Commentary on the Book of Revelation; Chapters 20-22
by Dave Brown
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General Comments on Revelation
Revelation - Overview and Flow of the Book
Go to Revelation Chapters 1-5
Go to Revelation Chapters 6-10
Go to Revelation Chapters 11-15
Go to Revelation Chapters 16-19
Appreciation - Many thoughts and references are from notes developed by Bryan Gibson. The opinions given are those of Dave Brown.
We appreciate any suggestions for improving this commentary.
Revelation 20
20:1 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand.
[There is no reason to believe that this chapter has to occur after the events shown in Chapter 19 (although it could). Parts of Chapter 20 could be elaborations of certain of those events introduced previously in order to provide more detail, which would add to the assurance of the persecuted saints at this time. If this is the case, the use of other figures to give us more information would be expected. It is clear that Chapters 21 and 22 deal with the end times as far as human existence on this earth is concerned. This chapter should be viewed as a transition between the predicted rise and fall of the persecution in the previous chapters and the eternal bliss of the faithful described in Chapters 21 and 22.]
[There is probably no book of the bible that has been more abused for financial gain and political/religious power by false teachers than Revelation, and this chapter is their favorite to corrupt, probably because they expect little questioning of their false teachings. We urge readers to keep an open mind and to not be led into baseless conclusions that "could be right" and "might fit". All such speculation is akin to pagan superstition, proceeding from following the false teachings of men as opposed to the known and established teachings of God. If a doctrine cannot be sustained by clear understandable passages of scripture, it should not be bound or taught.]
[Let us stay within what John saw here in making our conclusions. This angel is only identified as “coming down out of heaven.” John was at this point in the revelation (i.e., at the end of Chapter 19) looking into heaven for a continuation of those events that had just been played out before him. The sea beast and the earth beast (false prophet) have been cast into the lake of fire, but the dragon (Satan) still needs to be dealt with. This angel processed two objects: the key of the abyss and a great chain. The abyss is the bottomless pit, or hell (reference 1:18; 9:1, 2, 11; 11:7; 17:8). The purpose of the chain is shown in the next verse.]
2 And he laid hold on the dragon, the old serpent, which is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,
[In this case to visualize the victory over Satan, God employs the services of the angel from heaven. The previous chapter did away with the sea beast and the false prophet, which we saw was originally portrayed to John as the beast arising out of the earth (that we have called the earth beast). Let us not think that these map to specific living entities at the end of the first century when John was writing. Yes, generally we can see that they materialize back then as the corruption and idolatry of the Roman government. However, we would do much better in understanding their role in our lives today if we see the sea beast as corrupt temporal power in general, which could be political, military, economic, financial – any realm in which humans at the top are not held accountable and thus corrupt the areas over which they rule. Similarly, if we view the false prophet to be figurative of all corruptions of the true religion given to us by God, then it could be realized by idolatry (see Romans 1:18-32), or by any apostasy that results in organizations that compete with the truth.]
[If we suppose that the events of Chapter 20, which we are about to get into, follow chronologically from those at the end of Chapter 19, then we cannot possibly be in the period of time that will be described in Chapter 20. Reality tells us that the sea beast (corruption of power) is still very much alive, that the harlot is sill very much calling the shots from behind her hidden realm, and the false prophet is ubiquitous in the religious world. So much for them being relegated to the lake of fire now, although there is no doubt that is where they will ultimately end up. Let us keep this in mind since neither of these entities will emerge again in Chapter 20, which is another reason for us to see those two chapters as being chronological. This may affect our interpretation of this chapter, so let us keep it in mind.]
[Given that the sinful entities represented by the sea beast and the false prophet have been disposed of at this point in John’s vision, it it now time to deal with the Dragon, which is clearly identified here as "the devil" and Satan. Capitalization is not in the original manuscripts, but typically the term "the devil" refers to Satan throughout the New Testament, and in Revelation. Reference 12:3-17; 13:2-11; 16:13. Perhaps the redundancy is to assure us of just who the root cause of all trouble is, but also "the old serpent," which seems to be referring back to events in the garden. This also further confirms that the prophecy in Gen 3:15 ("and I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed: he shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel") in fact has reference to Satan (see also Romans 16:20). "Bound him for a thousand years" tells us the purpose for the chain in the hand of the angel. We cannot imagine why anyone would think that the thousand years is literal after all of the other numbers in the book of Revelation have figurative meanings. Clearly we are dealing with a significant amount of time during which Satan's powers are going to be greatly restricted, as indicated in the next verse.]
[But first let us consider further the meaning of the number 1000. From Summers:
"The Numbers "5" and "10" Perhaps our decimal system arose from the intensive study by a man of his own fingers and toes. That was a crude and cruel age where many were maimed and crippled through disease, accident, or warfare. A perfect, full-rounded man was one who had all his members intact. So the number "5" doubled to "10" came to stand for human completeness. The whole duty of man was summed up in "10" commandments. The picture of complete power in government was that of a beast with ten horns. In Revelation the dragon, the first beast, and the scarlet beast have ten horns each, and in the case of this last beast the ten horns are called ten kings — complete world power as it appeared to belong to Rome with her provincial system. As a multiple, "10" occurs also in many of the higher numbers of Revelation; "70" = a very sacred number, "1000" = ultimate completeness—completeness raised to the nth degree, etc." Source: Ray Summers, Worthy is the Lamb (Nashville: Broadman Press), pp. 21-25]
3 … and cast him into the abyss, and shut (it), and sealed (it) over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years should be finished: after this he must be loosed for a little time.
[What John saw here is clearly a restriction in Satan's ability "to deceive the nations." Does this necessarily mean that all evil will disappear from the earth, as some suppose. It says nothing about the ability of the many demons who are Satan's angels to carry on his work, nor of those humans who have been so infected by the lusts of the eyes, the lust of the flesh and the vain-glories of life. Will they all be removed from the earth as well? Nothing is said to this effect. What is said is that the leader of all unrighteousness, Satan, will be isolated from the earth, and while this certainly portends to a greater amount of peace, happiness and love among men, it does not argue for the type of perfections that will be realized by the faithful in heaven. But during this time "he should deceive the nations no more." His deceptions were described for us in 13:14, 18:22-23, and 19:20 as signs and sorcery, which in the first century were exemplified by events that were supernatural.]
[At the end of this symbolic relatively long period of time, it states that Satan must be loosed for a little time, but gives no reason for this. We can only know by faith that God will turn it to good. We can assume that during this "little time" when he is released that he will once again be able to lead and marshal his followers to the type of sin and evil that was capable of murdering the Son of God. This could be a final trial for the righteous. While we can no doubt come away from this with a good understanding of some things that are going to happen to Satan on his way to his ultimate fate, we dare not add speculation here and teach our speculations as binding doctrine. Or, worse yet, as is the case with rapture theology, to make it an integral and major component of a religious organization's theology, even though it is one that has no scriptural basis for existing per se.]
4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and (I saw) the souls of them that had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God, and such as worshiped not the beast, neither his image, and received not the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand; and they lived, and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
[Plural thrones, so this is not the throne of God, or not the definitive number 24 thrones of the elders. Those who sat upon these thrones are the same as those described in the remainder of the verse who "lived, and reigned with Christ for 1000 years" -- saying they were on thrones and saying that they reigned is one and the same. So who were they? Revelation 3:21: "He that overcomes, I will give to him to sit down with me in my throne, as I also overcame, and sat down with my Father in his throne." But let us consider their attributes one at a time:
[Consider the following passages:
[We can best answer the question of the meaning of “they reign with Christ” if we understand how Christ reigns today. Do we need his physical body or his physical presence with us today in order for Him to reign over us? Obviously not. His resurrection was not just the giving of physical life to a dead physical body; it was also the giving of life to His teachings. Had Jesus remained in the grave, these would have remained there with him. But with His resurrection, we now have Him as our Way, our Truth and our Life. “You ask me how I know he lives; he lives within my heart” [He Lives by Alfred H. Ackley, (c) 1933 and 1961]. As long as we did not know of the great courage of the martyrs, they were as good as dead, as would be Jesus had He stayed in the grave. But now we know of their bravery, their courage in the face of death, and their willingness to suffer unthinkable tortures for their faith in Jesus. As we learn more about them, they too live and inspire us to follow their examples. They show that weak men can arise to follow Christ even to the cross if that is necessary.]
[They also live in the sense that they receive due veneration for their faithfulness; but not that they share in the authority of Jesus. Whatever their role is in judging, it is in complete subjection to Jesus. They most certainly would be exalted on earth for their faithfulness and courage. Certainly their example in leadership in providing complete consistency with the word of God will be followed, and we can expect that they will have increased satisfaction in providing these great examples to the Christians who are following their examples on the earth.]
[Bottom line, what is this saying to Christians today? If they are living today, who are they living in? Who does Christ live in? Romans 8:10: "And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the spirit is life because of righteousness.." If the martyrs are alive and living in anyone today it would have to be in Christians. Do we recognize their example? Do we allow them to motivate us to be like them -- to die for the cause if that is what it takes? Is this not what the book of Revelation is all about -- to inspire the Christians of the first century to stand up to their persecutors?]
[While the martyrs and those who showed (and still show) extraordinary courage are the subjects of verse 4 (i.e., “they lived”), there is a sense in which all Christians can similarly provide examples to one another in a very similar way. Revelation 5:9-10: "And they sing a new song, saying, “Worthy art thou to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou was slain, and didst purchase unto God with thy blood (men) of every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation, and made them (to be) unto our God a kingdom and priests; and they reign upon earth." NOW!!! It does not say that we will reign; it says that we are now reigning. For additional perhaps more literal language to interpret this, consider Paul's further statement in Romans 8:35-37: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or anguish, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Even as it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us." NOW!!!]
[If you are waiting for some physical kingdom to be established on this earth, you are missing out on the greatest blessing that Christians can have NOW. The physical kingdom thing (in all of its many rapture variations) is not going to happen -- there is not one verse in the bible that says that it will. Demanding a physical kingdom on this earth is the mistake that the Jews made in the time of Jesus, and it was what led to His crucifixion. Do not crucify him afresh (Hebrews 6:6) -- understand the meaning of this chapter and enjoy the privileges and blessing of reigning with Jesus NOW. Our victory is so assured that we can talk about it in the past tense, and it is the subject of the remainder of this chapter. See the discussion on verse 6 below.]
5 The rest of the dead lived not until the thousand years should be finished. This is the first resurrection.
[This could be the remainder of the saints in contradistinction to the exalted saints who had either been beheaded or otherwise suffered extreme hardship unto death. "Lived" in this case would have to have the same sense as it is used in verse 4. That is, "lived not" would mean that they would not be regarded in such high esteem nor used as examples to give life to those being persecuted on the earth as was true of those who "lived" in verse 4. It would seem, however, that after the 1000 years were accomplished that all the faithful might share in the rewards of eternal life. "This is the first resurrection" seems most probably to be referring back to the “living and reigning” of the souls of the special saints back in verse 4 who had suffered extraordinarily for the cause of Christ.]
[A second alternative should be considered for this difficult verse. It could refer to all of the other physically dead persons who, also being dead spiritually were not living and reigning with Jesus Christ during the figurative 1000 years. Lived not would indicate that they were in no wise to be considered alive either physically or spiritually, and thus their fate was totally sealed. This would also be an assertion that all will be part of the judgment scene, whether righteous or unrighteous. The interpretation of "this is the first resurrection" would still be the same as that given above. While it may not be possible to distinguish which of these two alternatives is intended, neither of them have any impact on the translation that we have given to verses 1-4.]
6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: over these the second death hath no power; but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
[Referring to the previous verse, which in turn was referring to (20:4), “he that hath part in the first resurrection” are those especially blessed saints who had, in great courage and honor, served Jesus unto death. These are they who have part in the first resurrection and the "second death" has no power over them -- they are totally isolated from any chance of being consumed by it. While this would certainly be true of all who die in the Lord, it is appropriate that these special saints be pointed out as especially worthy of this privilege. "The second death" is the death that all who are outside of the body of Christ will encounter upon the final judgment (see 20:14); it is ultimate spiritual death.]
[Dozens if not hundreds of books have been written extrapolating Rev. 20:4-6 into their various imaginations as to some "rapture theory." We urge readers to consult scholarly history to determine when the theory you have been led to believe was first originated; here are a couple of references for a start:
http://www.askelm.com/essentials/ess025.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapture
Since Bible facts do not exist for us to put together a typical rapture scenario, let us go back to the 1800s for the basic structure given by Barnes, who is basing his writings on the common errors that he recognized at that time:
"It is well known that this passage is the principal one which is relied on by those who advocate the doctrine of the literal reign of Christ on the earth for a thousand years, or who hold what are called the doctrines of the 'second advent.' The points which are maintained by those who advocate these views are substantially (as follow):
(a) that at that period Christ will descend from heaven to reign personally upon the earth;
(b) that he will have a central place of power and authority, probably Jerusalem;
(c) that the righteous dead will then be raised, in such bodies as are to be immortal;
(d) that they will be his attendants, and will participate with him in the government of the world;
(e) that this will continue during the period of a thousand years;
(f) that the world will be subdued and converted during this period, not by moral means, but by "a new dispensation" - by the power of the Son of God; and
(g) that at the close of this period all the remaining dead will be raised, the judgment will take place, and the affairs of the earth will be consummated."
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database Copyright © 1997, 2003 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)]
[Questions: Where is any of this detail described in Revelation 20:4-6? Where does it say that Christ will come to the earth? Where does it mention David's throne in literal Jerusalem? Similarly with all of the points above -- these are contrived and invented by men and they have no scriptural basis. Our plea to those who want to use the three verses above to justify any form of this doctrine is to just please read the verses over and over again. The details contained above, or in any other summary or book on the subject, just cannot re-create such a scenario. For those who might still be reluctant to part with the cherished rapture doctrine, please review the milk passages that deal with Jesus second coming and see if you can find any room for anything that your false teachers are prescribing to you: Matthew 7:21-23; 10:32-33; 13:30,38-43; 16:24-27; 25:10,31-46; Mark 8:38; John 5:28-29; Acts 17:31; Romans 2:5-16; 14:10,12; 1 Corinthians 3:12-15; 4:5; 2 Corinthians 5:9-11; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10; 1 Timothy 5:24-25; 2 Peter 3:7,10,12; 1 John 2:28; 4:17; Revelation 3:5; 20:11-15; 22:12-15. (If you do not have time to review these passages, then you can hardly claim to be objective on this subject.) In addition, review the following with regard to the specifications of the resurrection, and see if a rapture period can be fit in: Matthew 25:41; John 4:54; 5:28-29 1 Corinthians 15:23; Philippians 3:20-21; 2 Thessalonians 1:10; Hebrews 9:28; 1 John 2:28-29; 3:2; Revelation 2:7. It just is not there and the fabrication of such is as gross a violation of the silence of the scriptures as there can be. Is it not reasonable that something involving such a complex set of doctrines would be given to us in something more than three verses that are embedded in highly figurative constructs? -- Biblical references from Barnes' Notes, Revelation 20:6.]
