THE BOOK OF REVELATION AND MARXISM: A CRITIQUE OF THE STATE AND PUSH FOR EMANCIPATION

Résumé

The Book of Revelation as well as Karl Marx share a common concern. They only differed in the solution. Both authors indulge themselves in critique of the State and its abuse of power. They both proffered solutions for their audience. They both posited the poor masses as the victims of the corruption and abuse of power in the state. However, while Marx saw the solution in the power of the people, the author of the Book of Revelation insists that all the believers were to do was to bear witness by their refusal to bow to the power of Rome that there is one who is King over all the kings of the earth. For Marx, the proletariats were to rise and reclaim what was rightful theirs. The author of Revelation encourages his followers to endure martyrdom in the hope that God has the final judgement. This paper examines in detail, Marx’s political thought and then, gives a summary of the teachings of the Book of Revelation together with its social setting. In the evaluation and conclusion, effort is made to show that both works criticize the state but while Marx vouches for revolution on the part of the proletariats, the Book of Revelation remains a book of Christian hope, not of triumphalism.