nts 501 nt intro and survey class xiii: 1-3 john; jude; revelation

NTS 501 NT INTRO AND SURVEY

Class XIII: 1-3 John; Jude; Revelation

1-3 John; Jude; Revelation

1.1 Introduction to 1-3 John“I have never read a book written in simpler words than this one,

and yet the words are inexpressible.” M. Luther

• Popular passages in 1 John?• E.g. “God is love”

• What about 2-3 John?• Why is their purpose in the Canon?


1.2 Historical and Critical Issues• Authorship

• Early church tradition: John the Son of Zebedee (1 Jh)• Esp. from Irenaeus on• Some doubted 2-3 Jh• Titles added later (2nd century)

• Options• John the apostle• John the elder (cf. 2 John 1; 3 John 1)• Unknown ‘John’ – “disciple that Jesus loved” (cf. John 13:23)

• Editor of John’s gospel

• Probably the same author as John’s gospel• Language and style – used in similar way

• “only begotten”; “Word”; “paraclete”; “light”; “world”; “love”• Similar theology, e.g. Christology, love of one another, Dualism etc.


• Date, Provenance, Situation, Purpose• AD 90s - from Ephesus?• 1 John not a letter – more like theological treatise

• 2-3 John follow letter format more closely

• Situation – conflict and schism among the churches • “deceivers”; “liars”; “false prophets”; “antichrist” (2Jh7; 1Jh 2:4,

22; 4:20; 4:1; 2:18; 4:3) - some “went out from us…didn’t belong” • Claim to be w/o sin (1:8-10)• Claim to love God but hate others (2:9-11; 3:10-18; 4:8, 20)• Deny that Jesus is Christ come into flesh (2:22; 4:1-3)• Don’t confess Jesus & deny Father and Son (4:3; 2:22-23)


Author gives guidelines to the difficult situation• 1 John – benefits & instructions for staying in community• 2 John – no hospitality for troublemakers• 3 John – Gaius to grant hospitality to Demetrius

• Relationship b/w 1, 2, and 3 John?• Written in order of numbering• Three letter packet: 2 John (cover letter) & 1 John (tract – deals

w/ aftermath of the conflict); 3 John (personal note to Gaius)


1.3 Themes in 1-3 John• Christ’s humanity & divinity

• Opening: life & ministry of Jesus (1:1-3) – cf. John 1:1-3• Touched & seen (cf. 2:7, 24; 3:11)• “come in the flesh” (4:1-3)• “came by water and blood…not only by water” (5:6-7)

• The importance of Jesus’ death as atonement• Atoning sacrifice for sins (Gk. hilasmos; 2:2; 4:10)

• Expiation or propitiation

• Pronouns about God and Jesus indistinguishable (1:9-10; 2:3-6, 27-28; 3:23-24; 4:17)• Jesus as God (5:20)


• Sin or not to sin – the puzzle about sin• Person who abides in Christ does not sin (3:6, 9)• Claims to be w/o sin – liar (1:8, 10)• But also confession of sin (1:9; cf. 2:1-2; 5:16)

• Does this indicate• Willful sin• Continuous sin• Person who sins does not ‘abide in Christ’ in the moment of sin• Rhetorical construct to exhort holiness & purity


• What about the “sin that leads to death” (5:16-17)• One is not to pray for such person

• Does it refer to• Sin that has lead to person’s physical death• Idolatry (cf. 5:21)• Denying Christ (cf. 2:22)• Willful and persistent sin


• Love• Love one another (3:10-11, 14, 23; 4:7-8, 11-12, 19-21; 5:2; 2 John 5)

• Love in 1-3 John refers to• Keeping God’s commandments (5:2-3; cf. 2:7)• Imitation of God & Jesus (2:6; 3:16; 4:11-12)

• Laying down their life as Jesus did (3:16)• Sharing material resources w/ poor & needy (3:17)

• Love originates w/ God (4:8-10, 16)• Love of one another (3:11, 14, 23) – connected to light & truth• Not loving the world (2:15)

Importance of strengthening internal love due to conflict


2.1 Introduction to Jude• What’s the point of having Jude in the Canon?

• Ever heard a sermon on Jude?

• How often do you read Jude?

• Any strange features in Jude, not found in other NT books?


2.2 Historical and Critical Issues• Who was Jude?

• One of Jesus’ brothers (Matt 13:55; Mark 6:3)• Two of Jesus’ brothers became missionaries (1Cor 9:5)• Jude’s grandsons leaders end of 1st century (Eccl. Hist. 3.19-20)

• Jude does not use LXX but Hebrew OT• Authorship unquestioned by early church leaders• Why not mention Jude as brother of Jesus but as ‘brother of

James’?