Definitive proof of the fallacy of premillialism
[As a final totally conclusive proof, Barnes offers scriptural proof that there is no place in the Bible that talks about the righteous and the wicked being resurrected and judged at two different times. Just the opposite is true. There are both explicit statements and necessary inferences that all people (righteous and wicked) will be judged at the same time, which is the next appearance of Jesus in the clouds (Revelation 14). Here is the excerpt from the Barnes Commentary on Revelation 20:6 that provides conclusive proof of this point:
"I refer for full proof on this point to the following passages of the New Testament: Matthew 10:32-33, compared with Matthew 7:21-23; 13:30,38-43; 16:24-27; 25:10,31-46; Mark 8:38; John 5:28-29; Acts 17:31; Romans 2:5-16; 14:10,12; 1 Corinthians 3:12-15; 4:5; 2 Corinthians 5:9-11; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10; 1 Timothy 5:24-25; 2 Peter 3:7,10,12; 1 John 2:28; 4:17; Revelation 3:5; 20:11-15; 22:12-15. It is utterly "impossible" to explain these passages on any other supposition than that they are intended to teach that the righteous and the wicked will be judged together, at the same time, and both at the coming of Christ. And if this is so, it is, of course, impossible to explain them consistently with the view that all the righteous will have been already raised up at the beginning of the millennium in their immortal and glorified bodies, and that they have been solemnly approved by the Savior, and admitted to a participation in his glory. Nothing could be more irreconcilable than these two views; and it seems to me, therefore, that the objections to the literal resurrection of the saints at the beginning of the millennial period are insuperable.” (From Barnes' Notes, Electronic Data-base Copyright © 1997, 2003 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)]
7 And when the thousand years are finished, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, …
[Whatever this period of time represents, it is the same as that talked about throughout this chapter. There will be a definitive point in time when God deems that the figurative “1000 years” is finished, and at that point in time Satan shall be loosed from the prison defined in 20:3. We have observed that the leadership of Satan is not essential to his persisting evil, and evil will persist during the 1000 years. However, it will not have the leadership of Satan, and thus, it will not have the intensity that it had during the early persecutions of the church (in the first, second and third centuries), during the Dark Ages, the Inquisitions, and the Reformation. But, once Satan is released, we can expect evil to be multiplied exceedingly, and perhaps sufficient that evil can be identified by all thinking people as being clearly evil and worthy of condemnation. This, along with a final trial and identification of those who are not totally loving of God, could be the reasons that he shall be released for a little time. Certainly we live in a time as described by Isaiah 5:20: "Woe unto them that call evil good , and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!" Perhaps such things as the sale of murdered baby body parts and other such obvious atrocities and crimes against the human race, and especially our children, might wake up at least some good people to the evil that is called good by many today.]
8 … and {Satan} shall come forth to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to the war: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
[The state of deception in the first century was universal, with most countries being pagan and insisting that their citizens (including Christians) worship the pagan gods, if not the emperors themselves. We have seen somewhat of a reprieve in this type of wholesale deception of the nations, to the point where many nations practice freedom of religion and thus do not persecute those who might not be of the same mind as their rulers. Of course, this is not the case in many Moslem countries, which have, for example, strict laws against any Moslem converting to Christianity, even to the point of the penalty being death. Similarly, laws against any religious activity are predominant in some of the communist countries, which is obviously just as bad. This could well be the way that Satan deceives all of the nations in the future, and it appears that the evolution toward mandating that certain sins not be spoken against might ultimately lead to the prohibition of any type of evangelism. Many wicked people see this as a positive thing for our cultures and society, as discussed in Isaiah 5:20. which was quoted for verse 7 above. But whether the deception be positive or negative it will be practically universal ("in the four corners of the earth"), making it exceedingly difficult once again to be a follower of Jesus Christ.]
[Gog and Magog – a confederacy of armies that attacked the land of Israel. Ezekiel prophesied against them in Ez. 38-39 saying that the slaughter would be so great that it would take seven months to bury the dead. Here are some excerpts from Ez 38-39:
Ezekial 38:2-3
2 Son of man, set thy face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him,
3 and say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal:
Ezekial 38:18
18 And it shall come to pass in that day, when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord Jehovah, that my wrath shall come up into my nostrils.
Ezekial 39:6
6 And I will send a fire on Magog, and on them that dwell securely in the isles; and they shall know that I am Jehovah.
Ezekial 39:11
11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog a place for burial in Israel, the valley of them that pass through on the east of the sea; and it shall stop them that pass through: and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude; and they shall call it "The valley of Hamon-gog (the multitude of Gog)."]
The land of Magog was a great distance from Israel and the idea at that time of making any pact with them was not possible. But they grew to be a strong and exceedingly formidable foe, and thus were feared because of their strength ("the number of whom is as the sand of the sea"), and the possibility for them to strike at any time. John uses this as a metaphor for an unknown vicious invading force that is being assembled by Satan through his deception of the nations. Essentially, the reference is to bring to mind what happened back then.]
9 And they went up over the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down out of heaven, and devoured them.
[Note that verses 7 and 8 are not visions of heaven any longer as was true of the previous verses of this chapter. Instead these are statements regarding things that will take place on earth after the 1000-year reign while Satan had been restrained. Now Satan has come back to deceive the nations and apparently to get them to wipe out all of the saints that are on the earth. The nations have responded at this point and have surrounded the "camp of the saints," which cannot be any earthly place since saints are dispersed over the entire globe. It then must refer to the comprehensive effort of earthly powers throughout the world to surround (either physically or spiritually through their influence and power) all of those who would stand for the truth of God's word. The camp of the saints is figuratively outside of the beloved city (obviously a reference to spiritual Jerusalem). Reference: Hebrews 12:22 "but ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable hosts of angels,..." While John could see this perhaps literally in his mind, we have no reason to believe that this would be talking about literal Jerusalem today -- the arguments against such an interpretation are clear -- such would not fit the context of this passage in any way. Clearly the saints are out-numbered by both the numbers and the power of the adversary and just when we think that there can be no escape, fire comes down out of heaven and devours the enemies -- reference Ez.39:6 above. Also, see Psalms 11:6; Isaiah 29:6; Ezekiel 38:22; 39:6.]
10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where are also the beast and the false prophet; and they shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
[Again we see no agent employed in this casting of Satan (the dragon who had deceived them 16:13-14; 20:3, 8) into the lake of fire, just as we saw none in 19:20. The force of the word of God alone is sufficient to dispose of all of them. While Satan seems to have been given a reprieve in order to further fit into the plans of God, his fate is appropriately the same as those whom he has deceived and who have been his allies in this deception. Tormented day and night for ever and ever -- a horrible fate to even contemplate for others, much less ourselves.]
11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat upon it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
[The throne was great -- elevated above (Isa. 6:1) so that it could be seen easily by all, as is typical of the many literal scenes given to us throughout the New Testament of the final judgment. It was also white, this word showing not just purity, but shining to the extent described in the remainder of the verse. Him that sat upon it is obviously Jesus Christ, who will judge all men (Matthew 25:31; 2 Corinthians 5:10). "Whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them" -- as the sun blocks out the appearance of the stars when it rises, so shall the throne and the face of Jesus (see 2 Corinthians 4:6 and its context) so shine as to totally make both the earth and all other heavenly objects disappear, although there is no direct evidence at this point that they have been done away. But there is an allusion to such -- "there was found no place for them" -- or perhaps, it was impossible for them to be found anywhere under these circumstances. It is also quite possible that they no longer exist physically; consider the other places where such is alluded to:
12 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne; and books were opened: and another book was opened, which is (the book) of life: and the dead were judged out of the things which were written in the books, according to their works.
[There can be no doubt that this is the final judgment scene, and here again we see all of mankind “the great and the small.” They are standing before the throne, or before God (Greek manuscripts disagree on this; however neither changes the meaning). It was all the dead since "the great and the small" is totally inclusive of all people. It could equally be expressed, the rich and the poor, or the bond and the free -- in any case, there is nothing in this language that could exclude either the righteous or the wicked. And books (plural) were opened -- this seems to indicate that all of the acts of each person in humankind have been recorded in these books. We are given the assurance that those sins forgiven will not be charged to us, so we might conclude that both the good and unforgiven evil works will testify for or against us out of these books. The book of life seems to have also summarily accounted for these works so that each individual at this point is either saved (in the book of life -- 3:5) or not. This further confirms that the righteous dead are in this number standing before God in judgment. There appears to be further ramification from the righteous works written in the books: 2 Corinthians 5:10 "For we must all be made manifest before the judgment-seat of Christ; that each one may receive the things (done) in the body, according to what he hath done, whether (it be) good or bad." But the degree of rewards is not one that is appropriate to take up at this point -- there is very little evidence in the Bible that the rewards will be any different from heaven and hell.]
[We know that the New Testament is clear that our own works cannot save us (Ephesians 2:9; 2 Timothy 1:9; Titus 3:5), how then can we be judged by our works? The answer is clear: we are NOT saved by our works; but if we ARE saved, our works will clearly demonstrate it. Salvation requires that we give ourselves totally to the love of God, and allow Jesus and the Holy Spirit to work through us (Romans 8) to do God’s will. This is not a matter of our working for our salvation, but rather allowing God to work through us to bring about evidence of His righteousness (Romans 1:17).]
13 And the sea gave up the dead that were in it; and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
[This seems redundant, but perhaps it is to satisfy those critics that Paul mentioned in 1 Corinthians 15 who thought that the resurrection of certain bodies must be impossible. Here even those of the Flood or who suffered shipwreck and whose bodies were eaten by sea life or otherwise decomposed were brought back to a bodily state (see 1 Corinthianns 15) in order to stand before God in judgment.
14 And death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death, (even) the lake of fire.
[It is not the residents of death and Hades that are cast into the lake of fire, but death and Hades themselves (personified). These two states that humans might find themselves are to be done away at this point. There will be no more death in the sense of a separation of the soul and the spirit (James 2:26). Neither will there need to be the place of waiting -- Hades, as described most vividly by the story of Lazarus and the rich man (Luke 16: 19-31). Both will be done away by being consumed by the lake of fire. "This is the second death, (even) the lake of fire." This is a statement about the lake of fire (apparently, since it was brought up by the first statement in the verse). It seems reasonable that whoever it is that is being provided this information might wonder just what the “lake of fire” is. It is the second death, the first death being physical death, which is the separation of the body from the spirit as discussed immediately above. Death always means separation of some kind, even when not applied to living creatures. The first death is the separation of the spirit from the body; the second death is the separation of the soul from God eternally.]
[Clearly we have reached the “end” as describe by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:24-26:
24 Then (comes) the end, when he shall deliver up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have abolished all rule and all authority and power.
25 For he must reign, till he hath put all his enemies under his feet.
26 The last enemy that shall be abolished is death.]
15 And if any was not found written in the book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire.
[This is the natural result of the judgment described in 20:12. "If any" is also translated "whosoever" indicating that God is not a respecter of persons as far as one's station of life. At this point we are either in the book of life (3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:12; 21:27; 22:19) or not, and, if not, we will be cast into the lake of fire. Whether this is literal or figurative is of no consequence; what could a lake of fire be a figure of if it were not something even more to be dreaded than that which is literal.]
Revelation 21
21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth are passed away; and the sea is no more.
[The natural reading is that the current heaven and earth are the ones that we now inhabit. They are going to be eliminated (passed away) in favor of a new creation of God. "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth" – time, space and matter. It was cursed by sin, but now the sources of sin, and sin itself have been eliminated. So a new heaven and a new earth could be created in an instant. Consider:
2 Peter 3:10-13
10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
11 Seeing that these things are thus all to be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in (all) holy living and godliness,
12 looking for and earnestly desiring the coming of the day of God, by reason of which the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
13 But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwells righteousness.]
[We should never allow a potentially figurative passage or verse to overturn those that are obviously literal and quite easy to understand. It would seem that "the first heaven and the first earth are passed away" maps to 2 Pet. 3:10 and 12, which says that even the heavens will be on fire. Obviously this new heaven and new earth are designed to accommodate those who are saved. "The sea is no more" could be literal in the sense that this new earth is created without them. Or we lean toward the figurative reference as the seas being the masses from which the sea beast arose (13:1). In that case, we would conclude that in the new earth there are no more riotous masses that behave so much like the pounding waves of the sea.]
[The metonymy figure of speech is used heavily throughout this chapter: i.e., the container is used to reference the contents; and vice versa, the contents may be used to refer to the container. An example would be: “drink the cup,” which refers to the contents of the cup and not the cup itself. So when we see the city of spiritual Jerusalem, this could be talking about its contents (the saved) as opposed to its being a literal city. Be thinking about this as the great visions that John saw is revealed. What John saw is exactly what he reports to us, but very little of it is to be taken literally. We do believe, however, that what John saw is the closest that any vision of man can come to describing heaven and its contents.]
2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven of God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
[This is a summary harbinger of the vision that will be given more elaboration in Verse 9 once some other details of what he heard and learned in Verses 3-8. Throughout this revealing of the bride, recognize that John is reporting just what he saw without any attempt to interpret the meaning. For example, does the fact that John saw something coming down from out of heaven of God indicate that our eternal habitation will be on this new earth (as some teach to support their many errors)? We urge that no such conclusions be drawn at this point until we observe what else is going to be part of this structure in Verse 9 and following.]
[The metaphor is one of the holy city Jerusalem being a woman, a bride adorned for her husband. We have already learned that the bride of Christ (the Lamb) "hath made herself ready (19:7). We find a similar reference by Paul ...
Galatians 4:21-31
21 Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law?
22 For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, one by the handmaid, and one by the free woman.
23 Howbeit the (son) by the handmaid is born after the flesh; but the (son) by the free woman (is born) through promise.
24 Which things contain an allegory: for these (women) are two covenants; one from mount Sinai, bearing children unto bondage, which is Hagar.
25 Now this Hagar is mount Sinai in Arabia and answers to the Jerusalem that now is: for she is in bondage with her children.
26 But the Jerusalem that is above is free, which is our mother.
27 For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bears not; Break forth and cry, thou that travails not: For more are the children of the desolate than of her that hath the husband.
28 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise.
29 But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him (that was born) after the Spirit, so also it is now.
30 Howbeit what saith the scripture? Cast out the handmaid and her son: for the son of the handmaid shall not inherit with the son of the free woman.
31 Wherefore, brethren, we are not children of a handmaid, but of the free woman.]
[Paul makes a contrast in verse 25 between the literal city of Jerusalem that existed at that time and verse 26, which is a spiritual representation of the city with the metaphor of a woman (our mother). Reference back to all of Chapter 12 and the woman pictured there, which we related to the called out (church) throughout the ages. The bride is also the called out. The New Jerusalem is generally regarded to be the habitation of the called out, but often in a figure (metonymy) a city and its inhabitants are spoken of interchangeably.]
[Did John see an actual city that he recognized as Jerusalem, or did he see its spiritual representation? What he describes for us is indeed physical in that he saw it with his eyes. While he may have recognized what he saw to be representative of spiritual things, his description has to be physical, for this is all that we, as humans, can relate to. However, it seems clear that what he gives us are figures of reality that we are expected to interpret. Let us take the figurative language one step further considering the writer of Hebrews and John’s reference in Revelation 3:12:
Hebrews 11:10
…for he [Abraham] looked for the city which hath the foundations,
whose builder and maker is God.
Hebrews 12:22-24
22 ... but ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable hosts of angels,
23 to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
24 and to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better than (that of) Abel.
Hebrews 13:13-14
Let us therefore go forth unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach. For we have not here an abiding city, but we seek after (the city) which is to come.
Revelation 3:12
He that overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go out thence no more: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God, and mine own new name.]
