Symbolism, Visions, and Syntax in Apocalyptic Literature — Reading Greek Images without Losing the Greek

Introduction: Why Apocalyptic Needs Both Imagination and Grammar

Apocalyptic literature is visionary and rigorous at once. It asks you to see—to inhabit dreams, signs, and symbols—and it asks you to parse what you see by following the Greek on the page. The Book of Revelation, certain sections of Daniel (LXX), Ezekiel, Zechariah, and New Testament passages like Mark 13 and 2 Thessalonians 2 press both faculties into service. You will not read apocalyptic well if you reduce its images to thin propositions; neither will you read it well if you float free of case, aspect, and clause relations. This chapter trains you to approach apocalyptic texts as Greek, attending to the markers by which authors signal symbolism, shift scenes, and stage the logic of a vision. We will (1) define how apocalyptic symbolism works in Koine discourse; (2) survey “vision grammar”: the verbs, particles, and constructions that organize revelation; (3) study how syntax carries theology in symbolic scenes; (4) work through focused exegesis in Revelation, Daniel LXX, and Zechariah LXX; and (5) practice with substantial Greek exercises. Along the way we will keep close to standard tools—BDAG, Wallace, Porter, Runge—and to leading apocalyptic studies (Aune, 1997; Beale, 1999; Bauckham, 1993; Collins, 2016; Koester, 2014; Moyise, 2001; Yarbro Collins, 1984).

Apocalyptic is not an escape from exegesis. It is a school for it. In Greek, symbols are never free-floating; they are embedded in syntax. Your task is to let imagination and grammar corroborate one another.

1. What Is a Symbol in Koine? Semantics, Intertext, and the Limits of Allegory

A symbol is an image that participates in the reality it reveals. In apocalyptic Greek you recognize symbols by textual cues as much as by content. The prologue of Revelation arms you with a verb: ἐσήμανεν—“he signified” (Rev 1:1). The vision is mediated as σημεῖα, sign-events, not merely statements (BDAG, 2000, s.v. σημαίνω; Beale, 1999, pp. 50–54). This does not license allegory in which every detail must map one-to-one onto something else; it cautions you to read for resonance rather than reduction (Bauckham, 1993).

Greek helps you keep your bearings. When John wants you to know an image is explicitly a symbol, he says so with copular clauses: “αἱ ἑπτὰ λυχνίαι ἑπτὰ ἐκκλησίαι εἰσιν” (Rev 1:20). When he wants to liken without equating, he flags simile with ὡς or comparison with ὅμοιος/ὅμοιον (Rev 1:13; 9:7; 13:2). Ὡς is the consistent “don’t flatten me” particle; it protects the distance between vision and referent. Failure to respect ὡς is one of the most common exegetical errors in apocalyptic reading (Aune, 1997, pp. lxx–lxxii; Wallace, 1996, pp. 672–674).

Symbols are almost always intertextual. The LXX is the lexicon of apocalyptic imagery: beasts (Dan 7), son of man (Dan 7:13–14), lampstands and eyes (Zech 4), measuring rods and temple motifs (Ezek 40–48), the new Jerusalem (Isa 60; 65–66), the sea as chaos (Ps 73[74]; Isa 57:20). When John writes of a Lamb “ἑστηκὸς ὡς ἐσφαγμένον” (Rev 5:6), he is not introducing an arbitrary cipher; he is weaving Passover, Servant, and sacrificial threads into one perfect participle that encodes “alive in the state of having been slain” (Beale, 1999, pp. 351–358; Porter, 1992, pp. 189–193). Your discipline is to keep the LXX open and listen for echoes (Moyise, 2001).

Symbols are not private. Apocalyptic is ecclesial and public. The macarisms in Rev 1:3 (“Blessed is the reader … and those who hear and keep”) presuppose public reading and communal obedience. The symbol’s meaning is secured not by a decoding key hidden in you but by how the text deploys the symbol within Scripture’s patterns, and by the linguistic cues it gives you on the page (Koester, 2014).

