A Bible School Manual: Studies in the Book of Revelation / An introduction, analysis, and notes, containing a concise interpretation according to the symbolic view, numerous references to authorities, and general mention of other interpretations, with the text of the American revised version edited in paragraphs, for the use of Bible students

by Stephen Alexander Hunter

FOR WHOM THE BOOK OF REVELATION,
TINGED THOUGH IT IS WITH MYSTERY,
CONTAINS A MANIFESTATION OF THE DIVINE PURPOSE
IN CREATION AND REDEMPTION,
AND A VISION OF THE FAR GLORY IN THE WORLD BEYOND,

THIS VOLUME—

WRITTEN IN THE HOPE THAT THE INTERPRETATION OFFERED
MAY CONTRIBUTE IN SOME DEGREE TO A CLEARER APPREHENSION OF THE BOOK,
AND MAY HELP IN SOME MEASURE TO MAKE ITS MESSAGE RICH,
AND SWEET, AND ABIDING—

IS RESPECTFULLY AND AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED

BY THE AUTHOR.

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Foreword

The manuscript of this Commentary was completed several years ago, but its publication was unfortunately deferred until the author's health no longer permitted him to see it through the press or even to be consulted in regard to modifications. For this latter reason no change of any kind has been made either in the language or the arrangement of the material. In the bibliography we have added the two recent monumental contributions to the literature on the Book of Revelation, commentaries by I. T. Beckwith and R. H. Charles. Had the author possessed the physical strength after their appearance, we feel sure that he would have drawn upon these two extensive works which are intended for the use of technical scholars.

The significance of Dr. Hunter's “Studies in the Book of Revelation” lies in its clear and accurate presentation of the results of the investigation of modern scholars, in language which is comprehensible to the intelligent reader of the English Bible. The Revelation of St. John has been an enigma from the earliest Christian centuries. On the one hand, it has been shunned because of its mysteriousness; on the other, it has been discredited for sober-minded, intelligent Christians by the absurd vagaries of its interpreters. Too often the caprice or predilection of the commentator, rather than impartial study, has determined the meaning of the closing book of the New Testament canon. The removal of this reproach has been one of the signal achievements of the Biblical scholarship of the last twenty-five years. Such a notable result has been accomplished by the discovery and the interpretation of the Jewish Apocalyptic, a type of literature that flourished from 200 B. C. on for several centuries. The Revelation belongs to this type of literature. It is the expression of a Christian's faith in the triumph of his Lord's kingdom through the use of symbolism and imagery peculiar to Jewish Apocalyptic literature. Our author, in common with all modern scholars, has used this key for unlocking the mystery of the closing book of the Christian Scriptures. By its employment he has made clear the meaning of the Revelation to the open-minded reader of the English Bible. On every page the work gives evidence of scholarship, wide in [pg 010] its range, and thorough in its grasp, as well as of sanity of judgment in the discussion of controversial questions. Because of these qualities, Dr. Hunter's treatise is worthy of wide circulation. It meets a special need at this time as it is especially adapted to counteract fantastic theories of interpretation and theology which are based on a misunderstanding of both the purpose and the symbolism of a New Testament book that ranks as an equal of the greatest pieces of imaginative literature.