[In these passages the figures of what Christians are coming to is being contrasted with the Jews who came to Mount Sinai. We are coming to something so much greater than that, as given by the multiplicity of figures, one of which is "the heavenly Jerusalem." Most non-Jewish Christians today cannot appreciate the nature of a holy city, and to all that the term "next year in Jerusalem" can possibly represent. Can we reserve judgment on just what all of this has to mean? Can we not just hold all of these ideas in abeyance as we move forward to ponder what else John saw at this point? We can, however, be assured that what John is seeing here has everything to do with the eternal existence of the saints.]
3 And I heard a great voice out of the throne saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he shall dwell with them, and they shall be his peoples, and God himself shall be with them, (and be) their God:
[This is what God has always wanted, and now it will become a reality. Is it now our privilege to help it become so, since without our free will service to God and our faithfulness, this is impossible, and Satan would be victorious. The great voice out of the throne indicates that, if this is not the voice of God Himself, it is some being speaking with His full authority. Tabernacle of God is again referencing the Old Testament tabernacle in the wilderness that was a metaphor for the presence of God. Exactly where this will be is of no consequence, and those who make a great effort to assert that they know it will be on this earth (or anywhere else) are self-seeking. It does not matter where, or even if, it is not in any physical place. Let us not get hung up on the physical; after the resurrection we will have spiritual bodies (1 Corinthians 15), and there is no way that with our present frame of mind we can relate to exactly all that this implies.
1 Corinthians 15:42-44; 50-55
42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption:
43 it is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power:
44 it is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual (body).
...
50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.
51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We all shall not sleep, but we shall all be changed,
52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
54 But when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
55 O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?
"God himself shall be with them, (and be) their God" (verse 3 above) -- this is an irreversible state; God will be with the faithful forever, and He will serve the faithful as their God, as indicated in the next verse.]
4 and he shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more; neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more: the first things are passed away.
[The first things are those things that we know and experience in our lives now. Because of sin throughout the ages there is decay, crying, death and mourning, and pain from a number of sources. Are there those who are immune to these things because of their wealth, positions in life and isolation from the misery of this world. If so, they cannot relate to this verse, but we can understand the blessings that come from this world's suffering. To the vast majority who have suffered, these things are no more -- they are passed away. And it is God Himself who shall wipe away every tear from their eyes, with great joy and blessedness this will be but one of the many blessings He will bestow on the saved. What a tremendous contrast this portion of the book is to the days and times of suffering that the faithful would have to endure prior to this. This is the ultimate victory of the faithful. But for them and for us, it is still in the future, and we need this assurance to keep our faith.]
5 And he that sits on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he saith, Write: for these words are faithful and true.
[This must be the same one on the throne of judgment (20:11), which would be God the Son, Jesus Christ, as will become clearer as this chapter continues. Matthew 25:31-32: “But when the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the angels with him, then shall he sit on the throne of his glory: …” Recall that it was the Word that created all things, and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1). And so it is not surprising that He would be the One to say: "Behold I make all things new," a repetition of the thought in 21:1. The command originally given in 1:19 is given again, encouraging John to document what he is seeing and hearing. These things need to be written so that they can give encouragement to the faithful for all future generations, "for these words are faithful and true."
6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
[Alpha and Omega, essentially meaning what is repeated, the beginning and the end -- eternal God from everlasting to everlasting without beginning and without end. This claim is made in 1:8 and will be made again in 22:13, where there can be no doubt that it is referring to Jesus Christ. This confirms that the one sitting on the throne and speaking in verse 5 is God the Son, the Messiah. They (the faithful and true words) are come to pass -- "it is done." Some things spoken of have already come to pass; others are just as destined to happen as if they already have happened (as is true of many Old Testament prophecies that use the past tense to affirm events that will happen in the future). "I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely" -- now speaking in future tense of those currently thirsting for righteousness (Matthew 5:6). Water of life (John 4:14; 7:37) uses the metaphor of water to symbolize salvation. How fitting for those who had suffered thirst often due to the dryness of their environment; water was obviously that which gave life to the desert. It will be used several more times in the sense that this spiritual water of truth is free and endless in its ability gives spiritual life.]
7 He that overcome shall inherit all [these] things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
[All things -- the things of salvation, specifically the endless water of life, but certainly not limited to that, although it could be argued that it is all encompassing. The role of the faithful will be that of children of God (sons) and thus legitimate heirs to inherit all spiritual blessings. The word "these" is not in the Greek, and there seems to be no qualification as to what will be inherited.
Romans 8:16-17
16 "The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit, that we are children of God:
17 and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ ; if so be that we suffer with (him), that we may be also glorified with (him)."
The one speaking is the God of the faithful, and owning the true and living God as our own is here depicted as an infinite blessing in itself. What loving father would not do anything for his child? If we can understand, in many of us, experience, the love that exists on earth, we can just begin to fathom the love that God has for His faithful.]
8 But for the fearful, and unbelieving, and abominable, and murderers, and fornicators, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, their part (shall be) in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone; which is the second death.
[Perhaps for emphasis the tremendous contrast between those who are blessed in the previous verses and those who reject God is now spelled out in more detail. This is stated so that we can keep in mind the things that were done in 20:14. This is nothing that has not been spelled out in other clear passages except the specific of the lake of fire; their condemnation is stated clearly in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 and Galatians 5:19-21. Lists like this should not be at all considered exclusive. Rather, the figure of synecdoche is being applied, as it so often is throughout the New Testament, to illustrate the whole by providing some of the parts. The second death was defined in 20:14 to be the lake of fire, and that definition is reiterated here. Also see 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 and Mark 9:43.]
9 And there came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls, who were laden with the seven last plagues; and he spoke with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the wife of the Lamb.
[One of the same seven angels who showed John the harlot sitting on the beast, apparently dominating what mankind perceives to be the rulers of this world. The contrast is perfect. The harlot was all that was evil, doing nothing but the most depraved acts of hatred and wickedness. The angel will lead John to a great high mountain as opposed to a wilderness. What will be seen by John will be the utter perfection of all that is good and righteous. His (and our) experience of the evil in the previous visions was in preparation to magnify the glory of this vision.
The specific angel is not stated and is therefore of no import; the fact that John had seen and heard these angels before would give rise to him having no problem with their speaking with him ("and he spoke with me"). Specifically, the conversation was one to tell John what he was going to see; namely, "the bride, the wife of the Lamb." Recall from 19:7: "Let us rejoice and be exceeding glad, and let us give the glory unto him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready." And also review verse 2 above. So John had anticipated this and now he is about to be shown the bride in more detail. We know, of course, that there are many passages that reference the bride as being the Lord's called out. Perhaps one of the most sublime is Ephesians 5:31-32: "For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is great: but I speak in regard of Christ and of the church."]
10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,
["In the Spirit would infer that he was not literally and physically on a great high mountain, but was given this visions as if he were. We surmise that nothing said here is to imply that the eternal habitation of the faithful in heaven will be a physical place in the sense of the current physical universe. What John was seeing was not something that was physically there, but the physical representations that he was seeing were to show the characteristics of this "holy city Jerusalem" that will be the eternal home of the saints. Review verse 1. As in verse 2 it descends out of heaven so that John can see it. There is no implication here that it was in any way fixed upon the earth. Neither should there be any conclusions that what John is viewing will ever materialize physically. The vision is to give us some tangible mental picture of just how glorious heaven will be for those who are saved. From God: “… you are God’s husbandry, God’s building" (1 Corinthians 3:9).]
11 having the glory of God: her light was like unto a stone most precious, as it were a jasper stone, clear as crystal:
12 having a wall great and high; having twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names written thereon, which are (the names) of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
13 on the east were three gates; and on the north three gates; and on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.
14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
[It would be speculative to try to map each of these details to some physical meaning (which is all we have to work with in our physical limitations). We do not believe that these images are given for that purpose. Rather, it seems that the beauty and glory of the holy city is something that is unfathomable, and that it can only be described by such figures. The number 12, of course, is that perfect 4X3 number of tribes and apostles, and the names of the apostles on the foundation cannot help to bring to mind Ephesians 2:20: "And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; ..." The foundation of the apostles is not the apostles themselves, but Jesus Christ was their foundation, and it should be ours. Considering the passage as a unit, we see the gates representative of the Old Testament and the foundations representative of the New Testament, the idea seemingly is one of a completed revelation, a perfect environment for the eternal habitation of the saints. Zechariah 2:5: “For I, said the LORD, will be unto her [Jerusalem] a wall of fire round about, and I will be the glory in the midst of her.]
15 And he that spoke with me had for a measure a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.
[This would be the angel that John seems to be having a conversation with -- we are not to think that what was written here is all that they discussed, but they are surely the words that we need to know. This surely takes us back to Chapter 11 and the measuring that took place there -- we will not repeat the discussion of the symbols, except to say that the measuring now is of the entire city, and not just the temple. Also, now the reed for measuring (essentially a measuring stick) is made of gold. This is fitting in that the city itself is made up of the most costly and rich materials that are known to exist on this earth. The angel is going to measure the city to make sure that its dimensions are perfect. But recall that the city is emblematic of the bride of Christ, the church. This brings to thought 1 Peter 4:17: "For the time (is come) for judgment to begin at the house of God: and if (it begin) first at us, what (shall be) the end of them that obey not the gospel of God?"]
16 And the city lies foursquare, and the length thereof is as great as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs: the length and the breadth and the height thereof are equal.
[Perfect. Twelve thousand furlongs is 375 miles according to Barnes, who also noted that this totally precludes anything currently in the Palestine area, further demonstrating the figurative use of language here to represent the perfect bride of Christ, totally cleansed by His blood. Note again that this dimension is not just for the length and breadth, but also for the height. There is, and can be, no literal application of this anywhere.]
17 And he measured the wall thereof, a hundred and forty and four cubits, (according to) the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.
[A cubit is generally agreed to be 18 inches, which would make the walls 216 feet high. This is feasible, and such could practically be built, albeit with considerable effort for men. The city itself towers above the walls, but no matter -- the walls are of such a size as to give assurance of the security of those that dwell within. The cubit would be the length from the elbow to the tips of the fingers of the average man. This certainly is not a very precise way of measuring in that it varies considerably from man to man (or from angel to angel). Nevertheless, it was the commonly understood practice for measurement at the time, and we should understand that in interpreting this verse. This is "the measure of a man" that John is stating so that there would be no mistake. Then, as if to add humor to the situation, he adds "that is, of an angel." It was not a man that was doing the measurement, it was an angel. Some might reason (quite correctly) that the angel's arms might be longer than a man's. But John already said it was according to the measure of a man to clarify this. If we are to take this part literally (i.e., this IS what John saw), then we must remember that the angel was not measuring with his arm in any event, he was using the rod of gold.]
18 And the building of the wall thereof was jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto pure glass.
[Literal Greek: … gold pure like unto glass clear.” Clear so that its purity could be examined. Jasper, also mentioned in 4:3, is a precious stone so rare it is usually only used for jewelry, and the idea of an entire wall of this substance further reinforces its figurative intent. Similarly, the pure gold like unto pure glass images are intended to give the faithful, persecuted Christians the assurance of the words of Jesus in John 14:1-3: "Let not your heart be troubled: believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I come again, and will receive you unto myself; that where I am, (there) ye may be also."]
19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald;
20 the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst.
21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the several gates was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
[Of the variety of stones mentioned, the enumeration is for emphasis; so while "all manner of precious stones" says the same thing, the explicit name (of at least some of them) makes a more definitive impression upon our minds. The twelve foundations were introduced in 21:14, and the twelve gates in 21:12. "Streets of pure gold" -- is this not saying that the substance that we find to be most valuable in this current world will be so common as to be trampled under foot, like our asphalt and concrete -- materials of no value, comparatively speaking.
22 And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God the Almighty, and the Lamb, are the temple thereof.
[Thinking like John as the city is placed before him (in the Spirit), he surmises that if the general city were so spectacular, what would the temple be like? Of course, the temple complex was the first century marvel of the Jews, so it was quite a shock when Jesus indicated that it would all be destroyed (Matthew 24:1-2). So John, looking for the temple, cannot find it because in the New Jerusalem it does not exist. God does not need to have a place that symbolizes his presences, i.e., that plays the role that the tabernacle and the temple did in times gone by. Now the figure is replaced by the reality and the presence of God the Father and God the Son (the Lamb) are actually there existing in the hearts and souls of the saved and providing far more than the tabernacle or the temple could ever supply.]
23 And the city hath no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine upon it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the lamp thereof (is) the Lamb.
[A physical city would certainly have need of something to provide light; e.g., the sun, moon or artificial lights. While we might think of God and the Lamb glowing in such a way as to provide light, we feel that this is not what this verse is trying to convey, especially when so connected with the temple by the previous verse. Instead we appeal to the definition of light given to us by John in John 1. Light is the truth; the truth is the Word, and the Word is Christ.]
24 And the nations shall walk amidst the light thereof: and the kings of the earth bring their glory into it.
[The nations -- both Jew and Gentile of all nationalities and races. "Kings of the earth" -- those who are the righteous rulers of the saved. Certainly not all of the kings of the earth as we saw most of them disposed of in 20:10. But there are exceptions, like King David, who will be with the faithful. This seems to be an incipit for Isaiah 60:3-22.]
25 And the gates thereof shall in no wise be shut by day (for there shall be no night there):
[The open gates speak to freedom. While we cannot imagine all of the aspects of the full freedom of heaven, this shows that there are things outside of the walls of the city that might be of interest and use to the saved. We dare not take this analogy beyond its simple basic initial meaning. Typically, the gates of a city were shut at night, but figuratively, there is no night, so the idea of shutting the gates is not applicable. But the figure of "no night" is not literally restrictive, and it seems obvious that it states that there will be no deceit, no lies, not sin of any type, for which a closed gate might be thought necessary.]
26 and they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it:
[This has already been said of the saved kings; we would now apply it back to the first subject of verse 24 and expect all of the saved to bring the glory and honor of their various nations into the spiritual Jerusalem.]
27 and there shall in no wise enter into it anything unclean, or he that makes an abomination and a lie: but only they that are written in the Lamb's book of life.
[This verse needs no explanation; it is a fitting conclusion to this chapter. On the Lamb's book of life, see 3:5; 13:8;17:8; 20:12-15. There should have been no chapter division here (remember that chapter and verse numbers were inserted by men's judgment and were not in the original manuscripts). Verses 22:1-5 properly belong to Chapter 21, so keep on reading for the description of the New Jerusalem and where we will spend our eternity if we remain faithful.]
Revelation 22
22:1 And he showed me a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb,
[Still the angel leading John to see an even broader image of heaven. If this were physical we could imagine John to be led out into the rich lush countryside; but as the images appear in our minds we need to map them to their spiritual counterparts. The river of water of life is something we should easily relate to in that it has been introduced not only in Revelation but in other parts of the Bible as well (see notes on 21:6). Proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. The throne scene is brought to mind (4:6), but now explicitly we have both God the Father and God the Son (the Lamb) as owning the throne. Jesus took the throne (analogous throne of David now in heaven) when he ascended to heaven in Acts 1:1-11, and is described as his taking the throne by Peter's sermon in Acts 2:22-36. The scene of streams of water proceeding out from under the throne is one of total satisfaction and spiritual contentment as light and truth overwhelm all other possible concerns.
Can it be any more fitting that the Bible ends with a garden scene, much as its beginning. Sin has kept mankind from enjoying this garden throughout our history, but now John envisions that this perfect paradise has been restored by those who created and own the universe. May all glory be given to God.]
