THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST TO HIS SERVANT JOHN
Introduction Lesson #1
When I began preparing for this study in 2001 I began to see that I could identify 5 statements that would guide me in interpreting Revelation. It was interesting to me that 5 statements developed from my research because 5 is the number of “grace” in Biblical numerical symbolism! It somehow seemed so fitting. If you haven’t read the document “The Significance of Numbers in Scripture” which is found in the Documents section of this study, I encourage you to read it. The document will help you understand the expanded symbolic meaning of numbers as we continue our study.
These are the 5 points I decided to use in developing this intensive study of John’s visions:
The Revelation of Jesus Christ to his servant John is written in common Greek. The Greek title is literally “The Apocalypse of John” or “The Revelation to John”. The word apocalypse is merely a transliteration into English of the Greek word apokkalypsis, which in English means “revelation” or “revealing”. Often the term apocalypse is confused with another Greek word, ‘apocryphal’, which means ‘hidden’ and refers to books for which divine authorship is believed to be falsely claimed. Protestants apply the term to the 7 Old Testament books that they dropped from the canon in the 16th century but Catholics refer to those 7 texts as Deuterocanonical, meaning “second canon”.
Apocryphal text may also be apocalyptic literature. Some narrative Old Testament apocryphal (meaning “hidden”) that are not judged to be Holy Spirit inspired texts are: 3rd Maccabees, the Book of Jubilees, Books of Adam and Eve, and the Martyrdom of Isaiah. Some New Testament apocryphal (non-canonical) texts are Gospel of Thomas, the Gospel of Philip, the Gospel of Mary Magdalene, and the Gospel of Judas (these are Gnostic documents which have always been judged by the Church as heresy), History of Joseph the Carpenter, etc. Books that are apocryphal (non canonical) and apocalyptic are Books of Enoch, Testaments of the 12 Patriarchs, Assumption of Moses, etc. Apocalyptic books that are accepted in the canon are: Old Testament= Book of Daniel, Zechariah, Joel 2:1-11; 4:1-21; Isaiah chapter 13 and 24-27; Ezekiel chapters 38-39; Zephaniah 1:14-18. Daniel and Ezekiel have strong ties to Revelation. However, the single example of this type of literature in the New Testament is The Revelation of John.
As a literary form apocalyptic literature became popular about 200 years before the birth of Jesus and remained popular until about 200 years after His Resurrection. These works are characterized by the revelation of future catastrophic events that mark the end of time. The visions associated with these revelations reveal the future in complicated symbolism, which is sometimes, but not always, explained.
Major themes in noncanonical apocalyptic literature:
How John’s apocalypse is unlike other noncanonical apocalyptic literature:
Biblical scholar David Chilton sums up these differences with the statement: “The apocalyptists said: The world is coming to an end: Give Up! The Biblical prophets said: The world is coming to a beginning: Get to work!” (Days of Vengeance p. 26)
It is important to understand that in the Book of Revelation, as in other parts of sacred Scripture, the “passing away” of heaven and earth is not necessarily the end of the world as we know it, nor is it necessarily the dissolution of the existing universe. As identified by St. Peter in his great homily on Pentecost Sunday in his reference to Joel 3:1-5 in Acts chapter 2, the “Last Days” came with the apocalyptic event of Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension! Peter’s message to the crowds at the second great Pentecost [the first was at Mt. Sinai] is that those of his generation were now living in the “new and final” age prophesied by Isaiah as the time of “new heavens and a new earth” [see Isaiah 65:17; 66:22]. St. John’s revelation is apocalyptic literature concerned with the apocalyptic events as they unfolded in the time after Jesus’ ascension to the Father as the “gate” or “door of heaven” stood open [Rev. 4:1]; an event not possible in the Old Covenant period of Salvation History but only made possible through Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross] and the judgment of the Old Covenant Church unfolding as prophesized by Jesus in the synoptic Gospels [see my chart in ”Attachment” entitled “Synoptic Gospels vs Revelation” from the Agape Bible study on the Book of Revelation].
Authorship and authenticity:
Many modern scholars believe that the author of this revelation is not John the Apostle. The opening verses of the book clearly identify the author as Jesus and the receiver of the revelation identifies himself as “John” 5 times: Rev. 1:1; 1:4; 1:9; 21:2; 22:8. Jn1:1 “A revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him so that He could tell His servants what is now to take place very soon; He sent His angel to make it known to His servant John, and John has borne witness to the Word of God and to the witness of Jesus Christ, everything that he saw.” (v.4) “John, to the seven churches of Asia…”; (v. 9) “I, John your brother and partner in hardships..”
