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The Voice of Melody
An excerpt from the Preface:
In
the following pages I wish to examine John's apocalyptic
vision of the New Jerusalem, critically comparing it to
certain like passages of Old Testament prophecy,
especially Isaiah and the Song of Solomon.
I will attempt to answer this question: does John's
language describe a literal place, the home of the
redeemed, or is it figurative for something else, a
spiritual entity which is quite incapable of being seen by
mortal eyes? Who
is right, the literalists who anticipate the time when
they shall actually walk down streets of gold behind
jasper walls, or those who regard the vision as symbolic
of a spiritual kingdom far superior to any literal one we
can imagine?
In
order to justify my answers, I must take a rather detailed
look at Zion of the Old Testament.
My approach will be approximately along these
lines: an interpretation first of Zion as a woman, then as
a garden, and finally as a city.
The metaphors are almost never pure--they are mixed
and mingled in a maze of exotic imagery that almost defies
analysis. It
will be seen, however, that all prophecy is primarily
about Jesus Christ. All
the promised blessings of Zion--the restoration of her
children, her fruitful fields, and her joyful
citizens--are by, for, and through Jesus Christ of
Nazareth, her most exalted Son.
The
theme of this book, then, may be broadly stated as an
examination of those promises as they relate to the bride
and the bridegroom, or to the garden and the gardener, or,
simply, to Zion and Christ, as expressed in metaphor,
simile, personification, and the like.
.
. . ultimately they are found to be simply restating the
grandest theme of all: Christ died to save sinners.
Surely,
it is with ‘the
voice of melody’ that his servants declare the good
news unto all people.”
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