the tradition of apocalyptic literature is the living literary tradition to whose forms and content he is most indebted. This has, of course, long been recognized. But since the important work of scholars of a previous generation, such as R. H. Charles and I. T. Beckwith, very little fresh work has been done by way of comparing and contrasting Revelation with the rest of the apocalyptic literature, or of tracing the specific literary conventions and apocalyptic traditions which occur both in Revelation