Revelation 21:9-27 (New Jerusalem)
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
English Standard Version Chapter 21
The New Jerusalem
9 Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. 12 It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— 13 on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. 14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
15 And the one who spoke with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. 16 The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal. 17 He also measured its wall, 144 cubits by human measurement, which is also an angel’s measurement. 18 The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass. 19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, 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 of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.
22 And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24 By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, 25 and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. 26 They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. 27 But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
This week we’re going to continue looking at Revelation chapters 21-22, picking up where we left off with John’s description of the new Jerusalem, which he saw coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Now, it’s important for us to keep in mind that John’s description of the New Jerusalem here in the remainder of this chapter is couched in the broader imagery of verses 1-8 , which we looked at in our last time, where John described what he called “a new heaven and a new earth”.
If you recall, the point of this imagery was not primarily to describe a new material cosmos, but to describe the onset of the Messianic age as the result of Jesus’ first coming, that the new covenant had established a new era, and that the kingdom of heaven had come, the inauguration of the Kingdom of God on earth. While this imagery certainly, and simultaneously causes us to consider the future consummation of that kingdom at the second coming of Christ, I believe John’s intention here is primarily to direct the church’s attention to Jesus’ fulfillment of OT prophecy as a result of his ministry in the first century.
Which is why this imagery of a “new heaven and a new earth” comes straight out of the Book of Isaiah, chapter 65, when the prophet had directed Israel, hundreds of years before Christ, to a time of future blessing in the Messianic kingdom. When the world would be governed by a new order, or as Jesus would later describe it, when “the ruler of this world [would] be cast out,” and when Jesus would, “draw all people to [himself]” (John 12:31-32) A time when Christ is king, when the devil is bound, and the Gospel triumphs throughout the world.
Now, as I’ve pointed out before, where most of us modern readers get tripped up, is that we tend to read OT prophetic literature as though it were simply future historical narrative. And so we end up, unwittingly, misunderstanding much of the OT prophetic writings, not recognizing symbolism, typology, and probably most importantly, how the prophets utilized the circumstances of their own historical context to depict future ones.
You see, the context of their circumstances was the old covenant, therefore they used that context, the land of Canaan, Jerusalem, the Temple, etc. to describe future realities. So, when modern readers come along, we end up reaching naive conclusions that look like the rebuilding of the nation state of Israel, or the rebuilding of its temple, and re-instituting temple sacrifices.
We overlook the fact that the prophets were using the circumstances familiar to them in order to paint a picture of future circumstances. Not necessarily that future circumstances would be identical to the imagery they used, but that the imagery was usually pointing to something greater. In other words, we’re not meant to merely import the circumstances of their context into the future and call that fulfillment, instead we need to see how their prophecies employed the circumstances of their own context to describe the ministry of Christ.
And I think that’s precisely what we see throughout the NT, including John’s Apocalypse. That the NT writers saw the ministry of Christ as a fulfillment of the OT prophets, not as prophecies still yet in our future. And like I pointed out in our last time, I think the danger of pushing most of these prophecies into our own future causes us to miss the glory of the new covenant now. It can cause us to overlook the significance of the new covenant, even now.
New Jerusalem
New Jerusalem
And so it’s within this new covenant context, the dawning of a new age, when John sees a new heaven and new earth, that John sees the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. As a result of the new covenant the bride of Christ is revealed from heaven.
And the rest of chapter 21 and the beginning of chapter 22 is dedicated to describing the nature of that city. It’s not meant to depict a future material city, but rather the imagery is intended to reveal something about the church, not to describe the scenery of the afterlife. John is far more interested to describe the character and nature of the church than he is to paint us a picture of a future material city.
However, because many have taken this text literally, it’s become the source of many popular tropes. Such as people walking on the clouds of heaven, or meeting the Apostle Peter at the pearly gates of Jerusalem, and so on. But I don’t think those are the kinds of conclusions John is intending for us to make. No, the imagery of the new Jerusalem is intended to reveal something concerning the nature and character of the church. This is also why we’ll see in a minute that the new Jerusalem, the bride of Christ, is meant to be compared to the great prostitute of chapter 17.
