Ruben Zimmermann, «Nuptial Imagery in the Revelation of John», Vol. 84 (2003) 153-183
In this article is argued that the nuptial imagery of the Book of Revelation is not limited to chapters 19 and 21 but rather runs throughout the book. While the imagery is certainly most pronounced in the final part of the book, it also appears in the letters to the churches (bridal wreath in Rev 2,10; 3,11), in the scene depicting the 144,000 as virgins (Rev 14,4-5), and is encountered again in Rev 18,23 (silencing of the voice of bridegroom and bride) and Rev 22,17 (summons of the bride) at the end of the book. Thus the wedding metaphors can be seen as one of the structural patterns of Revelation as a whole directly in contrast to the metaphors of fornication.
and this explanation is supported by the references of nika/w in the context of Rev 2–3 (cf. Rev 2,6-7.11.15; 3,5.12 etc.) as well as the athletic contests that are proven to have taken place in Smyrna, the adressee of one of the letters.
1. The "wreath of life" as bridal wreath
Alone the manifold uses of "wreathes/crowns" within Revelation itself3 should lead one to be wary of one-sided models of explanation. The competition scenario clearly plays no role in Jas 1,12-15. Instead, fortitude and fidelity between man and woman are in the foreground. Lust (e)piqumi/a) is portrayed as a seductive woman whereas a true love relationship exists only with God. The wreath of life could then mean the bridal wreath, which, in both Judaic and Hellenistic wedding rituals, has been documented for both the bride and the groom and can be understood as a symbol of (premarital) chastity4. Additionally in Rev 2,10, the semantic field peirasmo/j is associated with the promise of the wreath of life, leading one to assume a common basis of tradition with Jas 1,12. In the same way in Rev 3,9-11, the wreath becomes the expression for fortitude in the face of temptation, which endangered the love of the narrator (Rev 3,9).
2. Traditional background
Metaphors of the crown/wreath can be found in several scriptures of Jewish tradition, often linked to Jerusalem or Zion. According to Lam 2,15, it is the virgin, daughter of Zion, who is named the "delight of the whole world" and "crown of beauty" (ste/fanoj do/chj). In Bar 5,1-2, Jerusalem should discard the cloak of mourning in order to place the "diadem of splendour of the eternal" on her head. A clear connection between the metaphor of the crown and the wedding can be found in Ezek 16 and Cant 3. In Ezek 16,12, the foundling is crowned with a beautiful crown while she is adorned as a bride (ste/fanon