• Pseudepigrapha – Jude as unknown Christian leader• Greek style surpasses average peasant in Palestine• What about the use of amanuensis?• Faith once delivered to saints – apostolic tradition (1:3, 17)


• Written by Jude the brother of Jesus AD 50s-60s• Palestine

• Pseudepigrapha AD 80s-90s• Basically anywhere, perhaps Palestine

• Situation and purpose• Warning against false teachings

• “irrational animals”; “wandering stars”; “tossing waves” (10-13)• “ungodly sinners”; “worldly”; “devoid of Spirit” (15-18)• “pervert the grace”; “reject authority” (4, 8)

People who pervert the gospel through their actions and do not conform to the apostolic teaching and authority

• Warning about false teachers & exhortation to remain faithful


2.3 Themes in Jude • The certainty of judgment

• Fate of false teachers is sealed (1:4, 13-15)• Judgment of sinners in the past (5-8, 11)

• No attempts to refute or argue• Importance of “snatching out of fire” vulnerable believers (23)

• Apostolic faith • “most holy faith” entrusted to apostles builds (3, 20)

• Father and Savior; mercy of Jesus; HS (1, 25; 4; 19-20)• God able to keep the believers from falling (24)

• Believers do their part (21)

• Eternal life and punishment (7, 13-15, 21)


• Use and allusions to OT Pseudepigrapha• Use of 1 Enoch traditions

• Angels kept in prison (1:6; Gen 6:1-6; 1 Enoch 6-8)• The Lord’s coming w/ angels (1:14-15; 1 Enoch 1:9)

9 And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of His holy ones To execute judgment upon all, And to destroy all the ungodly: And to convict all flesh Of all the works of their ungodliness which they have ungodly committed, And of all the hard things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him. (1 En 1:9)

• Use of Testament/Assumption of Moses (cf. Clement of Alexandria)

• Dispute over the body of Moses (1:9)


Jude 14-15

• 14 Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them: “See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones 15 to judge everyone, and to convict all of them of all the ungodly acts they have committed in their ungodliness, and of all the defiant words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” (Jude 14-15)

I Enoch 1:9

• 9 And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of His holy ones to execute judgment upon all, And to destroy all the ungodly: And to convict all flesh of all the works of their ungodliness which they have ungodly committed, And of all the hard things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him. (1 Enoch 1:9)


• What was Jude’s attitude toward OT canon & Jewish legends?

• Jude held it in par w/ scripture?• Did the opponents hold it authoritative? Some in the church?• Did Jude not recognize the difference b/w 1 Enoch and OT?• Remnant of the time when OT canon partially open?• Used only w/ illustrative purposes?


3.1 Introduction Revelation• What have you learned about Revelation in

• Church • Popular media• Books

• Sense ‘overload’• Myriad of images and symbols

• Revelation as embarrassment or source of hope? • The poor and persecuted Christians around the world


3.2 Interpretative paradigms of Revelation• Influence of interpretative paradigms

• Preterism• First century fulfillment

• Historicism• Correspondence to epochs in church history

• Idealist• Timeless truths – victory of good over evil

• Futuristic• Focus on the end times and final event

• Eclectic • Mixture of above views


• What difference does it make? – Number 666 (13:18)• Preterist/historical

• Reference to Nero or Domitian – ancient gematria • Neron Caesar – numerical value in Hebrew equals 666 (or 616 w/o ‘n’)

• Domitian’s inscription on some coins equals 666 in Greek

• Idealist• 666 is a symbol for anyone supremely evil (cf. no: 7)

• Futuristic • Code name for the supremely evil person at the end of the age• Recent suspects:

• Pope Benedict XI (13th century pope)• Pope Benedict XVII (pope b/f current Pope Francis)• Ronald Wilson Reagan (six letters in each name)

Preterism

1.) Preterism

Millenial Views

Premillenial Dispensationalism 2.) Premillennial Dispensationalist View

Historical premillenialism3.) Historic Premillenialism

Amillenialism4.) Amillenialism

Postmillenialism 5.) Postmillenialism

Prophetic vision

Interpretation of RevelationA sample of other Important factors in interpretation• Relationship between seals, trumpets, bowls

• Chronological• What about the overlap b/w the sevens?

• Recapitulation - intensification & closer look at the same • What about the dissimilarity b/w the sevens?

• Telescopic progression – 7th seal contains the 7 trumpets & 7th trumpet comprises the 7 bowls• What about the progression b/w each seven?

Revelation includes repetition & progression culminating in the judgment and establishment of God’s kingdom on earth

Interpretation of Revelation

a. Geographical scope of the visionsScope: “all those who dwell on the earth”

Gk. ‘ge’ & ‘oikumene’ = ‘earth’ or ‘land’ ‘world’ can denote Roman Empire (Lk 2:1, Col 1:6) Rev 3:10 = the entire world, Roman empire or Israel?

b. The meaning of the “coming” of the LordNon-literal coming:

Rev 3:20 “I… come in and eat…” (cf. Jh 14:16-18, 14:23) God’s “coming” to judge nations (Is 19:1, 26:21) Rev 2:5 “I… come to remove your lamp stand”

Interpretation of Revelation

b. The meaning of “coming quickly” Rev 3:11, 22:7, 12

Literally: quickly (temporal), suddenly, certainly?

