Revd and Rt Hon. Richard Chartres, Bishop of London 'This is a serious book and one that will provoke much debate and reflection.' The Bible Today 'The case is argued by massive (but readable) scholarship. But does it hold together? If Margaret Barker is correct, how come this book got into the same New Testament as the letters of Paul whom it so vehemently opposed? Read her case; it will stimulate your own thinking. And then make your own mind up.' Canon Michael Perry, Church Times 'Margaret Barker makes the Book of Revelation make sense. It no longer stands apart at the edge of the Christian Bible, but appears as a key New Testament text, showing us the world of images in which the early Christians thought their religion. Margaret Barker has written a compelling book. It reshapes our understanding of early Christianity, its literature and its liturgy.' Professor David Melling, Manchester Metropolitan University "This commentary-like series of essays on the book of Revelation offers a fresh and complete interpretation of what Barker considers one of the earliest [...] NT writings...Barker's book demonstrates that there can be no convincing account of early Christian history without a proper understanding of the book of Revelation. Highly recommended!" - International Review of Biblical Studies, 1999/2000 "Barker is one of a growing number who have seen the potential significance of the Temple and its mythology for the classic Christian creeds". --International Journal of Systematic Theology 3.2 (July 2001) This is a brave book and an intriguing one... it must be said that not the least intriguing aspect of the author's presentation is the wide cast of her net: she has read and mastered an astonishingly broad range of primary texts. The Heythrop Journal, July 2003.