Revelation 7:1-8 and Chapter 18 - Ring Five of The Woven Rings of Revelation

This is one study within the larger body of work introduced here: The Woven Rings of Revelation: Intro

This presentation showcases the fifth woven ring of the book of Revelation, counting from the outside in. Ring Five opens with 7:1-8 and closes with chapter 18. This ring is expressed through 25 lines and 74 lines, respectively.

Through the visual organization and interactive features of this presentation, it first highlights the structural relationships within the opening text of the ring, and separately, of the closing. The access provided to the Author's guidance is invaluable! There is further benefit on offer for those who are able to recognize the parallels that exist when comparing the opening with the closing texts of this woven ring. See down below the interactive presentation for some commentary.

Generated with the Chiasmatron 2000

A selection of parallels found when comparing 7:1-8 and chapter 18

7:1 "After this I saw...angels standing at the four corners of the earth...of the earth... on the earth."
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18:1 After these things I saw...angel coming down from heaven...and the earth

7:2-3 "I SAW ANOTHER ANGEL ascending from the rising of the sun, having the seal of the living God; and he cried out with a loud voice...saying,"
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18:1-2 "I SAW ANOTHER ANGEL coming down from heaven, having great authority...And he cried out with a mighty voice, saying,

Assuring provision for the protection of God's people
7:3 "...Do not harm...until we have sealed the bond-servants of our God..."
COMPARE
18:4 ..."Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues"

An observation about the structural unit spanning 18:6-7c

The Author emphasizes the justice in the execution of judgment against Mystery Babylon by reason of such an interesting design.

Technically speaking, the 4 lines of 6a-d are clearly a 2+2 parallelism. The 4 lines of 6e-7c are clearly a 2+2 chiasm. These two 4-line units are clearly the B and B' of the 2+2 chiasm spanning verses 4 through 8. Just as the A (v 4-5) and A' (v 7d-8) units of that span reveal a 2+2 parallelism, these B and B' units reveal a 2+2 chiasm, where the 4 lines of that a) and a') reveal a 2+2 chiasm, and the 4 lines of that b) and b') reveal a 2+2 parallelism.

The intricate and elegant beauty of this design is much more easily grasped by exploring the highlighting as you thoughtfully hover your mouse cursor through the patterns.

Explanation:

What you see above is an exhibit of the linguistic structure that appears throughout the Bible. The featured passage of scripture is straight from the Bible. Nothing has been added or removed or shifted out of sequence.

What's the point of studying this kind of symmetrical design? Firstly, be inspired by the awesome beauty and intricacy of the Author's Word. The structure also conveys meaning to those seeking knowledge and wisdom! In an elegant way, it suggests where the Author places emphasis. It presents context in a very refined manner that guides us to ask questions we would otherwise not be inclined to ask, subsequently leading us to profound insights we would not otherwise glean! How are the paired elements alike and how do they differ? In what specific ways do they compare? Why are they paired? Ask the questions prompted by the holy spirit as you're being informed by the structural comparisons.

Directions:

The interactive features will vividly illustrate the structural design. Pass your mouse cursor over the passage. Hovering over a vertical bar or a line of text will cause it to be highlighted together with its matching elements. If you see a bar or a line of text called out for special attention, click it to open a Commentary Window (which can be repositioned by dragging) and freeze the relevant background highlighting.

Tip: When a presentation is too big to fit on your device screen, you can make adjustments that will allow you to see the elements of interest together onscreen for easier comparison. Right clicking on a bar will collapse it to a single line - a very useful feature! Make your browser full screen - try F11. You can also adjust the zoom (ctrl- or ctrl+ to zoom out or in). If you have a monitor that rotates into a portrait display, leveraging that vertical real estate can be very useful.

For more explanation, see: About These Thematic Patterns

For more examples, see: Interactive Content