Posted by Georg S. Adamsen on December 28, 2007
Boxall, Ian. The Revelation of Saint John. Black’s New Testament commentaries, 18. Peabody, Maryland; London; New York: Hendrickson Publishers; Continuum, 2006. xvi + 347 pp.
Boxall’s commentary is the replacement for Caird’s. The introduction is short, but Boxall has published a separate volume covering the introductory issues: Boxall, Revelation: Vision and Insight.
The publisher’s description states that “fellow Oxford scholar Ian Boxall’s new edition in this popular series offers a clear and lucid study of St. John’s apocalypse. Arising out of a critical awareness of the historical and theological issues surrounding the interpretation of Revelation, Boxall’s exposition opens with an enlightening introduction to the first-century context of this difficult book.”
Professor David Barr has published a lengthy presentation and assessment in Review of Biblical Literature (here). According to Barr, Boxall argues that Rev 19:11ff is “probably not a parousia scene but a description of what already exists in heaven, because the battle pictured here was ‘fought and won on the cross’ (272–76).” In my thesis (see here for the abstract), I have argued at length that it is a parousia scene. Boxall (and Barr) thinks that the scroll in Rev 5 and Rev 10 is the same scroll. I have argued that it is not.
Barr recommends Boxall’s attention to reception history: “from Victorinus to Aune.” Readers who agree will probably like the volume by Weinrich.
Barr concludes: “This is a very useful short commentary. It is more cautious than Caird in considering the history of reception but also more limited than Caird in working out a distinct interpretation of John’s Apocalypse. It has a good, up-to-date bibliography, engages a range of interpretations, and guides the reader through the maze of alternative views with caution and common sense. It is a worthy successor.” Read it all.
More information is available at the publisher’s website here, including the Table of Contents, the Introduction, and a sample chapter: (currently) the exegesis of Rev 1:1-3.
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Posted by Georg S. Adamsen on
Boxall, Ian. Revelation: Vision and Insight: An Introduction to the Apocalypse. London: SPCK, 2002. x + 166 pp. Paperback.
In this volume, Boxall treats the introductory issues – undoubtedly as a preparation for his commentary. It is recommended by Christopher Rowland and Marc Goodacre, according to the publisher (here).
Amazon’s synopsis states: “Whereas other introductions to “Revelation” concentrate largely on it’s first century historical setting, this text engages with a range of approaches, while considering the possibility that John was an actual visionary.
“It takes seriously the different ways the book has been interpreted through history – including in art and liturgy – and considers which are most suitable for the contemporary interpreter. An accessible guide to some complex issues involved in the interpretation of “Revelation”, offering an appropriate approach for the contemporary reader.”
More to follow later.
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Posted by Georg S. Adamsen on December 27, 2007
Moyise, Steve (ed.) Studies in the Book of Revelation. Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 2001. xvii + 206 pp. ISBN: 0567088146 (hb.), 0567088049 (pbk.).
Essays included:
- The Words of Prophecy: Reading the Apocalypse Theologically, by Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza (pp. 1-20)
- Seventh-Day Adventism: Self-Appointed Laodicea, by Robert Surridge (pp. 21-42)
- The Enthroned Christ of Revelation 5:6 and the Development of Christian Theology, by Jonathan Knight (pp. 43-50)
- The Many Faces of Babylon the Great: Wirkungsgeschichte and the Interpretation of Revelation 17, by Ian Boxall (pp. 51-68)
- Praise and Politics in Revelation 19:1-10, by Jean-Pierre Ruiz (pp. 69-84)
- The Millennium and the Second Coming, by R. Jack McKelvey (pp. 85-100)
- Waiting for the End that Never Comes: The Narrative Logic of John’s Story, by David L. Barr (pp. 101-112)
- Criteria and the Assessment of Allusions to the Old Testament in the Book of Revelation, by Jon Paulien (pp. 113-130; also available here)
- The Book of Revelation: Image, Symbol and Metaphor, by Ian Paul (pp. 131-148)
- Out of the Wilderness: Feminist Perspectives on the Book of Revelation, by Alison Jack (pp. 149-162)
- The Apocalypse and Its Ambiguous Ethos, by Greg Carey (pp. 163-180)
- Does the Lion Lie down with the Lamb, by Steve Moyise (pp. 181-194; also available here)
Christopher Rowland has written the Foreword (pp. ix-ixvii). The back matters consists of Indices of Bible and Ancient Sources, Modern Authors, and Subjects.
“This is a specially commissioned set of state-of-the-art studies on the most important aspects of Revelation and its significance for the 21st century–by the world’s leading scholars. The studies can be grouped in relation to three main themes: strategies of interpretation (theological, literary, feminist, metaphorical); the nature of the violent imagery; and passages of particular interest (the letter to Laodicea, ‘praise and politics’, Old Testament allusions, the second coming of Christ).This book will provide an invaluable resource for researchers and students alike,” according to the publisher.
Reviewed by John M. Court, in Journal of Theological Studies 54, no. 2 (October 2003): 726-729.
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Boxall, Ian. The Revelation of Saint John. Black’s New Testament commentaries, 18. Peabody, Maryland; London; New York: Hendrickson Publishers; Continuum, 2006. xvi + 347 pp.