Figuratively: “one day like thousand years”; cf. 1 Tim 3:14; 2Tim 4:9?

Either figurative OR fulfillment in John’s time; cf. Mt 16:28


• Some considerations for interpreting Revelation• Needs to be read like ancient letter

• Addressed to seven churches in Asia Minor (1:3)

• Needs to be read like prophecy• Addresses current circumstances of the readers prophetically

• Needs to be read like an apocalypse• Importance of apocalyptic symbolism• Apocalyptic genre

• Some theological and philosophical questions• To what extent prophetic dimension refers to the distant future?• To what extent idealist dimension should be applied?


3.3 Historical and Critical issues• Authorship – “John” (1:9) and date

• John the Apostle according to tradition• John ‘the prophet’ (not the apostle)

• Related to other Johannine writings(?)• Jewish-Christian steeped in OT• Native of Palestine who moved to Ephesus and later exiled to the

island of Patmos (?)

• Written during the reign of Domitian (AD 81-96)• Persecuted Christians in Asia Minor • Lord and God (Lat. Dominus Deus)

• Written during the reign of Nero (AD 54-68)• The archetype ‘beast’ and persecutor of Christians


• Genre and type of literature• Letter format (1:4-8; 22:21)

• Circular letter to seven churches in Asia Minor

• Prophecy (1:3; 22:7, 10-, 18-19)• What happens when God’s purposes are fulfilled

• Apocalypse• Popular literary genre of the time• Basic features of apocalypses

• Usually written under severe hardship or persecution• Motivate faithfulness and repentance• Symbolism and otherworldly creatures (angels, demons, beasts) • Visions, dreams, heavenly raptures• Interpretative angels as guides• Revelation of God’s perspective and the ultimate direction of history• Radically dualistic outlook: good/evil; holy/impure; God/satan etc.


• Some of the Jewish apocalypses of the time• 1 Enoch• 4 Ezra

• Differences between Jewish apocalypses and Revelation• Rev not pseudonymous • Rev not attributed to a legendary OT figure• Jesus’ unique role


• Provenance, Situation, and purpose• Addressed to seven churches in Asia Minor (1:4)• Suffering and persecution of Christians in Asia Minor

• Varied depending on location (cf. 2:3, 10, 13)• Some of the churches poor (2:9)

• The Roman socio-political system of power• Emperor worship – unpatriotic, irreligious• Exclusion of socio-political and economic life

• Antisocial, shame & impoverished

• Conflict w/ local synagogues (2:9; 3:9)

• Encourage endurance and shun compromise• Focus on God’s power & sovereignty • Call to repentance and inspire praise


3.4 Themes in Revelation• God’s sovereignty

• God the ultimate ruler of the universe (1:8) – divine titles• Alpha and omega - and last (cf. Is 44:6)

• Of God and Jesus (1:8; 21:6; 1:17; 22:13)

• One who was is and is to come & divine name (1:4, 8; 4:8; 11:17; 16:15)

• Almighty (Gk. pantokrator) & unrivalled authority (1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3)

• Visions of God’s throne

• God’s timing and power in judgment (11:18; 18:8; 19:11; 14:7; 16:7; 18:10)

God sits on the throne in glory and power – He controls human history and judges wickedness


• The second coming of Christ• Main character in Revelation

• Lion and the Lamb who returns as Davidic King

• Visions of Christ• Judicial character of the Son of Man (1:12-18)• Lion turned into lamb (5:5; 1:5-7; 12:11; 13:8)• Rightful king and divine warrior (1:5; 17:14; 19:16)

• Kingdom of God on earth• Millenial reign of Christ (20:4)• Rule of God and Christ (22:1-3)


• The corruption of human society• Visions depict the true of things

• “the Great whore” – the ‘great city’ on 7 mountains (17:1-18)• Adorned w/ riches but w/ blood on hands (17:1-6)• Nations “fornicated” w/ her – “merchants grown rich” (cf. 18:3)

• The powerful Roman empire exposed as it really is

• Sin and unrighteousness systemic and societal • Anti-God society boasts about luxury & idolatry & oppression

This system & those who participate in it under divine judgment

• God has already pronounced judgment (5:9-10)• Victory through the slain Lamb who sits on the throne

• Exhortation to remain steadfast• God is in control • God judges w/ justice

nts 501 nt intro and survey class xiii: 1-3 john; jude; revelation

Documents

community2 john

john jude revelation1

john jude revelationdate

john jude revelationwhat

john jude revelationsin

john jude revelationlovelove

john cover letter

troublemakers3 john