Not only that, but the other NT writers treat this imagery of the new Jerusalem similarly, as a descriptor of the church presently. The Apostle Paul in Galatians 4:26 describes the “Jerusalem above as the mother of us all”, and then Hebrews 12:22-24 says, “But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.”
And so, as we walk through this text keep these things in mind, 1) as a result of the new covenant context, or as John puts it, a new heaven and a new earth, the bride of Christ is revealed out of heaven, and 2) that John’s description of the new Jerusalem is meant to reveal something about the nature and character of the church, not merely the scenery of the afterlife.
Wilderness vs. Mountain
Wilderness vs. Mountain
And so, with that, let’s start there in verse 9,
English Standard Version Chapter 21
9 Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.
Now, I’ve pointed this out along the way ever since chapter 17, but what’s easily missed here, but vitally important to understanding the point and flow of John’s Apocalypse is verse 9 when one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues spoke to John and said, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” Now, we’ve seen this angel before, he’s the same angel that appeared to John back in chapter 17, verse 1, and said, “Come, I will show you the judgement of the great prostitute.”
So, we have two characters here in John’s Apocalypse who are very significant, the great prostitute back in chapter 17, and the bride here in chapter 21. They’re both women who are adorned beautifully, but one is corrupt and immoral while the other is pure and righteous, the one a harlot, the other a faithful bride. And after the harlot is judged back in chapter 17, the bride is revealed out of heaven from God here in chapter 21. In other words, we’re meant to see that John is contrasting these two women.
John goes on in chapter 17 to describe that the angel then carried him away in the Spirit into a wilderness, while here in chapter 21, verse 10, he says that the angel then carried him away in the Spirit, this time, to a great high mountain. The contrast is obvious. The wilderness is a place of desolation and a haunt for demons, whereas a mountain signifies worship. The harlot is found in the wilderness while the bride is found on top of a great, high mountain.
Mountain of God
Mountain of God
This imagery of a mountain can be traced as far back as Genesis and the Garden of Eden when Genesis 2 describes four rivers flowing out of Eden and watering the four corners of the earth, indicating that Eden was at a high elevation. My folks live in Billings, MT right along the Yellowstone River, and whenever we visit you can follow the river upstream for miles as it flows out of Yellowstone National Park in the mountains originating at Yellowstone Lake, the largest high-elevation lake in North America.
Then, later in the Book of Exodus, God appears to Moses in a burning bush at Mt. Horeb, which is referred to as the mountain of God, and later Mt. Sinai when the Moses goes up to receive the 10 commandments. And when the Israelites are eventually established in the land of Canaan, Jerusalem and the Temple are built on Mount Moriah, or what would later become know at Mt. Zion.
Then, as the body of prophetic literature grew, and the kingdom of heaven slowly came into view, prophets like Isaiah described the future like this, in Isaiah 2:2-3, “It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be lifted up above the hills; and all the nations shall flow to it, and many peoples shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.”
Now, this prophetic passage is an example of what I was talking about earlier. This prophecy isn’t describing a reality that yet remains in our future, no, this is our present reality, described using the context and circumstances of the old covenant in Isaiah’s day. This is why Hebrews can say, “but you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem,” (Heb. 12:22) or in Heb. 11:10 that “Abraham was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God.”
You see, we’re not looking toward a future day when this will become a reality, no, the nations are already flowing to Jerusalem, and to the mountain of God, that he may teach them his ways and to walk in his paths. This is how the great commission is characterized when it’s expressed using old covenant type and shadows. To go and make disciples of all nations, teaching them to observe all that Christ has commanded us. It’s why Jesus told the woman at the well that “the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.” (John 4:21) It’s why Jesus described the church as a city set on a hill in his Sermon on the Mount, (Matt. 5:14) and why John sees the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven here Revelation 21. Again, the flow of John’s Apocalypse is from the old covenant to the new covenant, from the earthly Jerusalem to the heavenly Jerusalem, from the types and shadows to substance and fulfillment.
