Abstract
Although John condemns the Roman Empireâs extravagance (Rev. 18), he fails to question the opulent materials used to construct the heavenly city (21:18â21). While God tortures those who have entered into trade agreements with Rome (16:2), the New Jerusalem follows the same pattern as the heavenly economic system (21:24). Moreover, after the heavenly commander has destroyed the global cityâthat is, the Roman Empire (19:15â21)âGod establishes the holy city as the new global city (21:24â26). Decolonial theorist Walter D. Mignolo argues that âde-Westernization doesnât question the ânatureâ of the world economy, capitalism.â Similarly, in Revelation, de-Romanization does not question the nature of the world economy either. This article offers a reading of Revelation 21 from the perspectives of decolonial theory and the Taiwanese context. It argues that rather than pursuing a liberated economic system, the Empire of God imitates the same oppressive system as that implemented by the Roman Empire.
Introduction
Although John, the author of Revelation, condemns the Roman Empireâs proclivity for extravagance (Rev. 18), he fails to question the opulent materials used to construct the heavenly city (21:18â21). While the angel of God tortures those who have entered into trade agreements with the Roman Empire (16:2), the New Jerusalem follows the same pattern as the heavenly economic system, which is based on international trade agreements: âand the kings of the earth will bring their glory into itâ (21:24). Moreover, after the heavenly commander has destroyed the global cityâthe Roman Empireâand its affiliated nations (19:15â21), God establishes the holy city as the new global city (21:24â26). The leading decolonial theorist1 Walter D. Mignolo argues that âde-Westernization doesnât question the ânatureâ of the world economy, capitalism.â2 Similarly, the de-Romanization described in Revelation does not question the nature of the world economy either.
The point I am driving at is that de-Westernization uncoupled capitalism from liberalism and neoliberalism and usurped it to advance de-Western liberation. ⦠The end result was uncoupling capitalism from liberalism (and later on neoliberalism) to manage the economy in Chinaâs own way. âCapitalism with Chinese characteristicsâ was a sarcastic comment in Western media.5
He further asserts that âde-Westernization seeks to delink from the political and economic dictates of Western institutions in order to dispute the control and management by the [colonial matrix of power].â6 Despite the differences between Chinese and US capitalism, Mignolo points out that all forms of capitalism pursue the accumulation of wealth: âYou can say that U.S. capitalism is not the same as European or Chinese capitalism, but the fact remains that the differences are superficial, not of the deep structure; the economic rules and principles continue to be oriented to the horizon of accumulation of wealth, which anchors the power of decisions.â7 Given that âde-Westernization doesnât question the ânatureâ of the world economy, capitalism,â8 several countries are affected by Chinese capitalism.
Taiwan, a Pacific Island and my home country, is locatedâgeopolitically speakingâat the border between the United States and the Peopleâs Republic of China (prc)9 and is thus affected by USâprc economic competition. In a bid to defeat its economic rival, the Chinese Communist Party (ccp) began shifting toward capitalist policies after the 1970s. The prcâs capitalist approach prevents Taiwan from engaging in trade relationships with other countries, particularly the United States, due to the prcâs incessant attempts to colonize Taiwan and the United Statesâ military and economic rivalry with the prc. Thus, rather than liberating itself from the Westâs economic system, the prc competes against the United States through the same economic systemâcapitalism. By reading Revelation 21 in this context, this article argues that rather than pursuing a liberated economic system, the Empire of God emulates the same oppressive system used by its adversaryâthe Roman Empire.
Reading Strategy
Isnât much, or most, of the foregoing already the focus of postcolonial studies, including postcolonial theory, and even of postcolonial biblical criticism where it leans into postcolonial studies and postcolonial theory? Why invoke the term âdecolonial,â together with the other terms tethered to it, as though to limn out a different analytic space in which to ponder colonialisms and their products?10
Mooreâs question is also applicable to the subject matter of this article. Empire-critical and postcolonial biblical works have long engaged in the topic of âempireâ in Revelation. How can a Taiwanese decolonial reading fit into this conversation? Does it âlimn out a different analytic space in which to ponder colonialisms and their products?â Wes Howard-Brook and Anthony Gwytherâs empire-critical foundational work, Unveiling Empire, approached Revelation as an instance of anti-imperial discourse against the Roman Empire.11 Meanwhile, however, in line with Homi K. Bhabhaâs concept of âcolonial ambivalence,â postcolonial readings have not always been satisfied with purely liberationist readings of Revelation. For example, in Mooreâs early postcolonial work, he argued that âRevelation, though passionately resistant to Roman imperial ideology, paradoxically and persistently reinscribes its terms.â12
Like the two abovementioned approaches, a decolonial reading also aims to deal with the issue of empire as it arises in the biblical texts. However, based ultimately on Mignoloâs decolonial theory, I, as a decolonial reader, am dissatisfied with both the liberationist approach adopted by empire-critical scholars and the concept of colonial ambivalence embraced by postcolonial scholars. The notion of âmodernity/colonialityâ is among Mignoloâs core ideas. He explains that ââmodernityâ is a complex narrative whose point of origination was Europe; a narrative that builds Western civilization by celebrating its achievements while hiding at the same time its darker side, âcoloniality.â Coloniality, in other words, is constitutive of modernityâthere is no modernity without coloniality.â13 Thus, âthe task of decolonial thinking is that of unveiling the rhetoric and promises of modernity, showing its darker side.â14 In approaching Revelation from this perspective, I aim to unveil the promises of the New Jerusalem, showing its darker side. As a decolonial reader, I refuse to consider Revelation as an anti-imperial narrative in the same way that empire-critical work does. In contrast to postcolonial approaches, I do not suggest that anti- and pro-imperial discourses paradoxically coexist in Revelation. Rather, reading Revelation through a decolonial lens, I suggest that the conquest of the Roman Empireâthe so-called anti-imperial discourseâshould be regarded as the means by which Godâs Empire can accumulate excessive wealth, as I shall explain later. This should be understood as colonialityâthe darker side of the heavenly city. As Mignolo emphasizes, âModernity/coloniality are two sides of the same coin,â15 and thus, this concept should not be recognized as colonial ambivalence. As a Taiwanese reader who has witnessed the prcâs use of the Belt and Road Initiative and the discourse surrounding so-called âChinaâs peaceful riseâ to conceal its darker sideâeconomic and military oppression against other countriesâilluminating the darker side of the New Jerusalem become the point of entry to my reading of Revelation, which is distinct from empire-critical and postcolonial biblical work.16
The City of Gemstones
Capitalist accumulation envisions obtaining the object that would provide the ultimate satisfaction for the desiring subject.
âtodd mcgowan, Capitalism and Desire
Your heart shall thrill and rejoice, because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you; The wealth of the nations shall come to you.