Finally, symbols are not the same as allegory. Allegory tends to treat every detail as a separate code; apocalyptic uses iconic wholes—the throne room, the beast from the sea, the bride-city—that gather multiple scriptural lines. The author himself occasionally interprets details (Rev 17:7–18), but more often he interprets by repetition and pattern: the beast’s seven heads appear more than once; their sense emerges with the syntax that binds vision to explanation (“ὅπου ὁ νοῦς ὁ ἔχων σοφίαν,” Rev 17:9) (Yarbro Collins, 1984, pp. 54–77).

2. How Visions Are Written in Greek: A Mini-Grammar of Sight

Apocalyptic vision language has its own verbal repertoire and discourse signals.

2.1 Seeing and Showing Verbs

Revelation’s narrative advances with εἶδον (“I saw”), ἤκουσα (“I heard”), ἰδοὺ (“behold”), δείκνυμι/δείξω (“show”), and temporal discourse markers μετὰ ταῦτα (“after these things”). The alternation of εἶδον/ἤκουσα is often exegetically charged: John hears “the Lion of Judah” and sees “a Lamb as slain” (Rev 5:5–6). The shift is not a contradiction; it is interpretive progression (Bauckham, 1993, pp. 72–80).

The verb σημαίνω (Rev 1:1) frames all seeing as signifying; ἔδειξέν μοι (21:10; 22:1) introduces guided vision. These verbs are followed by direct objects that are often loaded with genitive strings—“the river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb” (22:1). Do not be impatient with the genitives; they are precision work (Wallace, 1996, pp. 84–102).

2.2 Deictic Particles and Scene Changes

ἰδού is deictic—“look!”—and often marks vision pivots (Rev 6:2, 5; 7:9). Μετὰ ταῦτα and μετὰ ταῦτα εἶδον/ἤκουσα are section dividers (Rev 4:1; 7:1, 9; 15:5; 18:1; 19:1). They are not chronological guarantees in a modern sense; they are narrative sequencing of what was seen (Aune, 1997, pp. 275–278). Read them like camera cuts.

2.3 The “As Though” Particle and the “Like” Adjective

Ὡς introduces simile (“eyes like a flame of fire,” Rev 1:14) and manner; ὅμοιος/ὁμοίως introduces likeness (“ὅμοιον υἱὸν ἀνθρώπου,” 1:13). These are theological safety rails: John is precise about how the vision points without collapsing the distance between symbol and referent (Aune, 1997, pp. lxx–lxxii).

2.4 Apposition and Copula for Interpretation

When Revelation interprets a symbol, it often does so by apposition and copula: “αἱ ἑπτὰ λυχνίαι ἑπτὰ ἐκκλησίαι εἰσιν” (1:20). “The seven horns are the seven spirits” (5:6) integrates Zechariah’s imagery (Zech 3–4) into Christology. These equatives are your warrant for interpretation; elsewhere, ὡς/ὅμοιος restrains you (Beale, 1999, pp. 102–105).

2.5 Participles and Aspect in Vision

Apocalyptic Greek leans on participles to encode state and means: the Lamb ἑστηκὸς (perfect act.), ὡς ἐσφαγμένον (perfect pass.) (Rev 5:6); Babylon καθημένη (seated) (17:1); angels ἔχοντες bowls (15:7). Perfects mark ongoing state rooted in prior action; aorists narrate decisive events; presents profile habitual identity (Porter, 1992). Read participles with care: they often carry the theological load.

2.6 Parataxis and Asyndeton

Apocalyptic favors parataxis (“and … and … and”) and strategic asyndeton (sudden breaks). The repeated καί in vision sequences is not sloppy; it is rhythmic and incremental, piling images to overwhelm the senses (Runge, 2010, pp. 29–46). Asyndeton often marks heightened solemnity or shock, as when names cascade without connective (Rev 19:12).

