At the very beginning of this post, I will warn you not to expect a definitive answer to the above question since there are much wiser people than me who have thrown up their hands in the attempt:
“The meaning of this gift is uncertain.” (Bruce)
“Various images may lie behind this.” (Angel)
“The white stone is difficult to interpret owing to the many uses to which pebbles were put by the world of antiquity, each yielding an excellent symbolic sense.” (Beasley-Murray)
“There are perhaps a dozen or more plausible interpretations of 'the white stone.'” (Mounce)
“There may be no single background for the 'white stone.' It could be intentionally allusive and suggest diverse but compatible historical associations.” (Beale)
“This has puzzled commentators for centuries. At least seven suggestions have been made with some confidence...Some may be legitimately criticized on the ground that either the stone is not white or it has no inscription. But none of them carries complete conviction. We simply do not know what the white stone signified, though clearly it did convey some assurance of blessing.” (Morris) Here are some possibilities he offers up:
1. an indication of acquittal from a charge of wrongdoing
2. something to do with calculations
3. an equivalent to our symbol of a red-letter day
4. a ticket of entrance
5. a good luck amulet
6. precious stones which fell from heaven with the manna
7. a stone in the high priest's breastplate
The reason behind all this confusion lies in the fact that there are several separate components involved in trying to identify the stone. These include its physical make-up, color, nature of the reward behind the symbol, possible (or probable) relationship to the hidden manna also promised in the verse, and the identity of the name inscribed on it. Depending on which of these various aspects are stressed, one can arrive at quite different conclusions, as you can see below.
Possibility #1
“The stone mentioned here is probably the tessera of ancient times, which was used variously as a voting ballot...It was also used when drawing lots in a criminal case, the white stone was a favorable verdict, i.e. life.” (Ford)
Beale feels that “the meaning here probably refers to the reversal of the guilty verdict issued by the world's institutions against the overcomer because of refusal to participate in its idolatrous meals. Accordingly the 'white stone' becomes the invitation to take part in Jesus' supper (cf. 19:9). The notion that a banquet meal is in mind is supported by the reference to 'manna.'” Note that his explanation contains elements of Possibilities #1 and 4, indicating that the seven above options are not necessarily mutually exclusive.
Possibility #2
I was not able to locate any scholar who opted for this explanation.
Possibility #3
“There existed a Thracian custom of marking every good day by a white stone (Pliny, Hist. Nat.).” (Mounce)
Possibility #4
There are actually several sub-categories within this general explanation. One such example was the tessera hospitalis which “was in two parts, inscribed with two names and exchanged, so that each person had an open invitation to the house of the other.” (Beasley-Murray)
Also, Mounce says, “These little tablets of wood, metal, or stone were used in ancient times for many purposes. They were distributed to the poor in Rome by the emperors to insure a regular supply of corn (Seutonius), given to the victor at games, and to gladiators who had won the admiration of the public and had been allowed to retire from further combat.”
If the latter is in view, then a close parallel is provided in Paul's words in II Timothy 4:7-8: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day.” (RSV)
G.T.D. Angel notes, “In a certain royal assembly possession of a stone entitled one to free entertainment.”
The Lamb's heavenly banquet feast is a recurring theme in the book of Revelation. Thus, many scholars feel the stone represents an invitation to partake of that meal. See the final words to the seven churches in Revelation 3:20 – “Listen! I am standing at the door, knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to you and eat with you, and you with me.”
Possibility #5
“It could have been an amulet or charm to ward of evil.” (Mounce)
“Purveyors of magical amulets knew how important it was that a name of power should be kept secret; the power of Jesus' name is not to be commanded by magic arts, but is known in the experience of His servants.” (Bruce)
Possibility #6
“The 'white stone' also enforces the idea of the 'manna' as a heavenly reward, since the OT describes the heavenly manna as resembling white bdellium stones (cf. Exod. 16:31 and Num. 11:7).” (Beale)
Possibility #7
This actually represents two possibilities: either one of the precious stones on the high priest's breastplate representing a particular Jewish tribe or the Urim kept in a pouch with the Thummin and used to discern God's will (cf. Exodus 28:30).