âisaiah 60:517
Fred Magdoff remarks that capitalist economies are âbased on the profit motive and accumulation of capital without end.â The rationale of capitalism is to maximise profits among the economic elite by creating wants and needs in people for market goods and services whether or not the desires mediated by the need-making system can be fulfilled.19
Capitalism commands accumulation as an end that the subject can never reach, and this command holds in all aspects of the capitalist systemâproduction, distribution, and consumption. The producer must produce more in order to earn more money, the distributor must distribute more in order to maximize profit, and the consumer must consume more in order to find the truly satisfying object. In each case, the failure to accumulate enough is inscribed in the system and is the source of the satisfaction that the system offers.20
While ultimate satisfaction remains perpetually unattainable, people nonetheless continue to accumulate goods in a bid to avoid a sense of failure.21 Moreover, capitalism entices consumers to purchase more commodities than they need in the belief that they will attain ultimate satisfaction if they purchase the right objects. However, capitalist consumers often experience a sense of disappointment immediately after they purchase a new item.22 Of course, were this article to argue that âcapitalismâ23 existed in the Roman Empire or in Johnâs mind, such an argument would be historically anachronistic. However, the tendency to accumulate is undeniably present in both empires.24 Thus, in alignment with McGowanâs critique of capitalism, the paragraphs that follow will discuss the heavenly cityâs harmful accumulationâa kind of proto-capitalism that emulates the Roman Empireâs economic system.
Clearly the expensive adornments of the harlot (17:4; 18:16) represent symbolically the imports listed in 18:12â13, the wealth of Rome (18:17a). The luxuries Rome imports are like the extravagant lifestyle which a rich courtesan maintains at the expense of her clients. They are the price which the kings of the earth have paid for the favours of the harlot (17:2; 18:3). But we must assume that while it is the kings who associate with the harlotâbringing their lands under her dominion and ruling in collaboration with herâthe price is actually paid by their peoples. In the case of some of the items of merchandise, the trade was probably perceived by most provincials who, like John, did not benefit from it as directly exploitative, drawing resources to Rome which were needed in the provinces (such as wheat and slaves) or using local labour to extract expensive products at little benefit to local people (for example, marble). We shall later find evidence that anti-Roman sentiment in Asia Minor perceived the slave trade in that way â¦. But the trade with the east cannot have been seen as part of Romeâs exploitation of the empire in that way. Rather the point will be that the wealth Rome squanders on luxuries from all over the world was obtained by conquest, plunder and taxation of the provinces.25
As John notes in Revelation 18, the Roman Empire imported luxury goods by means of taxation, domination, and trade.26 More recently, Rohun Park has critiqued the Roman Empireâs economic system from the perspective of the South Korean context, asserting that âA prolonged monopolization of resources will also end with the fall of Babylon.â27 He believes that the oppressive accumulation of resources will end after the Empire of God has destroyed the Roman Empire. Barbara R. Rossing has similarly compared the New Jerusalem to Rome, arguing, âLike the bride of Rev 19:7â9, the new city is defined in contrasting parallelism to evil Babylon. New Jerusalem is the antithesis of toxic Babylon/Romeâs imperialism, violence, unfettered commerce, and injustice.â28
The wall is built of jasper, while the city is pure gold, clear as glass. The foundations of the wall of the city are adorned with every jewel; the first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. And the twelve gates are twelve pearls, each of the gates is a single pearl, and the street of the city is pure gold, transparent as glass.
21:18â21
The New Jerusalem is also âexceedingly large,â30 suggesting that the Empire of God accumulated countless gemstones for the purpose of constructing this heavenly city. Robert M. Royalty highlights, âThe jewels, crystal, gold, and pearls of the New Jerusalem show that this city is very wealthy, wealthier even than the destroyed city of Babylon.â31 Lynn R. Huber and Gail R. OâDay also point out, âThe New Jerusalemâs opulent appearance may seem ostentatious and even hypocritical, given the earlier critique of Romeâs love of luxury and its participation in commerce (Rev 18) â¦. According to Johnâs vision, wealth is not a problem when it is in the city of God.â32 Royalty, Huber, and OâDay clearly have in mind the depiction of Romeâs wealth in Revelation 18 as they read Revelation 21âs description of the heavenly cityâs luxury. These scholars acknowledge the fact that the New Jerusalem is even more luxurious than the extravagant earthly city of Rome, suggesting that the heavenly city is not simply âthe antithesis of toxic Babylon/Romeâs imperialism.â33 Rather, I shall argue that the heavenly city replaces Rome, becoming the new megacity. This is the darker side of the New Jerusalem, as I shall elaborate later. Building on the above scholarsâ critiques of the New Jerusalemâs extravagance, a decolonial reading would further examine the ethical issues that underlie the Empire of Godâs accumulation of wealth. To borrow from Mignolo, I argue that in the heavenly city, âthe economic rules and principles continue to be oriented to the horizon of accumulation of wealth, which anchors the power of decisions.â34
Here, I read the metaphor of the heavenly city neoliterally to unpack its inherent socioeconomic ideology.35 This approach prompts several questions:36 Where do these gemstones come from? Does the Empire of God purchase them? Do âthe armies of heavenâ (19:14) pillage them from the Roman Empire? Does Godâs Empire contain mines from which precious stones may be extracted? While many scholars have sought to discover how the Roman Empire imports luxury goods in Revelation 18:12â13, they have not questioned how the Empire of God accumulates these luxury goods.37 However, the most critical question is why the Empire of God chooses to build a city of gemstones rather than assisting those who have survived the eschatological world wars to rebuild their hometowns.
Labor shortage will emerge as a grave problem in the aftermath of the devastating world wars of Revelation. According to Revelation 6:8, one-quarter of the worldâs population dies at the beginning of this series of wars, and Revelation 9:15â18 reports that one-third of the survivors die.38 If numerous laborers or slavesâevery follower of God and the Lamb in Revelation is explicitly described as a slave (δοῦλοÏâ1:1; 2:20; 6:11; 7:3; 10:7; 11:8; 15:3; 19:2, 5; 22:3, 6)âare used to build this extravagant city,39 the other nations will struggle to find laborers to rebuild their cities and towns. While John criticizes the luxury of the Roman Empire in Revelation, he overlooks the New Jerusalemâs extravagance and the harm it causes to other nations, who, in addition, must bring it tribute (21:24â26).40
The âbodies and human soulsâ ⦠certainly refers to slaves. The addition of âhuman soulsâ could be positive, emphasizing that they were not mere cattle but human beingsâ¦, or it could be negative, stressing that they were mere âhuman livestockâ ⦠On the basis of its place in the list (after cattle and sheep), the phrase more likely carries the negative connotation, for the Romans imported in credible numbers of slaves (estimated at 10 million, or close to 20 percent of the population of the Roman Empire), and the rich based their status somewhat on how many slaves they owned. Slaves were obtained through war, debt, parents selling their children for money, kidnapping, as punishment for criminals, or unwanted children exposed to the elements and left to die (common in the ancient world). While in the first century B.C., war produced the greatest number of slaves, during the Pax Romana, the others were the primary sources. Asia Minor was a primary source of wheat and slaves for Rome, heightening the sense that the list emphasized items that reflected not only the Romansâ lust for consumer goods but also their consequent exploitation and plundering of the other nations in the empire.41
Since the king is there, it is natural that οἱ δοῦλοι αá½Ïοῦ λαÏÏεύÏÎ¿Ï Ïιν αá½Ïá¿· (â¦, his slaves will worship and serve him). The entire book is written to Godâs âslavesâ (1:1). It is his âslavesâ who are âsealedâ in 7:3, and God avenges their blood in 19:2. Godâs âslaves the prophetsâ are shown what âmust soon take placeâ (22:6) and along with the saints are to be rewarded at the eschaton (11:18). Close parallels to this passage are 19:5, where âyou his slavesâ are called on to âpraise our God,â and 7:15, where the victorious saints âare before the throne of God, and they worship ⦠him day and night in his temple.42
However, beyond the Roman Empire, it is the Empire of God that wages world wars in Revelation. In Revelation, the Empire of God is the strongest, overwhelming all others. Given that âin the first century B.C., war produced the greatest number of slaves,â43 we may reasonably ask whether the Empire of God also accumulates slaves through wars.