The earliest testimonies going back to 2nd century AD identify the Apostle John as the author:
St Justin: “There was a certain man named John, one of the Apostles of Christ, who prophesied by a revelation…”(Dialogue with Trypho, 81,3). Valuable testimony because Justin was converted to Christianity in Ephesus in 135AD. Not only is Ephesus one of the 7 Churches to which the book was written, but it is by tradition and testimony of the Fathers of the Church, the home of John the Apostle. Justin was writing this view only a few decades after John wrote the book.
St Melito, bishop of Sardis, a contemporary of Justin and Bishop to
another of the 7 churches mentioned in Revelations, wrote a commentary on the Apocalypse. His commentary no longer exists but in the 4th century Church History by Bishop Eusebius he refers to Melito’s testimony that John the Apostle is the author (Ecclesiastical History, IV, 26,2).
Papias, Bishop of Hierapolis (The Faith of the Early Fathers vo. 1, p.) who was a disciple of John, firmly testifies that John is the author of the Gospel bearing his name and the Apocalypse.
St. Irenaeus (Against heresies, 4,20) who frequently quoted Papias’ testimony of John as the author, also firmly identifies John has having written the book of Revelation while a prisoner on the island of Patmos. Irenaeus’ testimony is important because he was a disciple of Polycarp, a disciple of John the Apostle and an associate of Papias. In other words, Bishop Irenaeus is the second generation disciple from John.
Muratorian Fragment- this document dates c. end of century (some scholars place it earlier). It contains the oldest list of canonical New Testament books: ”For John too, in the Apocalypse, though he writes to only seven Churches, yet speaks to all.” (The Faith of the Early Fathers vol. 1 p.107)
3rd Century Testimonies of Authorship:
Origen of Alexandria says the author of Revelation was the man who wrote the 4th Gospel and had the good fortune to rest his head on Jesus’ breast. (Cf. In Ioann, comm. 1, 14) c. 230AD
Tertullian –attributes the book to John the Apostle (Against Marcion3,14)
Roman priest named Caius suggested Cerinthus, a prominent proponent of the Gnostic heresy and a contemporary of John (Ecclesiastical History, III, 28,2).
Dionysius of Alexandria (d. 264) denied its canonicity because the millenarianist heresy used the Apocalypse to support their views (Dionysius of Alexandria, Ex libro de promission, 3-7) He used arguments based on differences between the Apocalypse and the 4th Gospel which some 20th century scholars have revised today.
Other writers of the same period called alogoi disputed John’s authorship and the authenticity of the Apocalypse because they rejected the Logos of St. John. (St. Epiphanius, Haer., 51, 1-35)
4th & 5th Centuries:
St. Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria d 373: accepted as canonical and recognized John the Apostle as author . He cited the book in his fight against Arianism. (Oratio II Contra Arianos, 23).
St. Basil d. 379 accepted authenticity (The Faith of the Early Fathers volume 1, p.14).
St. Gregory of Nyssa d. 389, accepted authenticity.
School of Antioch: denied both authenticity and canonicity.
Eastern Church fathers St. Cyril, Bishop of Jerusalem (d. 386), St. John Chrysostom, Bishop of Constantinople (d. 407), and Theodoret of Cyr (d. 466) opposed the unanimous acceptance of the Latin Church to the canonicity and authorship by John the Apostle of the Apocalypse as well as the Epistles of John 1-3.
The regional gathering of Bishops known as the Council of Hippo 393 and Council of Carthage 397, pronounced on the authenticity and canonicity of the Apocalypse of St. John. These early Church councils were not councils composed of the entire Magisterium of the worldwide body of the Catholic Church but were local councils which also addressed serious issues that concerned the universal Church.
St. Jerome, the great Biblical scholar, (d. 420) identified John the Apostle as the author.
St. Augustine, theologian and scholar, (d. 430) identified John the Apostle as the author.
In the 5th century the Churches of Syria, Cappadocia and Palestine finally include Revelations in their canon.
Sixth through Sixteenth Centuries:
Authenticity of the book was undisputed: Council of Toledo 633, Council of Florence 1431-39, Council of Trent 1545-63
Erasmus (1466-1536) priest, doctor of divinity, and great Renaissance humanist, expressed doubts about the canonicity of Revelation.
Martin Luther (1483-1546), excommunicated priest and leader of the Protestant heresy, initially argued against authenticity but later changed his view (16th century).