2 in the midst of the street thereof. And on this side of the river and on that was the tree of life, bearing twelve fruits, yielding its fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
["... in the midst of the street thereof" should have been tacked onto verse 1. The idea is that the river of life emanated from the throne, but John saw it "in the midst of the street thereof." So in a sense he is "outside" in the streets that are paved with gold and the river of water of life is flowing next to a street, or in the midst of the streets. Turning attention now to the river, it had on both sides of it "the tree of life," but our physical minds would seem to envision many such trees lining both sides of the river, and we can perceive that John was referring to the kind and not just to a single tree. They combine with the water to yield perfect (12) fruits. The yield is perpetual, producing fruit every month. And also bearing leaves that do not whither, these leaves also have the function of healing the nations. All animosity between nations is gone at this point, but there still seems to be a continued need for healing.]
3 And there shall be no curse any more: and the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be therein: and his servants shall serve him;
[The curse is that back at the time of Genesis 3, and which is discussed further in Romans 8:
Genesis 3:17-19
17 "And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in toil shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
18 thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
19 in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return."
Romans 8:19-24
19 "For the earnest expectation of the creation waits for the revealing of the sons of God.
20 For the creation was subjected to vanity, not of its own will, but by reason of him who subjected it, in hope
21 that the creation itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the liberty of the glory of the children of God.
22 For we know that the whole creation groans and travails in pain together until now.
23 And not only so, but ourselves also, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for (our) adoption, (to wit), the redemption of our body.
24 For in hope were we saved: but hope that is seen is not hope: for who hopes for that which he sees?"
These curses that have caused endless pain on this earth will no longer cause the aging, disease and the many other issues that have plagued mankind over the past several thousand years. "And the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be therein" -- this point has already been made (21:3), but is restated here for emphasis and for confirmation. "And his servants shall serve Him" -- that is, God, which would include God the Father, God the Son (the Lamb), and God the Holy Spirit. It will be the role of the saved to serve God and to do whatever His will may be for us.]
4 and they shall see his face; and his name (shall be) on their foreheads.
[With regard to this expression "see his face" consider Matthew 18:10 :"Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven." This refers to the prohibition to the common people of seeing the face of the eastern monarchs, a privilege that was only granted to the favorites. In this case it is granted to all the saved. We will not be serving someone who is invisible or behind a screen. We will be able to behold his face at least in some way that is represented by this figure. "And His name shall be on their foreheads" -- see 3:12, 7:3 and 13:16. This is a mark of ownership and privilege.
2 Corinthians 3:18
8 But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit.
2 Corinthians 4:6
Seeing it is God, that said, Light shall shine out of darkness, who shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.]
5 And there shall be night no more; and they need no light of lamp, neither light of sun; for the Lord God shall give them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.
[As for no night, see 21:25, which covered all of these details. The only thing new in this verse is the fact that the faithful of God "shall reign for ever and ever." This is significant for it is in contrast to the 1000 year reign that was discussed in Chapter 20:6. Consider:
Revelation 5:9-10
9 "And they sing a new song, saying, Worthy art thou to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou was slain, and didst purchase unto God with thy blood (men) of every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation,
10 and made them (to be) unto our God a kingdom and priests; and they reign upon earth."
The passage above is in the present tense, and it should refer to children of God who are in a saved condition and still on the earth. This applies to many reading the commentary right now, and we should recognize the exalted position that we hold NOW. Further reinforcing this concept is Romans 8:37: "Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us." Again present tense -- we should be enjoying this status while still on the earth in this life. But this is a position that can be lost if we are not faithful unto death, as indicated in 2 Timothy 2:11-13:
11 "Faithful is the saying: For if we died with him, we shall also live with him:
12 if we endure, we shall also reign with him: if we shall deny him, he also will deny us:
13 if we are faithless, he abides faithful; for he cannot deny himself."
On the other hand, 22:5 is future tense and applies to the saved once they are in the New Jerusalem united with the Lamb in matrimony as part of the Lord's called out. They are totally secure from any chance that they will be faithless, and thus, they will reign with God "for ever and ever."]
Epilogue for verses 6-21
6 And he said unto me, These words are faithful and true: and the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show unto his servants the things which must shortly come to pass.
[He -- the angel that has been occupying and guiding John since 21:9. We would expect that through all of their conversations that would have established a good relationship at this point. The angel, in all likelihood with the direction and certainly the full authority of God makes the statement. First, that the words that have been spoken throughout the book of Revelation are faithful and true -- there is not the least bit of deception, mystery or doubt within them. They most certainly reflect the reality of the near and distant futures. And then, that "the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets sent His angel" -- this echoes 1:1, and while there were certainly multiple angels, each one of them was "His angel." Why invoke the spirits of the prophets at this point? It would seem that since what John was doing was documenting prophecy, that the reference back to the previous prophets would be appropriate. While God sent His angel to John, God sent the Holy Spirit to many of the prophets. The message seems to be that it does not matter if it comes through an angel or through the Holy Spirit, it is still faithful and true, the Word of God. "To show unto His servants" -- those just described above who will reign with God forever rendering service to God. "The things which must shortly come to pass" (see 1:1-3) -- we saw that some of these things have not occurred yet 2000 or so years later, but these are exceptions. While there is no inference that ALL of the things spoken had to come to pass shortly, those which involved the persecuting nations and false prophets -- the things that could come to pass shortly -- surely would come to pass. In retrospect, we can see where most of these things have come to pass, although we make no assertion that they may not come to pass over and over again as the nature of man and the nature of political and religious power is identical today to that of the first century.]
7 And behold, I come quickly. Blessed is he that keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.
[If this is not the Christ who is speaking, then it is the angel stating what Christ stated. But if it were the angel speaking the words of Jesus, we would expect this to be stated. We are more inclined to think that Jesus Christ himself intervened at this point and makes this assertion as well as the blessings that follow. While some may question if a delay of 2000 years qualifies as "quickly," the statement need not be restricted to when Jesus will come to judge the world. It might be a warning to individuals, and no matter how young or old they might be, their lives are like a vapor and they will much sooner than they realize come to the end of "life's little day" to go on to their individual personal judgments. The blessing is much like 1:3: "Blessed is he that reads, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand." But then, how do we keep the words of the prophecy of this book? We suggest: (1) By understanding and believing the written word that we have studied to the point that they sink deep into our being and change our attitude toward our life here on this earth; (2) By giving us courage to stand up to any hardships or persecutions that this world, its governments or its false religions may inflict upon us, recognizing those who have gone before us and who are now under the alter before the throne of God; and (3) By being obedient to the various principles of Gods laws that have been established by these words.]
8 And I John am he that heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel that showed me these things.
[While the words above may have been those uttered by Jesus, there is no indication that He is present at this point. John is overwhelmed by what he heard and saw. He states a summary of his experience: he heard and saw these words and visions of truth. He feels that he must show this in some way and so he falls down to worship before the angel. And while he probably should have known better than to do this, he yields to the angels correction, and under the circumstances this is an understandable and emotion-driven mistake. Albeit, we might recognize that this is not the first time that John has received correction for this action (19:10).]
9 And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am a fellow-servant with thee and with thy brethren the prophets, and with them that keep the words of this book: worship God.
[As a reader and one who is endeavoring to keep the words of this book, these words should have special meaning. You are a fellow servant with the angels, with John, with all of the Christians of the first century, with the prophets throughout the ages, and with all others who read and are keeping the words of this book. The exhortation is: do not worship anyone other than God. We understand from the nature of the silence of the scriptures that the words "worship God" carry with them this enlarged meaning.]
10 And he said unto me, Seal not up the words of the prophecy of this book; for the time is at hand.
[To put a seal on something would prevent it from being opened until someone who had the authority could do so at the proper time. John is commanded to place no such seal because the time is at hand for many of these things to take place, and the persecuted saints will need the comfort and consolation that these words will provide.
Why the contrast with Dan 12:4, 9? Think in terms of the major differences.
Daniel 12:8-13. “And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my lord, what shall be the issue of these things? And he said, Go thy way, Daniel; for the words are shut up and sealed till the time of the end. 10 Many shall purify themselves, and make themselves white, and be refined; but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand; but they that are wise shall understand. 11 And from the time that the continual (burnt-offering) shall be taken away, and the abomination that makes desolate set up, there shall be a thousand and two hundred and ninety days. 12 Blessed is he that waits, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days. 13 But go thou thy way till the end be; for thou shalt rest, and shalt stand in thy lot, at the end of the days.”
Clearly, we are now at the end of the days. We need to be ready for the return of Jesus.]
11 He that is unrighteous, let him do unrighteousness still: and he that is filthy, let him be made filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him do righteousness still: and he that is holy, let him be made holy still.
[Four examples of the characters of people, two unrighteous and two righteous are given with the clear statement "let them be (as they are) still." This would seem to pronounce closure to the book of Revelation, and with it to all of God's scriptures. What is written is written; and it it is accepted, so be it; and if it is rejected, so be that as well. At some point there is no repentance, no turning back, no chance for redemption. This verse seems to be placing this at the point of judgment, with the urging to use and keep the words of this book, and by extension of this principle, to keep all of God's words. Until then we are compelled by the great commission to take the gospel to the lost.]
12 Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to render to each man according as his work is.
[The speaker here again is Jesus, whether directly or through the angel, it is of no consequence. Jesus proclaims that he will come quickly, repeating what he said in verse 7. But this time with further trepidation for those who are not ready. His purpose in coming, as we saw in 20:11, is to judge, and to separate the righteous from the unrighteous. "My reward is with me" -- I have the full capacity to carry out judgment and to assure that justice is properly meted out. In this regard he will "render to each man "according as his work is." While this clause will cause considerable concern to those who teach adamantly that our works have nothing to do with our salvation, we urge them to hit the true medium between nothing and everything. This is discussed in detail in a separate article and will not be given any further discussion here, except to say that if you have saving faith, your works will show it, but that faith must come first.]
13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.
This is Jesus speaking and there are no more definitive words that would indicate that He is a divine being. Alpha and Omega (translated A to Z) being omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent. The first and the last states that truth in a different way for emphasis. And again, the beginning and the end does the same thing.]
14 Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have the right (to come) to the tree of life, and may enter in by the gates into the city.
["Wash their robes" is not in theGreek; “do His commandments” is. Doing His commandments starts with being born again as a completely new person. This necessarily implies the KJV rendering "do His commandments" in that those who have been obedient and who have remained faithful are indeed extremely blessed in that they have the right to come to the tree of life and to reside within the gates of the city, which is figurative of heaven itself. Those who do not live the new life of Christ do not.]
15 Without are the dogs, and the sorcerers, and the fornicators, and the murderers, and the idolaters, and every one that loves and makes a lie.
[Again, we believe for emphasis, the contrast is made. This is a subset of potential sins that would preclude a person from entering into the kingdom of heaven; but even the more extensive lists of 1 Corinthians 6:9 and Galatians 5:21 are still synecdoches -- any sin that is not repented of can keep us from having the right to the tree of life and to enter the gates of the city.]
16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things for the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright, the morning star.
[This totally nails down who is speaking here and who had the authority over the angels and to command the churches. We know that Jesus was of the offspring of David, so clearly, He met this qualification. As for the bright and morning star, see this article, and reference back to 2:28. All such teachings that this is referencing some being named Lucifer are false, and thus they have Satan as their source, since the name Lucifer is not found in the Bible.]
17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And he that hears, let him say, Come. And he that is athirst, let him come: he that will, let him take the water of life freely.
[A very profound statement that we do not want to dismiss lightly. Let us consider it in order:
18 I testify unto every man that hear the words of the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add unto them, God shall add unto him the plagues which are written in this book:
[Adding to God's word is placing oneself in the place of God; since it can lead to others failing to believe the truth, it has far more consequences than some other beliefs that do not involve others. Having plagues added to us by God is a fateful warning -- woe unto those who would add to Gods Word. This would also extend to those who twist the scriptures to say things that were never intended.]
19 and if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the tree of life, and out of the holy city, which are written in this book.
[Removing anything that is in God's word could have the same effect -- perhaps causing them to believe that they are saved when, in fact, they are not. Having your name removed from the Lamb's book of life assures your place in the lake of fire 20:15). The argument has been made that verses 18 and 19 only apply to the Book of Revelation. Certainly they do apply to this book; but only to it? Is this not a principle that applies to all of God's words? If not, do we feel like we have the right to change anything that we want? Surely not. Indeed, this is a principle of handling God's word, and what applies to the book of Revelation in this regard, applies to all of the scriptures. This is further confirmed by: Deuteronomy 4:2 “You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.” What is the motive of those who argue that this only applies to the Book of Revelation?]
20 He who testifies these things said Yea: I come quickly. Amen: come, Lord Jesus.
[This is the third time that Jesus has said "I come quickly" and it shows that He is the one who "testifies these things." From the beginning it was Jesus who was sending the angels and thus providing the testimony to the entire book. The response seems to be from John: "Amen: come, Lord Jesus." John was anxious to see the Lord once again.]
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with the saints. Amen.
[This is a final blessing from John to all of us.]
Go to Revelation 16-19
What are the conditions of salvation given by Jesus?
We appreciate any suggestions for improving this commentary.
Revelation 20
20:1 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand.
[There is no reason to believe that this chapter has to occur after the events shown in Chapter 19 (although it could). Parts of Chapter 20 could be elaborations of certain of those events introduced previously in order to provide more detail, which would add to the assurance of the persecuted saints at this time. If this is the case, the use of other figures to give us more information would be expected. It is clear that Chapters 21 and 22 deal with the end times as far as human existence on this earth is concerned. This chapter should be viewed as a transition between the predicted rise and fall of the persecution in the previous chapters and the eternal bliss of the faithful described in Chapters 21 and 22.]
[There is probably no book of the bible that has been more abused for financial gain and political/religious power by false teachers than Revelation, and this chapter is their favorite to corrupt, probably because they expect little questioning of their false teachings. We urge readers to keep an open mind and to not be led into baseless conclusions that "could be right" and "might fit". All such speculation is akin to pagan superstition, proceeding from following the false teachings of men as opposed to the known and established teachings of God. If a doctrine cannot be sustained by clear understandable passages of scripture, it should not be bound or taught.]
[Let us stay within what John saw here in making our conclusions. This angel is only identified as “coming down out of heaven.” John was at this point in the revelation (i.e., at the end of Chapter 19) looking into heaven for a continuation of those events that had just been played out before him. The sea beast and the earth beast (false prophet) have been cast into the lake of fire, but the dragon (Satan) still needs to be dealt with. This angel processed two objects: the key of the abyss and a great chain. The abyss is the bottomless pit, or hell (reference 1:18; 9:1, 2, 11; 11:7; 17:8). The purpose of the chain is shown in the next verse.]
2 And he laid hold on the dragon, the old serpent, which is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,
[In this case to visualize the victory over Satan, God employs the services of the angel from heaven. The previous chapter did away with the sea beast and the false prophet, which we saw was originally portrayed to John as the beast arising out of the earth (that we have called the earth beast). Let us not think that these map to specific living entities at the end of the first century when John was writing. Yes, generally we can see that they materialize back then as the corruption and idolatry of the Roman government. However, we would do much better in understanding their role in our lives today if we see the sea beast as corrupt temporal power in general, which could be political, military, economic, financial – any realm in which humans at the top are not held accountable and thus corrupt the areas over which they rule. Similarly, if we view the false prophet to be figurative of all corruptions of the true religion given to us by God, then it could be realized by idolatry (see Romans 1:18-32), or by any apostasy that results in organizations that compete with the truth.]