In the aftermath of the world wars, the New Jerusalem commandeers all resources, including food and water. As the world wars begin, people suffer from famine and raging inflation (6:5â6).44 The heavenly weapon of mass destructionâthe rider on a pale horse, called Death (6:8)âthen destroys one-third of the earth, trees, the sea and creatures living in it, ships, rivers, water, the sun, the moon, and even the stars (8:7â12). For this reason, âthe first heaven and the first earth had passed awayâ (21:1). As Revelation concludes, John sees âa new heaven and a new earthâ (21:1) and thereafter immediately turns to describing the wealth of the New Jerusalem without introducing the situation of the new heaven and the new earth. Johnâs report (21â22) merely makes the reader aware that the New Jerusalem is wealthy and beautiful while leaving several questions about the new heaven and the earth outside of the wealthy city unaddressed. This new world should be understood as the world as it is after the devastating world wars rather than Godâs new creation.45 Unlike the scenario described in Isaiah 65:17,46 God does not create a new world or restore the old world in Revelation 21:147 but rather chooses to build a wealthy cityâthe New Jerusalem. This environmental mega-disaster leaves the land scarcely able to produce food. During this difficult time, however, the Roman Empire is still in a position to accumulate valuable food resources, such as choice flour, wheat, cattle, and sheep (18:13). The victor, the Empire of God, subsequently controls all food production. Despite the pollution of the worldâs seas, rivers, and water during the wars, the New Jerusalem can still produce clean water (21:6). While most of the land is barren owing to the devastation unleashed by the heavenly weapon of mass destruction, the New Jerusalem can still produce fresh fruit every month (22:2). How does the Empire of God enjoy such an abundance of resources?
The New Jerusalem promises survivors optimism through the accumulation of gemstones and bodily necessities: âTo the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of lifeâ (21:6b). John continues, âOn either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nationsâ (22:2b). Here, the Empire of God promises the people commodities. However, the water, fruits, and leaves are not free; rather, the cost is absolute loyalty to the Empire of God (21:7â8). The wealthy city is using the ultimate means of satisfactionâwater and foodâto attract all nations, which must leverage their loyalty to procure the desired goods. Should this plan succeed, the New Jerusalem will become a megacity.
However, the Empire of God fails to achieve its objectives. The heavenly âwar crimes trialâ48 results in the enemies who have survived the world wars being cast into the âlake that burns with fire and sulfurâ (21:8). The Empire of God expects that everyone will pay the price of loyalty that is required for the accumulation of resources. However, after the war crimes trial that follows the world wars and acts of genocide, most people remain opposed to the Empire of God: âOutside are the dogs and sorcerers and fornicators and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehoodâ (22:15). This blacklist indicates that the Empire of God will never attain that which it so greatly desiresâthe loyalty of all nations. Despite the New Jerusalemâs abundance of food, many people refuse to submit to the Empire of God.
The New Global City
The Global Cities
[Hardt and Negriâs] argument of non-place does not consider the placeness of global cities like New York, London, and Tokyo â¦. Global cities like New York, London, Tokyo, Frankfurt, and Paris are important, according to Sassen, in four ways: âfirst, as highly concentrated command points in the organization of the world economy; second, as key locations for finance and for specialized service firms, which have replaced manufacturing as the leading economic sectors; third, as sites of production, including the production of innovations, in those leading industries; and fourth, as markets for the products and innovations produced.51
As for financial control, just compare the number and size of banks, for example, in New York, London, or Frankfurt, on the one hand, versus the ones in Bolivia, Morocco, or India, on the other â¦. The center of economic, political, and epistemic power is located in Europe, supported by the US and Japan. The periphery of economic, political, and epistemic power is located in underdeveloped, dependent, and non-aligned geo-political spaces.52
The use of key national currencies instead of one denationalized currency in the present global trade and payment system violates the principle of credit money. The use of dollar (supported by euro and yen) as the world currency, international unit of value, and means of transfer of value violates the principle that money creation must be placed outside the markets for goods and serviceâthat no participant should have the privilege of seigniorage, make purchases by issuing its money.54
Wariboko, writing in the African context, argues that this hegemonic economic system causes developing countries to suffer. For example, developing countries cannot engage in international trade in their own national currencies but are obliged to purchase American dollars as a foreign exchange reserve for exchange in the global market. By contrast, these global cities can use their own national currencies to procure goods and services on the international market and even enjoy the right to issue money on the international level.55 Argentine-Mexican philosopher Enrique Dussel describes the imbalance between the âglobal citiesâ56 and the rest of the world: âThe one born among the pygmies will strive to become a great hunter of animals; the one born in New York will strive to become a great entrepreneur (a hunter of persons).â57
The Rising Global City in East Asia
Speaking from personal experience, I have friends from developing countries who believe that the prc is akin to a divine power capable of resisting these global cities. As the name of the prcâs militaryââthe Peopleâs Liberation Armyââsuggests, many people believe that the prc is engaged in the liberation of developing countries from the hegemony of US capitalism. However, since Chinaâs economic reform during the late 1970s, the prc has mimicked the capitalist system to counter hegemonic enterprises. As mentioned above, Mignolo identifies China as the leading force of âde-Westernizationâ and argues that âde-Westernization seeks to delink from the political and economic dictates of Western institutions in order to dispute the control and management by the [colonial matrix of power].â58 The prc has officially proclaimed that it is working to establish the Chinese Yuan as one of the worldâs dominant currencies. Moreover, many scholars maintain that Beijing has become one of these global cities.59 However, despite the prcâs claims that the Belt and Road Initiative is aimed at forging winâwin deals with other countries, many nations, such as Sri Lanka, suffer as a result of these Chinese âdebt traps.â60 Moreover, the Trans-Eurasia Logistics/China Railway Express allows goods to be transported from Beijing to Berlin by rail, indicating that the prc has built a strong international trade network.
Taiwan has trade agreements with very few other countries as a result of the prc flexing its economic and military muscles and forcing other countries to isolate Taiwan. Given the prcâs incessant attempts to colonize Taiwan, the country suffers as a result of being in the shadow of the prcâs economic power and is now engaged in diplomatic relations with only twelve countries.61 In 2021, after Lithuania allowed Taiwan to establish a representative office in Vilnius and to do so under the name of Taiwan rather than Taipei,62 the countryâs capital, the prc took revenge by blocking Lithuanian goods at customs and imposing a series of economic sanctions on Lithuania.63 As Mignolo points out, âde-Westernization doesnât question the ânatureâ of the world economy, capitalism.â64 The prc does not actually aim to liberate itself or others from the hegemonic capitalist economy. Rather, Beijing desires to replace New York and become the worldâs greatest capitalist global city.