Having the glory of God
Having the glory of God
This is also why John describes the new Jerusalem there in verse 11 as “having the glory of God, [and] its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.” In other words, the new Jerusalem is adorned and filled with the glory of God. It echos the beginning of chapter 21, in verse 3, when John heard a voice coming from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.” This is particularly significant, because it indicates that the glory of God has filled the church.
During Israel’s time in the wilderness the glory of the Lord was first described as filling the tabernacle. We read in Exodus 40:34-35, that “the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.” (Exodus 40:34-35) We also see in 1 Kings 8:10-11 when the Temple in Jerusalem was built for the first time in Solomon’s day, we’re told, “And when the priests came out of the Holy Place, a cloud filled the house of the LORD, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD.”
This was significant because when the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle in the wilderness, or the Temple in Jerusalem it signified God’s presence among his people, that he had condescended and made a covenant with them, which was a tremendously gracious act on God’s part, for God was not obligated to be gracious to them or to make a covenant with them. Yet, he did, in order that he might dwell with them.
Ezekiel’s temple
Ezekiel’s temple
However, we know that this didn’t last long, the Israelites forsook their covenant with God, and the Temple was eventually destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC after the Jews were taken into exile. Prior to the temple’s destruction the prophet Ezekiel, writing from Babylon, recounted the events leading up to the temple’s destruction, describing the glory of the Lord departing the temple in Jerusalem in Ezekiel 10:18-19,
Ezekiel 10:18–19 (ESV)
Then the glory of the Lord went out from the threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubim. And the cherubim lifted up their wings and mounted up from the earth before my eyes as they went out, with the wheels beside them.
But not all hope was lost, while much of the first half of Ezekiel’s book was dedicated to judgment against Judah and Jerusalem for their apostasy, the latter chapters of Ezekiel depicted a future hope of restoration. The prophet was famously given a vision of a new temple in Jerusalem, however, even after Israel’s exile in Babylon, and after the temple was rebuilt in Jerusalem, it paled in comparison to the size and grandeur seen by Ezekiel in his vision. The expectation that Israel and Jerusalem would be returned to its former glory, like the days of David and Solomon, still remained.
However, I don’t believe Ezekiel’s vision was intended to point Isreal toward a return to its former days of glory, but like many of Isaiah’s prophecies, point to a new Jerusalem, and the kingdom of heaven. A day when the glory of Israel’s former days would be surpassed by the new covenant era, and a temple not built with stones, but with living stones “built into a spiritual house” (1 Peter 2:4-5), which is precisely what Albert has been alluding to as he preaches through the post-exilic prophets Haggai and Zechariah.
Many of the features of the temple seen by Ezekiel parallel what John sees here in Revelation 21, but listen to what Ezekiel sees in Ezekiel 43:1-5 as it relates to the glory of God filling the temple,
Then he led me to the gate, the gate facing east. And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. And the sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with his glory. And the vision I saw was just like the vision that I had seen when he came to destroy the city, and just like the vision that I had seen by the Chebar canal. And I fell on my face. As the glory of the Lord entered the temple by the gate facing east, the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the temple.
And again, like many of Isaiah’s prophecies, I believe Ezekiel’s prophecy finds its fulfillment in the church. This prophecy isn’t describing a reality that yet remains in our future, no, this is our present reality, described using the context and circumstances of the old covenant in Ezekiel’s day.
Glory of God fills the church on Pentecost
Glory of God fills the church on Pentecost
Ezekiel’s vision of the glory of God coming from the east to fill the temple, and the sound of his coming like the sound of many waters parallels what we see in the NT when the Spirit of God fills the church on the day of Pentecost. We read in Acts 2:1-4,
When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Notice again, the parallel manifestations between Ezekiel’s vision and Luke’s account when Ezekiel writes that “the sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters” and then when Luke writes, “and suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind.”
One of the qualitative differences between the old covenant and the new covenant is that the saints of God have become permanently indwelt by the Spirit of God, whereas the OT saints were not. While there were times when the Spirit of God would come upon men in order for them to carry out various tasks, like the Moses’ seventy elders charged with sharing his burden of governing the people, or when Samson was given extraordinary strength against the Philistines, or when the Spirit was given to David to rule as king over Israel. While there were times when the Spirit of God would come upon men, the Spirit of God now permanently indwells the church and every believer.
