Reviews
"In this creative and absorbing study Micah Kiel makes a convincing case that the theology of this mystifying biblical book has a strong connection to the Christian view of creation and care for our `common home.'"
The Bible Today
"This book suggests that engagement with the book of Revelation can offer a radically different way of thinking and being which critiques these unthinking patterns of cultural behavior. The close attention which Kiel gives to the ecological imagery of Revelation offers a compelling matrix by which to understand the current global environmental catastrophes that threaten the flourishing of many species, our own included."
Journal for the Study of the New Testament
"Kiel's work combines a rigorous study of Revelation and a creative dialogue between its response to the ecological situation in which it came into existence and what could be our response to the contemporary ecological crisis. All this written in a lively and accessible prose."
American Magazine
"This book offers an effective apologetic against those who would sideline Revelations as anti-creationary. Kiel rejects the hubris that underlies attempts to create an ecological culture ex nihilo and employs a creative mix of resources for re-appropriating the Christian tradition. With its approachable style and good pedagogical sense, Kiel's book may render it useful for undergraduate Scripture study, particularly in relation to Christian ecological ethics."
Journal of Moral Theology
"Kiel's fresh interpretation presents new insights and advances little known evidence concerning the environmental concerns of ancient people."
Interpretation
"This book is substantial and well worth the reader's attention, but not overly technical so as to discourage someone who is new to the study of the Book of Revelation. A source of hope for the future."
Worship
"For many, the book of Revelation is self-evidently detrimental to environmental concerns. In this engaging and provocative book, full of rich insights on every page, Micah Kiel forces readers to think again. Once we allow that Revelation's terrifying vision of environmental catastrophe is more descriptive than prescriptive, an ancient visionary response to deforestation and water and air pollution, new possibilities open up for us. Kiel skillfully uncovers dimensions of Revelation that reveal humanity's connectedness to the earth, to animal and vegetable life, dimensions acknowledged by many of the book's medieval illuminators. He challenges us to swallow our anthropocentric pride and enter into its vision in which nonhuman animals lead the way to a proper orientation of the cosmos. Most important, he unleashes Revelation's surprisingly rich potential for developing a contemporary, theocentric ecology."
Ian Boxall, Associate Professor of New Testament, The Catholic University of America
"In this elegantly written and engaging book, Micah D. Kiel presents us with a kind of biography of the book of Revelation, moving from its content, ancestors, and original context, through its legacy (as seen in some of its later illuminated manuscripts) and onto its contemporary message in an age of environmental crisis. Kiel not only provides an accessible introduction to Revelation but also powerfully makes the case that John's critique of the ecological destructiveness of the Roman Empire can challenge us today—and can inform and shape a scientifically informed but radical response to the economic and environmental problems we face. The rich combination of historical contextualization, careful and critical interpretation, and informed contemporary reflection make this book an ideal stimulus to fresh thought, both about the book of Revelation (and Christian eschatology more generally) and about our contemporary environmental crisis."
David G. Horrell, Professor of New Testament Studies, University of Exeter, UK