Exposition of the Apocalypse

by Francis X Gumerlock (Translator)

The Exposition of the Apocalypse by Tyconius of Carthage (fl. 380) was pivotal in the history of interpretation of the Book of Revelation. While expositors of the second and third centuries viewed the Apocalypse of John, or Book of Revelation, as mainly about the time of Antichrist and the end of the world, in the late fourth century Tyconius interpreted John's visions as figurative of the struggles facing the Church throughout the entire period between the Incarnation and the Second Coming of Christ. Tyconius's "ecclesiastical" reading of the Apocalypse was highly regarded by early medieval commentators like Caesarius of Arles, Primasius of Hadrumetum, Bede, and Beatus of Liebana, who often quoted from Tyconius's Exposition in their own Apocalypse commentaries.

207 pages, Hardcover

Published April 21, 2017

Reviews

[Alan Fuller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tyconius wrote his Apocalypse commentary about 380 AD. It can be called an ecclesiological interpretation. His view was that the church experienced spiritual warfare and tribulation throughout history, from the first advent to the second coming. Humanity was made of three parts, heavenly and earthly minded within the church, and heathens outside the church.

The symbols in the Apocalypse were reduced to a few meanings that were seen as recapitulation. For instance, numbers signify perfection. Kings and nations are references to the heathen and the earthly minded. Heads and horns are one and the same thing, kings and kingdoms. Seven and ten indicate the whole. However, the eschatological can also have reference to the present or historical. He names seven Roman emperors with Nero being the sixth.

This commentary was highly influential on Augustine, the father of amillennialism. Augustine's views predominated for the next thousand years. It is the most interesting Apocalypse commentary I have read, even if I don't agree with all of it.