The New Global City on Earth
When Revelation is read from the Taiwanese perspective, it becomes clear that the Empire of God has replaced the Roman Empire as the new global city. John, the author of Revelation, repeatedly condemns the nations that have an intimate relationship with the Roman Empire (18:3, 20:3, 8; also cf. 2:26, 16:19; 19:15), implying the Empire of Godâs hatred of the global city, Rome.65 Park, like John, critiques the Roman Empire and its colonial agents: âAll these colonial agents lament over their dispossession and rejection from the world they once ruled over. As Godâs judgment falls on Babylon, the power and construct of imperial economy breaks apart.â66 Notably, however, the New Jerusalem also becomes a great global city after the world wars and the geo-theo-political reshaping of the entire earth that they have wrought: âThe nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into itâ (21:24). Thus, rather than resisting its system, the Empire of God replaces Rome as the global city.
From a modern perspective we might hope that the New Jerusalem is an accepting and inclusive vision, rather than a vision of a city that is off limits to those who are categorized as sinners or irredeemable, especially since some of these categories have been used to justify oppression. For John, however, the image of the New Jerusalem is about containing and comforting those who he understands as faithful and setting limits, for a container has limits, between them and the unfaithful or impure.67
In parallel, countries that fail to support Chinaâs aggressive behavior toward Taiwan and that thereby fail to receive the prcâs seal of approval are not permitted to trade with the prc.
In Revelation, after the world wars, when people are living through horrible famine, nations cannot refuse trade with the New Jerusalem. As mentioned above, inflation and famine proliferate in the aftermath of devastating war. This might induce people to abandon money-based economies in favor of a return to barter systems (i.e., the use of food or other material resources as currency). Under the barter system, when the heavenly city accumulates unlimited food resources (21:6; 22:1â2), it can issue an unlimited world currency (food). This analysis accounts for the New Jerusalemâs ability to purchase copious quantities of gemstones for use as building materials. When the holy cityâs national currencyâwater and fruitâbecome the worldâs currency, heavenly citizens can buy whatever they want from other nations. By taking advantage of the world wars and the capacity for accumulation that they facilitate, the New Jerusalem replaces Rome as a new hyper-prosperous, global city.
Mignolo argues that âa capitalist economy, as we know it today, couldnât have existed without the âdiscovery and conquest of the Americasâ,â because Western people occupied and exploited massive tracts of land and labor in the Americas to support the production of commodities.68 Europeans derived abundant capital from these resources, which allowed them to control the global market.69 Reading the heavenly city from Mignoloâs perspective, the New Jerusalem defeated the Roman Empire and usurped its enormous resources, which enabled this new global city to control the global market after the world wars or the wars of conquest that it had waged.
The Armed City
These advantages, which an imperial-currency nation like the United States enjoys, are often mutually imbricated with domineering military prowess. Indeed, having a credible military capability has always been one of the requirements for a country to maintain its position as the issuer of worldâs primary reserve currency. Britain emerged as the hegemonic world economy leader with the necessary military might after the Congress of Vienna in 1814â1815 at the end of the Napoleonic war. It was able to impose a new global order based on the sterling standard. On September 21, 1931, Britain suspended the gold backing of the sterling. After fourteen years of chaos with the United States taking up the slack left by Britain, the dollar emerged as the undisputed world currency at the end of the Second World War. Once again it had the relative economic size advantage, expansive financial market, and military might and commitment to back up the worldâs number one currency, the âalmighty dollar.â The hegemonic stability provided by the United States gave the prospect of long-term peace to enable entrepreneurs and investors to make long-range decisions.70
This was also the time when America openly used its military prowess to force its allies to hold the dollar as their primary reserve currency. âThe German objections to holding the overhang of excessive dollars ⦠were suppressed by the U.S. counter-threat of troop withdrawalâ in the tense context of cold war conflict and a divided Germany.71
What the main drift of the twentieth century has revealed is that as the economy has become concentrated and incorporated into great hierarchies, the military has become enlarged and decisive to the shape of the entire economic structure; and, moreover, the economic and the military have become structurally and deeply interrelated, as the economy has become a seemingly permanent war economy; and military men and policies have increasingly penetrated the corporate economy.73
Following suit, Michael Beckley has claimed that âmilitary effectiveness is primarily a product of economic development. In particular, economically developed states tend to possess more sophisticated and reliable equipment and more skilled military personnel than less developed states.â74 According to Wariboko, imperialist militaryâeconomic systems may incarnate in several versions. The power may be a âmilitary forceâ to stabilize its own country, a âmilitary threatâ to dominate other countries, or a âmilitary umbrellaâ that effectively keeps other countries in its shadow of influence.75 Through these different incarnations, a national military power turns its national currency into a powerful world currency.
In addition to expanding its military footprint, Beijing has announced and enforced fishing and resource-exploitation restrictions in various parts of the South China Sea, empowered its coast guard and maritime militia to interfere with the vessels of other nations, regularly allowed Chinese-flagged fishing boats to exploit endangered species in disputed areas, and made clear that it intends to disregard any legal challenges to its claims.77
In mid-2016, for instance, Beijing simply brushed aside the ruling of the arbitral tribunal that largely invalidated the nine-dash line and found that many of Chinaâs maritime claims and activities were not in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Finally, Beijing has become more assertive in challenging foreign activity in the South China Sea by increasing its own military presence in the area.78
Chinaâs navy has been demonstratively more aggressive at sea, seizing fishing boats, arresting sailors from other countries, and exchanging gunfire. As General Mi Zhenyu stated, China must develop a strong sea power to protect and not yield a single inch of its three million square kilometers of ocean territory. China must âbuild a new Chinese maritime great wall.â79
For this reason, H. Sonmez Atesoglu argues, âIn light of the rapid economic and military expansion of China in recent decades, an important idea was advanced that China will become the dominant regional power in Asia.â80
After the victory over Carthage, Rome entered [a] period of rapid political and commercial growth. She had departed once and for all from the simple conditions of the Italian [city-state]; she was on the road to becoming a world power and must expand her coinage to answer to her new position. The indemnity from Carthage and the spoils of defeated enemies in East and West relieved her of any difficulty about supplies of bullion. Inflation of the coinage was inevitable, but it was inflation of the better kind, the issue of ever-increasing amounts of good money.82
Harl concludes, âImperialism, not commerce, propelled the monetization of Roman Italy.â83
In Revelation, John appears to condemn the Roman militaryâeconomic system, writing, âAlso it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. It was given authority over every tribe and people and language and nationâ (13:7). Park also points out, âWith this power (patria potestas), scarcity was justified, and lands such as Palestine were invaded and appropriated. People easily lost their wealth and their access to basic resources.â84 Thus, the Roman Empireâs military might was sufficiently powerful to conquer other nations and compel them to join the Roman economic system and use the mark of the emperor (i.e., the âbeastâ), without which people could not engage in commerce with or within the Roman Empire (13:16â17). As mentioned above, the official coin would have the emperorâs face imprinted on it. Revelation concludes with the emperor being âthrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfurâ (19:20) by the heavenly military. While this story appears to suggest that God liberates the oppressed from oppressive imperial militaryâeconomic systems, this is not the complete picture.
