REVELATION 22
Most major cities developed around rivers. In the United States, we think of the Charles River in Boston, the Hudson River in New York, the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio Rivers in Pittsburgh, the Cumberland River in Nashville, and the Platt River in Denver. Even though it doesn't normally contain much water, Albuquerque and El Paso grew up around the Rio Grande, and the Rio Grande has helped sustain life from Colorado into Mexico, since long before Europeans arrived in North America.
We also find a river flowing through the new Jerusalem. But this river makes even the Jordan River seem insignificant, because it flows from the throne of God and the Lamb. It sparkles like crystal, and the water is probably more clear than anything we have ever seen on earth, just as the water Jesus turned into wine at the wedding in Cana was better wine than the bridegroom originally served (John 2:1-10), and the quantity of fish the disciples caught, under the direction of Jesus, was far greater than they could have caught themselves (Luke 5:4-10 and John 21:1-11. Throughout the pictoral descriptions of the new Jerusalem, there is something beyond human expectation, something we find difficult even to imagine.
This is so true that what is said about the tree of life in verse 2 is actually confusing. For one thing, if we saw the tree of life on either side of the river, we would probably refer to it as the trees of life. Of course, there is only one tree of life, both in Genesis and here in Revelation. The Bible unapologetically makes no attempt to explain to us how a tree can be on both sides of a river. It just is.
Other things seem odd about the tree of life. It yields twelve varieties of fruit. No fruit tree we know of yields apples, oranges, apricots, bananas, etc., yet the tree of life manages somehow to do something like that. How this happens is beyond our comprehension, and John makes no attempt to explain it to us.
The third problem with the tree of life is that it yields a fresh crop each month. Accustomed as we are to seasons, that would be unusual enough. But consider what Revelation 21:22-23 (NKJV) tells us about the new Jerusalem:
22 "But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.
23 The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light.
Revelation 22:5 tells us there will be no night there, which raises the question, "What is a month in a place where there is no sun and no moon, and how many days would a month contain when there is no night and daytime is continuous?" Is time even relevant in the context of eternity? Does it even exist? Verse 6 tells us that these words are trustworthy and true. We can believe them, but we can't understand them.
Many biblical teachings, particularly in Revelation, are contrary to normal human experience. Revelation tells us there is a lake of fire, though every lake we know of is a body of water which doesn't burn. We speak of having our sins cleansed by the blood of Jesus, though it is far more normal, from a human perspective, to clean up blood than to use it as a cleansing agent. The trinitarian one God in three persons doctrine, which puzzles non-Christians and seems contradictory to them, nevertheless remains one of the tenets of the Christian faith. We serve a God, who we must acknowledge is beyond our comprehension. Many non-Christians want to serve a small god who would fit conveniently within the confines of their own minds.
Verse 4 says the servants of God will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. Contrast this with the following passage from Exodus 33:18-23 (NKJV):
18 "And he said, “Please, show me Your glory.”
19 Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”
20 But He said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.”
21 And the LORD said, “Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock.
22 So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by.
23 Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.”
In light of the passage above, we probably read Revelation 22:4 a bit too casually, but it's worth noticing here that we will someday have access to God in a way which was denied even to Moses.
I've been to many meetings where I had to wear a name tag temporarily with my own name, but Christians hope to permanently wear someone else's name, God's name on their foreheads. This reminds us of the 144,000 who were so sealed in Revelation 7:4, and it contrasts, of course, with the mark of the beast.
By the end of Revelation, man's relationship with God, which he had in the garden of Eden, has been completely restored. Yet something far better than complete restoration has taken place. God's plan of salvation has been fully accomplished, and we are indebted to Christ for his redemption in a way we would not be if we had never sinned. In a sense, we will have gained more than we ever lost through sin, because we will have become like Christ as disciples, both in his suffering and in his glory. We will fully understand why God is to be revered among us, as he now is in heaven.
As I said in chapter 19, I am puzzled about why John twice fell at the feet of an angel to worship him (Revelation 19:10, 22:8-9). Earlier I said John may have been confused about the identity of who was speaking to him. He certainly knew angels are God's messengers and servants, but they are not God, just as the apostles were not God. Perhaps, however, John realizes he is speaking to an angel, but he is nonetheless overwhelmed by being in the presence of a created being who is without sin. We are reminded in both chapters 19 and 22 to worship God alone. The appearance of righteousness, no matter how genuine, is no substitute. In addition to Revelation 1:8 and Revelation 21:6, we are told for the third time that the Lord is the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last, who was, is, and is to come. Neither men nor angels, as created beings, can make such a claim.
