Poetic Language in the Bible. It's a good thing.

 

The book of Revelations is a specific type of literature called “apocalyptic” literature. Revelations is “end-times,” which is what apocalyptic means or when this world passes away and God puts in his New Order.

A working definition for apocalyptic literature is that it deals with future events and these events relate to judgment on earth by God.

By the way, God’s judgment will be and is both good and bad.

Anytime the Bible talks about the future, because it is the future, it uses a lot of poetic language. Mostly because we humans can’t actually know the future and yet it is us humans that God has given this revelation of the future to. Let's say it is "indescribable delicious."

Take the case of the Apostle John having a “vision” from God in the Book of Revelations (Revelations 1:11). He is asked to write down this vision and send it to the Christian churches in the world at that time.

Like the prophecies from the Old Testament, John’s vision has some bad things to say about the churches, but also some very good things to commend them on.

Now, the mistake most people begin to make is that they take apocalyptic literature too literally. This is what people often find confusing about apocalyptic literature. Visions from heaven only come in symbolic language because God can only be understood by His human creations in figurative or symbolic language.

So, let’s take just a brief example from the Book of Revelations to demonstrate how magnificent, but also symbolic, this type of literature is:

11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.” 13 And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, “To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.” 14 And the four living creatures kept saying, “Amen.” And the elders fell down and worshiped.

The thing is, even this poetic language cannot do justice to how wonderful and marvelous and out-loud all creation will be praising God and the Lamb who was slain to receive power, riches, wisdom, honor, glory and many, many blessings.

So, it is always possible to have a good day, no matter the circumstances, when one thinks about what will happen, symbolically, on that day. The imagination, you see, is truly a wonderful thing.