Instead, the Empire of God builds another powerful imperial militaryâeconomic system. Without paying attention to the Empire of Godâs oppressive economic system, Park argues, âRevelation ⦠foster[s] a liberating new narrative for those living under global capitalism.â85 However, I argue that in light of the contemporary Chinese imperial militaryâeconomic system, for those living between Chinaâs capitalism and the United Statesâ capitalism, Revelation fosters, not a liberating narrative, but an oppressive narrative.86 From this perspective, it is naïve to assume that all nations in Revelation merely suffer as a result of the Roman imperial militaryâeconomic system. In Revelation, Godâthe supreme military commanderâunleashes the heavenly weapon of mass destruction, which can easily destroy the natural world and everyone in it. In the absence of a treaty to regulate the heavenly weapon of mass destruction, no nation can resist the Empire of God. Colleen M. Conway argues, âThis is the mimicry of imperial violence â¦. The author of Revelation has no qualms in presenting a violent side of his images of Christ.â87 Finally, the Empire of Godâs absolute military power allows it to create a new order, infrastructure, food production system, and economic system centered on a new global megacityâthe New Jerusalem.88 Just like the prcâs Peopleâs Liberation Army, the heavenly Peopleâs Liberation Army (cf. 19:14: âthe armies of heaven ⦠following him on white horsesâ) does not aim to liberate people from the imperial militaryâeconomic system. Rather, the New Jerusalem simply replaces the megacity of Rome to become the new imperial militaryâeconomic superpower.
Decolonial theory, associated with such names as AnÃbal Quijano, Walter D. Mignolo, Sylvia Wynter, and MarÃa Lugones, is different from postcolonial theory, which is more familiar to biblical scholars and associated with such names as Edward Said, Gayatri Spivak, and Homi Bhabha. Further on decolonial theory, see AnÃbal Quijano, âQuestioning âRace,ââ Socialism and Democracy, 21.1 (2007), pp. 45â53; Walter D. Mignolo and Catherine E. Walsh, On Decoloniality: Concepts, Analytics, Praxis (Durham: Duke University Press, 2018); Sylvia Wynter, âUnsettling the Coloniality of Being/Power/Truth/Freedom: Towards the Human, After Man, Its OverrepresentationâAn Argument,â The New Centennial Review 3.3 (2003), pp. 257â337; MarÃa Lugones, âColoniality of Gender,â Worlds & Knowledges Otherwise 2.2 (2008), pp. 1â17; Nelson Maldonado-Torres, Against War: Views from the Underside of Modernity (Durham: Duke University Press, 2008). For applications of decolonial theory to biblical studies, see Gregory Allen Banazak and Luis Reyes Ceja, âThe Challenge and Promise of Decolonial Thought to Biblical Interpretation,â Postscripts 4.1 (2008), pp. 113â27; Stephen D. Moore, Decolonial Theory and Biblical Unreading: Delinking Biblical Criticism from Coloniality (Leiden: Brill, 2024).
Walter D. Mignolo, âDecolonizing Western Epistemology/Building Decolonial Epistemologies,â in Ada MarÃa Isasi-DÃaz and Eduardo Mendieta (eds.), Decolonizing Epistemologies: Latina/o Theology and Philosophy: Latina/o Theology and Philosophy (New York: Fordham University, 2012), p. 37.
Walter D. Mignolo, The Politics of Decolonial Investigations (Durham and London: Duke University, 2021), p. 296.
Ibid., p. xi.
Ibid., p. 19.
Ibid., p. 21. What is the colonial matrix of power (cmp)? Mignolo argues that âcolonialityâ is âa shorthand for the colonial matrix of powerâ (Mignolo, âDecolonizing Western Epistemology/Building Decolonial Epistemologies,â p. 21). AnÃbal Quijano distinguishes coloniality from colonialism, arguing: âColoniality, then, is still the most general form of domination in the world today, once colonialism as an explicit political order was destroyed. It doesnât exhaust, obviously, the conditions nor the modes of exploitation and domination between peoples. But it hasnât ceased to be, for 500 years, their main framework. The colonial relations of previous periods probably did not produce the same consequences, and, above all, they were not the corner stone of any global powerâ (AnÃbal Quijano, âColoniality and Modernity/Rationality,â Cultural Studies 21.2â3 [2007], pp. 168â78 [170]). Mignolo adds, âColoniality refers to a matrix for management and control of the economy, authority, knowledge, gender, sexuality, and subjectivityâ (Mignolo, âDecolonizing Western Epistemology/Building Decolonial Epistemologies,â p. 24).
Walter D. Mignolo, The Darker Side of Western Modernity: Global Futures, Decolonial Options (Durham: Duke University Press, 2011), p. 32.
Mignolo, âDecolonizing Western Epistemology/Building Decolonial Epistemologies,â p. 37.
The Peopleâs Republic of China (prc) is the official name of China. The prc is different from the Republic of China (roc)âthe first China. In 1949, the roc lost the civil war to the Chinese Communist Party (ccp) and escaped to its colony, Taiwan. After that, the ccp established the prcâthe second China.
Moore, Decolonial Theory and Biblical Unreading, p. 4.
See Wes Howard-Brook and Anthony Gwyther, Unveiling Empire: Reading Revelation Then and Now (Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1999), pp. 157â96.
Stephen D. Moore, Empire and Apocalypse: Postcolonialism and the New Testament (Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix, 2006), p. 118; see also Shanell T. Smith, The Woman Babylon and the Marks of Empire (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014), p. 177; Lynne St. Clair Darden, Scripturalizing Revelation: An African American Postcolonial Reading of Empire (Atlanta: sbl Press, 2015), p. 135.
Mignolo, The Darker Side of Western Modernity, pp. 2â3.
Ibid., p. 122.
Mignolo, The Politics of Decolonial Investigations, p. 156.
For a far more thorough comparative presentation of empire-critical, postcolonial, and decolonial work, see Moore, Decolonial Theory and Biblical Unreading, pp. 4â49.
Many scholars have related Revelation 21:24â26 to Isaiah 60. See n. 40 below.
Todd McGowan, Capitalism and Desire: The Psychic Cost of Free Markets (New York: Columbia University Press, 2016), p. 21.
D. Kamalakar Jayakumar, âA System of Equality and Non-acquisitiveness as a Subversion of the Greed-Based Capitalism and the Patronage System,â Asia Journal of Theology 30.2 (2007), pp. 237â54 (237â38).
McGowan, Capitalism and Desire, p. 22.
Ibid., p. 34.
Ibid., p. 38.
For an extensive survey of the definitions of capitalism, see Frederic C. Lane, âMeanings of Capitalism,â The Journal of Economic History 29.1 (1969), pp. 5â12; Clive Beed and Cara Beed, âConceptions of Capitalism in Biblical Theology,â ert 40:3 (2016), pp. 264â80 (264â65).