[If we suppose that the events of Chapter 20, which we are about to get into, follow chronologically from those at the end of Chapter 19, then we cannot possibly be in the period of time that will be described in Chapter 20. Reality tells us that the sea beast (corruption of power) is still very much alive, that the harlot is sill very much calling the shots from behind her hidden realm, and the false prophet is ubiquitous in the religious world. So much for them being relegated to the lake of fire now, although there is no doubt that is where they will ultimately end up. Let us keep this in mind since neither of these entities will emerge again in Chapter 20, which is another reason for us to see those two chapters as being chronological. This may affect our interpretation of this chapter, so let us keep it in mind.]
[Given that the sinful entities represented by the sea beast and the false prophet have been disposed of at this point in John’s vision, it it now time to deal with the Dragon, which is clearly identified here as "the devil" and Satan. Capitalization is not in the original manuscripts, but typically the term "the devil" refers to Satan throughout the New Testament, and in Revelation. Reference 12:3-17; 13:2-11; 16:13. Perhaps the redundancy is to assure us of just who the root cause of all trouble is, but also "the old serpent," which seems to be referring back to events in the garden. This also further confirms that the prophecy in Gen 3:15 ("and I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed: he shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel") in fact has reference to Satan (see also Romans 16:20). "Bound him for a thousand years" tells us the purpose for the chain in the hand of the angel. We cannot imagine why anyone would think that the thousand years is literal after all of the other numbers in the book of Revelation have figurative meanings. Clearly we are dealing with a significant amount of time during which Satan's powers are going to be greatly restricted, as indicated in the next verse.]
[But first let us consider further the meaning of the number 1000. From Summers:
"The Numbers "5" and "10" Perhaps our decimal system arose from the intensive study by a man of his own fingers and toes. That was a crude and cruel age where many were maimed and crippled through disease, accident, or warfare. A perfect, full-rounded man was one who had all his members intact. So the number "5" doubled to "10" came to stand for human completeness. The whole duty of man was summed up in "10" commandments. The picture of complete power in government was that of a beast with ten horns. In Revelation the dragon, the first beast, and the scarlet beast have ten horns each, and in the case of this last beast the ten horns are called ten kings — complete world power as it appeared to belong to Rome with her provincial system. As a multiple, "10" occurs also in many of the higher numbers of Revelation; "70" = a very sacred number, "1000" = ultimate completeness—completeness raised to the nth degree, etc." Source: Ray Summers, Worthy is the Lamb (Nashville: Broadman Press), pp. 21-25]
3 … and cast him into the abyss, and shut (it), and sealed (it) over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years should be finished: after this he must be loosed for a little time.
[What John saw here is clearly a restriction in Satan's ability "to deceive the nations." Does this necessarily mean that all evil will disappear from the earth, as some suppose. It says nothing about the ability of the many demons who are Satan's angels to carry on his work, nor of those humans who have been so infected by the lusts of the eyes, the lust of the flesh and the vain-glories of life. Will they all be removed from the earth as well? Nothing is said to this effect. What is said is that the leader of all unrighteousness, Satan, will be isolated from the earth, and while this certainly portends to a greater amount of peace, happiness and love among men, it does not argue for the type of perfections that will be realized by the faithful in heaven. But during this time "he should deceive the nations no more." His deceptions were described for us in 13:14, 18:22-23, and 19:20 as signs and sorcery, which in the first century were exemplified by events that were supernatural.]
[At the end of this symbolic relatively long period of time, it states that Satan must be loosed for a little time, but gives no reason for this. We can only know by faith that God will turn it to good. We can assume that during this "little time" when he is released that he will once again be able to lead and marshal his followers to the type of sin and evil that was capable of murdering the Son of God. This could be a final trial for the righteous. While we can no doubt come away from this with a good understanding of some things that are going to happen to Satan on his way to his ultimate fate, we dare not add speculation here and teach our speculations as binding doctrine. Or, worse yet, as is the case with rapture theology, to make it an integral and major component of a religious organization's theology, even though it is one that has no scriptural basis for existing per se.]
4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and (I saw) the souls of them that had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God, and such as worshiped not the beast, neither his image, and received not the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand; and they lived, and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
[Plural thrones, so this is not the throne of God, or not the definitive number 24 thrones of the elders. Those who sat upon these thrones are the same as those described in the remainder of the verse who "lived, and reigned with Christ for 1000 years" -- saying they were on thrones and saying that they reigned is one and the same. So who were they? Revelation 3:21: "He that overcomes, I will give to him to sit down with me in my throne, as I also overcame, and sat down with my Father in his throne." But let us consider their attributes one at a time:
- Judgment was given unto them -- this is also implied by their being on thrones; other passages in the New Testament that affirm saints to sit in judgment include Matthew 19:28 and 1 Corinthians 6:2.
- Among them were the souls of them that had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus (1:9; 6:9) and for the word of God (1:9; 13:4) -- the word "souls" (psuchas) here is quite significant in that, since it absolutely cannot be referring to the body, then it cannot be referring to any bodily resurrection, which is so adequately described by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15 and will be described in the remainder of this chapter. It is the same word as used in 6:9 -- the souls that John saw under the alter -- and it is clear that if these are not identically the same, all those under the alter would certainly be in this group. All valid translations yield the word souls. The use of the word souls here totally devastates the idea that somehow this scene is one of the faithful being alive in their bodies in a physical resurrection in order to reign with Christ for 1000 years, since that is absolutely NOT what John saw. That these were souls of people who had died physically is not in question. In the physical sense they were dead, but in the spiritual sense "they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years" -- see below. Their life in the sense of the soul surviving the body is not a new concept, nor is it something that has not already been asserted in the book of Revelation (6:9). Thus, it is reasonable for us to search other alternative meanings for the term "they lived."
- Among them were the souls of those who worshiped not the beast, neither his image (13:14-15) -- there is no necessary implication that this was a further description of the souls that had been beheaded -- such would add no information. Nor is there any reason to believe that these too are not souls, for the idea of a mixture of souls and resurrected bodies at this point is unreasonable. However, there does seem to be a distinction that they stood up to the beast and the false prophet to the point of either being killed or living out their life in such courage. In other words, their courage was renowned. This is an important concept.
- Among them were the souls of those that received not the mark upon their foreheads and upon their hands -- similarly, another group of saints that have demonstrated their faithfulness in this way, unto and/or until death.
- They lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years -- obviously this is not talking about physical life, since this is not a resurrection of their bodies. Also, for those who die in Christ, the assurance of eternal life is certain, and this is giving us some insight as to their, and possibly our, fate in the interim. But this is not what it means when it says that "they lived" since this too is a truism that does not need to be repeated (although it could be reasoned that it was being repeated to give the persecuted saints comfort). However, the word "live" can also mean: to have increased influence to the point of living through others who are totally reflecting their faithfulness and zeal.]
[Consider the following passages:
- Revelation 11:11
11 And after the three days and a half the breath of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them that beheld them. - Ezekiel 37:12-14
12 Therefore prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will open your graves , and cause you to come up out of your graves, O my people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel.
13 And ye shall know that I am Jehovah, when I have opened your graves, and caused you to come up out of your graves, O my people.
14 And I will put my Spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I will place you in your own land: and ye shall know that I, Jehovah, have spoken it and performed it, saith Jehovah. - Hosea 6:2-3
2 After two days will he revive us: on the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live before him.
3 And let us know, let us follow on to know Jehovah: his going forth is sure as the morning; and he will come unto us as the rain, as the latter rain that waters the earth. - Luke 15:32
32 But it was meet to make merry and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive (again); and (was) lost, and is found. - Isaiah 26:18-21
18 We have been with child, we have been in pain, we have as it were brought forth wind; we have not wrought any deliverance in the earth; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen.
19 Thy dead shall live; my dead bodies shall arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust; for thy dew is (as) the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast forth the dead.
20 Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast.
21 For, behold, Jehovah comes forth out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.]
[We can best answer the question of the meaning of “they reign with Christ” if we understand how Christ reigns today. Do we need his physical body or his physical presence with us today in order for Him to reign over us? Obviously not. His resurrection was not just the giving of physical life to a dead physical body; it was also the giving of life to His teachings. Had Jesus remained in the grave, these would have remained there with him. But with His resurrection, we now have Him as our Way, our Truth and our Life. “You ask me how I know he lives; he lives within my heart” [He Lives by Alfred H. Ackley, (c) 1933 and 1961]. As long as we did not know of the great courage of the martyrs, they were as good as dead, as would be Jesus had He stayed in the grave. But now we know of their bravery, their courage in the face of death, and their willingness to suffer unthinkable tortures for their faith in Jesus. As we learn more about them, they too live and inspire us to follow their examples. They show that weak men can arise to follow Christ even to the cross if that is necessary.]
[They also live in the sense that they receive due veneration for their faithfulness; but not that they share in the authority of Jesus. Whatever their role is in judging, it is in complete subjection to Jesus. They most certainly would be exalted on earth for their faithfulness and courage. Certainly their example in leadership in providing complete consistency with the word of God will be followed, and we can expect that they will have increased satisfaction in providing these great examples to the Christians who are following their examples on the earth.]
[Bottom line, what is this saying to Christians today? If they are living today, who are they living in? Who does Christ live in? Romans 8:10: "And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the spirit is life because of righteousness.." If the martyrs are alive and living in anyone today it would have to be in Christians. Do we recognize their example? Do we allow them to motivate us to be like them -- to die for the cause if that is what it takes? Is this not what the book of Revelation is all about -- to inspire the Christians of the first century to stand up to their persecutors?]
[While the martyrs and those who showed (and still show) extraordinary courage are the subjects of verse 4 (i.e., “they lived”), there is a sense in which all Christians can similarly provide examples to one another in a very similar way. Revelation 5:9-10: "And they sing a new song, saying, “Worthy art thou to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou was slain, and didst purchase unto God with thy blood (men) of every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation, and made them (to be) unto our God a kingdom and priests; and they reign upon earth." NOW!!! It does not say that we will reign; it says that we are now reigning. For additional perhaps more literal language to interpret this, consider Paul's further statement in Romans 8:35-37: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or anguish, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Even as it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us." NOW!!!]
[If you are waiting for some physical kingdom to be established on this earth, you are missing out on the greatest blessing that Christians can have NOW. The physical kingdom thing (in all of its many rapture variations) is not going to happen -- there is not one verse in the bible that says that it will. Demanding a physical kingdom on this earth is the mistake that the Jews made in the time of Jesus, and it was what led to His crucifixion. Do not crucify him afresh (Hebrews 6:6) -- understand the meaning of this chapter and enjoy the privileges and blessing of reigning with Jesus NOW. Our victory is so assured that we can talk about it in the past tense, and it is the subject of the remainder of this chapter. See the discussion on verse 6 below.]
5 The rest of the dead lived not until the thousand years should be finished. This is the first resurrection.
[This could be the remainder of the saints in contradistinction to the exalted saints who had either been beheaded or otherwise suffered extreme hardship unto death. "Lived" in this case would have to have the same sense as it is used in verse 4. That is, "lived not" would mean that they would not be regarded in such high esteem nor used as examples to give life to those being persecuted on the earth as was true of those who "lived" in verse 4. It would seem, however, that after the 1000 years were accomplished that all the faithful might share in the rewards of eternal life. "This is the first resurrection" seems most probably to be referring back to the “living and reigning” of the souls of the special saints back in verse 4 who had suffered extraordinarily for the cause of Christ.]
[A second alternative should be considered for this difficult verse. It could refer to all of the other physically dead persons who, also being dead spiritually were not living and reigning with Jesus Christ during the figurative 1000 years. Lived not would indicate that they were in no wise to be considered alive either physically or spiritually, and thus their fate was totally sealed. This would also be an assertion that all will be part of the judgment scene, whether righteous or unrighteous. The interpretation of "this is the first resurrection" would still be the same as that given above. While it may not be possible to distinguish which of these two alternatives is intended, neither of them have any impact on the translation that we have given to verses 1-4.]
6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: over these the second death hath no power; but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
[Referring to the previous verse, which in turn was referring to (20:4), “he that hath part in the first resurrection” are those especially blessed saints who had, in great courage and honor, served Jesus unto death. These are they who have part in the first resurrection and the "second death" has no power over them -- they are totally isolated from any chance of being consumed by it. While this would certainly be true of all who die in the Lord, it is appropriate that these special saints be pointed out as especially worthy of this privilege. "The second death" is the death that all who are outside of the body of Christ will encounter upon the final judgment (see 20:14); it is ultimate spiritual death.]
[Dozens if not hundreds of books have been written extrapolating Rev. 20:4-6 into their various imaginations as to some "rapture theory." We urge readers to consult scholarly history to determine when the theory you have been led to believe was first originated; here are a couple of references for a start:
http://www.askelm.com/essentials/ess025.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapture
Since Bible facts do not exist for us to put together a typical rapture scenario, let us go back to the 1800s for the basic structure given by Barnes, who is basing his writings on the common errors that he recognized at that time:
"It is well known that this passage is the principal one which is relied on by those who advocate the doctrine of the literal reign of Christ on the earth for a thousand years, or who hold what are called the doctrines of the 'second advent.' The points which are maintained by those who advocate these views are substantially (as follow):
(a) that at that period Christ will descend from heaven to reign personally upon the earth;
(b) that he will have a central place of power and authority, probably Jerusalem;
(c) that the righteous dead will then be raised, in such bodies as are to be immortal;
(d) that they will be his attendants, and will participate with him in the government of the world;
(e) that this will continue during the period of a thousand years;
(f) that the world will be subdued and converted during this period, not by moral means, but by "a new dispensation" - by the power of the Son of God; and
(g) that at the close of this period all the remaining dead will be raised, the judgment will take place, and the affairs of the earth will be consummated."
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database Copyright © 1997, 2003 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)]
[Questions: Where is any of this detail described in Revelation 20:4-6? Where does it say that Christ will come to the earth? Where does it mention David's throne in literal Jerusalem? Similarly with all of the points above -- these are contrived and invented by men and they have no scriptural basis. Our plea to those who want to use the three verses above to justify any form of this doctrine is to just please read the verses over and over again. The details contained above, or in any other summary or book on the subject, just cannot re-create such a scenario. For those who might still be reluctant to part with the cherished rapture doctrine, please review the milk passages that deal with Jesus second coming and see if you can find any room for anything that your false teachers are prescribing to you: Matthew 7:21-23; 10:32-33; 13:30,38-43; 16:24-27; 25:10,31-46; Mark 8:38; John 5:28-29; Acts 17:31; Romans 2:5-16; 14:10,12; 1 Corinthians 3:12-15; 4:5; 2 Corinthians 5:9-11; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10; 1 Timothy 5:24-25; 2 Peter 3:7,10,12; 1 John 2:28; 4:17; Revelation 3:5; 20:11-15; 22:12-15. (If you do not have time to review these passages, then you can hardly claim to be objective on this subject.) In addition, review the following with regard to the specifications of the resurrection, and see if a rapture period can be fit in: Matthew 25:41; John 4:54; 5:28-29 1 Corinthians 15:23; Philippians 3:20-21; 2 Thessalonians 1:10; Hebrews 9:28; 1 John 2:28-29; 3:2; Revelation 2:7. It just is not there and the fabrication of such is as gross a violation of the silence of the scriptures as there can be. Is it not reasonable that something involving such a complex set of doctrines would be given to us in something more than three verses that are embedded in highly figurative constructs? -- Biblical references from Barnes' Notes, Revelation 20:6.]