2.7 Semitic Greek and Theological Titles

Phrases like ὁ ὢν καὶ ὁ ἦν καὶ ὁ ἐρχόμενος (1:4) stretch Greek to fit Exodus 3 into a christological frame. Do not “correct” the case; recognize Semitic interference as theology-in-form (Koester, 2014, pp. 239–244).

3. Numbers, Colors, Creatures, and Places: The Symbolic Palette—But Watch the Greek

Apocalyptic paints with archetypal elements, but again, usage is textual.

3.1 Numbers

Seven signals fullness/perfection (seven spirits/lampstands/seals), often anchored in Zech 4 where seven eyes represent God’s omniscient Spirit (Aune, 1997, pp. 281–285). Twelve speaks of Israel/apostolic people (Rev 21:12–14). Three and a half (time, times, half a time; 42 months; 1,260 days) is broken seven—a limited, adversarial period (Dan 7:25; Rev 11–13). Ten often marks completeness of power (ten horns). Six can signal incompleteness; 666 is symbolic imperfection intensified (Rev 13:18). John cues you with formulae (“ὁ ἔχων νοῦν ψηφισάτω,” 13:18) to weigh rather than guess (Beale, 1999, pp. 714–723).

3.2 Colors

White (λευκός) is victory/purity (Rev 3:4–5; 6:2), red (πυρρός) is blood/war (6:4), black scarcity/judgment (6:5), pale/χλωρός deathly pallor (6:8). The colors are not arbitrary; they track OT connotations (Zech 1; 6). Note how Greek adjectives function attributively and predicatively to stage these effects.

3.3 Animals and Composite Beasts

Beasts concatenate features: leopard/bear/lion (Rev 13:2) is a Danielic composite (Dan 7), a political-imperial symbol. The Lamb is counter-animal: power through sacrifice. Greek signals mode: ὡς ἐσφαγμένον refuses domestication of the symbol and binds it to the cross (Bauckham, 1993, pp. 61–77).

3.4 Places

Sea is chaos/evil (Rev 13:1; 21:1), earth often the sphere of human rebellion (13:11), wilderness a place of testing and protection (12:6, 14; 17:3), mountain theophany and vantage (21:10). Syntax often codes function: “he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness” (17:3) uses ἐν πνεύματι + locative to mark prophetic transport (Ezekiel echo) (Aune, 1997, pp. 939–944).

4. Syntax That Preaches: How Grammar Governs Vision Meaning

4.1 Prepositions as Theological Guides

Revelation’s prepositions are doxological tools. Ἀπό distributes grace and peace from the One-who-is/was/is-coming, the seven spirits, and Jesus Christ (1:4–5). Διά + genitive marks agency (“through the Lamb,” 5:9; “through the Spirit,” 4:5; 5:6). Ἐν marks sphere/presence—“in the Spirit” (1:10; 4:2; 17:3; 21:10), “in the heavenly places” (cf. Eph 1). Εἰς gives telos: the hymns ascribe blessing εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων (5:13), the city’s gates are open εἰς the nations’ procession (21:25–26). When you label prepositions (sphere/agency/goal/source/instrument), you are drawing the map of the vision (Porter, 1992; Wallace, 1996).

4.2 Perfect Participles as Theological Compression

The perfect participles in Revelation condense narrative into identity. Ἑστηκὸς… ἐσφαγμένον (5:6) says that slaughter is not past and irrelevant; it is an abiding quality of the Lamb’s exaltation. Likewise, γεγραμμένοι “written in the book” (21:27) denotes a state, not just a past act. Your translation should preserve this (Beale, 1999, pp. 351–358).

4.3 Equatives and Appositions That Fix Sense

When the author says “the seven heads are seven mountains… and they are seven kings” (17:9–10), he is guiding you by equations and appositions. Note where the copula appears and where metaphor remains protected by ὡς/ὅμοιος. The line between identification and likeness is a grammatical line.

