Beth Snodderly 1

Rhetography in First John: Persuasive Images of Life and Death

Preview: A Kalaidoscope of Snapshots in 1 John 1. Snapshots of the Beginning and End: That which was from the beginning and keep yourselves from idols. In the first image of the book of First John, the author and the original community of Christ-followers are gathered around the Word of life who has been from the beginning, but who appeared on earth as a person who could see and be seen, who could hear and speak and be heard and spoken to, who could touch and be touched (1 John 1:13; see John 1:1-3, Genesis 1:1, John 21:25-28). In contrast, in the last scene of the book, the ancient image of idolatry serves as a metaphor for all that is opposite to the Word of life. Psalm 115:4-9 describes the futility of following false gods and teachers: 1 Their idols are man-made. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see, ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell, hands, but cannot touch, feet, but cannot walk. Those who make them will end up like them, as will everyone who trusts in them. Little children, keep yourselves from idols, urges the author of First John in 5:21, as a summary of one of his two main goals: to persuade his audience to disavow the false teachers and avoid ending up like them. (The one who does not love remains in death [1 John 3:14].)

2. Snapshots of Abiding from the Gospel and First Epistle of John The metaphor of abiding or remaining (mevnwn), found throughout chapters 24 of First John, calls to mind the imagery of John 15 where we see the branches abiding or remaining in the vine in order to have life and bear fruit. The metaphor of abiding in First John is reciprocal: believers abide in God and God abides in the believers who meet the conditions of belief and love (1 John 4:16). The author of
1

Duane Watson points out the chiastic and contrasting relationship of 1 John 5:21 to the Prologue in his chapter, Keep Yourselves from Idols: A Socio-Rhetorical Analysis of the Exordium and Peroratio of 1 John, in Fabrics of Discourse: Essays in Honor of Vernon K. Robbins (eds. David B. Gowler, L. Gregory Bloomquist, and Duane. F. Watson; Harrisburg: Trinity Press International, 2003), 281-302.

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First John had as the second of his two main goals to confirm in the minds of his audience that they were Gods children and should keep on obeying and remaining in Him in order to have eternal life (see 1 John 2:17).

3. Snapshot Collage: Defeating the devil Using a sound-alike word play to describe the first element of this three-part collage, the author portrays the young men (neanivskoi) of his audience having victory (nenikhvkate) over the evil one (1 John 2:12, 14). This image illustrates an example of the fulfillment of the purpose of Jesus appearing in 1 John 3:8b, depicted by the second image of this collage: to undo or destroy (luvsh/) the works of the devil. (The same Greek word is used to describe untying or loosing the donkey in preparation for letting Jesus ride on it in Matthew 21:2 and Luke 19:30.) In the third part of this collage, in the background of the images of Jesus and the young mens defeat of the devil, we see the whole world lying in the power of the evil one (5:19). In addition, an echo of Jesus words in speaking of his death and resurrection in John 12:31, now the ruler of this world will be driven out, would likely have been called to the minds of the Johannine community by the visual imagery of this collage in First John.

Rhetography: A Combination of Rhetoric and Graphics for a Persuasive Purpose The graphic images in a text, such as the three samples given above, contribute persuasively toward an overall rhetorical effect. Vernon Robbins, the originator of the socio-rhetorical approach to the interpretation of Scripture, has recently coined the term rhetography to describe the use of verbal images in the context of a rhetorical argument. 2 The rhetography becomes a collective vision intended to persuade the audience to do what the author is urging. After a short summary of the importance and contribution of rhetography to visualizating the big picture/story of the Bible, and after a brief look at that big picture from the perspective of the Johannine community, this article will explore the three
2

Vernon Robbins comments in the Rhetoric of Religious Antiquity seminar at the Society of Biblical Literature national conference, November 26, 2007.