Fuller provides a good conclusion to Revelation 2-3 to which most scholars would probably agree: “With one exception...(Rev 3:10), the rewards proffered are all heaven-oriented and astonishing in their richness...But whatever form this may take, it is clear that such recognition is given only that it may in some way reflect and honor the power and glory of God.”
Possibility #8
One additional interpretation of the stone has been offered by Ramsay, as Ford explains: “This seems to be a little cube or rectangular block of stone, ivory, or other substance with words or symbol engraved on one or more facets, which was used as a coupon or ticket. It bore a name and was given to successful gladiators. It was also used as a voting ballot by jurors or political voters. But Ramsay thinks John may have a new concept. John's stones differ in that they are imperishable and white. They may be intended as a contrast to the pieces of lead (regarded as an ill-omened metal in Greece) upon which were written curses and imprecations. John's stones would bear a blessing. The color white would symbolize victory and joy.”
Ford offers another insight from Ramsay, who “sees a play on words since Pergamum is the name from which is derived the word 'parchment,' which is quite perishable, whereas the stone is not.”
The New Name
Walvoord is at least partially correct when he states that “Alford is probably right in saying that the important point is the stone's inscription which gives the believer a 'new name,' indicating acceptance by God and his title to glory.” However, not everyone agrees that the new name specifically applies to the person who receives the stone with it engraved on it. As you will see below, others feel that it is the name of God or Christ, and yet others feel it may indeed apply to the recipient but also indicate his or her close identification with the Deity.
Beale, for example, says, “Separate meanings are not to be assigned to each of these names. They all refer to the intimate eachatological presence of God and Christ with his people, as expressed most clearly by 22:3-4:...'and they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.'”
As Beasley-Murray summarizes it, “If the name is of Christ or of God (cf. 3:12 and 19:12), then there may be an allusion to the concept of the power inherent in the name of God; the Christian shares God's might and appropriates for himself, in a manner none other can, the character of God. If the name is a new one bestowed on the Christian, then the allusion is to the habit of bestowing new names on persons who have attained a new status, as Abram and Jacob became Abraham and Israel; the while stone then signifies the overcomer's right to enter the kingdom of God in a character all of his his own, molded by the grace of God in him.”
Mounce admits, “Commentators are divided on the identity of the 'new name.' It is normally held to be the name of Christ by those who interpret the white stone as a magical charm...The new name is more likely the name of the victor himself. No one else can know the transforming experience of fidelity in trial and joy of entrance to the great marriage supper of the Lamb.”
Ruiz cites Isaiah 62:2 in this context: “The nations shall see your vindication, and all the kings your glory; and you shall be called by a new name.” And Blenkinsopp adds, “The bestowal of a new name signifies a change of fortune, a new dispensation (1.26; 62.12; 65.15-16).”
“This, surely, if nothing else, is a symbol of changeless purity. Christ is that White Stone, the 'stone cut without hands,' the stone of dazzling purity. The overcomer is given evidence that he has entered into a knowledge of the Lord Jesus as the victor over every defiling thing. The name is secret. The overcomer and the Lord are so close that the Lord can give him a knowledge of the Lord no one else can share.” (Phillips)
Ellul states that “it is not the name of the individual, nor the baptismal name, but very clearly the name of the Lord, known individually as truth. And we find the mystery of the transformation of the person; there is upon the stone a new name that no one knows except the one who receives it...it is the name that each risen one receives; it is total communion with Jesus Christ. Then if the name is the expression of the spiritual being, do we know exactly who we will be when our heart of stone is replaced by a heart of flesh? This well-known name (Jesus Christ) is in reality new when it becomes ours (when we will have put on Jesus Christ).”
Ford explains yet a different nuance to the 'name.' “Another interpretation may be that this stone is an entrance ticket into the promised land or paradise. A change of name was often given in the case of serious illness. If the patient survived, the new name bore a reference to life or to some OT saint whose life was especially long. A new name, therefore, denoted a new person: it was often theophoric, i.e. compounded with a name of God.”
Alternatively, she says, “Here, the name may be the name of an angel or a new name for the person, but we also know that the name of the Messiah was supposed to be engraved on a stone in the temple.”
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments