Jesus and the angels: the influence of angelology on the Christology of the apocalypse of John

Abstract

A review of previous study of the Christology of the Ape reveals that little work has been done on the influence of angelology on the Christology of the Ape. What work has been done has focused mainly on Ape 1.13-16 and 14.14 and has drawn attention to parallels with angelophanies in OT and other Jewish and Christian apocalyptic and related writings from the period c. 200 BCE to 200 CE. In Part One of the dissertation the context of the Christology in Jewish and Christian traditions is explored. Initially angelology and epiphanies in Zechariah, Ezekiel, and Daniel are explored. Principal angels, especially those with a glorious appearance are then studied, followed by angelomorphic figures. Included in the latter category are both exalted humans and the Logos. The investigation in Part One is rounded off with a brief survey of texts featuring angel- and angelomorphic Christology in the first Christian centuries. Part Two begins with consideration of the relationship between Jesus and God and between Jesus and the angel of the revelation. This determines that Jesus is identified with God yet functionally equivalent to the angel. In four successive chapters the three visions of Jesus which most probably reflect the influence of angelology (1.13-16, 14.14, 19.11-16) are discussed. An alternative is put forward to the increasingly common assumption that Dn 7.9 LXX has influenced the combination of imagery found in Ape 1.13-16, and the thesis is proposed that Jesus is perceived as adopting angelic form analogous to his human incarnation. Jesus is not, however, in the final analysis an angel. His true nature is bound with God.