Interpretation: A Journal of Bible and Theology

This essay reads the book of Revelation as resistance literature, with a special focus on Roman authoritarian discourse. While such resistance can inspire many readers, authoritarian systems have a way of spoiling everything, compromising even resistance itself. Like other ancient Jewish literature, Revelation characterizes imperial discourse as “arrogant and blasphemous” (13:5). Yet in condemning Rome, its allies, and its enablers, Revelation presents its own authoritarian vision. Read in this way, the witness of this book remains essential, even unique, within the New Testament. It offers a model for redressing authoritarianism—and a case study in the dangers inherent in such resistance.

This essay delves into the identity, symbolism, and ethical implications of the four women in John’s apocalypse, the book of Revelation. The juxtaposition of “evil” and good with the characters “Jezebel” in the letter to Thyatira, the harlot of Babylon, the Woman Clothed with the Sun, and the Bride of Christ/New Jerusalem communicate essential messages to contemporary readers. By studying the ancient biblical world, its texts, and its symbols, these women move from mere characters in a confusing story to teachers—through both good and bad examples—who speak truth to power in current affairs such as politics, economics, and religion.

The healing leaves of the Tree of Life in Rev 22:2 are rightly interpreted as a symbol of the hope and eternity established after the Kingdom of God defeats the forces of empire at the end of the book of Revelation. While most scholarship focuses on the interplay between this verse and Genesis 2–3, Ezekiel 47, and 1 Enoch 25, Roman imperial iconography of the stylized acanthus plant and its metonymic properties offers clues that help interpret the biblical healing leaves. This article reads Rev 22:2 in the context of the Roman imperial Caryatid Relief, featuring acanthus growing out of depictions of conquered nations, to provide richer meaning into interpretations of the healing leaves of Revelation’s Tree of Life.

The book of Revelation includes seven “confirmation statements” (1:2, 9; 6:9; 12:11, 17; 14:12; 20:4). These seven passages assure the members of the seven churches in Roman Asia that their faithfulness will be rewarded and that they have secured their place in the New Jerusalem. These statements are examples of parallelism, a common feature in Hebrew poetry, when the first statement is echoed, completed, or contrasted by a second. When viewed collectively, these seven statements say something about God Almighty, Christ Jesus, the demands of Christian discipleship, and Christian community. As a result, these seven statements establish a sacred universe, which includes both heavenly and earthly realms.