4.4 Parataxis and Anaphora as Rhetoric

The piling καί and hymnic anaphora (“Ἄξιος ἐστίν… Ἄξιος…”) are not merely stylistic; they create liturgical action. Mapping the cola (see prior lesson) is a syntactic act that yields theological structure (Runge, 2010).

5. Guided Exegesis: Three Case Studies Where Symbol Meets Syntax

5.1 Revelation 12:1–6 — Woman, Dragon, Child (Birth, Flight, Protection)

Read the scene in Greek. The woman is a σημεῖον μέγα “in the heaven”—already flagged as sign. She is περιβεβλημένη τὸν ἥλιον, a perfect participle (“clothed in the state of the sun”) that signals glory and covenant imagery (Gen 37). The dragon’s heads/diadems are genitives piled for regalia. Ἐτέκε (aorist) narrates birth; ἡρπάσθη (aorist pass.) the child’s rescue. The ἐρήμος flight uses εἰς for telos (“to a place prepared [ἡτοιμασμένον, perfect] by God”) and ἵνα for divine purpose: “so that there they might nourish her” (3rd pl. impersonal). Syntax and aspect preach preservation amid persecution (Beale, 1999, pp. 621–645).

5.2 Daniel 7 (LXX) — Beasts and Son of Man (Empire and Dominion)

In Dan 7 LXX, the beasts arise ἐκ τῆς θαλάσσης (“from the sea”)—source semantics. The ὡς constructions govern likeness—the fourth beast is δεινὸν καὶ φοβερὸν καὶ ἰσχυρὸν σφόδρα with iron teeth. Then καὶ ἰδοὺ the “ὡς υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου” comes μετὰ τῶν νεφελῶν to the Ancient of Days and receives ἐξουσία and βασιλεία. Revelation 13’s beast and Revelation 1’s ὅμοιον υἱὸν ἀνθρώπου deliberately echo this Greek; following the prepositions (from/unto/with) and the ὡς helps you see how John’s Lamb reconfigures Daniel’s dominion motif (Collins, 2016, pp. 85–110; Aune, 1997, pp. 65–78).

5.3 Zechariah 4 (LXX) and Revelation 11 — Lampstands and Witnesses

Zechariah’s λυχνία with ἑπτὰ λύχνοι and δύο ἐλαῖαι is interpreted by the angel as “οὗτος ὁ λόγος Κυρίου… οὐκ ἐν δυνάμει… ἀλλ’ ἐν τῷ πνεύματί μου.” Revelation 11 calls the two witnesses “αἱ δύο ἐλαῖαι καὶ αἱ δύο λυχνίαι” (11:4). Greek apposition carries intertext that controls the symbolism: prophetic witness by the Spirit before the Lord of all the earth. Notice the future and present verb mixture in 11:3–6 that charts both promise and ongoing function (Beale, 1999, pp. 561–602; Moyise, 2001, pp. 94–101).

6. Methods for Reading Apocalyptic with Confidence: A Step-by-Step Discipline

First, frame the passage by its own discourse markers: μετὰ ταῦτα, εἶδον/ἤκουσα, ἰδού. Write down what is seen and what is heard; they are sometimes different lenses on one reality (Rev 7:4–9).

Second, tag every ὡς/ὅμοιος and every equative (εἰμί with apposition). This single exercise prevents over-literalization and under-reading alike. When ὡς governs, preserve the as in English; when εἰμί interprets, let the identity stand.

Third, map the prepositions. Label ἀπό (source), ἐκ (source/extraction), διά (agency/instrument), ἐν (sphere/instrument), εἰς (goal). Your “preposition map” is a theological outline.

Fourth, chart the participles. For each participle, note tense-form and function (means, manner, condition, result, concession). Perfects often encode identity; aorists narrate vision turns; presents portray habitual action.

Fifth, trace intertext by noun clusters and phrases. When you meet ἡ πόλις ἡ ἁγία Ἰερουσαλήμ καινή (Rev 21:2), go to Isa 52; 60; 65–66; when you meet θηρίον with sea/earth, read Dan 7–8. Let LXX Greek guide your semantic field (Moyise, 2001; Beale, 1999).

