Theology Club: Open View Theology

genuineoriginal

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And those dwelling on the earth will marvel, those whose names were not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast


when were the names written in "the Book of Life"
that would be ...
from the foundation of the world
A better translation would be "since the foundation of the world", indicating that the names were added after the foundation of the world.


Revelation 17:8 EXB (Expanded Bible)
8 The beast you saw ·was once alive but is not alive now [L was, and is not; 13:3, 12, 14]. But soon it will come up out of the ·bottomless pit [Abyss; 9:1] and go away to ·be destroyed [its destruction]. There are people who live on earth whose names have not been written in the ·book [scroll] of life [3:5] since the ·beginning [foundation; creation] of the world. They will be amazed when they see the beast, because he was ·once alive, is not alive now, but will come again [L was, is not, but is to come; C imitating the divine title of the Lamb (1:18; 2:8) and God (1:4, 8; 4:8)].​

 

Bright Raven

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A better translation would be "since the foundation of the world", indicating that the names were added after the foundation of the world.


Revelation 17:8 EXB (Expanded Bible)
8 The beast you saw ·was once alive but is not alive now [L was, and is not; 13:3, 12, 14]. But soon it will come up out of the ·bottomless pit [Abyss; 9:1] and go away to ·be destroyed [its destruction]. There are people who live on earth whose names have not been written in the ·book [scroll] of life [3:5] since the ·beginning [foundation; creation] of the world. They will be amazed when they see the beast, because he was ·once alive, is not alive now, but will come again [L was, is not, but is to come; C imitating the divine title of the Lamb (1:18; 2:8) and God (1:4, 8; 4:8)].​


Is that a correct interpretation or does that better fit your theology?
 

genuineoriginal

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Is that a correct interpretation or does that better fit your theology?
It is a correct interpretation that is available in some English translations.


Revelation 17:8 refers to people whose names haven’t been written in “the book of life from the creation of the world.” Doesn’t this conflict with open theism?

As in Revelation 13:8, the clause “from the foundation” (apo kataboleis) need not mean “from before the foundation” but simply “from the foundation” (= since the foundation). It’s not that names either were or were not written in the “book of life” before they were ever born. Rather, throughout history, in response to the choices people made, God either wrote or omitted their names from the “book of life.” The fact that names may be blotted out even after they’ve been included (Exod. 32:33; Rev. 3:5, cf. Rev. 22:18) further suggests this “book of life” is not eternally written in stone.

 

Bright Raven

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It is a correct interpretation that is available in some English translations.


Revelation 17:8 refers to people whose names haven’t been written in “the book of life from the creation of the world.” Doesn’t this conflict with open theism?

As in Revelation 13:8, the clause “from the foundation” (apo kataboleis) need not mean “from before the foundation” but simply “from the foundation” (= since the foundation). It’s not that names either were or were not written in the “book of life” before they were ever born. Rather, throughout history, in response to the choices people made, God either wrote or omitted their names from the “book of life.” The fact that names may be blotted out even after they’ve been included (Exod. 32:33; Rev. 3:5, cf. Rev. 22:18) further suggests this “book of life” is not eternally written in stone.


Should be in all translations not just some.
 

genuineoriginal

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Are the Newer translations comparable to or different from the KJV?
The essential truth of scripture is found in most of the Newer translations (except for the politically correct ones).
That does not excuse the error of using the archaic language of the KJV to promote doctrines that are based only on the peculiar wording found in the KJV when those words have different meanings now than they did when the KJV was written.
 
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