Bible Question:
Discussing Book of Revelation w/a friend, I was informed that it was all symbolism, to which I replied that the symbolism is explained within the Bible. I was also told that a favorite (symbol) was where horses were eating other horses. I do not recall seeing this, can anyone help me to help this brother to see the light in this wonderful Book? |
Bible Answer: I really don’t mean to sound cliché here but…. The only person who can actually do that (help him see the light of the book) is God himself. Some advice though, in case it’s helpful. It’s likely more destructive than productive to argue with someone over what Scripture does or does not say. Discussion around misunderstood points and working together to build the context around those points by finding what the rest of the Bible has to say on the subject is good for study and learning (and I might add is the only way to understand how symbolism is used in the Bible). The assumption there is that at least one person in the conversation has enough knowledge of the topic to provide a starting point that includes being able to point to other relevant places in Scripture to help make sense of what’s not understood. Otherwise, and perhaps in this case, both people might benefit most by agreeing to pray for understanding and then spending time alone, reading for understanding before debating points that they may find aren’t even there. Your friend might benefit from reading to learn what the Bible says about sin and redemption (as an example) before looking for horse eating horses. Of course you would want to be loving and gracious in how you suggest that. Hope this is helpful. |