Unlike modern capitalism, the Roman Empire was not a consumer-driven economy. However, this does not mean that âover-consumption by the richâ could not be found in ancient Rome. As Karl Marx explains, âThey used a large part of the surplus-product for unproductive expenditure on art, religious works and public works â¦. The wealth which they produced for private consumption was ⦠relatively small and only appears great because it was amassed in the hands of a few persons, who, incidentally, did not know what to do with it. Although, therefore, there was no over-production among the ancients, there was over-consumption by the rich, which in the final periods of Rome and Greece turned into mad extravagance.â Karl Marx, Theories of Surplus-Value, vol. 4 of Capital (trans. S. Ryazanskaya; Moscow: Progress Publishers, 1968), part ii, p. 528.
Richard Bauckham, The Climax of Prophecy: Studies on the Book of Revelation (London: T&T Clark, 1993), p. 370. See also G. K. Beale, The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text, (nigtc; Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1999), pp. 909â10; Grant R. Osborne, Revelation, (becnt; Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2002), pp. 647â50.
For a study of the luxury goods in Revelation 18:12â13, see Robert H. Mounce, The Book of Revelation, (nicnt; Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, rev. edn, 1998), pp. 332â34; David E. Aune, Revelation 17â22 (wbc, 52C; Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1998), pp. 998â1003; Craig R. Koester, Revelation: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (ayb, 38A; New Haven: Yale University Press, 2014), pp. 702â6.
Rohun Park, âRevelation for Sale: An Intercultural Reading of Revelation 18 from an East Asian Perspective,â Bible and Critical Theory 4:2 (2008), pp. 25.1â25.12 (25.8).
Barbara R. Rossing, The Choice Between Two Cities: Whore, Bride, and Empire in the Apocalypse (Harrisburg: Trinity Press International, 1999), p. 144.
The Oxford English Dictionary defines âworld warâ as âA war involving many nations of the worldâ (https://www.oed.com/dictionary/world-war_n?tl=true, accessed November 8, 2024). In Revelation, Jesus, at the head of âthe armies of heavenâ (19:14), is the one who wages war against many nations (19:19) and conquers them to collect many diadems (âhe ⦠wages war â¦. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diademsââ19:11câ12), so that he replaces the Roman emperor and becomes the new mega-emperor: âKing of kings and Lord of lordsâ (19:16). Unfortunately, âthe rest were killed by the swordââthe heavenly weapon of mass destructionââof the rider on the horseâ (19:21).
Stephen D. Moore, Untold Tales from the Book of Revelation: Sex and Gender, Empire, and Ecology, Society of Biblical Literature (Atlanta: sbl Press, 2014), p. 236. Moore states, âEcotheological and ecojustice engagement with Revelation has tended to have recourse to the blueprint of the new Jerusalem to extract positive ecological visions from the blighted landscapes of this disaster-ridden bookâ (p. 235). He further argues, âAttention to the size of the heavenly city has been all but absent from ecocritical, ecotheological, and ecojustice work on Revelationâ (p. 236, n. 21). Mooreâs ecocritical, ecotheological, and ecojustice analysis of the heavenly city is not positive. According to Moore, the New Jerusalem has become âa megalopolis that is a continent-sized shopping mallâ (p. 225). Although Moore does not mention it, the New Jerusalemâthe âcontinent-sized shopping mallââis absolutely larger than Romeâs market.
Robert M. Royalty, The Streets of Heaven: The Ideology of Wealth in the Apocalypse of John (Macon: Mercer University), p. 230. According to Royalty, John âdistinguish[s] the âgood wealthâ of God from the âbad wealthâ of Babylon/Romeâ (p. 206). He further explains, âThe wealth of the New Jerusalem is eternal and uncorrupted; it is also ideologically pure. And the wealth of Babylon, which functions in the Apocalypse as âearthly wealth,â is associated with a cluster of impure motifs: Satan, fornication, commerceâ (p. 239). In light of Royaltyâs words, it seems to me that distinguishing the âgood wealthâ of God from the âbad wealthâ of Babylon/Rome becomes a means for Revelation to justify the Empire of Godâs wealth accumulation. However, essentially speaking, Godâs Empireâs wealth accumulation is not different from the Roman Empireâs wealth accumulation.
Lynn R. Huber and Gail R. OâDay, Revelation, (wc, 58; Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2023), p. 336. Although Huber and Oâday notice the heavenly cityâs extravagance, they attempt to lessen its negative meaning: âIn fact, according to ancient logic, the wealth of the New Jerusalem reflects the cityâs greatness and points to the character of its inhabitants. In a culture in which citizens demonstrated their goodness by making civic donations, the cityâs facades and statuary revealed the generosity of the cityâs patronsâ (p. 336). However, as I will unpack later, the heavenly city only shows generosity toward those who have received the divine seal (21:27). This pattern is similar to the Roman Empireâs economic system: âNo one can buy or sell who does not have the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its nameâ (13:17).
Rossing, The Choice Between Two Cities, p. 144.
Mignolo, The Darker Side of Western Modernity, p. 32.
On the benefits of reading Revelation neoliterally, Moore argues, âAnd just as I have found it fruitful elsewhere (Moore 1996, 117â38; 2001, 175â99 passim) to read Revelationâs God as humanâmore precisely, to ask what kind of divineâhuman relations are encoded in this human, all too human deityâso I am attempting here to read Revelationâs metaphorical, all too metaphorical animals as animals in the interests of deciphering the humanâanimal relations encrypted in them. In other words, and taking my cue from Rosi Braidotti, I am attempting a âneoliteralâ reading of Revelationâs animetaphorsâ (Moore, Untold Tales from the Book of Revelation, p. 228). Following suits, this article aims to read the New Jerusalem as a cityâmore precisely, a megacity. I am reading Revelationâs metaphorical wealthy city as a city in the interest of deciphering the megacityâmargins relations encrypted in it.
I am not, of course, implying that this article is using a neoliteral reading strategy to uncover the Revelation authorâs intentions. On strategies for reading âagainst the grain of the biblical authorsâ intentions,â see Stephen D. Moore, The Bible in Theory: Critical and Postcritical Essays (Atlanta: sbl Press, 2010), p. 358; idem, Poststructuralism and the New Testament: Derrida and Foucault at the Foot of the Cross (Minneapolis: Fortress, 1994), p. 52. As I read Revelation 21 neoliterally in this article, âthe biblical text is read as covertly complicit imperialist and colonialist literatureâor, more precisely, as literature that, irrespective of the conscious intentionality of its author, insidiously reinscribes imperial and colonial ideologies even while appearing to resist themâ (Moore, Empire and Apocalypse, p. 14).
See Mounce, The Book of Revelation, pp. 332â34, 93â95; Aune, Revelation 17â22, pp. 998â1003, 1163â66; Beale, The Book of Revelation, pp. 909â10, 1079â90; Osborne, Revelation, pp. 647â50, 754â59; Koester, Revelation, pp. 702â6, 817â20.
âThey were given authority over a fourth of the earth. Authority over a fourth of the earth shows the magnitude of the threat as well as its limit: one-fourth, not more. In the trumpet visions the scale increases so that a third of the earth is damaged and a third of humanity is killed (Rev 8:1â12; 9:15, 18)â (Koester, Revelation, p. 398).