Eighteenth century: rationalists: (who rejected prophecy outright) rejected the book of Revelations. They denied St. John’s authorship and used arguments based on internal evidence (some similar to those put forth by Dionysius of Alexandria) and on the basis of a passage in Eusebius’ History (d. 340): see Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers vol. 1, Eusebius Church History p.171 column 2. Eusebius and Papias statement quoted in The Early Church Fathers vol. 1 p. 38-39*. Papias statement: “I shall not hesitate to set down for you along with my interpretations whatever I learned well from the presbyters and recall clearly, being thoroughly confident of their truth. Unlike most people, I do not delight in those who talk a great deal, but in those who teach the truth; nor in those who relate the commandments of others, but in those who relate the commandments given by the Lord to the faith, and which are derived from Truth itself. And then too, when anyone came along who had been a follower of the presbyters, I would inquire about the presbyters’ discourses: what was said by Andrew, or by Peter, or by Philip, or by Thomas or James or by John or Matthew, or by any other of the Lord’s disciples; and what Aristion and the Presbyter John, the disciples of the Lord say. It did not seem to me that I could get so much profit from the contents of books as from a living and abiding voice.”
Statement of Bishop Eusebius, 4th century: “Here it is worth noting that he twice mentions the name of John: the first in connection with Peter and James and Matthew and the rest of the Apostles, clearly referring to the evangelist; but the other John he mentions after an interval, and groups him with others outside the number of the Apostles. Placing Ariston before him; and he distinctly calls him a presbyter. In this way he makes it quite evident that their statement is true, who say that there were in Asia two persons of that name; and that there are in Ephesus two tombs, each of which even to the present time is called the tomb of John. It is important to take note of this: because if anyone would not prefer the first, then probably it was the second who saw the Revelation of which bears the name of John.”
Eusebius’ statement is far from clear and his thinking was colored by the danger posed by millenarianism. Although I agree with the scholars who interpret this passage to say that Eusebius regards John the Apostle, John the Evangelist and John, the author of the Apocalypse as one and the same John; but then he adds that if anyone prefer to consider that the Apostle-Evangelist John is not the author of the Apocalypse, then, in this view, it is probable that the author of the Apocalypse is Presbyter John. Other scholars point out that there is only one John – the Apostle and presbyter. Papias also writes: “And the Presbyter said this also: “When Mark being the interpreter of Peter, he wrote down accurately whatever he remembered…” From which Eusebius concluded that Papias was not a disciple of John the Apostle but we have St. Irenaeus’ testimony from a century earlier that Papias was not only a friend of Polycarp of Smyrna but also a hearer of the Apostle John.
20th Century View:
There is general disagreement among scholars—some Protestant scholars express the
opinion that the author could not be the same author of the 4th Gospel given the differences in style and language. Other scholars, mainly Catholic Biblical scholars, accept that John the Apostle is the author given the evidence of the writings of the early Church Fathers and the strength of our Tradition citing John the Apostle as author. Catholic scholars also point out that the difference in subject matter between the Gospel and the Revelation can account for the differences in style (it was also common for the Apostles, as Bishops today, to use a secretary to record their letters and to make literary corrections, etc.) and then point to the similarity of imagery like the “living water” passages and other unique passages in both books.
Arguments Against Johannine Authorship:
Arguments in Favor of Johannine Authorship:
The use of Johannine vocabulary, imagery, and theological themes that are unique to John’s Gospel and Revelation.
This term is reference by John as metaphor for God the
Holy Spirit: in the Gospel of John chapter 4:7-15 Woman at the Well. (John 4:10 “Jesus replied to her: If you only knew what God is offering and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me something to drink,’ you would have been the one to ask, and He would have given you living water.” & v 14c&d “..the water that I shall give him would become in him a spring of water, welling up for eternal life.”
And John’s Gospel 7:38-39 (Jesus referencing the Prophet Isaiah Isaiah 55:1-3)
“As Scripture says, ‘From his heart shall flow streams of living water.’ He was speaking of the spirit which those who believed in Him were to receive; for there was no Spirit as yet because Jesus had not yet been glorified.” Compare the use of “living water” imagery in Revelation 7:17 “…because the Lamb who is at the heart of the throne will be their shepherd and will guide them to springs of living water…” and Revelation 22:1-2 (Trinity expressed in this verse)“Then the angel showed me the river of life, rising from the throne of God and of the Lamb and flowing crystal-clear.”