Definitive proof of the fallacy of premillialism
[As a final totally conclusive proof, Barnes offers scriptural proof that there is no place in the Bible that talks about the righteous and the wicked being resurrected and judged at two different times. Just the opposite is true. There are both explicit statements and necessary inferences that all people (righteous and wicked) will be judged at the same time, which is the next appearance of Jesus in the clouds (Revelation 14). Here is the excerpt from the Barnes Commentary on Revelation 20:6 that provides conclusive proof of this point:
"I refer for full proof on this point to the following passages of the New Testament: Matthew 10:32-33, compared with Matthew 7:21-23; 13:30,38-43; 16:24-27; 25:10,31-46; Mark 8:38; John 5:28-29; Acts 17:31; Romans 2:5-16; 14:10,12; 1 Corinthians 3:12-15; 4:5; 2 Corinthians 5:9-11; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10; 1 Timothy 5:24-25; 2 Peter 3:7,10,12; 1 John 2:28; 4:17; Revelation 3:5; 20:11-15; 22:12-15. It is utterly "impossible" to explain these passages on any other supposition than that they are intended to teach that the righteous and the wicked will be judged together, at the same time, and both at the coming of Christ. And if this is so, it is, of course, impossible to explain them consistently with the view that all the righteous will have been already raised up at the beginning of the millennium in their immortal and glorified bodies, and that they have been solemnly approved by the Savior, and admitted to a participation in his glory. Nothing could be more irreconcilable than these two views; and it seems to me, therefore, that the objections to the literal resurrection of the saints at the beginning of the millennial period are insuperable.” (From Barnes' Notes, Electronic Data-base Copyright © 1997, 2003 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)]
7 And when the thousand years are finished, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, …
[Whatever this period of time represents, it is the same as that talked about throughout this chapter. There will be a definitive point in time when God deems that the figurative “1000 years” is finished, and at that point in time Satan shall be loosed from the prison defined in 20:3. We have observed that the leadership of Satan is not essential to his persisting evil, and evil will persist during the 1000 years. However, it will not have the leadership of Satan, and thus, it will not have the intensity that it had during the early persecutions of the church (in the first, second and third centuries), during the Dark Ages, the Inquisitions, and the Reformation. But, once Satan is released, we can expect evil to be multiplied exceedingly, and perhaps sufficient that evil can be identified by all thinking people as being clearly evil and worthy of condemnation. This, along with a final trial and identification of those who are not totally loving of God, could be the reasons that he shall be released for a little time. Certainly we live in a time as described by Isaiah 5:20: "Woe unto them that call evil good , and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!" Perhaps such things as the sale of murdered baby body parts and other such obvious atrocities and crimes against the human race, and especially our children, might wake up at least some good people to the evil that is called good by many today.]
8 … and {Satan} shall come forth to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to the war: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
[The state of deception in the first century was universal, with most countries being pagan and insisting that their citizens (including Christians) worship the pagan gods, if not the emperors themselves. We have seen somewhat of a reprieve in this type of wholesale deception of the nations, to the point where many nations practice freedom of religion and thus do not persecute those who might not be of the same mind as their rulers. Of course, this is not the case in many Moslem countries, which have, for example, strict laws against any Moslem converting to Christianity, even to the point of the penalty being death. Similarly, laws against any religious activity are predominant in some of the communist countries, which is obviously just as bad. This could well be the way that Satan deceives all of the nations in the future, and it appears that the evolution toward mandating that certain sins not be spoken against might ultimately lead to the prohibition of any type of evangelism. Many wicked people see this as a positive thing for our cultures and society, as discussed in Isaiah 5:20. which was quoted for verse 7 above. But whether the deception be positive or negative it will be practically universal ("in the four corners of the earth"), making it exceedingly difficult once again to be a follower of Jesus Christ.]
[Gog and Magog – a confederacy of armies that attacked the land of Israel. Ezekiel prophesied against them in Ez. 38-39 saying that the slaughter would be so great that it would take seven months to bury the dead. Here are some excerpts from Ez 38-39:
Ezekial 38:2-3
2 Son of man, set thy face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him,
3 and say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal:
Ezekial 38:18
18 And it shall come to pass in that day, when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord Jehovah, that my wrath shall come up into my nostrils.
Ezekial 39:6
6 And I will send a fire on Magog, and on them that dwell securely in the isles; and they shall know that I am Jehovah.
Ezekial 39:11
11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog a place for burial in Israel, the valley of them that pass through on the east of the sea; and it shall stop them that pass through: and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude; and they shall call it "The valley of Hamon-gog (the multitude of Gog)."]
The land of Magog was a great distance from Israel and the idea at that time of making any pact with them was not possible. But they grew to be a strong and exceedingly formidable foe, and thus were feared because of their strength ("the number of whom is as the sand of the sea"), and the possibility for them to strike at any time. John uses this as a metaphor for an unknown vicious invading force that is being assembled by Satan through his deception of the nations. Essentially, the reference is to bring to mind what happened back then.]
9 And they went up over the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down out of heaven, and devoured them.
[Note that verses 7 and 8 are not visions of heaven any longer as was true of the previous verses of this chapter. Instead these are statements regarding things that will take place on earth after the 1000-year reign while Satan had been restrained. Now Satan has come back to deceive the nations and apparently to get them to wipe out all of the saints that are on the earth. The nations have responded at this point and have surrounded the "camp of the saints," which cannot be any earthly place since saints are dispersed over the entire globe. It then must refer to the comprehensive effort of earthly powers throughout the world to surround (either physically or spiritually through their influence and power) all of those who would stand for the truth of God's word. The camp of the saints is figuratively outside of the beloved city (obviously a reference to spiritual Jerusalem). Reference: Hebrews 12:22 "but ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable hosts of angels,..." While John could see this perhaps literally in his mind, we have no reason to believe that this would be talking about literal Jerusalem today -- the arguments against such an interpretation are clear -- such would not fit the context of this passage in any way. Clearly the saints are out-numbered by both the numbers and the power of the adversary and just when we think that there can be no escape, fire comes down out of heaven and devours the enemies -- reference Ez.39:6 above. Also, see Psalms 11:6; Isaiah 29:6; Ezekiel 38:22; 39:6.]
10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where are also the beast and the false prophet; and they shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
[Again we see no agent employed in this casting of Satan (the dragon who had deceived them 16:13-14; 20:3, 8) into the lake of fire, just as we saw none in 19:20. The force of the word of God alone is sufficient to dispose of all of them. While Satan seems to have been given a reprieve in order to further fit into the plans of God, his fate is appropriately the same as those whom he has deceived and who have been his allies in this deception. Tormented day and night for ever and ever -- a horrible fate to even contemplate for others, much less ourselves.]
11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat upon it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
[The throne was great -- elevated above (Isa. 6:1) so that it could be seen easily by all, as is typical of the many literal scenes given to us throughout the New Testament of the final judgment. It was also white, this word showing not just purity, but shining to the extent described in the remainder of the verse. Him that sat upon it is obviously Jesus Christ, who will judge all men (Matthew 25:31; 2 Corinthians 5:10). "Whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them" -- as the sun blocks out the appearance of the stars when it rises, so shall the throne and the face of Jesus (see 2 Corinthians 4:6 and its context) so shine as to totally make both the earth and all other heavenly objects disappear, although there is no direct evidence at this point that they have been done away. But there is an allusion to such -- "there was found no place for them" -- or perhaps, it was impossible for them to be found anywhere under these circumstances. It is also quite possible that they no longer exist physically; consider the other places where such is alluded to:
- Rev 6:14 – after the sixth seal was broken: heaven rolled up like scroll; people hid in cave/rocks
- Rev 21:1 – introduction to the new heavens and new earth
- 2 Peter 3:10-13 – “… the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are therein shall be burned up.”
- 2 Peter 3:11-13 11 "Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! 13 But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwells righteousness."]
12 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne; and books were opened: and another book was opened, which is (the book) of life: and the dead were judged out of the things which were written in the books, according to their works.
[There can be no doubt that this is the final judgment scene, and here again we see all of mankind “the great and the small.” They are standing before the throne, or before God (Greek manuscripts disagree on this; however neither changes the meaning). It was all the dead since "the great and the small" is totally inclusive of all people. It could equally be expressed, the rich and the poor, or the bond and the free -- in any case, there is nothing in this language that could exclude either the righteous or the wicked. And books (plural) were opened -- this seems to indicate that all of the acts of each person in humankind have been recorded in these books. We are given the assurance that those sins forgiven will not be charged to us, so we might conclude that both the good and unforgiven evil works will testify for or against us out of these books. The book of life seems to have also summarily accounted for these works so that each individual at this point is either saved (in the book of life -- 3:5) or not. This further confirms that the righteous dead are in this number standing before God in judgment. There appears to be further ramification from the righteous works written in the books: 2 Corinthians 5:10 "For we must all be made manifest before the judgment-seat of Christ; that each one may receive the things (done) in the body, according to what he hath done, whether (it be) good or bad." But the degree of rewards is not one that is appropriate to take up at this point -- there is very little evidence in the Bible that the rewards will be any different from heaven and hell.]
[We know that the New Testament is clear that our own works cannot save us (Ephesians 2:9; 2 Timothy 1:9; Titus 3:5), how then can we be judged by our works? The answer is clear: we are NOT saved by our works; but if we ARE saved, our works will clearly demonstrate it. Salvation requires that we give ourselves totally to the love of God, and allow Jesus and the Holy Spirit to work through us (Romans 8) to do God’s will. This is not a matter of our working for our salvation, but rather allowing God to work through us to bring about evidence of His righteousness (Romans 1:17).]
13 And the sea gave up the dead that were in it; and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
[This seems redundant, but perhaps it is to satisfy those critics that Paul mentioned in 1 Corinthians 15 who thought that the resurrection of certain bodies must be impossible. Here even those of the Flood or who suffered shipwreck and whose bodies were eaten by sea life or otherwise decomposed were brought back to a bodily state (see 1 Corinthianns 15) in order to stand before God in judgment.
14 And death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death, (even) the lake of fire.
[It is not the residents of death and Hades that are cast into the lake of fire, but death and Hades themselves (personified). These two states that humans might find themselves are to be done away at this point. There will be no more death in the sense of a separation of the soul and the spirit (James 2:26). Neither will there need to be the place of waiting -- Hades, as described most vividly by the story of Lazarus and the rich man (Luke 16: 19-31). Both will be done away by being consumed by the lake of fire. "This is the second death, (even) the lake of fire." This is a statement about the lake of fire (apparently, since it was brought up by the first statement in the verse). It seems reasonable that whoever it is that is being provided this information might wonder just what the “lake of fire” is. It is the second death, the first death being physical death, which is the separation of the body from the spirit as discussed immediately above. Death always means separation of some kind, even when not applied to living creatures. The first death is the separation of the spirit from the body; the second death is the separation of the soul from God eternally.]
[Clearly we have reached the “end” as describe by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:24-26:
24 Then (comes) the end, when he shall deliver up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have abolished all rule and all authority and power.
25 For he must reign, till he hath put all his enemies under his feet.
26 The last enemy that shall be abolished is death.]
15 And if any was not found written in the book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire.
[This is the natural result of the judgment described in 20:12. "If any" is also translated "whosoever" indicating that God is not a respecter of persons as far as one's station of life. At this point we are either in the book of life (3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:12; 21:27; 22:19) or not, and, if not, we will be cast into the lake of fire. Whether this is literal or figurative is of no consequence; what could a lake of fire be a figure of if it were not something even more to be dreaded than that which is literal.]
Revelation 21
21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth are passed away; and the sea is no more.
[The natural reading is that the current heaven and earth are the ones that we now inhabit. They are going to be eliminated (passed away) in favor of a new creation of God. "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth" – time, space and matter. It was cursed by sin, but now the sources of sin, and sin itself have been eliminated. So a new heaven and a new earth could be created in an instant. Consider:
2 Peter 3:10-13
10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
11 Seeing that these things are thus all to be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in (all) holy living and godliness,
12 looking for and earnestly desiring the coming of the day of God, by reason of which the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
13 But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwells righteousness.]
[We should never allow a potentially figurative passage or verse to overturn those that are obviously literal and quite easy to understand. It would seem that "the first heaven and the first earth are passed away" maps to 2 Pet. 3:10 and 12, which says that even the heavens will be on fire. Obviously this new heaven and new earth are designed to accommodate those who are saved. "The sea is no more" could be literal in the sense that this new earth is created without them. Or we lean toward the figurative reference as the seas being the masses from which the sea beast arose (13:1). In that case, we would conclude that in the new earth there are no more riotous masses that behave so much like the pounding waves of the sea.]
[The metonymy figure of speech is used heavily throughout this chapter: i.e., the container is used to reference the contents; and vice versa, the contents may be used to refer to the container. An example would be: “drink the cup,” which refers to the contents of the cup and not the cup itself. So when we see the city of spiritual Jerusalem, this could be talking about its contents (the saved) as opposed to its being a literal city. Be thinking about this as the great visions that John saw is revealed. What John saw is exactly what he reports to us, but very little of it is to be taken literally. We do believe, however, that what John saw is the closest that any vision of man can come to describing heaven and its contents.]
2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven of God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
[This is a summary harbinger of the vision that will be given more elaboration in Verse 9 once some other details of what he heard and learned in Verses 3-8. Throughout this revealing of the bride, recognize that John is reporting just what he saw without any attempt to interpret the meaning. For example, does the fact that John saw something coming down from out of heaven of God indicate that our eternal habitation will be on this new earth (as some teach to support their many errors)? We urge that no such conclusions be drawn at this point until we observe what else is going to be part of this structure in Verse 9 and following.]
[The metaphor is one of the holy city Jerusalem being a woman, a bride adorned for her husband. We have already learned that the bride of Christ (the Lamb) "hath made herself ready (19:7). We find a similar reference by Paul ...
Galatians 4:21-31
21 Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law?
22 For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, one by the handmaid, and one by the free woman.
23 Howbeit the (son) by the handmaid is born after the flesh; but the (son) by the free woman (is born) through promise.
24 Which things contain an allegory: for these (women) are two covenants; one from mount Sinai, bearing children unto bondage, which is Hagar.
25 Now this Hagar is mount Sinai in Arabia and answers to the Jerusalem that now is: for she is in bondage with her children.
26 But the Jerusalem that is above is free, which is our mother.
27 For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bears not; Break forth and cry, thou that travails not: For more are the children of the desolate than of her that hath the husband.
28 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise.
29 But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him (that was born) after the Spirit, so also it is now.
30 Howbeit what saith the scripture? Cast out the handmaid and her son: for the son of the handmaid shall not inherit with the son of the free woman.
31 Wherefore, brethren, we are not children of a handmaid, but of the free woman.]
[Paul makes a contrast in verse 25 between the literal city of Jerusalem that existed at that time and verse 26, which is a spiritual representation of the city with the metaphor of a woman (our mother). Reference back to all of Chapter 12 and the woman pictured there, which we related to the called out (church) throughout the ages. The bride is also the called out. The New Jerusalem is generally regarded to be the habitation of the called out, but often in a figure (metonymy) a city and its inhabitants are spoken of interchangeably.]
