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Manuscript Type
Article
Abstract (For book reviews see instructions below)
In most English versions, Revelation 6:11 includes an interpolation ("the number of") which changes the meaning of the verse. This article evaluates the evidence for changes in the reading and interpretation of the text and the grammatical problems introduced by the interpolation, looking closely at the Greek grammar and syntax of the passage, which does not allow for the interpolation. Then the literary-historical problems with the interpolation are considered, noting the assumptions behind the interpolation and their weaknesses. Finally, the theological problems created by the interpolation are observed. I conclude that the interpolation is unfounded and attempt to address the intended theological understanding of the verse. The idea of completion or perfection is not related to a certain number but to the character of the fellow-servants and other believers who were to be killed as the plaintive martyrs were.
Recommended Citation
Reynolds, Edwin.
"Resolving the Confusion in Revelation 6:11."
Andrews University Seminary Studies (AUSS)
59.1
(2021):
35-48.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/auss/vol59/iss1/2
Included in
Biblical Studies Commons, Christianity Commons, Comparative Methodologies and Theories Commons, History of Christianity Commons, Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons