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composite rhetographs of First John described above. It will be seen that even though this is a book full of propositional truths, it is also full of persuasive imagery with a particular purpose in mind. Images in a rhetorical context become metaphors. Vernon Robbins draws on the theories of cognitive scientists who point out that the mind constructs meanings of words through recall cues, a thinking process which is metaphorical in nature. 3 Verbal descriptions of visual images immediately bring certain things to mind for a reader or listener, meanings that are conditioned by experience and culture. What do people think about, what do they envision in their minds, when they hear the phrase, from the beginning, for instance? Or keep yourselves from idols? Or undo/destroy the works of the devil? Knowing what these images were likely to have called to mind for a first century Mediterranean audience with a Judeo-Christian background will help the presentday interpreter envision in his or her own mind a more accurate picture, rather than imposing 21st century images on 1st century texts. One of the values of the use of rhetography in Socio-Rhetorical Interpretation is that it causes the interpreter to slow down and look at familiar texts with new questions and perspectives. Some things may be going on in the text that traditional commentaries have not discussed. Why did the author evoke particular images? What was his purpose? What did he intend to persuade his audience to do or believe? This fresh approach to studying First John will bring out new questions and answers within the context of the big picture of the ancient texts of Scripture and the historical-cultural background of those texts.

Rhetography: The Big Picture of Scripture The rhetograph at the heart of First John, in 1 John 3:8, conveys an image that is at the heart of Scripture, the battle for the planet: The Son of God appeared for the purpose of undoing/destroying the works of the devil. The overall flow of sacred history is the context for the rhetorical purpose of First John. From Genesis to Revelation the consistent theme of Judeo-Christian Scripture is Gods purpose to win a people for
3

Ibid.

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himself back from the ruler-ship of Satan. This mega-rhetograph of the biblical story is an example of ideological texture, as Robbins terms it, 4 presenting the big picture of the biblical narrative from the perspective of the implied author and audience of First John. 5 A defense for this ideological assumption is beyond the scope of this article, as is a detailed explanation of the plot of the biblical story. Instead a quick sketch of the narrative of Scripture is given here. Following this narrative analysis, this article will focus on the three composite rhetographs described earlier with the intention of showing the value of these images, within the larger biblical context, for the interpretation of the message of First John.

Big Picture: Prior to the coming of Jesus Before the appearing of Jesus no one had ever seen God (1 John 4:12, John 1:18). God wants to be known to people who choose to be in fellowship with him (1 John 1:3, 4; John 1:12), but the people he chose to reveal himself to in most detail did not recognize him, in the form of his Son Jesus, when they saw him (John 1:11.) What was blinding and deceiving them, keeping them from recognizing their Creator (John 1:1-4)? The beginning of Scripture, Genesis 1:1, 2, points to the answer. The first thing recorded in the Bible is that God is having to re-build a world that was in chaos following some sort of disastrous judgment (tohu wabohu) 6. This was

Veron Robbins, The Tapestry of Early Christian Discourse: Rhetoric, Society and Ideology (London: Routledge, 1996). p. 36. 5 The perspective of the implied author and audience of First John, is based on what the interpreter is able to glean from the written text. All interpretation is filtered through the ideology of the community or communities with which the interpreter identifies. In the case of this article, the author identifies with the missiology of the Frontier Mission Fellowship which includes the necessity of fighting the works of the devil in order to accomplish Jesus mission on earth: to release captives, open the eyes of the blind, free the oppressed (Luke 4:18). 6 See Beth Snodderly, Exegesis of Genesis 1:1, 2, (Research Paper; William Carey International University, 2006). The condition of the earth prior to creation is described in Genesis 1:2 as tohu wa bohu, which can be translated destroyed and desolate, or topsy turvey, or, traditionally, formless and void. The Appendix of the Exegesis paper gives a comprehensive chart of the context of the 17 occurrences in the Old Testament of the Hebrew word, tohu. (The word bohu never occurs alone, perhaps because it was coined to rhyme with tohu.) In each of the 16 other occurrences of the word tohu the context is judgment for rebellion against God. It seems logical that the first occurrence of the term would also have been in the context of judgment, setting the tone for the remaining usages of the term in the Hebrew Scriptures.
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apparently due to the sinning of the devil from the beginning (1 John 3:8a), prior to the sin of the first humans. At some point the devil, who is a liar and has been a murderer from the beginning (John 8:44), deceived the first humans into joining him in rebelling against Gods will. The devils murderous, hateful nature is illustrated by Cain, who was of the evil one and killed his brother because his deeds were evil, while his brothers deeds were righteous (1 John 3:12). The success of the devils pervasive influence is seen by the fact that the whole world is under the influence the evil one (1 John 5:19), who is called the ruler of this world in John 12:31. To legitimately take back the rulership from the one to whom it had earlier been entrusted, God devised a plan that called for humans to freely choose to obey him, rather than the untrustworthy regent, as their rightful ruler. This plan was delayed numerous times by humans making wrong choices and experiencing the consequences, such as the Flood, or when the Israelites asked for a human king and ended up in Exile. Each time judgment was followed by a fresh beginning.