And also with Revelation 22:17 “The Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come!’ Let everyone who listens answer, ‘Come!’ Then let all who are thirsty come: all who want it may have the water of life, and have it free” with Gospel of John 7:37 “On the last day, the great day of the festival, Jesus stood and cried out: ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink!’”
Please read John 1:1 – 14 (v.1)In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God and the Word was God.
(v.14) And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld His
glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father.” Read 1 John 1:1-4: “Something
which has existed since the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen
with our own eyes, which we have watched and touched with our own hands, the Word
of life this is our theme.” continue..2-4…
Compare with Revelation 1:1-2 “ A revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him so that He could
tell His servants what is now to take place very soon; He sent His angel to
make it known to His servant John,(2) and John has borne witness to the Word
of God and to the witness of Jesus Christ everything that He saw.”
And Rev. 19:11-13 “And now I saw heaven open, and a white horse appear; its rider was called Trustworthy and True; in uprightness He judges and makes war. His eyes were flames of fire, and He was crowned with many coronets; the name written on Him was known only to Himself, his cloak was soaked in blood. He is known by the name, The Word of God.” (The only other use of “Word” in this theological sense is in 2 Timothy 4:2).
This comparison with Christ is not found in Matthew, Mark or Luke; See John 1:29 “Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” And John 1:36”..Look, the Lamb of God..” compare with Revelation 5:6 “I saw a Lamb looking as though it had been slain” Lamb comparison used 30 times in Revelation!
In Johannine writings ‘light’ is a metaphor for Christ: Read John 1:1-9 especially v. 4 & 9: v.4 “What has come into being in Him was life, life that was the light of men;” v.9 “The Word was the real light that gives light to everyone;” Also read John 3:19-21 (v. 19) “And the judgement is this: though the light has come into the world people have preferred darkness to the light because their deeds were evil.” And John 8:12 and 9:5: (8:12): “When Jesus spoke again to the people He said: I AM the light of the world: anyone who follows me will not be walking in the dark but will have the light of life.” (9:5) “As long as I AM in the world I AM the light of the world.” (Also see John 11:9-10; John 12:35,36 & 46; 1John 1:5,7; 2:8-10) Compare with Rev. 21:22-27 (v. 22-23) “I could not see any temple in the city since the Lord God almighty and the Lamb were themselves the temple, and the city did not need the sun or the moon for light since it was lit by the radiant glory of God and the Lamb was a lighted torch for it.” Also see Rev. 22:5
The Symbolic use of numbers in The Gospel of John and Revelation:
Most, though not all, Christian scholars have agreed that the first 3 chapters of Revelation—the messages to the 7 churches in Asia Minor—describe the situation of St. John’s contemporaries, though the messages are meaningful to the Church down through time to all generations. Most also agree that the last half of chapter 20 (verses 11-15) and all of chapters 21 and 22 apply to the last things: the return of Christ, Judgement Day, the consummation of all things, and the eternal life of the saints with God. But, the time frame of the middle chapters 4:1-20:10 has been, and continues to be, in dispute. In lesson 2 we will discuss the different schools of thought for interrupting Revelation.
The Magisterium, the Council of Bishops and the Pope, has pronounced on the
authenticity and canonicity of the Apocalypse (Council of Hippo, Carthage, Toledo, Florence & Trent). However, even though the Church has dogmatically defined the book as canonical, it has not pronounced as strongly on who wrote it. (The Navarre Bible Commentary: Revelation page 15).
The Book of Ezekiel resembles Revelation more than any other Old Testament book. David Chilton’s excellent commentary on the Book of Revelation, THE DAYS OF VENGENCE, provides a list of parallels to Revelation on page 22. The prophet Ezekiel’s visions in Ezekiel chapters 1-22 parallels John’s visions in the Book of Revelation, and in same sequence!
Parallels between the visions in the Book of Revelation
and the visions in the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel
Sevens in Revelation
Seven Things of Revelation
The Symbolism of Numbers in Revelation
(these numbers or multiples of these numbers are used in Revelation)
12 = perfection of government
10 = perfection of order
7 = spiritual perfection (based on creation) and the number of the Holy Spirit
5 = number of grace
4 = the earth
3 ½ = imperfection; half of 7
3 = fullness or completion in OT and Trinity in NT
Some Important Biblical References to John the Apostle in the New Testament:
For more “other” references see: Jn 18:16; 20:2,3,4,8,25
For “the one Jesus loved” references: John 13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7, 20
Did John have a temper?