Sixth, resist totalizing. Symbols are multi-valent but not ambiguous in every direction. Keep your claims tethered to observable Greek features: a copular clause here, a simile there, a prepositional frame, a perfect participle.

7. Practice: Reading Apocalyptic Greek at the Desk and in the Sanctuary

The following guided work is designed to slow your reading until the Greek itself begins to govern your imagination.

7.1 Vision Log: Revelation 10:1–11 (The Mighty Angel and the Little Scroll)

Read the pericope in Greek. Record every εἶδον/ἤκουσα/ἰδού. Parse κατεβαίνοντα (descending; present ptcp.) and περιβεβλημένον (perfect ptcp.). Label the ὡς similes (face like the sun; legs like pillars of fire). Translate preserving ὡς as “as/like.” Note the no more delay clause—χρόνος οὐκέτι ἔσται—and discuss how the ou- negation combines with ἔσται (future) to set temporal expectation (Wallace, 1996, pp. 466–469).

7.2 Syntax Check: Revelation 14:1–5 (The Lamb and the 144,000)

Mark the perfects (ἑστῶτες, γεώμηνοι?—textual; ἠγορασμένοι in v. 3–4) and explain their state-result force. Track ἀπὸ (from the earth; from among men) and ἐκ (out from) uses. Determine whether οὗτοι demonstratives function as topic continuity markers in this strophic passage.

7.3 Intertext Drill: Revelation 21:9–27 with Ezekiel 40–48 LXX

Place Greek phrases side by side: μέτρον language, τετράγωνος, πολὺς λίθος τίμιος, ναὸν οὐκ εἶδον vs Ezekiel’s maximal temple. Write a paragraph explaining why absence of ναός is an eschatological reversal and how the equative clause makes the point.

7.4 Daniel 8 LXX: Ram and Goat

Analyze the repeated κερατά (horns) with numerals and participles; note the σφόδρα intensifiers, the ἐμεγαλύνθη (aorist passive) of self-exaltation, and the συνέβη temporal sequencing. Show how Revelation’s horn language picks up Daniel’s morphology.

7.5 Zechariah 12–14 LXX in Revelation 1:7; 11–12

Track ὄψονται… ἐξεκέντησαν (Rev 1:7) against Zech 12:10. Parse the future middle κόψονται (they will mourn) and its echo in Revelation’s Greek. Note how the merger of Dan 7 (“coming with clouds”) and Zech 12 (“they will look… and mourn”) produces a dual lens—judgment and repentance—in a single clause (Bauckham, 1993, pp. 70–80).

Assigned Readings and Translations (This Week)

Read in Greek and annotate:

1. Revelation 10; 12; 14:1–5; 17:1–14; 21:9–27 — a cross-section of vision types (angelic guidance; cosmic conflict; hymns; angelic interpretation; eschatological city).

2. Daniel 7–8 LXX — beasts and dominion; ram and goat.

3. Zechariah 4; 12–14 LXX — lampstand and olive trees; mourning; day of the LORD.

4. Ezekiel 40–48 LXX (select chapters) — measure, temple, river.

5. Supplement from the Gospels: Mark 13 (Greek apocalyptic discourse).

For each passage, maintain a Symbol & Syntax Notebook with entries that include: (a) the Greek citation; (b) a list of ὡς/ὅμοιος instances; (c) equative clauses and what they identify; (d) prepositional map; (e) perfect participles with notes on state/result; (f) LXX intertexts (exact Greek phrases); (g) a 4–6 sentence exegesis tied to these observations.

Suggested Assignments (graded)

1) Research Essay (8–10 pages): “Ὡς and εἰμί: Safeguarding Sense in Revelation’s Images.”
Select two vision scenes (for example, Rev 1:12–16 and 13:1–10). Catalogue every ὡς/ὅμοιος and every copular identification. Argue, with close translation, how respecting these markers prevents both hyper-literalism and over-allegorization. Interact with Aune (1997) on Semitic features and with Bauckham (1993) on symbolic realism. Conclude with two paragraphs on pedagogical implications: how you will teach a congregation to hear the “as though” without losing the is.

