Exoteric, mesoteric, esoteric (the Book of Revelation)

In church history there have been theologians, church fathers, what have you, that saw ascending deeper influence in a series of books of the Bible.

One is the trio of books written by Solomon: Proverbs - Ecclesiastes - Song of Songs. Words to describe them in order would be exoteric - mesoteric - esoteric. (Modern dictionaries will have esoteric, with probably a limited translation; and exoteric and mesoteric will be missing in action.) Exoteric means the most worldly level, and seen as the least threatening to the mainstream, establishment environment. Mesoteric means a mixture of hidden and mainstream, or half physical, half spiritual in nature. Esoteric means hidden. It also means practical level (where the mainstream only considers it 'safe' to reside at the philosophical or theoretical levels).

Another series of books of the Bible that ascend as deeper influence is: the 3 synoptic Gospels - the Gospel of John - the Book of Revelation. This correlates to level of being.

The first level would be the ordinary human level where people are mostly physically, or emotionally, or intellectually oriented. The soldier, the singer, the accountant, etc.

The second level is the rarer occasion when an individual develops all three parts of themselves. They've developed as a soldier/athlete, a musician/artist, and a writer/thinker, for instance. A balanced development.

The third level is a new level. It is like the difference between a regular knight of the Round Table vs. a Grail knight. The Grail knight can do things the regular Round Table knight can't do. Such as reach the Grail castle (or mountain), which is in another dimension than the everyday world. The ability to navigate the trackless forest (being awake); then to fight off several attacking knights while not falling from one's horse (controlling emotion), to then proceed to enter the other-worldly dimension of the Grail realm is skill unique to the questing Grail knight.

The Book of Revelation is difficult for the first two levels; but it is visionary language to the consciousness of the third level.

For structure and theme the idealist/amillennial appears most on-the-mark.

The Returning King - Poythress
The Triumph of the Lamb - Johnson
More Than Conquerors - Hendrikson
Revelation - Beeke (This one appears uniquely valuable.)

Absorb the higher, visual language of the Book of Revelation to build deep understanding.