‘Master we saw someone casting out demons in your name and we tried to prevent him because he was not following our company.’ Jesus said ‘Do not prevent him for whoever is not against you is for you.’” Luke 9v. 54 “When the disciples James and John saw this they asked ‘Lord do you want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?’ Jesus turned and rebuked them.”
Was John ambitious?
with her sons and did Him homage wishing to ask him for something. He said to her: ‘What do you wish?’ She answered him ‘Command that these 2 sons of mine sit one at your right and the other sit to your left in your kingdom.’ When the 10 heard this they became indigent.”
John was selected for special missions:
At the Last Supper he is called in John 13:21-25 “beloved disciple” and the “other disciple”; he reclined with Jesus at the Last Supper.
John at the High Priest’s House after Jesus is arrested:
Read John 18:16. Is this a reference to John? Was John a descendant of Aaron? St Irenaeus gave testimony that John wore a headpiece as Bishop of Ephesus that was similar to the Old Covenant High Priest’s headpiece [see Exodus 28:36-39; 39:27-31]. There is also the testimony of Pope St. Clement I (3rd Pope after St. Peter and Peter’s trusted disciple) and Polycrates Bishop of Ephesus in his letter to Pope Victor “…moreover John, who was both a witness and a teacher, who reclined upon the bosom of the Lord, and being a priest wore the sacerdotal plate.” St. Polycrates’ testimony is significant because he was Bishop of the same church were St. John has served as Bishop. Epiphanius (in Heresies LXXVI.14) testifies that of James, Bishop of Jerusalem (kinsman of Jesus) also wore such a head piece reminiscent of the Old Covenant sacerdotal head plate of the High Priest. In the Sinai covenant God commanded the High Priest to wear a golden headpiece inscribed with the words “Consecrated to Yahweh.” But there is no evidence that either St. John Apostle and Bishop of Ephesus or St. James Bishop of Jerusalem (sacred author of the Epistle of James) were descendants of the High Priest Aaron—the priestly line of the Old Covenant had to descend through Aaron. James was the son of Joseph by Joseph’s dead wife before he married Mary (according to the ancient document The Recollections of James also called the Protoevangelium of James, ) and was therefore, according to Matthew’s genealogy in Matthew chapter 1, a descendant of King David and the tribe of Judah (the ministerial priesthood only descends from the clans of Levi; all Levites are ministers but only those who are of the clan Kohanim can be priests—Aaron’s clan). The Apostles and Elders (today we would call them Bishops) served as representatives of Christ to the people just as the Levites and priests of the Old Covenant represented God to the people. Most scholars believe this is not a literal wearing of the sacerdotal plate but is meant figuratively. It is my opinion that neither John nor James were descendants of Aaron and therefore they were not from the hereditary old Covenant priesthood, but I do believe they did literally wear a golden plate similar to the sacerdotal plate of the Israelite high priests. We have the testimony of their disciples that they were so adorned in their priestly functions. I think this second generation of disciples (not being Jewish) misinterpreted this to mean they were descendants, literally, instead of figuratively, of the Old Covenant priesthood. All the Bishops of the early Church recognized they were from a higher order of priesthood than the Old Covenant priests. In the Old Covenant the priesthood was hereditary, but in the New Covenant priests were called by God the Holy Spirit to serve the Bride of Christ. Bishops in the time of the early Church were creating their own vestments; there were no “standard” sacramental robes. Both John and James were known as extremely ‘orthodox’ (true doctrine) Jews. When James Bishop of Jerusalem was murdered by the High Priest in 62AD the uproar among the Jews was so great that the High Priest who ordered his murder was replaced. I think it is likely that both men, seeing themselves as a continuation of the priesthood in the New Covenant and as representing ‘persona Christi’, the person of Christ our true High Priest, to the people of the New Israel, adopted the sacerdotal head-plate as a sign of their authority. Note: Eastern Rite Catholic liturgy has many ties to Temple worship and their priestly garments are very ornate and in many ways resemble the garments of the Old Covenant priesthood—both St. James and St. John were the roots of the Eastern tradition.
John at the Cross: John 19:26 Jesus’ charged the Apostle John with the protection and care of His mother, Mary by announcing in a form of adoption that John was to be her son and she was to be his mother. Like the other event in which Mary is the central figure in John’s Gospel, the Wedding at Cana, the creation of a family is the climax of the event. John was the only representative of the authority of Church of Jesus Christ who was present at Jesus’ Crucifixion. Jesus in effect gave his mother to the Church. Mary is our inheritance from the Cross and the promised “woman” of Genesis 3:15—she is the New Eve and Mary does indeed become the “mother of all living” (the etymology of Eve’s name), because she is the mother of all who live in Christ— “The man named his wife Eve because she was the mother of all those who live.” [Genesis 3:20]. It is to the Apostle John Zebedee that Jesus entrusts this precious gift.