2) Intertext Dossier (6–8 pages + table): “Daniel in John.”
Lay out Daniel 7–8 (LXX) in a two-column table with Revelation 1, 5, 13. Highlight exact Greek correspondences (e.g., ὡς υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου, θηρίον, κέρατα, νεφέλαι). Write a synthetic essay showing how Revelation’s syntax (prepositions, participles, apposition) not only borrows imagery but re-angles Daniel’s message around the Lamb (Collins, 2016; Beale, 1999; Moyise, 2001).

3) Commentary Project (5–6 pages): “Perfect Participles as Theology.”
Choose three perfect participles from Revelation (e.g., ἑστηκὸς, ἐσφαγμένον, ἡτοιμασμένη, γεγραμμένοι). Provide morphological analysis, immediate syntax, and a theological explanation of the state-result force. Engage Porter (1992) and Beale (1999).

4) Greek Composition Exercise (1–2 pages): “Write a Mini-Vision.”
Compose 6–8 Greek cola that imitate apocalyptic style, including εἶδον/ἤκουσα, at least three ὡς similes, one explicit equative interpretation (X εἰσιν Y), and a prepositional map (ἀπό/ἐκ/ἐν/εἰς/διά). Provide idiomatic translation and a brief note justifying your choices.

5) Oral Recitation with Cola Marking.
Memorize Revelation 5:9–13 or 21:3–5 in Greek. Submit an audio recitation and a marked text with cola, indicating ὡς and equatives. Add a 300–400 word reflection on how speaking the Greek sharpened your sense of emphasis and cadence.

Conclusion: Let the Grammar Carry the Glory

Apocalyptic literature dazzles because it is Scripture re-voiced as sight. Its symbolism is not a license for guessing; its visions are not excuses to ignore verbs. The Greek itself disciplines your imagination. Ὡς and ὅμοιος safeguard likeness; εἰμί and apposition sometimes fix identity; prepositions map source, sphere, mediation, and goal; perfect participles hold identity and event together; parataxis and anaphora create liturgy on the page. When you attend to these features, the images do not shrink; they become clearer, richer, and more faithful to the canon that generated them. Your task as a reader at the doctoral level is to keep a hand on both reins—symbol and syntax—until the text forms in you what it shows you: worship that knows why it sings “Worthy is the Lamb.”

References (APA)

Aune, D. E. (1997). Revelation 1–5 (WBC 52A). Word Books.

Bauckham, R. (1993). The theology of the Book of Revelation. Cambridge University Press.

Bauer, W., Danker, F. W., Arndt, W. F., & Gingrich, F. W. (2000). A Greek–English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature (3rd ed.). University of Chicago Press. [= BDAG]

Beale, G. K. (1999). The book of Revelation (NIGTC). Eerdmans.

Collins, J. J. (2016). The apocalyptic imagination: An introduction to Jewish apocalyptic literature (3rd ed.). Eerdmans.

Koester, C. R. (2014). Revelation: A new translation with introduction and commentary (AYB 38A). Yale University Press.

Metzger, B. M. (1994). A textual commentary on the Greek New Testament (2nd ed.). United Bible Societies.

Moyise, S. (2001). The Old Testament in the Book of Revelation. T&T Clark.

Porter, S. E. (1992). Idioms of the Greek New Testament (2nd ed.). Sheffield Academic Press.

Runge, S. E. (2010). Discourse grammar of the Greek New Testament: A practical introduction for teaching and exegesis. Lexham.

Wallace, D. B. (1996). Greek grammar beyond the basics: An exegetical syntax of the New Testament. Zondervan.

Yarbro Collins, A. (1984). Crisis and catharsis: The power of the Apocalypse. Westminster John Knox.