Revelation 22
1Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
A river, in scripture, usually signifies provision, peace and richness (Isaiah 48:18, Zech 14:8, Ezek 47:1-9, Psalm 46:4-5). This river is unpolluted and clear (life giving). Here also we see the Tree of Life (Genesis 3:22-34). In Greek it is called Therapeian (health-giving).
3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.
6 The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.” 7 “Look, I am coming soon! Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll.”
The curse is gone (Genesis 3:16-19). Things like pain in childbirth, hard and futile work, and even death, has been removed. Heaven is a place of work and service for God’s people.
They will see his face: They will have fellowship with Him, sin is gone, care and worry are gone, idols are gone.
His name will be on their foreheads: They will have eternal identification with God
No more night: Christ is the light
And they will reign forever: Eternal inclusion
Faithful and True: His word can be trusted; it will come to pass
Blessing: Prophecy is always meant to lead us to obey God. The blessing is constant through this book. If we read the words, understand them and change our lives to reflect the wisdom, then we are destined for the special blessing.
8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. 9 But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this scroll. Worship God!”
Both John and the angel are servants of God, neither worthy of worship . The only one to be worshipped is Jesus (Hebrews 1:6).
10 Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll, because the time is near. 11 Let the one who does wrong continue to do wrong; let the vile person continue to be vile; let the one who does right continue to do right; and let the holy person continue to be holy.”
John is commanded not to seal up the words, or hide the words, because they haven’t come to pass. The world has to come to a certain point before it can understand the importance of renewal.
12 “Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
Here we see urgency. I am coming soon. The reward is with Jesus and he will distribute it according to their works. This is about living faith with works (James 2:20). It isn’t about just doing a lot of nice things. It is about our relationship with Christ and the motives behind our works. For the Christian, these works will be refined by fire. The heathen will face God’s wrath.
14 “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. 15 Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
Washing of the robes is a sign on purity. Purity grants you the right to the Tree of Life, which guarantees eternity. The purity part is large because it is beyond just being a nice person and doing nice things. It speaks to the relationship and the works that grow from that relationship. Outside the gates are dogs. Those are the people who indulge int he ungodly, or impure, lifestyle. It speaks directly to the Acts of the Flesh (Galatians 5:19-21).
16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”
This is about verification of the book and its content. It speaks to the authenticity of the book. It is for all believers. This is also the first reference to the church since chapter 3. Root refers to the Messiah (Isaiah11:1) as does the Morning Star (Numbers 24:17). The morning star welcomes a new day.
17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.
This verse is all about desire. Come, take the free gift. But it is relegated to those who desire it.
18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. 19 And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.
Who is speaking here? That is up for debate, but the concept behind it is clear: tampering with God’s word carries a heavy price.
20 He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.
These verses speak to readiness. He is coming: be prepared. Paul ends most of his letters in the same way. In the Old Testament, the last verse (Malachi 4:6) ends with a warning. The last verse of the New Testament ends with grace.
RELEVANCE
Is the book of Revelation relevant? Let’s look at what Revelation taught us:
It taught us that God has a plan
God loves us in a deep and amazing way
And he gives us many opportunities to come back to him
But for those who do not, there is a heavy price to pay
Rebellion has no positive endgame
God will ultimately destroy evil and even satan
He will restore those who follow into a new creation
He will end the authority of man and will create a new order
This all points to our personal story of redemption. If we are willing to cease rebellion and make a stand for God, then he promises eternal life. It doesn’t mean we aren’t going to go through our own tribulations in following God; but he will seal us through those times. We will be part of the new order for eternity.
1Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
A river, in scripture, usually signifies provision, peace and richness (Isaiah 48:18, Zech 14:8, Ezek 47:1-9, Psalm 46:4-5). This river is unpolluted and clear (life giving). Here also we see the Tree of Life (Genesis 3:22-34). In Greek it is called Therapeian (health-giving).
3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.
6 The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.” 7 “Look, I am coming soon! Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll.”
The curse is gone (Genesis 3:16-19). Things like pain in childbirth, hard and futile work, and even death, has been removed. Heaven is a place of work and service for God’s people.
They will see his face: They will have fellowship with Him, sin is gone, care and worry are gone, idols are gone.
His name will be on their foreheads: They will have eternal identification with God
No more night: Christ is the light
And they will reign forever: Eternal inclusion
Faithful and True: His word can be trusted; it will come to pass
Blessing: Prophecy is always meant to lead us to obey God. The blessing is constant through this book. If we read the words, understand them and change our lives to reflect the wisdom, then we are destined for the special blessing.
8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. 9 But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this scroll. Worship God!”
Both John and the angel are servants of God, neither worthy of worship . The only one to be worshipped is Jesus (Hebrews 1:6).
10 Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll, because the time is near. 11 Let the one who does wrong continue to do wrong; let the vile person continue to be vile; let the one who does right continue to do right; and let the holy person continue to be holy.”
John is commanded not to seal up the words, or hide the words, because they haven’t come to pass. The world has to come to a certain point before it can understand the importance of renewal.
12 “Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
Here we see urgency. I am coming soon. The reward is with Jesus and he will distribute it according to their works. This is about living faith with works (James 2:20). It isn’t about just doing a lot of nice things. It is about our relationship with Christ and the motives behind our works. For the Christian, these works will be refined by fire. The heathen will face God’s wrath.
14 “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. 15 Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
Washing of the robes is a sign on purity. Purity grants you the right to the Tree of Life, which guarantees eternity. The purity part is large because it is beyond just being a nice person and doing nice things. It speaks to the relationship and the works that grow from that relationship. Outside the gates are dogs. Those are the people who indulge int he ungodly, or impure, lifestyle. It speaks directly to the Acts of the Flesh (Galatians 5:19-21).
16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”
This is about verification of the book and its content. It speaks to the authenticity of the book. It is for all believers. This is also the first reference to the church since chapter 3. Root refers to the Messiah (Isaiah11:1) as does the Morning Star (Numbers 24:17). The morning star welcomes a new day.
17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.
This verse is all about desire. Come, take the free gift. But it is relegated to those who desire it.
18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. 19 And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.
Who is speaking here? That is up for debate, but the concept behind it is clear: tampering with God’s word carries a heavy price.
20 He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.
These verses speak to readiness. He is coming: be prepared. Paul ends most of his letters in the same way. In the Old Testament, the last verse (Malachi 4:6) ends with a warning. The last verse of the New Testament ends with grace.
RELEVANCE
Is the book of Revelation relevant? Let’s look at what Revelation taught us:
It taught us that God has a plan
God loves us in a deep and amazing way
And he gives us many opportunities to come back to him
But for those who do not, there is a heavy price to pay
Rebellion has no positive endgame
God will ultimately destroy evil and even satan
He will restore those who follow into a new creation
He will end the authority of man and will create a new order
This all points to our personal story of redemption. If we are willing to cease rebellion and make a stand for God, then he promises eternal life. It doesn’t mean we aren’t going to go through our own tribulations in following God; but he will seal us through those times. We will be part of the new order for eternity.