And while there is certainly continuity between the OT and NT in terms of how we’re saved, regenerated by the Spirit, and justified by grace alone through faith alone, the glory of God no longer dwells in our midst, but we are God’s temple and God’s Spirit dwells within us. The new Jerusalem, the church, becomes temple of God where his glory dwells.
High wall
High wall
Now, let’s continue there in verse 12,
English Standard Version Chapter 21
12 It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— 13 on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. 14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
John continues by first describing the city as having a great, high wall. The walls of a city signify salvation and protection. Isaiah 60:18 says, “Violence shall no more be heard in your land, devastation or destruction within your borders; you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise.” You can probably imagine just how much relief you might feel after retreating behind city walls if under attack by enemies. The walls of the city shield it’s inhabitants from danger.
Similarly, the saints find salvation and refuge within the city, they find refuge in Christ, which also seems to imply that the city faces opposition, opposition from those outside the city walls. Or as John will put it later in chapter 22, verse 15, “Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.” Again, this imagery seems to imply a time when the church still faces opposition, the church militant, rather than after the second coming when all of Christ’s enemies will be put under his feet and thrown in the Lake of Fire.
12 gates
12 gates
The city walls are also described as having 12 gates, 3 gates on each of the four sides of the city, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of Israel are inscribed. This is exactly how the prophet Ezekiel described the temple in his vision in Ezekiel 48:31, writing, “These shall be the exits of the city: On the north side … three gates, the gate of Reuben, the gate of Judah, and the gate of Levi, the gates of the city being named after the tribes of Israel,” and so on.
Theses gates are entrances into the city and face all directions, which seems to imply the universal offer of the Gospel. You might recall Jesus’ words in Luke 13:29, “And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God.” In fact, later, verses 24-26 say,
English Standard Version Chapter 21
24 By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, 25 and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. 26 They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations.
This, again, seems to indicate a time when the Gospel remains active, when the nations are streaming to Jerusalem just as Isaiah’s prophecy described earlier.
Pearls
Pearls
We’re also told in verse 21 that “the twelve gates were twelve pearls, [and] each of the gates made of a single pearl.” This is another one of those images that becomes impossible to take literally, unless one imagines an other-worldly sized oyster to produce them. The significance of the pearls is less clear, but some have pointed out that pearls are created as a result of an oyster’s irritation, that when a foreign object is lodged in the oyster’s soft tissue that it deals with the irritation by secreting substances which eventually transform that object into a pearl. Therefore, some have proposed that this is akin to our own sanctification, that we are subject to the refiner’s fire, and that we must, through many tribulations, enter the kingdom of God. (Acts 14:22)
12 foundations
12 foundations
In addition to the 12 gates, John says there in verse 14 that “the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.” The new Jerusalem with its 12 gates and 12 foundations cumulatively portray the people of God, the saints of both the old and new testaments, the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 apostles of the Lamb.
This imagery of a foundation, of course, isn’t unique to John’s Apocalypse. The Apostle Paul described the church in Ephesians 2:19-22 like this,
English Standard Version Chapter 2
19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.
which coincides remarkably with the overall imagery found here in Revelation 21.
We’re also told in verses 19-20 that “the foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst.” Which, if you’re familiar with the OT, we find references to jewels like this as far back as the Garden of Eden in Genesis 2 when we’re told that gold, bdellium, and onyx stones are found there. Ezekiel also indicates later that many of these precious stones were in Eden. Which is probably why many of these jewels are later described as being on the breastplate of the high priest in Exodus 28. Therefore, what once was reserved for the high priest now adorns the whole city. Which is why the Apostle Peter can write in 1 Peter 2:9,
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Holy of holies, a cube
Holy of holies, a cube
Then John continues there in verse 15, writing,
English Standard Version Chapter 21
15 And the one who spoke with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. 16 The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal. 17 He also measured its wall, 144 cubits by human measurement, which is also an angel’s measurement. 18 The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass.
