"Son of man", "son of Adam", or "as a man", are phrases used in the Hebrew Bible, various apocalyptic works of the intertestamental period, and in the Greek New Testament. In the indefinite form used in the Hebrew Bible it is a form of address, or it contrasts human beings against God and the angels, or contrasts foreign nations, which are often represented as animals in apocalyptic writings, with Israel which is represented as human, or it signifies an eschatological human figure.
"One like a son of man" with a sword among the seven lampstands, in John's vision. From the Bamberg Apocalypse, 11th century.
Apocalypticism is the religious belief that the end of the world is imminent, even within one's own lifetime. This belief is usually accompanied by the idea that civilization will soon come to a tumultuous end due to some sort of catastrophic global event.
Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, woodcut print from the Apocalypse of Albrecht Dürer (1497–1498), Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe
Western Europe, the Holy Roman Empire, Kievan Rus', and the Byzantine Empire in the Middle Ages (year 1000)
Preacher William Miller, who led his followers to the Great Disappointment of 1844
Title page of a late manuscript of the Prose Edda written by Snorri Sturluson (13th century), showing the Ancient Norse Gods Odin, Heimdallr, Sleipnir, and other figures from Norse mythology