Many scholars have critiqued the intimate relationship between capitalism and enslavement. Steed Vernyl Davidson argues: âCapitalism as an engine of empire requires access to cheap labor, preferably free labor in the form of slaves â¦. Ultimately, sub-Saharan Africans fill out the ancient question of the ideal slave due to various forms of anti-black racism. Though David Davis attributes the eventual firm equation of sub-Saharan Africans with slavery as a function of racism, the fact remains that slavery facilitated the capitalist impulses of empire. The logic of darkness as the ideal expression of slavery created not simply a class of permanent slaves but hierarchies of unfree labor that would characterize European empires across four continentsâ (Steed Vernyl Davidson, âBible, Empire, Liberalism, and Racial Capitalism,â in R. S. Sugirtharajah (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Postcolonial Biblical Criticism [New York: Oxford University Press, 2023], p. 602). Daisy L. Machado also states, âIn reality, capitalism in the United States is a deeply entrenched ideology (belief system) that has survived and benefited from slavery, immigrant labor, and other forms of exploitationâ (Daisy L. Machado, âCapitalism, Immigration, and the Prosperity Gospelâ atr 92.4 [2010], pp. 723â30 [723]). Following suit, Mignolo points out that âenslaved and waged labor became naturalized in the process of creating an economy of accumulation that is today recognized as capitalist economic mentalityâ (Mignolo, The Darker Side of Western Modernity, p. 12).
âThrough the inclusion of Isa. 60, Rev. 21.24â26 emphasizes the future glorification of Jerusalem and the role that the nations play as bearers of tribute to Jerusalem, effecting an eschatological reversal. As such, the light of the new Jerusalem, as in Isa. 60, functions to draw the nations to the city. In contrast to the role which the nations and kings played in bringing their tribute to Babylon (cf. Rev. 17â18), they now bring their tribute to the new Jerusalem (21.24â26), highlighting the eschatological reversal that will take place (David Mathewson, A New Heaven and a New Earth: The Meaning and Function of the Old Testament in Revelation 21.1â22.5 (JSNTSup, 238; London: Sheffield Academic Press, 2003], p. 167). On the other hand, although Osborne also relates Rev 21:24â26 to Isaiah 60, he does not agree that all nations have to bring their âtributeâ to the New Jerusalem, arguing, âJohn has transformed the Isaianic imagery of 60:1â2. In 60:5 it says, âThe wealth of the nations will come to you,â and 60:11 states âMen may bring you the wealth of the nationsâtheir kings led in triumphal procession.â The imagery is that of military victory. As Oswalt (1998:547â48) says, âin its victory parades ancient Rome customarily displayed all the spoils of the defeated people â¦. The climax of the parade was the victor in his chariot, leading the highest living official, preferably the king, of the defeated country as his slave. It is reasonable to believe that the Romans did not begin this practice.â John has changed this imagery of wealth to οἱ βαÏιλεá¿Ï Ïá¿Ï γá¿Ï Ïá½³ÏÎ¿Ï Ïιν Ïὴν δόξαν αá½Ïῶν Îµá¼°Ï Î±á½Ïήν (â¦, the kings of the earth will carry their glory into it). In other words, John has replaced the idea of military victory and plunder with that of conversion and worship. By inserting âgloryâ instead of âwealth,â there has been a subtle shift of emphasis â¦. As Beale (1999:1095) says, âThey are bringing not literal riches but themselves as worshipers before Godâs end-time presence (so 22:3â5)ââ (Osborne, Revelation, pp. 762â63). See also Beale, The Book of Revelation, p. 1095; Allan J. McNicol, The Conversion of the Nations in Revelation (lnts, 438; London: T&T Clark, 2011), p. 80.
Osborne, Revelation, p. 650. See also Mounce, The Book of Revelation, p. 334; Beale, The Book of Revelation, p. 910; Koester, Revelation, pp. 705â6.
Osborne, Revelation, p. 773. See also Jacqueline M. Hidalgo, Revelation in Aztlán: Scriptures, Utopias, and the Chicano Movement (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2016), p. 99. In a different way, Royalty does not read the term âslaveâ negatively either: âThe positive connotations carried by slave metaphors in Revelation, as with its use in other early Christian literature, reflect the positive aspects associated with slavery in the social world of the Greco-Roman audiences of these texts. We should not be misled by the negative connotations the word âslaveâ has in modern English usageâ (Royalty, The Streets of Heaven, p. 137). He further explains, âRevelation portrays God as more powerful, and wealthier, than any contender the Romans might put forward: proconsul, high priest, Caesar himself. And, the more powerful the master or patron, the more powerful the head slave. The rhetoric of slavery in Revelation raises the status of John within the Christian communities of Asian, since he is the slave deemed worthy to receive the apokalypsis from this wealthy and powerful Godâ (p. 139).
Osborne, Revelation, p. 650.
âThe most common interpretation of the black horse and rider is that they symbolize famine. Famine is implied by the balance and the exorbitant pricesâ (Mounce, The Book of Revelation, p. 144).
In contrast, David Mathewson believes that Revelation 20:1 refers to Godâs new creation. He relates 20:1 to Isaiah 65:17, arguing, âIt must be observed that the primary concern of Johnâs vision is with the results of the creative act rather than the process. The author has taken over the post-exilic promise from Third Isaiah, which emphasizes the discontinuity between the old and the new, transformed order, and further heightens the antithesis between the old creation and the radical new beginning which would be inaugurated by an all-embracing, creative act of Godâ (Mathewson, A New Heaven and a New Earth, pp. 38â39). Then, Pilchan Lee recognizes the creation as âthe restoration of the first creation ⦠rather than the removal of the first creationâ (Pilchan Lee, The New Jerusalem in the Book of Revelation: A Study of Revelation 21â22 in the Light of its Background in Jewish Tradition [Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2001], pp. 268â69). For an ecological lens of restoring/healing the world, see Barbara R. Rossing, âFor the Healing of the World: Reading Revelation Ecologically,â in David Rhoads (ed.), From Every People and Nation: The Book of Revelation in Intercultural Perspective (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2005), pp. 165â82; Ryan L. Hansen, âOn Trying to Praise the Mutilated World Reading Revelation in the Midst of Ecological Crisis,â in Bruce Worthington (ed.), Reading the Bible in an Age of Crisis: Political Exegesis for a New Day (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2015), pp. 285â312; Barbara R. Rossing, âLost Land: Visualizing Deforestation and Eschatology in the Apocalypse of John and the Column of Trajan in Rome,â in Jione Havea (ed.), People and Land: Decolonizing Theologies (Lanham: Fortress Academic, 2019), pp. 159â74.
âFor I am about to create new heavens and a new earth; the former things shall not be remembered or come to mindâ (Isa. 65:17).
âThen I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no moreâ (Rev. 20:1).