We are told five times in this chapter, in verses 6, 7, 10, 12 and 20 that Jesus is coming soon. Scripture does not encourage us to speculate about the date of Christ's return, but it encourages us to be expectant and ready at all times. Verse 11 encourages us to continue to do what's right and to continue to be holy, even as it acknowledges that others will continue to make a different choice.
Verses 14 and 15 reiterate the contrast in verse 11 between the destiny of the righteous and the destiny of the unrighteous. The righteous cleanse their garments (cleansing in Revelation always refers to the blood of Jesus), and they are entitled to enter through the gates of the new Jerusalem and to partake of the tree of life. Sorcerers, adulterers, murderers, idolaters and liars are not welcome.
In verse 16, Jesus echoes Isaiah 11:1-5, identifying himself as the root and offspring of David. Notice again the appearance of contradiction, since it would normally be impossible to be both someone's ancestor and their descendant. Jesus also spoke about this in Matthew 22:42-45 and in John 8:58 where he said, "Before Abraham was, I AM."
Verse 18 warns us not to add anything to this book, or else the plagues in it will be added to us, and verse 19 warns us not to take anything away from this book, or else we will have no access to the new Jerusalem or to the tree of life. Yet we have Moslems who claim a prophet named Mohammed supercedes Jesus, Mormons, who use the name of Jesus Christ in the title of their church, yet give precedence to their current church elders and Joseph Smith over the words of Jesus, and Catholics who believe the pope is infallible, but all too frequently teach that only their priests can interpret scripture, which discourages Catholics from reading it. By God's mercy, some of them will be saved, but we must put Christ first in all things. It is his rightful place.
I began the discussion of this chapter by speaking about the river of life in the new Jerusalem. Consider the following passages:
John 4:10 (NKJV):" Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”"
John 4:13 (NKJV): "Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again,
14 but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”
John 6:35 (NKJV): "And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst."
John 7:37 (NASB): "On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”"
At present, Jesus is still available to anyone who is willing to come to him, willing to offer life abundantly to anyone who is willing to allow him to be Lord of their lives. Someday soon, however, that opportunity will be gone, both for individuals who are each a heartbeat away from eternity, and for mankind in general. In the days before I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior, I had many questions, questions which Christians seemed unable to answer to my satisfaction. But I read the Bible from cover to cover, if only to be educated about it, and God answered enough of my questions that I was ready for the complete change being a disciple of Christ represented in my life. I hope these notes are useful, and I pray for the same experience for others.
As for those of us who are Christians, "Come Lord Jesus, the Spirit and the bride say come." We ought to be waiting for Christ's return, in much the same way a child might wait for one of his parents to pick him up after school, for though it has been delayed, his coming is certain and soon.
We also find a river flowing through the new Jerusalem. But this river makes even the Jordan River seem insignificant, because it flows from the throne of God and the Lamb. It sparkles like crystal, and the water is probably more clear than anything we have ever seen on earth, just as the water Jesus turned into wine at the wedding in Cana was better wine than the bridegroom originally served (John 2:1-10), and the quantity of fish the disciples caught, under the direction of Jesus, was far greater than they could have caught themselves (Luke 5:4-10 and John 21:1-11. Throughout the pictoral descriptions of the new Jerusalem, there is something beyond human expectation, something we find difficult even to imagine.
This is so true that what is said about the tree of life in verse 2 is actually confusing. For one thing, if we saw the tree of life on either side of the river, we would probably refer to it as the trees of life. Of course, there is only one tree of life, both in Genesis and here in Revelation. The Bible unapologetically makes no attempt to explain to us how a tree can be on both sides of a river. It just is.
Other things seem odd about the tree of life. It yields twelve varieties of fruit. No fruit tree we know of yields apples, oranges, apricots, bananas, etc., yet the tree of life manages somehow to do something like that. How this happens is beyond our comprehension, and John makes no attempt to explain it to us.
The third problem with the tree of life is that it yields a fresh crop each month. Accustomed as we are to seasons, that would be unusual enough. But consider what Revelation 21:22-23 (NKJV) tells us about the new Jerusalem:
22 "But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.
23 The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light.
Revelation 22:5 tells us there will be no night there, which raises the question, "What is a month in a place where there is no sun and no moon, and how many days would a month contain when there is no night and daytime is continuous?" Is time even relevant in the context of eternity? Does it even exist? Verse 6 tells us that these words are trustworthy and true. We can believe them, but we can't understand them.
Many biblical teachings, particularly in Revelation, are contrary to normal human experience. Revelation tells us there is a lake of fire, though every lake we know of is a body of water which doesn't burn. We speak of having our sins cleansed by the blood of Jesus, though it is far more normal, from a human perspective, to clean up blood than to use it as a cleansing agent. The trinitarian one God in three persons doctrine, which puzzles non-Christians and seems contradictory to them, nevertheless remains one of the tenets of the Christian faith. We serve a God, who we must acknowledge is beyond our comprehension. Many non-Christians want to serve a small god who would fit conveniently within the confines of their own minds.
