Sjef van Tilborg, «The Danger at Midday: Death Threats in the Apocalypse», Vol. 85 (2004) 1-23
This paper proposes a new suggestion in the discussion regarding possible death threats in the Apocalypse. It makes a comparison between relevant texts from the Apocalypse and what happens during festival days when rich civilians entertain their co-citizens with (gladiatorial) games. At the end of the morning and during the break special fights are organized. Condemned persons are forced to fight against wild animals or against each other to be killed by the animals or by fire. The paper shows that a number of texts from the Apocalypse are better understood, when they are read against this background.
The Danger at Midday: Death Threats in the Apocalypse 17
That is to say: with the first pair both died, but not during the
competition. With the others one must assume that the one gladiator
has won (those names have to be supplemented with ejnivka) and the
other has lost. For this last one the verb sfazw is used.
v
– On a relief from Hierapolis there is a lying gladiator; next to his
head is written: ejsfavgh (48).
– In an inscription from Halicarnassus (49) in the reconstruction of
Robert are inscribed on an architrave the names of a pair of gladiators
who at the inauguration of the Nemeseion have engaged in combat in
the amphitheatre:
Jason, the son of Nicanor, has inaugurated the Nemeseion. The
murmillo (= a certain type of gladiator) Smaragdos of Asia who had
won 5 times and who had received a crown 5 times, has won (ejnivka);
and the thrax (= a certain type of gladiator) Strènos of Asia who had
won once and had received a crown once was killed off (ejsfavgh).
– Of another inscription from Halicarnassus (Robert, 182) the
following words still survive: [ES]FAGENTWN [TE]SSARWN, i.e,
there are 4 gladiators killed.
Also within the Apocalypse area a pair of inscriptions have been
preserved which also use this word:
– In Smyrna (50), a relief on which a bullfight was depicted: a bull
in a fight with a bestiarius, with the word sfaktav under it and a relief
of a bestiarius (51) who is hunting with a pickaxe, and under it the
words -giou sfaktav.
– In Ephesus (52) Aurelius made over a period of 13 days 39
gladiators to fight to the death and he let wild animals from Libya (zw'/a
Libuka) be killed (ajposfavxanto") and Aurelius Dafnos (53) made over
v
a period of 13 days 39 gladiators fight to the death and he let wild
animals from Libya (zw'/a Libukav) be killed (ajposfavxanta).
b) Ten days of hardship and the crown of life (Rev 2,10)
Coming back to the letter to the angel from Smyrna, the sentences
about suffering, captivity, the ten days of hardship and the crown of
life are perhaps now better to understood. They are all motifs that play
(48) SEG 1996 nr 1664.
(49) CIG 2662; ROBERT, 180.
(50) Inscr Smyrna 838; ROBERT, 229
(51) Inscr Smyrna 837; ROBERT, 230
(52) Inscr Eph VII-1-3071; ROBERT, 199
(53) Inscr Eph VII-1-3072; ROBERT, 200.
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