[Did John see an actual city that he recognized as Jerusalem, or did he see its spiritual representation? What he describes for us is indeed physical in that he saw it with his eyes. While he may have recognized what he saw to be representative of spiritual things, his description has to be physical, for this is all that we, as humans, can relate to. However, it seems clear that what he gives us are figures of reality that we are expected to interpret. Let us take the figurative language one step further considering the writer of Hebrews and John’s reference in Revelation 3:12:
Hebrews 11:10
…for he [Abraham] looked for the city which hath the foundations,
whose builder and maker is God.
Hebrews 12:22-24
22 ... but ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable hosts of angels,
23 to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
24 and to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better than (that of) Abel.
Hebrews 13:13-14
Let us therefore go forth unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach. For we have not here an abiding city, but we seek after (the city) which is to come.
Revelation 3:12
He that overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go out thence no more: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God, and mine own new name.]
[In these passages the figures of what Christians are coming to is being contrasted with the Jews who came to Mount Sinai. We are coming to something so much greater than that, as given by the multiplicity of figures, one of which is "the heavenly Jerusalem." Most non-Jewish Christians today cannot appreciate the nature of a holy city, and to all that the term "next year in Jerusalem" can possibly represent. Can we reserve judgment on just what all of this has to mean? Can we not just hold all of these ideas in abeyance as we move forward to ponder what else John saw at this point? We can, however, be assured that what John is seeing here has everything to do with the eternal existence of the saints.]
3 And I heard a great voice out of the throne saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he shall dwell with them, and they shall be his peoples, and God himself shall be with them, (and be) their God:
[This is what God has always wanted, and now it will become a reality. Is it now our privilege to help it become so, since without our free will service to God and our faithfulness, this is impossible, and Satan would be victorious. The great voice out of the throne indicates that, if this is not the voice of God Himself, it is some being speaking with His full authority. Tabernacle of God is again referencing the Old Testament tabernacle in the wilderness that was a metaphor for the presence of God. Exactly where this will be is of no consequence, and those who make a great effort to assert that they know it will be on this earth (or anywhere else) are self-seeking. It does not matter where, or even if, it is not in any physical place. Let us not get hung up on the physical; after the resurrection we will have spiritual bodies (1 Corinthians 15), and there is no way that with our present frame of mind we can relate to exactly all that this implies.
1 Corinthians 15:42-44; 50-55
42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption:
43 it is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power:
44 it is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual (body).
...
50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.
51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We all shall not sleep, but we shall all be changed,
52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
54 But when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
55 O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?
"God himself shall be with them, (and be) their God" (verse 3 above) -- this is an irreversible state; God will be with the faithful forever, and He will serve the faithful as their God, as indicated in the next verse.]
4 and he shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more; neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more: the first things are passed away.
[The first things are those things that we know and experience in our lives now. Because of sin throughout the ages there is decay, crying, death and mourning, and pain from a number of sources. Are there those who are immune to these things because of their wealth, positions in life and isolation from the misery of this world. If so, they cannot relate to this verse, but we can understand the blessings that come from this world's suffering. To the vast majority who have suffered, these things are no more -- they are passed away. And it is God Himself who shall wipe away every tear from their eyes, with great joy and blessedness this will be but one of the many blessings He will bestow on the saved. What a tremendous contrast this portion of the book is to the days and times of suffering that the faithful would have to endure prior to this. This is the ultimate victory of the faithful. But for them and for us, it is still in the future, and we need this assurance to keep our faith.]
5 And he that sits on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he saith, Write: for these words are faithful and true.
[This must be the same one on the throne of judgment (20:11), which would be God the Son, Jesus Christ, as will become clearer as this chapter continues. Matthew 25:31-32: “But when the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the angels with him, then shall he sit on the throne of his glory: …” Recall that it was the Word that created all things, and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1). And so it is not surprising that He would be the One to say: "Behold I make all things new," a repetition of the thought in 21:1. The command originally given in 1:19 is given again, encouraging John to document what he is seeing and hearing. These things need to be written so that they can give encouragement to the faithful for all future generations, "for these words are faithful and true."
6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
[Alpha and Omega, essentially meaning what is repeated, the beginning and the end -- eternal God from everlasting to everlasting without beginning and without end. This claim is made in 1:8 and will be made again in 22:13, where there can be no doubt that it is referring to Jesus Christ. This confirms that the one sitting on the throne and speaking in verse 5 is God the Son, the Messiah. They (the faithful and true words) are come to pass -- "it is done." Some things spoken of have already come to pass; others are just as destined to happen as if they already have happened (as is true of many Old Testament prophecies that use the past tense to affirm events that will happen in the future). "I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely" -- now speaking in future tense of those currently thirsting for righteousness (Matthew 5:6). Water of life (John 4:14; 7:37) uses the metaphor of water to symbolize salvation. How fitting for those who had suffered thirst often due to the dryness of their environment; water was obviously that which gave life to the desert. It will be used several more times in the sense that this spiritual water of truth is free and endless in its ability gives spiritual life.]
7 He that overcome shall inherit all [these] things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
[All things -- the things of salvation, specifically the endless water of life, but certainly not limited to that, although it could be argued that it is all encompassing. The role of the faithful will be that of children of God (sons) and thus legitimate heirs to inherit all spiritual blessings. The word "these" is not in the Greek, and there seems to be no qualification as to what will be inherited.
Romans 8:16-17
16 "The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit, that we are children of God:
17 and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ ; if so be that we suffer with (him), that we may be also glorified with (him)."
The one speaking is the God of the faithful, and owning the true and living God as our own is here depicted as an infinite blessing in itself. What loving father would not do anything for his child? If we can understand, in many of us, experience, the love that exists on earth, we can just begin to fathom the love that God has for His faithful.]
8 But for the fearful, and unbelieving, and abominable, and murderers, and fornicators, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, their part (shall be) in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone; which is the second death.
[Perhaps for emphasis the tremendous contrast between those who are blessed in the previous verses and those who reject God is now spelled out in more detail. This is stated so that we can keep in mind the things that were done in 20:14. This is nothing that has not been spelled out in other clear passages except the specific of the lake of fire; their condemnation is stated clearly in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 and Galatians 5:19-21. Lists like this should not be at all considered exclusive. Rather, the figure of synecdoche is being applied, as it so often is throughout the New Testament, to illustrate the whole by providing some of the parts. The second death was defined in 20:14 to be the lake of fire, and that definition is reiterated here. Also see 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 and Mark 9:43.]
9 And there came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls, who were laden with the seven last plagues; and he spoke with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the wife of the Lamb.
[One of the same seven angels who showed John the harlot sitting on the beast, apparently dominating what mankind perceives to be the rulers of this world. The contrast is perfect. The harlot was all that was evil, doing nothing but the most depraved acts of hatred and wickedness. The angel will lead John to a great high mountain as opposed to a wilderness. What will be seen by John will be the utter perfection of all that is good and righteous. His (and our) experience of the evil in the previous visions was in preparation to magnify the glory of this vision.
The specific angel is not stated and is therefore of no import; the fact that John had seen and heard these angels before would give rise to him having no problem with their speaking with him ("and he spoke with me"). Specifically, the conversation was one to tell John what he was going to see; namely, "the bride, the wife of the Lamb." Recall from 19:7: "Let us rejoice and be exceeding glad, and let us give the glory unto him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready." And also review verse 2 above. So John had anticipated this and now he is about to be shown the bride in more detail. We know, of course, that there are many passages that reference the bride as being the Lord's called out. Perhaps one of the most sublime is Ephesians 5:31-32: "For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is great: but I speak in regard of Christ and of the church."]
10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,
["In the Spirit would infer that he was not literally and physically on a great high mountain, but was given this visions as if he were. We surmise that nothing said here is to imply that the eternal habitation of the faithful in heaven will be a physical place in the sense of the current physical universe. What John was seeing was not something that was physically there, but the physical representations that he was seeing were to show the characteristics of this "holy city Jerusalem" that will be the eternal home of the saints. Review verse 1. As in verse 2 it descends out of heaven so that John can see it. There is no implication here that it was in any way fixed upon the earth. Neither should there be any conclusions that what John is viewing will ever materialize physically. The vision is to give us some tangible mental picture of just how glorious heaven will be for those who are saved. From God: “… you are God’s husbandry, God’s building" (1 Corinthians 3:9).]
11 having the glory of God: her light was like unto a stone most precious, as it were a jasper stone, clear as crystal:
12 having a wall great and high; having twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names written thereon, which are (the names) of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
13 on the east were three gates; and on the north three gates; and on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.
14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
[It would be speculative to try to map each of these details to some physical meaning (which is all we have to work with in our physical limitations). We do not believe that these images are given for that purpose. Rather, it seems that the beauty and glory of the holy city is something that is unfathomable, and that it can only be described by such figures. The number 12, of course, is that perfect 4X3 number of tribes and apostles, and the names of the apostles on the foundation cannot help to bring to mind Ephesians 2:20: "And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; ..." The foundation of the apostles is not the apostles themselves, but Jesus Christ was their foundation, and it should be ours. Considering the passage as a unit, we see the gates representative of the Old Testament and the foundations representative of the New Testament, the idea seemingly is one of a completed revelation, a perfect environment for the eternal habitation of the saints. Zechariah 2:5: “For I, said the LORD, will be unto her [Jerusalem] a wall of fire round about, and I will be the glory in the midst of her.]
15 And he that spoke with me had for a measure a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.
[This would be the angel that John seems to be having a conversation with -- we are not to think that what was written here is all that they discussed, but they are surely the words that we need to know. This surely takes us back to Chapter 11 and the measuring that took place there -- we will not repeat the discussion of the symbols, except to say that the measuring now is of the entire city, and not just the temple. Also, now the reed for measuring (essentially a measuring stick) is made of gold. This is fitting in that the city itself is made up of the most costly and rich materials that are known to exist on this earth. The angel is going to measure the city to make sure that its dimensions are perfect. But recall that the city is emblematic of the bride of Christ, the church. This brings to thought 1 Peter 4:17: "For the time (is come) for judgment to begin at the house of God: and if (it begin) first at us, what (shall be) the end of them that obey not the gospel of God?"]
16 And the city lies foursquare, and the length thereof is as great as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs: the length and the breadth and the height thereof are equal.
[Perfect. Twelve thousand furlongs is 375 miles according to Barnes, who also noted that this totally precludes anything currently in the Palestine area, further demonstrating the figurative use of language here to represent the perfect bride of Christ, totally cleansed by His blood. Note again that this dimension is not just for the length and breadth, but also for the height. There is, and can be, no literal application of this anywhere.]
17 And he measured the wall thereof, a hundred and forty and four cubits, (according to) the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.
[A cubit is generally agreed to be 18 inches, which would make the walls 216 feet high. This is feasible, and such could practically be built, albeit with considerable effort for men. The city itself towers above the walls, but no matter -- the walls are of such a size as to give assurance of the security of those that dwell within. The cubit would be the length from the elbow to the tips of the fingers of the average man. This certainly is not a very precise way of measuring in that it varies considerably from man to man (or from angel to angel). Nevertheless, it was the commonly understood practice for measurement at the time, and we should understand that in interpreting this verse. This is "the measure of a man" that John is stating so that there would be no mistake. Then, as if to add humor to the situation, he adds "that is, of an angel." It was not a man that was doing the measurement, it was an angel. Some might reason (quite correctly) that the angel's arms might be longer than a man's. But John already said it was according to the measure of a man to clarify this. If we are to take this part literally (i.e., this IS what John saw), then we must remember that the angel was not measuring with his arm in any event, he was using the rod of gold.]
18 And the building of the wall thereof was jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto pure glass.
[Literal Greek: … gold pure like unto glass clear.” Clear so that its purity could be examined. Jasper, also mentioned in 4:3, is a precious stone so rare it is usually only used for jewelry, and the idea of an entire wall of this substance further reinforces its figurative intent. Similarly, the pure gold like unto pure glass images are intended to give the faithful, persecuted Christians the assurance of the words of Jesus in John 14:1-3: "Let not your heart be troubled: believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I come again, and will receive you unto myself; that where I am, (there) ye may be also."]
19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald;
20 the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst.
21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the several gates was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
[Of the variety of stones mentioned, the enumeration is for emphasis; so while "all manner of precious stones" says the same thing, the explicit name (of at least some of them) makes a more definitive impression upon our minds. The twelve foundations were introduced in 21:14, and the twelve gates in 21:12. "Streets of pure gold" -- is this not saying that the substance that we find to be most valuable in this current world will be so common as to be trampled under foot, like our asphalt and concrete -- materials of no value, comparatively speaking.
22 And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God the Almighty, and the Lamb, are the temple thereof.
[Thinking like John as the city is placed before him (in the Spirit), he surmises that if the general city were so spectacular, what would the temple be like? Of course, the temple complex was the first century marvel of the Jews, so it was quite a shock when Jesus indicated that it would all be destroyed (Matthew 24:1-2). So John, looking for the temple, cannot find it because in the New Jerusalem it does not exist. God does not need to have a place that symbolizes his presences, i.e., that plays the role that the tabernacle and the temple did in times gone by. Now the figure is replaced by the reality and the presence of God the Father and God the Son (the Lamb) are actually there existing in the hearts and souls of the saved and providing far more than the tabernacle or the temple could ever supply.]
23 And the city hath no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine upon it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the lamp thereof (is) the Lamb.
[A physical city would certainly have need of something to provide light; e.g., the sun, moon or artificial lights. While we might think of God and the Lamb glowing in such a way as to provide light, we feel that this is not what this verse is trying to convey, especially when so connected with the temple by the previous verse. Instead we appeal to the definition of light given to us by John in John 1. Light is the truth; the truth is the Word, and the Word is Christ.]
24 And the nations shall walk amidst the light thereof: and the kings of the earth bring their glory into it.
[The nations -- both Jew and Gentile of all nationalities and races. "Kings of the earth" -- those who are the righteous rulers of the saved. Certainly not all of the kings of the earth as we saw most of them disposed of in 20:10. But there are exceptions, like King David, who will be with the faithful. This seems to be an incipit for Isaiah 60:3-22.]
25 And the gates thereof shall in no wise be shut by day (for there shall be no night there):
[The open gates speak to freedom. While we cannot imagine all of the aspects of the full freedom of heaven, this shows that there are things outside of the walls of the city that might be of interest and use to the saved. We dare not take this analogy beyond its simple basic initial meaning. Typically, the gates of a city were shut at night, but figuratively, there is no night, so the idea of shutting the gates is not applicable. But the figure of "no night" is not literally restrictive, and it seems obvious that it states that there will be no deceit, no lies, not sin of any type, for which a closed gate might be thought necessary.]
26 and they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it:
[This has already been said of the saved kings; we would now apply it back to the first subject of verse 24 and expect all of the saved to bring the glory and honor of their various nations into the spiritual Jerusalem.]
27 and there shall in no wise enter into it anything unclean, or he that makes an abomination and a lie: but only they that are written in the Lamb's book of life.
[This verse needs no explanation; it is a fitting conclusion to this chapter. On the Lamb's book of life, see 3:5; 13:8;17:8; 20:12-15. There should have been no chapter division here (remember that chapter and verse numbers were inserted by men's judgment and were not in the original manuscripts). Verses 22:1-5 properly belong to Chapter 21, so keep on reading for the description of the New Jerusalem and where we will spend our eternity if we remain faithful.]