Verse 4 says the servants of God will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. Contrast this with the following passage from Exodus 33:18-23 (NKJV):
18 "And he said, “Please, show me Your glory.”
19 Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”
20 But He said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.”
21 And the LORD said, “Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock.
22 So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by.
23 Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.”
In light of the passage above, we probably read Revelation 22:4 a bit too casually, but it's worth noticing here that we will someday have access to God in a way which was denied even to Moses.
I've been to many meetings where I had to wear a name tag temporarily with my own name, but Christians hope to permanently wear someone else's name, God's name on their foreheads. This reminds us of the 144,000 who were so sealed in Revelation 7:4, and it contrasts, of course, with the mark of the beast.
By the end of Revelation, man's relationship with God, which he had in the garden of Eden, has been completely restored. Yet something far better than complete restoration has taken place. God's plan of salvation has been fully accomplished, and we are indebted to Christ for his redemption in a way we would not be if we had never sinned. In a sense, we will have gained more than we ever lost through sin, because we will have become like Christ as disciples, both in his suffering and in his glory. We will fully understand why God is to be revered among us, as he now is in heaven.
As I said in chapter 19, I am puzzled about why John twice fell at the feet of an angel to worship him (Revelation 19:10, 22:8-9). Earlier I said John may have been confused about the identity of who was speaking to him. He certainly knew angels are God's messengers and servants, but they are not God, just as the apostles were not God. Perhaps, however, John realizes he is speaking to an angel, but he is nonetheless overwhelmed by being in the presence of a created being who is without sin. We are reminded in both chapters 19 and 22 to worship God alone. The appearance of righteousness, no matter how genuine, is no substitute. In addition to Revelation 1:8 and Revelation 21:6, we are told for the third time that the Lord is the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last, who was, is, and is to come. Neither men nor angels, as created beings, can make such a claim.
We are told five times in this chapter, in verses 6, 7, 10, 12 and 20 that Jesus is coming soon. Scripture does not encourage us to speculate about the date of Christ's return, but it encourages us to be expectant and ready at all times. Verse 11 encourages us to continue to do what's right and to continue to be holy, even as it acknowledges that others will continue to make a different choice.
Verses 14 and 15 reiterate the contrast in verse 11 between the destiny of the righteous and the destiny of the unrighteous. The righteous cleanse their garments (cleansing in Revelation always refers to the blood of Jesus), and they are entitled to enter through the gates of the new Jerusalem and to partake of the tree of life. Sorcerers, adulterers, murderers, idolaters and liars are not welcome.
In verse 16, Jesus echoes Isaiah 11:1-5, identifying himself as the root and offspring of David. Notice again the appearance of contradiction, since it would normally be impossible to be both someone's ancestor and their descendant. Jesus also spoke about this in Matthew 22:42-45 and in John 8:58 where he said, "Before Abraham was, I AM."
Verse 18 warns us not to add anything to this book, or else the plagues in it will be added to us, and verse 19 warns us not to take anything away from this book, or else we will have no access to the new Jerusalem or to the tree of life. Yet we have Moslems who claim a prophet named Mohammed supercedes Jesus, Mormons, who use the name of Jesus Christ in the title of their church, yet give precedence to their current church elders and Joseph Smith over the words of Jesus, and Catholics who believe the pope is infallible, but all too frequently teach that only their priests can interpret scripture, which discourages Catholics from reading it. By God's mercy, some of them will be saved, but we must put Christ first in all things. It is his rightful place.
I began the discussion of this chapter by speaking about the river of life in the new Jerusalem. Consider the following passages:
John 4:10 (NKJV):" Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”"
John 4:13 (NKJV): "Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again,
14 but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”
John 6:35 (NKJV): "And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst."
John 7:37 (NASB): "On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”"
At present, Jesus is still available to anyone who is willing to come to him, willing to offer life abundantly to anyone who is willing to allow him to be Lord of their lives. Someday soon, however, that opportunity will be gone, both for individuals who are each a heartbeat away from eternity, and for mankind in general. In the days before I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior, I had many questions, questions which Christians seemed unable to answer to my satisfaction. But I read the Bible from cover to cover, if only to be educated about it, and God answered enough of my questions that I was ready for the complete change being a disciple of Christ represented in my life. I hope these notes are useful, and I pray for the same experience for others.
As for those of us who are Christians, "Come Lord Jesus, the Spirit and the bride say come." We ought to be waiting for Christ's return, in much the same way a child might wait for one of his parents to pick him up after school, for though it has been delayed, his coming is certain and soon.
posted by TAPIOCA at 1/01/2007 05:39:00 AM
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