Big Picture: Jesus life on earth Finally, at the right time, God made a radical new beginning: the Word became flesh (John 1:14). Jesus appeared to take away sin and to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:5, 8b), loosing people from slavery to sin (John 8:34-36), and making it possible for people to choose obedience to God as their father. (See John 1:12: he gave them the authority or the power to become sons of God.) First John emphasizes two commandments requiring obedience from true children of God: love for one another, and belief in Jesus as the Christ, the Savior of the world (1 John 3:23; 4:14). The author of First John and his inner circle were eyewitnesses that the Father had sent the Son to be the Savior of the world (1 John 1:1-3, 4:9, 14; John 4:42). Jesus ministry began with his baptism by John (1 John 5:6-8; John 1:32-34) and his temptation by the devil, whom he successfully overcame (Matthew 4:10, 11). His ministry included defeating the works of the devil in casting out demons and healing the sick while demonstrating a life of love and obedience to God.

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Jesus life set an example for the believer to follow (1 John 1:7; 2:6; 3:2, 16). His command to his disciples from the beginning was to love one another (1 John 4:7, John 13:34, 15:17), one demonstration of which was washing his disciples feet (John 13:1416). Not only would his disciples ideally follow his positive example, but Jesus warned that since the world hated him, it would hate them also (1 John 3:13; John 15:18-24). But the ruler of this world had no hold on Jesus (John 12:31; 14:30). Jesus successful accomplishment of the Fathers will led to the driving out and defeat of the evil one. Jesus appeared to take away sins (1 John 3:5) and in doing so, broke the hold that the devil had on humankind (1 John 3:8b, 5:18).

Big Picture: After Jesus returned to the Father As a result of the devils works being undone in the lives of Jesus followers, believers are able and obligated to follow his example by laying down their lives for those in need (1 John 3:16, 17). These demonstrations of love are intended to continue in a chain reaction of destroying the devils works across time and culture by bringing love where there is hatred (1 John 3:11-17), truth where there is falsehood (1 John 4:1-6), and life to overcome death (1 John 3:14).

Three Composite Rhetographs in First John Within the context of this larger rhetograph of the biblical story and purpose, the author of First John is particularly concerned about confirming his audience in their belief in Jesus, their love for one another, their loyalty to the truth, and their confidence in having eternal life. This is the intended rhetorical effect of the images in First John. Each of the three composite snapshot rhetographs described at the beginning of this paper will be examined in detail to see how it contributes toward this overall purpose of the author. 1. Through a series of antithetical labels, the author urges the believing community to disassociate themselves from those who are trying to deceive them. Keep yourselves from idols is the summary rhetograph for that purpose.

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2. Simultaneously the author urges that believers continue, abide, remain (mevnete) in their love and belief. Abiding, with its allusion to the fruit-bearing, living vine, is the rhetograph or metaphor for that message. 3. The implication of the contrasting images of the Son and children of God (the young men) defeating the devil/evil one (2:13, 14; 3:8b) and the whole world lying in the power of the evil one (5:19) is clear: neutrality is not an option. Believers have to decide whether they will continue to follow Jesus and join Him in overcoming the evil ones influence in the world, or if they will give in to following the ways of the world which are not of the Father (2:16). In the words of 1 John 3:10, will they be children of God or children of the devil?

Idols rhetograph The imagery in First John is intermingled antithetically to contrast the condition of the children of God with that of the opponents (labeled in 3:10 as children of the devil) who were troubling and deceiving the believers, leading to the conclusion in 5:21: little children, keep yourselves from idols. It has proven helpful to separate the verses labeling and describing the believers from the verses labeling and describing the opponents to see the contrast in what the implied reader can see or hear each group doing: Children of God: Walk in the light (1:7 Have fellowship with each other, God, and Jesus (1:7) keep his commandments (2:3) loves his brother (2:10) overcome the evil one [world] does the will of God confesses the son (2:23) does what is right (2:29) do not sin (3:6) Children of the Devil: Walk in darkness (1:6)

do not keep his commandments (2:4) hates his brother (2:9) loves the world, (2:15) denies that Jesus is the Christ (2:22) Everyone who does sin also does lawlessness (3:4) does sin (3:6, 8a) does not practice righteousness does not love his brother (3:10) [Cain] slaughtered his brother because his works were