John after the Resurrection:
John and Peter race to the empty tomb John 20:1-8. Notice in this passage that John arrives first but he bows to Peter’s authority as Vicar of Christ and lets Peter enter the tomb first.
John was in the Upper Room (John 20:19) when Jesus appeared to the Apostles. At the Sea of Galilee: John 21:20-25. Notice what Peter asks about John and Jesus’ reply. This is a very interesting exchange. John did indeed live to great old age. See the reference below quoted from St. Irenaeus (martyred circa 202 AD)
The accounts of John’s activities in Acts of Apostles:
John Bishop of Ephesus
See page 42 in Christianity and the Roman Empire by Ralph Novak. Clement of Alexandria (writing prior to 200AD) quoting St. Irenaeus:
“(Irenaeus) writes in one place in the second of his books Against the Heresies, as follows: ‘And all the presbyters who had been associated in Asia with John, the disciple of the Lord, bear witness to his tradition, for he remained with them until the times of Trajan.’ And in the third book of the same work he makes the same statement as follows: ‘Now the Church at Ephesus was founded by Paul, but John stayed there until the time of Trajan, and it is a true witness of the tradition of the Apostles.’” note: the Roman Emperor Trajan ruled from AD98 (after the death of Domitian) until AD 117. If John was about 20 when Jesus was crucified (and he could have been younger) circa 30AD, and he did indeed live until the year 100 or later you can see why John says of himself at the end of his Gospel that there were those who thought he wouldn’t die until Jesus came again. As far as we know, he was the only Apostle who wasn’t martyred.
Note: Was John a kinsman of Jesus? In my younger, more innocent years I thought you could believe anything you read in a book if the scholar had enough credentials behind his name—oh, how wrong! I had read that Salome, the mother of John and James, was Mary’s sister. The author offered the passage from John 19:25 “Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother and his mothers sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala.” He included in his argument the different passages in the Gospels that identified the women who stood with Mary at the cross and who prepared Jesus for his tomb. Passages like: Mark 15:40 There were some women watching from a distance. Among them were Mary of Magdala, Mary who was the mother of James the younger and Joset, and Salom.” [also repeated in Matthew 27:56]. From this evidence he concluded that since Salome was mentioned in the other passages, the “sister” must have been Salome which would have made John the cousin of Jesus; sounds logical. I believed him. Now I do not remember if this scholar was Catholic or Protestant and it doesn’t matter. You really must reexamine everything you read or are told and versify that information by Scriptural support or the Tradition and teaching of the Church.
I do not believe that John was a kinsman of Jesus. The commas that the scholar used in his passage are guess work…as all the commas are in your Bibles. Scripture was originally written with no literary helps…not even periods or capital letters beginning sentences, or paragraphs. There were also no verse notations or chapters. While it is true that Salome is not mentioned in that particular passage, other women who were also at the cross are not mentioned. But what really condemns the scholars assumption is that no where in the writings of the Apostles, the other canonical writings of the New Testament, the writings of the disciples of the Apostles (like Papias, Polycarp, Pope Clement I), or the succeeding generations of Catholic theologians is John ever mentioned as a kinsman of Jesus where as James, first Bishop of Jerusalem and author of the letters of James in the New Testament, and Jude, author of the letter of Jude, and Simon, second Bishop of Jerusalem and always identified as “brothers of Jesus in the flesh”— kinsmen. Then too, tradition does identify the other Mary as a kinswoman of both Mary and Joseph. Since in Jewish culture there were no designations between siblings and cousins or relatives by marriage, it is reasonable that the Greek of the New Testament would identify Mary the wife of Clopas (also written as Cleophas) as Mary’s “sister”. The writings of the Fathers of the Church identify Clopas as Joseph’s kinsman and Mary wife as Clopas as Mary’s kinswoman.
Dear Student,
There are two more introductory lessons before we begin chapter 1 of Revelation. This probably seems to you to be an unnecessarily long introduction but I assure you this information will be necessary if you want to understand John’s visions in a 1st century as well as in a progressive century context. Please be patient. This is a study of the most difficult book of the Bible and as in many cases for any endeavor, preparation is everything! Your sister in Christ, Michal Hunt
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