Revelation 22
22:1 And he showed me a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb,
[Still the angel leading John to see an even broader image of heaven. If this were physical we could imagine John to be led out into the rich lush countryside; but as the images appear in our minds we need to map them to their spiritual counterparts. The river of water of life is something we should easily relate to in that it has been introduced not only in Revelation but in other parts of the Bible as well (see notes on 21:6). Proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. The throne scene is brought to mind (4:6), but now explicitly we have both God the Father and God the Son (the Lamb) as owning the throne. Jesus took the throne (analogous throne of David now in heaven) when he ascended to heaven in Acts 1:1-11, and is described as his taking the throne by Peter's sermon in Acts 2:22-36. The scene of streams of water proceeding out from under the throne is one of total satisfaction and spiritual contentment as light and truth overwhelm all other possible concerns.
Can it be any more fitting that the Bible ends with a garden scene, much as its beginning. Sin has kept mankind from enjoying this garden throughout our history, but now John envisions that this perfect paradise has been restored by those who created and own the universe. May all glory be given to God.]
2 in the midst of the street thereof. And on this side of the river and on that was the tree of life, bearing twelve fruits, yielding its fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
["... in the midst of the street thereof" should have been tacked onto verse 1. The idea is that the river of life emanated from the throne, but John saw it "in the midst of the street thereof." So in a sense he is "outside" in the streets that are paved with gold and the river of water of life is flowing next to a street, or in the midst of the streets. Turning attention now to the river, it had on both sides of it "the tree of life," but our physical minds would seem to envision many such trees lining both sides of the river, and we can perceive that John was referring to the kind and not just to a single tree. They combine with the water to yield perfect (12) fruits. The yield is perpetual, producing fruit every month. And also bearing leaves that do not whither, these leaves also have the function of healing the nations. All animosity between nations is gone at this point, but there still seems to be a continued need for healing.]
3 And there shall be no curse any more: and the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be therein: and his servants shall serve him;
[The curse is that back at the time of Genesis 3, and which is discussed further in Romans 8:
Genesis 3:17-19
17 "And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in toil shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
18 thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
19 in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return."
Romans 8:19-24
19 "For the earnest expectation of the creation waits for the revealing of the sons of God.
20 For the creation was subjected to vanity, not of its own will, but by reason of him who subjected it, in hope
21 that the creation itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the liberty of the glory of the children of God.
22 For we know that the whole creation groans and travails in pain together until now.
23 And not only so, but ourselves also, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for (our) adoption, (to wit), the redemption of our body.
24 For in hope were we saved: but hope that is seen is not hope: for who hopes for that which he sees?"
These curses that have caused endless pain on this earth will no longer cause the aging, disease and the many other issues that have plagued mankind over the past several thousand years. "And the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be therein" -- this point has already been made (21:3), but is restated here for emphasis and for confirmation. "And his servants shall serve Him" -- that is, God, which would include God the Father, God the Son (the Lamb), and God the Holy Spirit. It will be the role of the saved to serve God and to do whatever His will may be for us.]
4 and they shall see his face; and his name (shall be) on their foreheads.
[With regard to this expression "see his face" consider Matthew 18:10 :"Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven." This refers to the prohibition to the common people of seeing the face of the eastern monarchs, a privilege that was only granted to the favorites. In this case it is granted to all the saved. We will not be serving someone who is invisible or behind a screen. We will be able to behold his face at least in some way that is represented by this figure. "And His name shall be on their foreheads" -- see 3:12, 7:3 and 13:16. This is a mark of ownership and privilege.
2 Corinthians 3:18
8 But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit.
2 Corinthians 4:6
Seeing it is God, that said, Light shall shine out of darkness, who shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.]
5 And there shall be night no more; and they need no light of lamp, neither light of sun; for the Lord God shall give them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.
[As for no night, see 21:25, which covered all of these details. The only thing new in this verse is the fact that the faithful of God "shall reign for ever and ever." This is significant for it is in contrast to the 1000 year reign that was discussed in Chapter 20:6. Consider:
Revelation 5:9-10
9 "And they sing a new song, saying, Worthy art thou to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou was slain, and didst purchase unto God with thy blood (men) of every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation,
10 and made them (to be) unto our God a kingdom and priests; and they reign upon earth."
The passage above is in the present tense, and it should refer to children of God who are in a saved condition and still on the earth. This applies to many reading the commentary right now, and we should recognize the exalted position that we hold NOW. Further reinforcing this concept is Romans 8:37: "Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us." Again present tense -- we should be enjoying this status while still on the earth in this life. But this is a position that can be lost if we are not faithful unto death, as indicated in 2 Timothy 2:11-13:
11 "Faithful is the saying: For if we died with him, we shall also live with him:
12 if we endure, we shall also reign with him: if we shall deny him, he also will deny us:
13 if we are faithless, he abides faithful; for he cannot deny himself."
On the other hand, 22:5 is future tense and applies to the saved once they are in the New Jerusalem united with the Lamb in matrimony as part of the Lord's called out. They are totally secure from any chance that they will be faithless, and thus, they will reign with God "for ever and ever."]
Epilogue for verses 6-21
6 And he said unto me, These words are faithful and true: and the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show unto his servants the things which must shortly come to pass.
[He -- the angel that has been occupying and guiding John since 21:9. We would expect that through all of their conversations that would have established a good relationship at this point. The angel, in all likelihood with the direction and certainly the full authority of God makes the statement. First, that the words that have been spoken throughout the book of Revelation are faithful and true -- there is not the least bit of deception, mystery or doubt within them. They most certainly reflect the reality of the near and distant futures. And then, that "the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets sent His angel" -- this echoes 1:1, and while there were certainly multiple angels, each one of them was "His angel." Why invoke the spirits of the prophets at this point? It would seem that since what John was doing was documenting prophecy, that the reference back to the previous prophets would be appropriate. While God sent His angel to John, God sent the Holy Spirit to many of the prophets. The message seems to be that it does not matter if it comes through an angel or through the Holy Spirit, it is still faithful and true, the Word of God. "To show unto His servants" -- those just described above who will reign with God forever rendering service to God. "The things which must shortly come to pass" (see 1:1-3) -- we saw that some of these things have not occurred yet 2000 or so years later, but these are exceptions. While there is no inference that ALL of the things spoken had to come to pass shortly, those which involved the persecuting nations and false prophets -- the things that could come to pass shortly -- surely would come to pass. In retrospect, we can see where most of these things have come to pass, although we make no assertion that they may not come to pass over and over again as the nature of man and the nature of political and religious power is identical today to that of the first century.]
7 And behold, I come quickly. Blessed is he that keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.
[If this is not the Christ who is speaking, then it is the angel stating what Christ stated. But if it were the angel speaking the words of Jesus, we would expect this to be stated. We are more inclined to think that Jesus Christ himself intervened at this point and makes this assertion as well as the blessings that follow. While some may question if a delay of 2000 years qualifies as "quickly," the statement need not be restricted to when Jesus will come to judge the world. It might be a warning to individuals, and no matter how young or old they might be, their lives are like a vapor and they will much sooner than they realize come to the end of "life's little day" to go on to their individual personal judgments. The blessing is much like 1:3: "Blessed is he that reads, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand." But then, how do we keep the words of the prophecy of this book? We suggest: (1) By understanding and believing the written word that we have studied to the point that they sink deep into our being and change our attitude toward our life here on this earth; (2) By giving us courage to stand up to any hardships or persecutions that this world, its governments or its false religions may inflict upon us, recognizing those who have gone before us and who are now under the alter before the throne of God; and (3) By being obedient to the various principles of Gods laws that have been established by these words.]
8 And I John am he that heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel that showed me these things.
[While the words above may have been those uttered by Jesus, there is no indication that He is present at this point. John is overwhelmed by what he heard and saw. He states a summary of his experience: he heard and saw these words and visions of truth. He feels that he must show this in some way and so he falls down to worship before the angel. And while he probably should have known better than to do this, he yields to the angels correction, and under the circumstances this is an understandable and emotion-driven mistake. Albeit, we might recognize that this is not the first time that John has received correction for this action (19:10).]
9 And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am a fellow-servant with thee and with thy brethren the prophets, and with them that keep the words of this book: worship God.
[As a reader and one who is endeavoring to keep the words of this book, these words should have special meaning. You are a fellow servant with the angels, with John, with all of the Christians of the first century, with the prophets throughout the ages, and with all others who read and are keeping the words of this book. The exhortation is: do not worship anyone other than God. We understand from the nature of the silence of the scriptures that the words "worship God" carry with them this enlarged meaning.]
10 And he said unto me, Seal not up the words of the prophecy of this book; for the time is at hand.
[To put a seal on something would prevent it from being opened until someone who had the authority could do so at the proper time. John is commanded to place no such seal because the time is at hand for many of these things to take place, and the persecuted saints will need the comfort and consolation that these words will provide.
Why the contrast with Dan 12:4, 9? Think in terms of the major differences.
Daniel 12:8-13. “And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my lord, what shall be the issue of these things? And he said, Go thy way, Daniel; for the words are shut up and sealed till the time of the end. 10 Many shall purify themselves, and make themselves white, and be refined; but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand; but they that are wise shall understand. 11 And from the time that the continual (burnt-offering) shall be taken away, and the abomination that makes desolate set up, there shall be a thousand and two hundred and ninety days. 12 Blessed is he that waits, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days. 13 But go thou thy way till the end be; for thou shalt rest, and shalt stand in thy lot, at the end of the days.”
Clearly, we are now at the end of the days. We need to be ready for the return of Jesus.]
11 He that is unrighteous, let him do unrighteousness still: and he that is filthy, let him be made filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him do righteousness still: and he that is holy, let him be made holy still.
[Four examples of the characters of people, two unrighteous and two righteous are given with the clear statement "let them be (as they are) still." This would seem to pronounce closure to the book of Revelation, and with it to all of God's scriptures. What is written is written; and it it is accepted, so be it; and if it is rejected, so be that as well. At some point there is no repentance, no turning back, no chance for redemption. This verse seems to be placing this at the point of judgment, with the urging to use and keep the words of this book, and by extension of this principle, to keep all of God's words. Until then we are compelled by the great commission to take the gospel to the lost.]
12 Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to render to each man according as his work is.
[The speaker here again is Jesus, whether directly or through the angel, it is of no consequence. Jesus proclaims that he will come quickly, repeating what he said in verse 7. But this time with further trepidation for those who are not ready. His purpose in coming, as we saw in 20:11, is to judge, and to separate the righteous from the unrighteous. "My reward is with me" -- I have the full capacity to carry out judgment and to assure that justice is properly meted out. In this regard he will "render to each man "according as his work is." While this clause will cause considerable concern to those who teach adamantly that our works have nothing to do with our salvation, we urge them to hit the true medium between nothing and everything. This is discussed in detail in a separate article and will not be given any further discussion here, except to say that if you have saving faith, your works will show it, but that faith must come first.]
13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.
This is Jesus speaking and there are no more definitive words that would indicate that He is a divine being. Alpha and Omega (translated A to Z) being omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent. The first and the last states that truth in a different way for emphasis. And again, the beginning and the end does the same thing.]
14 Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have the right (to come) to the tree of life, and may enter in by the gates into the city.
["Wash their robes" is not in theGreek; “do His commandments” is. Doing His commandments starts with being born again as a completely new person. This necessarily implies the KJV rendering "do His commandments" in that those who have been obedient and who have remained faithful are indeed extremely blessed in that they have the right to come to the tree of life and to reside within the gates of the city, which is figurative of heaven itself. Those who do not live the new life of Christ do not.]
15 Without are the dogs, and the sorcerers, and the fornicators, and the murderers, and the idolaters, and every one that loves and makes a lie.
[Again, we believe for emphasis, the contrast is made. This is a subset of potential sins that would preclude a person from entering into the kingdom of heaven; but even the more extensive lists of 1 Corinthians 6:9 and Galatians 5:21 are still synecdoches -- any sin that is not repented of can keep us from having the right to the tree of life and to enter the gates of the city.]
16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things for the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright, the morning star.
[This totally nails down who is speaking here and who had the authority over the angels and to command the churches. We know that Jesus was of the offspring of David, so clearly, He met this qualification. As for the bright and morning star, see this article, and reference back to 2:28. All such teachings that this is referencing some being named Lucifer are false, and thus they have Satan as their source, since the name Lucifer is not found in the Bible.]
17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And he that hears, let him say, Come. And he that is athirst, let him come: he that will, let him take the water of life freely.
[A very profound statement that we do not want to dismiss lightly. Let us consider it in order:
- The Spirit (the Holy Spirit sent by Jesus Christ) and the bride (of Christ, the called out) say Come. The Holy Spirit implies the Father and the Son are also themselves calling anyone who will to come into the sanctuary of the body of Christ. The bride and all of its members have been charged with the responsibility to go into all of the world and to urge everyone to come (Matthew 28:18).
- He that hears, let him say, Come. This would surely include all converts, but it would not be limited to them. Perhaps many of us have known of people who were not Christians but out of the love for their family members or friends still urged others to repent and render obedience. They have heard, but have not taken action themselves -- no matter, let them encourage others to come, so universal is the calling of the Lord.
- He that is athirst -- hungering and thirsting after righteousness (Matthew 5:6) -- let him come.
- He that will -- this is really all that you need -- the will -- a person just needs to want to be saved. Of course, wanting it will not make it so. But it will lead that person to learn and understand what God requires, and to access the drawing power of God (John 6:44). Jesus said "my burden is light" and indeed the requirements are not difficult once we have faith that God has our best interests in mind and that all of the privileges of obeying His commands come with countless blessings.
- "Let him take of the water of life freely." It costs nothing and it is totally accessible -- all we have to do is to accept God's free gift.
18 I testify unto every man that hear the words of the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add unto them, God shall add unto him the plagues which are written in this book:
[Adding to God's word is placing oneself in the place of God; since it can lead to others failing to believe the truth, it has far more consequences than some other beliefs that do not involve others. Having plagues added to us by God is a fateful warning -- woe unto those who would add to Gods Word. This would also extend to those who twist the scriptures to say things that were never intended.]
19 and if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the tree of life, and out of the holy city, which are written in this book.
[Removing anything that is in God's word could have the same effect -- perhaps causing them to believe that they are saved when, in fact, they are not. Having your name removed from the Lamb's book of life assures your place in the lake of fire 20:15). The argument has been made that verses 18 and 19 only apply to the Book of Revelation. Certainly they do apply to this book; but only to it? Is this not a principle that applies to all of God's words? If not, do we feel like we have the right to change anything that we want? Surely not. Indeed, this is a principle of handling God's word, and what applies to the book of Revelation in this regard, applies to all of the scriptures. This is further confirmed by: Deuteronomy 4:2 “You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.” What is the motive of those who argue that this only applies to the Book of Revelation?]
20 He who testifies these things said Yea: I come quickly. Amen: come, Lord Jesus.
[This is the third time that Jesus has said "I come quickly" and it shows that He is the one who "testifies these things." From the beginning it was Jesus who was sending the angels and thus providing the testimony to the entire book. The response seems to be from John: "Amen: come, Lord Jesus." John was anxious to see the Lord once again.]
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with the saints. Amen.
[This is a final blessing from John to all of us.]
Go to Revelation 16-19
What are the conditions of salvation given by Jesus?