Listen to this study
Authorship, date, and setting
The Apocalypse of Thomas places a revelation to Thomas in the Savior's voice but does not name its composer. It survives in short, long, and abbreviated Latin forms; the long form contains a sequence of rulers absent from the short one. That passage is commonly related to the sons of the emperor Theodosius, yet it does not supply a single date for every layer of the work. The local version tells of final signs rather than the apostle's life.
Structure
In this edition the text occupies one chapter. It opens with an address to Thomas and an account of war, famine, and pestilence. It then numbers heavenly and earthly signs from the first through the seventh day. Between the sixth and seventh it presents Christ's coming, resurrection, and the ascent of the elect. A voice on the eighth day precedes a closing identification of the words as the Savior's address to Thomas.
Themes and key passages
The opening says that even the princes of the angels do not know when the events will occur. A blood-colored cloud, heaven's gates, the abyss, an earthquake, and darkened heavenly bodies form the series of signs. Spirits returning to their bodies and the transformation of the saints move the focus from destruction to the elect's hope. The sequence of days supplies narrative order, not a verifiable historical date.
Summary by parts
Opening and days 1–4: The Savior announces conflict among rulers, scarcity, and suffering. A bloody cloud comes on the first day; heaven's gates open on the second; abyss and smoke terrify on the third; an earthquake topples buildings on the fourth.
Days 5–6: Sun, moon, and stars cease their light. Heaven opens and angels become visible. People seek hiding places, but the account turns to Christ's arrival and the rising and transformation of the saints.
Days 7–8 and close: Angels gather the elect on the seventh day. On the eighth a gentle voice comes from the east. The chapter closes by identifying the account as the Savior's words to Thomas.
Reception
Transmission in Latin manuscripts preserves different forms, and the work also influenced Old English traditions. It is a noncanonical Christian apocalypse, distinct from the Infancy Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Thomas. Differences among witnesses caution against importing every episode of the long form into this edition's shorter chapter.
Sources
- Tony Burke e Matthias Geigenfeind, Apocalypse of Thomas, e-Clavis: Christian Apocrypha (2018, atualizado em 2023).