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From the Two Books on the Promises

Dionysius of Alexandria

Part I.—Containing Various Sections of the Works.

About this work

Fragments of Dionysius’s response to millenarian interpretation, including his discussion of Revelation’s language, authorship, literary character, and place within Christian reading of apocalyptic prophecy in the early church.

Author: Dionysius of Alexandria
Date: Mid-3rd century
Origin: Alexandria
Genre: Fragments

The original books are lost and known through later quotation.

Part I.—Containing Various Sections of the Works.

I.—From the Two Books on the Promises.

And a little further on he

adds

:

—

John

,

moreover

,

nowhere

gives

us

the

name

,

whether

as

of

himself

directly

(

in

the

first

person

)

,

or

as

of

another

(

in

the

third

person

)

.

But

the

writer

of

the

Revelation

puts

himself

forward

at

once

in

the

very

beginning

,

for

he

says

:

“

The

Revelation

of

Jesus

Christ

,

which

He

gave

to

him

to

show

to

His

servants

quickly

;

and

He

sent

and

signified

it

by

His

angel

to

His

servant

John

,

who

bare

record

of

the

Word

of

God

,

and

of

his

testimony

,

and

of

all

things

that

he

saw

.

”

And

then

he

writes

also

an

epistle

,

in

which

he

says

:

“

John

to

the

seven

churches

which

are

in

Asia

,

grace

be

unto

you

,

and

peace

.

”

The

evangelist

,

on

the

other

hand

,

has

not

prefixed

his

name

even

to

the

catholic

epistle

;

but

without

any

circumlocution

,

he

has

commenced

at

once

with

the

mystery

of

the

divine

revelation

itself

in

these

terms

:

“

That

which

was

from

the

beginning

,

which

we

have

heard

,

which

we

have

seen

with

our

eyes

.

”

And

on

the

ground

of

such

a

revelation

as

that

the

Lord

pronounced

Peter

blessed

,

when

He

said

:

“

Blessed

art

thou

,

Simon

Bar

-

jona

;

for

flesh

and

blood

hath

not

revealed

it

unto

thee

,

but

my

Father

which

is

in

heaven

.

”

And

again

in

the

second

epistle

,

which

is

ascribed

to

John

,

the

apostle

,

and

in

the

third

,

though

they

are

indeed

brief

,

John

is

not

set

before

us

by

name

;

but

we

find

simply

the

anonymous

writing

,

“

The

elder

.

”

This

other

author

,

on

the

contrary

,

did

not

even

deem

it

sufficient

to

name

himself

once

,

and

then

to

proceed

with

his

narrative

;

but

he

takes

up

his

name

again

,

and

says

:

“

I

John

,

who

also

am

your

brother

and

companion

in

tribulation

,

and

in

the

kingdom

and

patience

of

Jesus

Christ

,

was

in

the

isle

that

is

called

Patmos

for

the

Word

of

God

,

and

for

the

testimony

of

Jesus

Christ

.

”

And

likewise

toward

the

end

he

speaks

thus

:

“

Blessed

is

he

that

keepeth

the

sayings

of

the

prophecy

of

this

book

;

and

I

John

who

saw

these

things

and

heard

them

.

”

That

it

is

a

John

,

then

,

that

writes

these

things

we

must

believe

,

for

he

himself

tells

us

.

Notes

16
Rev. i. 1, 2.
17
1 John i. 1.
18
Matt. xvi. 17.
19
Rev. i. 9.
20
Rev. xxii. 7, 8.