Yuki Takatori, focusing on the war crimes trial in Tokyo after wwii, argues, âThe allies hoped that trying and punishing the former rulers of Germany and Japanâthus revealing the Axis powersâ folly and crueltyâwould leave an indelible impression on the consciousness of the defeated nations, âeducatingâ people and causing them to reject all that their former leaders representedâ (âThe Forgotten Judge at the Tokyo War Crimes Trial,â Massachusetts Historical Review 10 [2008], p. 116). From this perspective, I would argue that after the Empire of God wins the world wars, a war crimes trial is held to punish the enemies, thereby ââeducatingâ the people [of the surviving ânationsâ (21:24â26)] and causing them to reject all that their former leaders represented.â In the heavenly war crimes trial, the leaders of the defeated nation, the devil, beast, and false prophet, are sentenced to eternal torture (19:20; 20:10). However, the trial does not end after punishing these leaders. Those who have died because of the world wars are put on trial by force (âAnd I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne â¦. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and all were judged according to what they had doneââ20:12â13). Unfortunately, they are also sentenced to eternal torture (20:15). These common people lose their human right to rest in peace simply because they do not belong to the victorious nation (âanyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fireââ20:15). In addition, the heavenly war crimes trial does not omit the survivors of the defeated nation. Though they have survived the cruel world wars, they cannot escape from the ruthless judgment (âBut as for the cowardly, the faithless, the polluted, the murderers, the sexually immoral, the sorcerers, the idolaters, and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfurââ21:8).
Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri, Empire (Cambridge: Harvard University, 2000), p. xiv.
Ibid., p. xii.
Nimi Wariboko, God and Money: A Theology of Money in a Globalizing World (Lanham: Lexington Books, 2008), p. 167.
Walter D. Mignolo, The Idea of Latin America (Malden: Blackwell Publishing, 2005), pp. 12, 44.
Wariboko, God and Money, p. 172.
Ibid., p. 172.
Ibid., pp. 173â74.
Further on the study of global cities, see Saskia Sassen, The Global City: New York, London, Tokyo (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1991); Saskia Sassen, Cities in a World Economy (Thousand Oak: Pine Forge Press, 2000); Ravi Ghadge, âToward a Critical Understanding of the World/Global City Paradigm,â The Journal of Public and Professional Sociology 11.1 (2019).
Enrique Dussel, Philosophy of Liberation (trans. Aquilina Martinez and Christine Morkovsky; Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1985), p. 25.
Mignolo, The Politics of Decolonial Investigations, pp. 20â21.
See Jiao Wang et al., âA Comparative Study of Beijing and Three Global Cities: A Perspective on Urban Livability,â Frontiers of Earth Science 5.3 (2011), pp. 323â29; Peter Newman and Andy Thornley, âCase Study WindowâGlobal Cities: Governance Cultures and Urban Policy in New York, Paris, Tokyo and Beijing,â in Greg Young and Deborah Stevenson (eds.), The Routledge Research Companion to Planning and Culture (London: Routledge, 2013), pp. 69â84; Li Zhifeng, Fang Ying, and Xiao Yang, âGlobal City Hypotheses and Social Polarization: Empirical Analysis of Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou,â China City Planning Review 29.2 (2020), pp. 66â75; Yi Li, âSmall Cities and Towns in Global City-centred Regionalism: Observations from Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, China,â Transactions in Planning and Urban Research 2.1 (2023), pp. 103â14.
See Cissy Zhou, âSri Lankaâs China âDebt Trapâ Fears Grow as Beijing Keeps Investing,â Nikkei Asia, January 2, 2024, https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Asia-Insight/Sri-Lanka-s-China-debt-trap-fears-grow-as-Beijing-keeps-investing.
The twelve countries are as follows: Belize, Eswatini, Guatemala, Haiti, the Holy See, Marshall Islands, Palau, Paraguay, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Tuvalu.
For instance, in the US, the name of Taiwanâs representative office is âTaipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York.â
See Thomas J. Shattuck, âLithuaniaâs Bet on Taiwan and What It Means for Europe,â Foreign Policy Research Institute, July 12, 2023, https://www.fpri.org/article/2023/07/lithuanias-bet-on-taiwan-and-what-it-means-for-europe/.
Mignolo, âDecolonizing Western Epistemology/Building Decolonial Epistemologies,â p. 37.
Rome had two striking titles: Urbs Aeterna (The Eternal City) and Caput Mundi (The Capital of the World). See Samuel Kliger, âThe âUrbs Ãternaâ in Paradise Regained,â pmla 61.2 (1946), pp. 474â91; Filippo Carlà -Uhink, âCaput mundi: Rome as Center in Roman Representation and Construction of Space,â Ancient Society 47 (2017), pp. 119â57.
Park, âRevelation for Sale,â p. 25.6.
Lynn R. Huber, Thinking and Seeing with Women in Revelation (lnts, 475; London: Bloomsbury, 2013), p. 86.
Walter D. Mignolo, âDelinking,â Cultural Studies, 21:2 (2007), pp. 449â514 (477).
Ibid., pp. 481â82.
Wariboko, God and Money, p. 181.
Ibid., p. 176.
Ibid., p. 181.
C. Wright Mills, The Power Elite, (New York: Oxford University Press, 1956), p. 215. See also Andrew K. Jorgenson et al., âGuns versus Climate: How Militarization Amplifies the Effect of Economic Growth on Carbon Emissions,â American Sociological Review 88.3 (2023), pp. 418â53.
Michael Beckley, âEconomic Development and Military Effectiveness,â The Journal of Strategic Studies 33.1 (2010), pp. 43â79.
Wariboko, God and Money, p. 184.
â2022 Military Strength Ranking,â Global Firepower, https://www.globalfirepower.com/countries-listing.php, accessed January 16, 2022.
Hal Brands and Zack Cooper, âGetting Serious About Strategy in the South China Sea,â Naval War College Review 71.1 (2018), pp. 12â32 (15).
Ibid., p. 15.
Nalanda Roy, âThe Dragonâs Charm Diplomacy in the South China Sea,â Indian Journal of Asian Affairs 30.1/2 (2017), pp. 15â28 (20).
H. Sonmez Atesoglu, âEconomic Growth and Military Spending in China: Implications for International Security,â International Journal of Political Economy 40.2 (2013), pp. 88â100 (90).
Kenneth W. Harl, Coinage in the Roman Economy, 300 B.C. to A.D. 700 (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University, 1996), p. 36.
Harold Mattingly, Roman Coins (Chicago: Quadrangle Books, 2nd edn, 1960), p. 87.
Harl, Coinage in the Roman Economy, 300 B.C. to A.D. 700, p. 36.
Park, âRevelation for Sale,â p. 25.4.
Ibid., p. 25.6.
This reading adds to the many readings that showcase Revelationâs oppressive elements. See Tina Pippin, Apocalyptic Bodies: The Biblical End of the World in Text and Image (London: Routledge, 1999); Colleen M. Conway, Behold the Man: Jesus and Greco-Roman Masculinity (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008), pp. 159â74; Matthew Streett, Here Comes the Judge: Violent Pacifism in the Book of Revelation (lnts, 462; London: T&T Clark, 2012); Moore, Untold Tales from the Book of Revelation, pp. 39â73; David L. Barr, âViolence in the Apocalypse of John,â in Craig R. Koester (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of the Book of Revelation (New York, Oxford University Press, 2020), pp. 291â306.
Conway, Behold the Man, p. 162.
That is why the three sections in this article are inseparable. The imperial militaryâeconomic system is a means for the Heavenly Empire to build a new global city, and the desire for wealth accumulation motivates the Heavenly Empire to achieve this goal.
