The Bible has a large amount of stories about war and destruction. Some of the stories are historical writings, but not all. God of the bible is omniscient and God uses this to give humanity a unique look into our future. The stories of destruction that this paper will look at are some of the future visions given to humanity by God. The apocalyptic literature are the recorded visions given to believers and they are used to warn people of the impending doom of the world. The bible takes different approaches to the same topic in order to make the message fully know. One of the approach being looked at is a more general synopsis of the end. While some scholars say the book of Joel is divided into two parts “historical part one and an apocalyptic part two” while others believe “there is unity in Joel” (Robinson, p 22). However Joel is divided it is believed, more often than not, that the end of Joel is apocalyptic literature. Joel 3, titled God judges the nations, illustrates a bleak outcome for the enemies of God. The chapter starts with God presenting his case against the enemies and he says “I will enter into judgment with them there, on behalf of my people and my heritage Israel” (Joel 3.2). This wording is important because the end of times is followed by God’s judgment of everyone. This verse is God explaining why his judgment, and the end, is coming. The section continues with the wording of judging and Gods “valley of decision” and it is followed by the imagery of the sun and the moon being darkened and the stars ceasing to shin (Joel 3.15). This is also important because it gives a physical description of what will happen. This section from the bible explains why judgment is coming and what it will look like, but it only de... ... middle of paper ... ...those struggling and it shows the love of God. If these books had ended after judgment and fire it would have left only fear, but because they end with that bit light, it leaves hope. The authors are concerned about the horrors to come, but divinity did not allow their concerns to be the sole idea. Works Cited Cohn, Norman, James Tabor, and L. M. White. "Apocalypticism Explained." Apocalypse! FRONTLINE | PBS. Public Broadcasting Service, 1999. Web. Esv: Study Bible : English Standard Version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles, 2007. Print. Flanders, Henry J, Robert W. Crapps, and David A. Smith. People of the Covenant: An Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996. Robinson, Sarah. The Origins of Jewish Apocalyptic Literature: Prophecy, Babylon, and 1 Enoch. CA: Department of Religious Studies, University of South Florida, 2005. Print.
The Book of Revelation and the movie WALL-E serve as distinct forms of apocalyptic literature to expose the reality of the human condition beneath the surface. Even though there are blatant disconnects between the two, they both share common ground as criticisms of society and to warn humanity of its coming judgement. The Book of Revelation and WALL-E offer a frightening yet rectifiable future for humanity by remaining loyal to its “core values”.
Shortly following his encounter with Yahweh, Vorilhon changed his name to Raël, “The Messenger.” The Elohim told him that he is the 40th and final prophet. On August 6, 1945, America dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, representing the apocalypse. In this sense, ‘apocalypse’ refers to humanity’s revelation that, in the age of...
LaHaye, Tim, and Ed Hindson. The Popular Encyclopedia of Bible Prophecy. Eugene, OR.: Harvest House Publishers, 2004.
The human mind harbors a very rich imagination when it comes to the envisioning of our demise, demonstrating the individual’s appeal towards this notion, because we love to play with the idea of an impending apocalypse and what comes after it.
1996. “Sacrifices and Offerings in Ancient Israel” in Community, Identity, and Ideology: Social Science approach to the Hebrew Bible., ed. Charles E. Carter.
Apocalyptic literature gives people some type of hope in a time of crises. A crises could be defined as a time when people think the world is ending, a war going on, maybe even a natural disaster like a flood that wipes out everything. The 17th century was a time where apocalyptic literature helped people feel more at ease when a crisis was occurring. Many people in that time period were on the line of poor and with no power, which made it even more important to have some type of hope.
Planning for Armageddon. (2009, September 26). New Scientist, 5. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database
Robinson, B. A. (2008, March 30). Books of the Hebrew Scripture . Retrieved May 7, 2011, from Religious Tolerance: http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_otb3.htm
The Book of Daniel is the only full-blown apocalyptic book in the Protestant recognized version of the Canon. A literary device divides the book into two halves. Chapters 1-6 are a collection of stories that introduces the reader to Daniel and three other Israelites as unwilling guests of the Babylonia Empire ruled by Nebuchadnezzar. The second half, Chapters 7-12 consists of apocalyptic imagery of deformed beasts and the heavenly court. The focus of this paper will be on chapter 7, which serves as a bridge of the two halves. Chapter 7 is the earliest of the visions as it identifies with the genre of 8-12 while through language and content it reverts to Daniel chapter 2. The linguistic break down is not as neat as the literary divide in that Dan. 2:4b-7:28 was written in Aramaic while other portions of the book is written in Hebrew.
Understanding the Bible and other holy texts in relation to human history is a challenging enterprise. Daniel Friedmann, in his third book of religious interpretation, tackles a truly daunting question: Do our holy texts offer solid clues as to when the world as we know it may come to an end? Roadmap to the End of Days contends that through study of scripture and history it is indeed possible to recognize events that will preclude the end of human history and the exact time frame in which our end of days will most likely occur.
Revelation identifies itself as “both an “apocalypse”…and as prophecy”, making it distinctly different from the rest of the New Testament. “Jewish apocalyptic literature flourished in the centuries following the completion of the OT canon”, and it is scattered throughout the Old Testaments in books such as Daniel, Ezekiel, and Isaiah. Apocalyptic literature is full of “visions that dramatize the prophet’s admission to God’s heavenly council”, and convey their meaning primarily through symbolism. John brings a “balanced message of comfort, warning, and rebuke” in Revelation, testifying to the end of the world and the second coming of Jesus Christ. Apart from the OT literature, Revelation shows a distinct optimism toward the end of days, for “Christ’s death has already won the decisive victory over evil”, with the Kingdom of God already among believers. This book was written in “approximately A.D. 95 on the island of Patmos”, which is still standing to this day. It was written under the emperor Domitian, with Roman authorities exiling John “to the island of Patmos (off the coast of Asia)”. The events in Revelation are also “ordered
The Christian Apocalypse, also known as the end of the world is described in great detail by the Book of Revelation. Revelations is one of the most famous End of the World stories. The book itself is the last book in the bible, and is described as a scroll with seven wax seals. In the myth as the scroll unravels, a series of events unfolds. This begins with many wars, famines, diseases, and other heavenly signs to alert the world that the apocalypse is here. After series of natural disasters, a political ruler called the Antichrist will appear and will take control over the entire earth.
Aune, David E. “God and Time in the Apocalypse of John” in Apocalypticism, Prophecy and Magic in Early Christianity: Collected Essays. Tubingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2006.
As we continue on in this book of the Bible, we will begin to see the beginning of the dest...
Eschatology has long fascinated many including myself since the beginning of time. There is just something that tends to fascinate our finite minds of the end of times. Over this time, many thoughts and perceptions has arouse from a wide variety of sources including scholars, theologians, scientists, sociologist, religions, colts, and many more. Consequently, each sources’ idea are different and unique from the others. The particle eschatology that is found throughout the New Testament tends to be the most studied and quoted collections of eschatological ideas that have been around since the creation of the Canon thousands of years ago. There are numerous books in the New Testament that directly and indirectly allude to the end of times. The most famous of these books, Revelation, is debated to be the most iconic literacy book on eschatology that answers a lot of question an as well creates a score of other new questions.