History and Supra-history in the Book of Revelation

Chrys C. Caragounis considers that the key to a correct interpretation of Revelation is what he calls the supra-historical approach. So far, in the scholarly world, Revelation has been approached as a purely historical document, but this approach has led to the failure to make full sense of the contents of the book. The case is rather that the author of Revelation writes within the historical framework in which he lives but that his point of reference is not history but supra-history. He does not describe the events taking place around him in ordinary historical terms, but looks beyond history to the ultimate causes behind these events, causes that determine history. In this he shares fully in the standpoint of the Jewish apocalyptists, although in difference to them, his work is not pseudepigraphic and it is Christian in orientation. This perspective has been influencial in apocalyptic writing and it is in this tradition that the author of Revelation stands. Consequently, Caragounis’ approach ought to be considered as a fresh and independent contribution to the exegesis of Revelation.