Metafory gniewu Bożego w Janowej Apokalipsie
The Metaphors of God’s Wrath in the Revelation of John

Summary/Abstract: The wrath (thymos and orgē) of God is a very distinctive motif in the Revelation of John, especially in Chapters 14–19. There the motif is presented mainly through the metaphors of acup (potērion) of wine (oinos), a wine-press (lēnos), and bowls (phialē) full of plagues. The book’s author creatively used Old Testament images and added a new one, the bowls. This figure of speech allowed the writer to explain the difficult question of God’s anger from different angles, and it made the biblical text more compelling. The bowls of wrath can be understood as disasters taking place in history but still allowing the opportunity to repent. The last judgment, depicted in metaphors of acup of wine and awine-press, is the definitive destruction of iniquity. On the one hand, the metaphors of God’s wrath show human responsibility for one’s decisions, and on the other hand they assert God as the Lord of history. The wrath of God turns out to be an adequate punishment for sins, which is underlined by the picture of the wine of the passion of her fornication. Lastly, wine, acup, a wine-press and a bowl of wrath are all the antithesis of God’s blessing, present in his gifts: the fruit of the earth and grace issuing from the cult.

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