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evil (3:12) we ought to give up our lives for our brothers (3:16)

(given as a negative example) sees his brother having need and closes his affections from him (3:17) many false prophets have gone out into the world (4:1) Keep in mind that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one (5:19) and that what world is not of the Father

is in the (2:16). We know that everyone who has been born of God does not practice sinning but the one who was born of God keeps him and the evil one does not touch him (5:18).

the whole world lies in the evil [one] (5:19)

The closely paired stark contrasts in the imagery of these lists leave the implied reader with only one real choice. After the last of the antithetical pronouncements and images, the author refers in 5:20 to the true God and eternal life which evokes the images from the beginning of the book of hearing, seeing and touching Jesus, who appeared as the embodiment of the truth and eternal life. With this in mind, the last verse sums up the point of the whole book. It describes in one last rhetograph what all the rhetography of the book was intended to persuade the audience to do, little children, keep yourselves from idols (5:21).

Abiding rhetograph By presenting the positive side of keeping oneself from idols, the rhetograph of abiding contributes to the authors purpose of persuading his children to keep themselves from following false teachers. The imagery of abiding in love, in God, and God abiding in the believer inherently contains the concept of life in its allusion to the living vine and the branches of John 15. In First John those who are in right relationship with God are described in the rhetograph of abiding as: walking as Jesus walked (2:6) loving the brothers and abiding in the light (2:10)

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having the word of God abide in them (2:14) doing the will of God and abiding forever (eternal life) (2:17) letting what they have heard from the beginning abide in them (2:24) abiding in the father and the son, resulting in eternal life (2:24, 25) experiencing the anointing abiding in them (2:27) having Gods seed abide in them (3:9) keeping Gods commandments and abiding in God and God in them (3:24) loving one another and God abiding in them (4:12) confessing that Jesus is the son of God with God abiding in them and they in God (4:15) abiding in love and abiding in God and God in them (4:16) The rhetorical effect of this imagery is to persuade the audience of the desirability and possibility of staying in close fellowship with God, one of the authors purposes in writing to the community of believers (1:3), which is a matter of (eternal) life or death.

Defeating the devil rhetograph Jesus came to give life and defeat death in those who let what they have heard from the beginning abide in them (1 John 2:24, 25). We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers the author assures his audience (3:14). By contrast, no murderer has eternal life abiding in him (3:15). The third of the composite rhetographs emphasizes the role of the Son of God in defeating the evil works of the devil in the lives of those who choose to abide in God. The work of the Son of God makes it possible for the children of God to have victory over the world that lies in the power of the evil one. (See 2:14; 5:4, 5, 19.) The image of the manifestation of the Son for the purpose of destroying the works of the devil comes right at the center of the imagery of First John, as shown in the chart below. The image of Jesus manifestation in 3:8 is paired with the manifestation in 3:10 of the distinction between who are the children of God and who are the children of the devil. Although it is beyond the scope of this article to give justification for a chiastic structure of First John, the chiastic parallels, shown below, are helpful to have in mind for understanding the authors intentions and meanings.

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Chiastic Chart of Images in 1 John:

A THE WORD OF LIFE APPEARED; WE SAW, HEARD, HANDLED, TESTIFIED (1:1-5) B WALK IN LIGHT OR DARK; CLEANSED FROM UNRIGHTEOUSNESS (1:6 2:2) C KEEP COMMANDMENTS: Love (2:3-8) D LOVE vs. HATE (2:9-11) E OVERCOME EVIL ONE (2:12-14; 15-17) F ANTICHRIST vs. LIKE CHRIST (2:18--3:3) DENY OR CONFESS THE SON G LAWLESSNESS, BEING OF THE DEVIL BEING RIGHTEOUS AS HE IS RIGHTEOUS (3:4-8a) H SON OF GOD MANIFESTED TO DESTROY THE WORKS OF THE DEVIL (3:8b) H MANIFESTED: WHO ARE THE CHILDREN OF GOD & CHILDREN OF THE DEVIL: THE LATTER DO NOT PRACTICE RIGHTEOUSNESS OR LOVE (3:9, 10) G MURDER, REMAIN IN DEATH LOVE, GIVE UP OUR LIVES AS JESUS DID (3:11-16) F ANTICHRIST vs. LIKE CHRIST (love in works) DENY OR CONFESS JESUS IN THE FLESH (3:17 4:6) E OVERCOME THE WORLD (4:2-6) D LOVE vs. HATE (4:7-21) C OBEY THE COMMANDMENTS: Belief (5:1-12a) B TRUTH, EVIL ONE, UNRIGHTEOUSNESS IS SIN (5:13-20a) A THIS IS THE TRUE LIFE; LITTLE CHILDREN, KEEP YOURSELVES FROM IDOLS (5:20b-21)

