Book review: Revelation: The Way it Happened

★★★★

Here’s another review of my book on Revelation. It can be found on Goodreads, by reader Logan, at: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9688311-revelation 

“This was a very intriguing read. It is a sort of hybrid between a historical novel and an exegetical review of Revelation. It gives us much of the supposed context of the writing of this book in the form of dialogues between various historical and fictional characters interrupted intermittently by ‘interludes’ that provide us with factual explorations of the historical and psychological context of Revelation. The historical context is unquestionably true and described in thorough detail: the influence of Rome, Greece, Jewish tradition, ancient preJudaic tradition, Jesus, &c. The mental context is also most probably true, and can be assumed through the historical lens: the interpretation of Jewish literature at the time, the meaning of the Messiah to the small sect of believers calling themselves Christians, the pressure of Rome and Judaism on commoners, &c. Both of these lend to the specific story that Harmon has created, a story in which a reactionary group writes a richly historical and allusive but also intensely innovative work of preChristian literature.

“Harmon does not treat Revelation as necessarily ‘true’ in the Christian sense, and so he provides an objective look at the proper historical roots of this rather odd book. I greatly enjoyed reading it, as well, for I am someone greatly interested in the Bible but largely unread on the subject of the Apocalypse and its proper place in the Judaeo-Christian canon. Both Christian and nonChristian alike would be well advised to simply try this book if they consider the Bible anything worth taking seriously.”

http://www.thewayithappened.com/