ὑποκάτω, the under-world of departed spirits or of daemons. Not even angels ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ (cf. Mark 13:32) can discharge this function; their rôle in the Apocalypse is prominent but limited. Gunkel prefers to think of a magical background to the whole symbolism; the book defies the necromancy of the universe, but yields to the superior power of “the new god, the lord of the book”. For the mythological basis of the idea of an opened heavenly book cf. Winckler (Alt-orient. Forsch. ii. 386) and Brandis (Hermes, 1867, 283). The triple division of the universe was originally Babylonian but it had long ago become a popular religious idea, (cf. Philippians 2:10).

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Old Testament