Commentary

Introduction to the Visions (1:1-8)

John begins with a genealogy of Revelation: God gave it to Jesus Christ who gave it to an angel who gave it to John who testified to it by writing it down. The genealogy (1:1-2) is written in lean prose, no details are given as to where this transmission occurs, the actors are named without further attributes, and no motivation is given for the divine revelation beyond God's desire to let people know "what must soon take place." After the genealogy and a blessing for reader and hearers (1:3), John makes a unique shift for a visionary: He greets his readers in the form of a pastoral letter (1:4-6). Two prophetic sayings (1:7-8) then make a transition from pastoral letter to the first vision (1:9–3:22). The sayings' oracular, cryptic style contrasts with the matter-of-fact style in 1:1-6 and prepares the reader for the vision to come.

The aim of the introduction is clear. The visions are true because they come from God. Those who listen carefully will be blessed. The greeting in second-person "you" (1:4) draws the audience into John's orbit, and the "us" in the doxology (1:5-6) at the conclusion of the greeting unites John and his readers as one Christian community. Through matter-of-fact assertions, promises, greetings, and joint praise to Jesus Christ, John's Christian audience is led to accept what he writes as God's word—at least if they want to share in communion with John, Jesus, and God.

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1:1-2: John uses several quasi-technical terms to describe this chain of transmission: The term "revelation"—only here in Revelation—refers to a process of disclosure (apokalypsis, the "sis" suffix marks it as a process); for example, land is revealed as a river recedes from it (MM under apokalypto), or a person's hidden evil nature becomes evident when he or she gains power (Sull. 30.5.8). Here it refers to the disclosure of things hidden with God. Amos writes, "Surely the Lord GOD does nothing, without revealing his secret to his servants the prophets" (3:7; cf. Dan 2:22, 28). In the Jewish community at Qumran, the Teacher of Righteousness discloses "all the mysteries of the words of his servants, the prophets" (1QpHab VII.5). At Rev 1:1, "servants" probably refers to Christian prophets, but the term could refer to all Christians. "Show" (deixai) also has a technical meaning of "disclose." In a prayer of thanksgiving occurring several times in visionary literature, a seer rejoices "because you have shown us yourself" (PGM III.597, note 114). "Made it known" (esemanen) refers to an event or situation not fully disclosed (John 12:33; Acts 11:23; Dan 2:45;Ant. 7.214; 10.241). So, Heraclitus said that the oracle at Delphi always indicates or points to something more (semainei), rather than revealing it fully (legei) or concealing it completely (kruptei; De Pyth. or. 21, 404E). "Testified" (martyrein) refers to a highly personal act of disclosure, such as witnessing in a court of law or as a martyr. In this chain of transmission, both Jesus Christ and John "testify" to the word of God: Jesus Christ through an angel (22:16, 20); John by writing.

1:3: The scene of the beatitude in verse 3 is an assembly of Christians at worship where a reader (lector) reads aloud to the others. Such an arrangement was necessary since only a small number of Christians in the churches of Asia could read, probably about one out of ten (see Gamble 1995, 5). Moreover, in the first centuries after Christ most reading was done aloud, whether public or private. Recall Augustine's surprise that Ambrose always read silently, "his heart perceived the sense, but his voice and tongue were silent" (Confes. 6.3.3. For examples of reading silently, cf. De Alex. fort. 7, 340A; Brut. 5.2, and Gilliard 1993, 694, as well as his letter to the editor in Times Literary Supplement [Aug. 8, 1997], 19). We know little about church readers (lectors) in this early period of Christianity, but they probably had some control over what exactly was read before the congregation. By offering a blessing, John encourages them to read his book. Only six other beatitudes occur in Revelation (14:13; 16:15; 19:9; 20:6; 22:7; 22:14). Prophecies and revelations were regularly spoken or read in services of worship (Acts 11:28; 13:27; 1 Cor 14:26-33; 1 Tim 4:14).

To "hear" is to be involved in an aural, sensory event involving communication and learning. If members of the congregation hear the word properly, they will "keep" it (cf. 2:26; 3:3, 8, 10; 12:17; 14:12; 16:15; 22:7, 9). "Prophecy" (propheteias), an expression of Christian visionary experience, connects closely with "testified," for as an angel says later in Revelation, "the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy" (19:10; cf. 22:7, 10, 18, 19). The nearness of the time when God will judge all humans (11:18) motivates the hearers to obey (cf. 22:10).

1:4: John, the last recipient in the chain of revelation (1:1), is now the main actor who sends greetings to "the seven churches that are in Asia" (1:4). "Grace" and "peace" are typical elements in Christian greetings, usually from a double source, God and Jesus Christ (Rom 1:7; 1 Cor 1:3; Titus 1:4; 1 Clem.). The greeting expresses a wish, "May you have grace and peace." As noted earlier, Revelation is unique in combining the letter with vision-reports.

Here "grace" and "peace" derive from a triple source: God (note 1:8), "the seven spirits," and "Jesus Christ." "The seven spirits" are identified with "seven flaming torches" at 4:5 and with "seven eyes" of the Lamb at 5:6 (cf. Zech 4:10). John is probably alluding to the seven watchful archangels who stand before the divine throne ready to do God's will (8:2; 1 Enoch 20; Tob 12:15). He may, however, be referring to some other cluster of heavenly, perhaps astral, powers.

1:5-6: Of the three sources of grace and peace, John emphasizes Jesus Christ. John gives him three attributes, followed by a doxology. First, he is "the faithful witness" (martys; cf. "testimony [martyrian] of Jesus Christ," 1:5). This phrase associates Jesus with the royal line of David (Ps 89:37; Isa 55:4) and with death (2:13; John 3:11-15). If John's readers were familiar with the story of the crucifixion as told in the Gospels, they might recall Jesus' faithful witness in contrast to the false witnesses who testified against him at his execution (cf. 1 Tim 6:13). Second, he is "firstborn." The Davidic king is also called "firstborn" (Ps 89:27), but here John gives the term a twist: Jesus is "firstborn of the dead" (prototokos ton nekron), that is, he is "preeminent among the dead" (cf. Pol. Phil. 7.1 where heretics are called prototokos tou satana, "preeminent of Satan"). The grammatical construction, genitive without preposition, does not move Jesus out of the sphere of the dead. (For the construction, cf. 20:5; Heb 12:23; Col 1:15; Sib. Or. 8.314 in contrast to Col 1:18, which has the preposition ek: prototokos ek ton nekron.) Third, "ruler of the kings of the earth" (cf. Isa 55:4; Ps 89:28) parallels "firstborn of the...