One of the distinctive elements of this city is that it’s a perfect cube. It’s length, width, and height are all identical, which also suggests the symbolic nature of this city. Therefore, we must ask ourselves, “What else takes the form of a cube in the Bible?” The answer is found in 1 Kings 6:20 when Solomon is building the first temple in Jerusalem, and we’re told that the inner sanctuary, or the holy of holies, where they set the ark of the covenant, was 20 cubits long, 20 cubits wide, and 20 cubits high, a perfect cube overlayed with gold. So, here in Revelation 21 the entire city is portrayed as the temple of God, the new Jerusalem is the temple.
Refined gold, purity
Refined gold, purity
Then John goes on to describe the city as pure gold, like clear glass. Which is a reference to the purity of the city, that the gold is refined such that it’s like clear glass. I remember as a child my mother commenting on this text that she didn’t like the aesthetics of the new Jerusalem, that she thought gold was much too gaudy, but this text isn’t meant to communicate the aesthetics of a future city, but to signify the purity of the church.
Light of the world
Light of the world
Then pickup up in verse 22 we read,
English Standard Version Chapter 21
22 And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24 By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, 25 and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there.
This is an allusion to Isaiah 60:19-21 when the prophet is describes Israel’s future glory and the messianic kingdom and writes, “The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light; but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. Your sun shall no more go down, nor your moon withdraw itself; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended.”
Notice how the nations are described as walking by this light. Therefore, this is primarily a reference to the light of God’s word. Most of us are familiar with Psalm 119:105 that says, “Your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.” Which is appears to be the primary intent here. Though it’s certainly analagous to the light provided by a lamp or the sun, it’s the light of the Gospel that causes the nations to stream into the city.
And one can’t help but remember Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount when described the church this way in Matthew 5:14-15,
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
or Jesus’ words in John 8:12,
Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
This is why regularly subjecting ourselves to reading and studying the Scriptures is so important. The Bible is a source of light to the believer, first unto salvation then unto sanctification. The light of his word helps us to see, otherwise we will merely stumble our way through the darkness. One of the things that plagues the church today is a lack of discernment, being unable to distinguish between good and evil, which is fundamentally a result of ignorance, and a shallow understanding of the word of God.
Nothing unclean
Nothing unclean
And finally, John writes there in verse 27,
English Standard Version Chapter 21
27 But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
This is significant, because it was the presence of unbelieving Jews that ultimately brought disaster upon Jerusalem in AD 70. The old covenant was a mixed covenant, it included many unregenerate members, children of Abraham who were circumcised only in the flesh, and not the heart. They were Abraham’s physical posterity, but most of them did not share Abraham’s faith, which ultimately brought judgment upon the nation. Which is also why only a believing remnant was preserved at Jerusalem’s destruction. You may recall back in chapter 11 when John was instructed to measure the temple of God that the worshipers might be preserved who worship there, but that the court outside the temple had been given over to the nations to be trampled.
However, the new covenant is a better covenant, it’s not a mixed covenant, it does not consist of both believing and unbelieving members as the old covenant did, nothing unclean will ever enter it, but those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life. Listen to how the prophet Jeremiah described the new covenant in Jeremiah 31:31,
English Standard Version Chapter 31
31 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD. 33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
Conclusion
Conclusion
Now, as we close I want to leave you with a few points of application, 1) the good news of the Gospel is that we have unfettered access to this city, there are gates pointed in every direction, if only we will repent and turn from our sin, and trust in Christ alone for salvation, our sins will be forgiven and we will be admitted access to this city, 2) God indwells his people, the Spirit of God empowers his people to live unto him and for his glory, he gives us the power to overcome sin, to endure persecution, and to persevere unto the end. He will never leave us nor forsake us, but he will keep us, 3) we will, through many tribulations, enter the kingdom of God, our Lord will refines us through suffering and circumstance to be made holy as he is holy, and finally 4) he is our light, and we walk by the light of his word, therefore let us commit ourselves to it, commit ourselves to read it and to study it, and asking that the Spirit of God might give us eyes to see.
Prayer
Prayer