In an extended chiasm such as this, not only is the center of the chiasm notably emphasized, as discussed below, but also the paired themes and images bring out relationships and meanings that might otherwise be missed. For instance, this chart clarifies the meaning of the term, lawlessness in 1 John 3:4 (section G) by its paired relationship to Cains sin of slaughtering his brother (section G), showing that the sin that leads to death is in view in 3:4ff. 7 The central emphasis of the chart assists in understanding what the works of the devil might have looked like to the author and his audience. The negative images throughout First John, and/or their opposite positive images, describe the influence and work of the evil one. Starting from the inner sections and working outwards, these works of the devil include: H: unrighteousness, lack of love
Commentators routinely have to explain why the author would criticize his audience in 1 John 1:8, 10 for claiming they dont sin, but in 3:6, 9 the author seems to affirm that it is true that believers do not sin. The solution to the puzzle lies in the type of sin being discussed. The sin of unrighteousness is in view in 1:8-10 (also compare the chiastic parallel in 5:17: all unrighteousness is sin), while the sin leading to death is in view in 3:6, 9 (visualized as murder in the chiastic parallelism of 3:12, 15).
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G, G: lawlessness, murder, death, not giving of oneself for others F, F: denying that Jesus is the Son of God who came in the flesh E, E: the desires of the world D, D: hatred C, C: not keeping Gods commandments (to love and believe) B, B: walking in darkness, unrighteousness, lies A, A: death, false approaches to God

In short, the works of the devil, according to First John, can be equated with that which leads to death, whether physical, as in the example of Cain, or spiritual, as in the example of idols which represent unbelief and false approaches to God. From the rhetograph of abiding the reader also is aware that the one who does not love remains in death (3:14). Furthermore, all those who hate their brother are considered murderers and no murderer has eternal life abiding in him (3:15).

Conclusion The three rhetographs examined in this article have all pointed to the same conclusion: that love and belief are the essential requirements for and indicators of life through the Son of God; and that the exact opposite, hatred, unbelief and death, are the characteristics of the children and work of the devil. The undoing of the works of the devil is at the center of the imagery of First John, reversing the long history from the beginning (1 John 3:8a; John 8:44) of death and destruction under the rulership of the evil one. Gods children participate in this victory (2:14; 4, 5) as the manifestation of eternal life already at work in them. Abiding is the metaphor for the life experienced in fellowship with the Father, the Son, and other believers. Intentionally keeping oneself from idols (all that is opposed to God) is the means of continuing to abide, to have life, and to have victory over the evil one. Aided by the persuasive imagery of these rhetographs, the author hoped to have the joy of seeing the confidence and commitment of his audience increase in their experience of life and rejection of death.

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References Cited Robbins, Vernon K. Rhetoric of Religious Antiquity Seminar. Oral presentation at the Society of Biblical Literature national conference, November 26, 2007. ______. The Tapestry of Early Christian Discourse: Rhetoric, Society and Ideology. London: Routledge, 1996. Snodderly, Beth. Exegesis of Genesis 1:1, 2. Research Paper. William Carey International University, 2006. Watson, Duane F. Keep Yourselves from Idols: A Socio-Rhetorical Analysis of the Exordium and Peroratio of 1 John. Pages 281-302 in Fabrics of Discourse: Essays in Honor of Vernon K. Robbins. Edited by David B. Gowler, L. Gregory Bloomquist, and Duane. F. Watson. Harrisburg: Trinity Press International, 2003.