Armageddon
What the Bible Really Says about the End
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3.8 • 4 Ratings
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- $14.99
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
A “humane, thoughtful, and intelligent” (The New York Times Book Review) bestselling Biblical scholar reveals why our popular understanding of the Apocalypse is all wrong—and why that matters.
You’ll find nearly everything the Bible says about the end in the Book of Revelation: a mystifying prophecy filled with bizarre symbolism, violent imagery, mangled syntax, confounding contradictions, and very firm ideas about the horrors that await us all. But no matter what you think Revelation reveals—whether you read it as a literal description of what will soon come to pass, interpret it as a metaphorical expression of hope for those suffering now, or only recognize its highlights from pop culture—you’re almost certainly wrong.
In Armageddon, acclaimed New Testament authority Bart D. Ehrman delves into the most misunderstood—and possibly most dangerous—book of the Bible, on a “vigilantly persuasive” (The Washington Post) tour through three millennia of Judeo-Christian thinking about how our world will end. With wit and verve, he explores the alarming social and political consequences of expecting an imminent apocalypse, considers whether the message of Revelation may be at odds with the teachings of Jesus, and offers inspiring insight into how to live in the face of an uncertain future.
By turns hilarious, moving, troubling, and provocative, Armageddon is nothing short of revelatory in its account of what the Bible really says about the end.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Ehrman (Heaven and Hell), a religious studies professor at the University of North Carolina, tackles the Book of Revelation in this ambitious but uneven outing. Written by the apostle John in exile, the "bizarre and unapproachable" text details God's final judgments, which makes it especially relevant to consider in today's "apocalyptic times," Ehrman writes. Setting out a history of eschatological predictions, the author surveys dispensational premillenialism, a 19th-century school of thought that holds that Christ will return twice, and Christian Zionism, which calls for the mass return of Jews to Israel to "set the stage" for Jesus's return. Examining passages about the apocalypse in Daniel and Ezekiel, the author concludes that literalist interpretations have gotten it wrong: Revelation was written for John's era, and its "exaggerated claims" offered possible salvation to the day's Christians and punishment for their Roman oppressors. Gentler interpretations, meanwhile, are wishful thinking. Instead, he argues, the book isn't reflective of God's true nature at all. Despite the rigor Ehrman brings to the table, there is surprisingly little discussion about first-century apocalyptic literature (including the writing of the Essenes), and Ehrman spends a lot of time debunking others' views rather than making a case for his own. There are some bright moments, but this entry falls short of its lofty aims.
