The Bible and the Dead Sea Scrolls: The ... - josephprestonkirk

278 THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS AND THE APOCALYPSE OF JOHN
the scroll and thus reveal the key to history: the crucified and resurrected
Christ, portrayed not as messianic lion, but as a slain but standing Lamb.
John Howard Yoder has offered a challenging theological interpretation
of the revelation of Jesus as Lamb:
John is here saying, not as an inscrutable paradox but as a meaningful affirmation,
that the cross and not the sword, suffering and not brute power
determines the meaning of history. The key to the obedience of God’s
people is not their effectiveness but their patience (13:10). The triumph of
the right is assured not by the might that comes to the aid of the right,
which is of course the justification of the use of violence and other kinds of
power in every human conflict. The triumph of the right, although it is
assured, is sure because of the power of the resurrection and not because
of any calculation of causes and effects, nor because of the inherently
greater strength of the good guys. The relationship between the obedience
of God’s people and the triumph of God’s cause is not a relationship of
cause and effect but one of cross and resurrection. 70
The crux here is, of course, is not only whether John Howard Yoder’s
theological interpretation is true to the Apocalypse, but also whether the
vision of John’s Apocalypse is true—whether the death and resurrection
of Christ really do constitute the crucial key to unlock the meaning of history,
or whether it represents a sad misunderstanding of the cross and its
relevance for resistance or accommodation to society. That the symbol of
the Lamb is the key to the Christology of the Apocalypse is beyond dispute;
it dominates the book. That the book’s Lamb Christology undergirds
an ethic of faithful witness is not beyond dispute, but it can be
demonstrated through careful exegesis. 71 While the question of truth cannot
be answered on the basis of empirical investigation, the modern
reader cannot completely avoid the challenge of either being drawn into
the symbolic universe constructed on that truth on the one hand, or consciously
resisting it on the other.
The ethics of the scrolls vary from scroll to scroll. Nevertheless, the
various rules (e.g., 1QS; CD; and 1QM) and Some Works of Torah
(4QMMT = 4Q394–399) all revolve around the creation and maintenance
of a community of faith based on strict adherence to the community’s
covenant or rule. Near the heart of that community life lies a strong
70. John H. Yoder, The Politics of Jesus: Vicit Agnus Noster (1972; 2d ed., Grand Rapids:
Eerdmans, 1994), 232.
71. See, e.g., David L. Barr, “Towards an Ethical Reading of the Apocalypse:
Reflections on John’s Use of Power, Violence, and Misogyny,” in SBLSP 36 (1997):
358–73. Cf. also Johns, Lamb Christology, 185–202.