Shepherd of Hermas
An apocalyptic book written over the range of 100–150 CE. The first section, Visions 1–4, were written earliest, circa 100–125 CE. Vision 4 may borrow from the Revelation.
Revelation of John 13.1–4
Shepherd of Hermas, Vision 4.1.6
And I saw a wild animal rising from the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads […] And the dragon gave it his power and his throne and extensive authority. […] And they worshiped the dragon who had given authority to the wild animal, and they worshiped the wild animal
When the dust cloud got bigger and bigger, I suspected it was something divine. The sun came out a bit and I saw a huge beast like some sea-monster […] The beast was about a hundred feet long and had a head like a pottery urn.
Revelation of John 9.1–3
Shepherd of Hermas, Vision 4.1.6
smoke rose from the pit, like a large furnace’s smoke […] And locusts went from the smoke onto the earth
with fiery locusts coming out of its mouth.
Revelation of John 6.1–8
Shepherd of Hermas, Vision 4.1.10
And I saw, and see, a white horse. […] And another horse, fiery red, went out. […] And I saw, and see, a black horse. […] And I saw, and see, a green horse
The beast had four colors on its head: black, then the color of fire and blood, then gold, then white.
Revelation of John 7.14
Shepherd of Hermas, Vision 4.3.6
And he said to me, ‘These are the ones who come from the great tribulation [της θλιψεως της μεγαλης], and they have washed their robes and made them white in the lamb’s blood.
‘You have the omen of the great tribulation [της θλιψεως της … μεγαλης] to come.’
Marcion of Sinope
Marcion was active circa 120–160 CE, and was the first to delineate a canon of authoritative texts, comprising solely a Gospel of the Lord (a document somehow related to the Gospel of Luke) and ten letters of Paul. As such, according to Tertullian (Against Marcion 4.5), Marcion rejected the authenticity or authority of the Revelation.
We have also John’s foster churches. For although Marcion rejects his Revelation, the order of the bishops, when traced up to their origin, will yet rest on John as their author.
Secret Book of John
A pseudonymous book written circa 150 CE. Authorship is attributed to John son of Zebedee. Chapter 2 paraphrases Rev 1, indicating the author believed the Revelation was written by John son of Zebedee, and had authority.
Revelation of John 1.18–19
Secret Book of John 2.15–20
And he put his right hand on me, saying, ‘Do not fear. I am the first and the last, and the living one, and I was dead, but see I am alive for ever and ever, and I have the keys of Death and Hades. So write what you have seen, and what is, and what is about to happen after these things.’
‘I am the undefiled and incorruptible one. Now I have come to teach you what is and what was and what will come to pass, that you may know the things which are not revealed and those which are revealed, and to teach you concerning the unwavering race of the perfect Man.’
Justin Martyr
Wrote his Dialogue with Trypho circa 150 CE. Chapter 81 identifies John son of Zebedee as the author of the Revelation, and summarizes Rev 20–22 as prophesying the same things as Isaiah and Jesus.
Now we have understood that the expression used among these words, ‘According to the days of the tree shall be the days of my people; the works of their toil shall abound’ obscurely predicts a thousand years. For as Adam was told that in the day he ate of the tree he would die, we know that he did not complete a thousand years. We have perceived, moreover, that the expression, ‘The Day of the Lord is as a thousand years’, is connected with this subject. And further, there was a certain man with us, whose name was John—one of the apostles of the Anointed One—who prophesied by a revelation that was made to him that those who believed in our Anointed One would dwell a thousand years in Jerusalem, and that thereafter the general, and, in short, the eternal resurrection and judgment of all men would likewise take place. Just as our Lord also said, ‘They shall neither marry nor be given in marriage, but shall be equal to the angels, the children of the God of the resurrection’.
Muratorian fragment
Written circa 170 CE. This broken text provides a list of documents regarded as authoritative by different Christian groups, and intends to declare which ones deserve that position. Other books are mentioned with some caveats.
We accept only the Revelations of John and of Peter, although some of us do not want it to be read in the Church.
Christians in Lyons
Eusebius of Caesarea (Church History 5.1.58; 5.2.3) implies that when Christians in Lyons suffered persecution circa 170–180 CE, they cited the Revelation to encourage themselves.
For they conceded cheerfully the appellation of ‘witness’ to the Anointed One, ‘the faithful and true witness’ and ‘firstborn of the dead’, and prince of the life of God. And they reminded us of the witnesses who had already departed, and said, ‘They are already witnesses whom the Anointed One has deemed worthy to be taken up in their confession, having sealed their testimony by their departure. But we are lowly and humble confessors.’ And they implored the brothers with tears that earnest prayers should be offered that they might be made perfect.
Montanism
Epiphanius of Salamis (Panarion 49) implied that Montanists (or, at least, a subset of them) accepted the authority of the Revelation, and partly based their new prophecies on it, circa 170–200 CE.
The Quintillianists in their turn, who are also called Pepuzians and known as Artotyrites and Priscillianists, are the same as the Phrygians and derive from them, but in a certain way are different. For the Quintillianists or Priscillianists say that either Quintilla or Priscilla—I cannot say for certain, but one of them, as I said—slept in Pepuza and, as the deluded women said, the Anointed One came to her and slept beside her, thus. ‘The Anointed One came to me in the form of a woman,’ she said, ‘dressed in a white robe. He imbued me wisdom, and revealed to me that this place is holy, and that Jerusalem will descend from heaven here.’
Gaius of Rome
Eusebius of Caesarea (Church History 3.28) claimed that Gaius rejected the authenticity of the Revelation in an attempt to counter the Montanist movement. Gaius claimed that the Revelation was a pseudonymous forgery by Cerinthus, a gnostic Christian allegedly contemporary with John son of Zebedee.
Gaius, whose words we quoted above, in the Disputation which is ascribed to him, writes as follows concerning this man: ‘But Cerinthus also, by means of revelations which he pretends were written by a great apostle, brings before us marvelous things which he falsely claims were shown him by angels. And he says that after the resurrection, the kingdom of the Anointed One will be set up on earth, and that the flesh dwelling in Jerusalem will again be subject to desires and pleasures. And being an enemy of the scriptures of God, he asserts, with the purpose of deceiving men, that there is to be a period of a thousand years for marriage festivals.’
Irenaeus of Lyons
Wrote his Against Heresies circa 180 CE. Book 5.30, in discussing the mystery of the number six hundred sixty six, sets out to harmonize the Revelation with other authoritative texts, including Jeremiah, Matthew, 1 Thessalonians, and at least 1 John or 2 John. Justin also says John received the vision of his Revelation in the mid 90s CE. Irenaeus works with the Revelation in other passages as well.
We will not, however, incur the risk of pronouncing positively as to the name of the anti-Anointed One. For if it were necessary that his name should be distinctly revealed in this present time, it would have been announced by him who beheld the apocalyptic vision. For that was seen no very long time since, but almost in our day, towards the end of Domitian’s reign.
Alogi
Epiphanius of Salamis (Panarion 51) claimed that a group called Alogi, circa 200 CE, rejected the authority of both the Gospel of John and the Revelation of John because they thought the two books were pseudonymously written by Cerinthus.
Now these Alogi say […] As complete strangers to the truth’s message they deny its purity, and accept neither John’s Gospel nor his Revelation.
Tertullian of Carthage
Wrote his Against Marcion circa 208 CE. Book 4.5 claims that John son of Zebedee wrote the Revelation.
We have also John’s foster churches. For although Marcion rejects his Revelation, the order of the bishops, when traced up to their origin, will yet rest on John as their author.