John’s Final Impressions

Revelation: Unveiling Christ and His Prophetic Program The Delights

And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:

And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.

And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever. (

Treasures from Revelation Chapter 31: The River and Tree of Life (Revelation 22)

The Bible opens and closes with basically the same type of setting.

In the first two chapters of Genesis we encounter God’s description of creation and the heaven-like conditions on the earth prepared for man.

The last two chapters of Revelation describe the eternal Heaven that God will re-establish for man.

In Genesis, man was in a garden but he will end up in a beautiful city if he is saved.

In Genesis, man loses paradise, but Revelation shows that redeemed man will get paradise back.

Genesis ends with a coffin but Revelation shows the saints will enjoy eternal life.

This is a wonderful chapter as God closes the curtain on His message for us.

He is about to sign off, but informs us of wonderful truths that we can look forward too.

God is so good.

Let’s see what He has for those who trust Jesus Christ as their Savior.

Treasures from Revelation Chapter 31: The River and Tree of Life (Revelation 22)

In concluding this most wonderful record of our eternal home, John gives four final impressions.

He mentions the life of that city.

He says, And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

The View from the Throne (Message # 48)

Revelation 22:1–5

We have certainly been amazed and inspired as we’ve looked at all the splendor and glory of the New Jerusalem that God is preparing. Heaven is right now being prepared for those who belong to the Lord.

It is beyond what we can even think or comprehend. 1 Cor. 2:9—But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

I know that I can’t begin to understand it all, but I stand amazed at the love of God for sinful man that He would, not only save our souls, but also prepare such a glorious city for us to dwell in throughout the endless ages.

The first five verses of Chp.22 are just a continuation of the description of God’s holy city. Last week we got a glimpse of the city itself and tonight we catch a glimpse of some of the sights that we shall behold and enjoy as we move about in the New Jerusalem.

Keep in mind that the Lord will dwell with us in that heavenly city.

He will be there to never leave. With these thoughts in mind I want to consider heaven as it is seen from the throne of God.

Let’s take a few moments and think on: The View from the Throne.

With this view we will encounter three wonderful aspects of heaven. First there will be:

I. A Flowing River of Life (1)—And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. John continues his tour of the heavenly city and views the river of life.

As we move through these verses, keep in mind that heaven will involve life abundantly.

It is often said when things bring pleasure, “Now that’s really living,” but man has never known life as it will be experienced in heaven. What can we discover about this river of life?

A. The Source of the River—The river of life will flow directly from the throne of God.

It is here that the Lord will sit as He occupies His throne and the water will flow from the throne of God and of the Lamb.

▪ It is by the mercies of God that we have the opportunity to enter the heavenly city. Man in himself is unworthy and defiled, but God made provision that we might be saved.

▪ As we enjoy the beauties of heaven and see the river of life flowing from the throne, it will remind us of the purity of the Lord and all He has done for us so that we might have this glorious opportunity.

Jesus will be the focal point of heaven.

He may be despised and rejected now, but there He will be worshipped and recognized as the King of glory!

▪ It isn’t hard to recognize a tourist in big cities. They often walk around with their eyes fixed upon the towering buildings.

Heaven will be much different.

No doubt we’ll enjoy the beauties, but Jesus will be our heart’s desire!

B. The Serenity of the River—Just as all we’ve seen before, the river of life will be pure, clear as crystal.

It will be absolutely free of any pollutants or filth.

It will exceed the freshness of any mountain stream we can imagine.

▪ There is nothing more beautiful and relaxing than a clear stream running through a grassy meadow.

Often times people enjoy sitting on their banks and listening to the soothing flow of the water.

▪ Imagine what the river of life will be.

It will be the purest water we’ve ever seen, sparkling as it flows, reflecting the glory of the Lamb as He shines in brilliance! It will make its way through the glorious city bringing comfort to those who dwell there.

You may want to find a seat on its bank, near the throne, and spend a few thousand years reflecting on the mercies of God!

C. The Substance of the River—This is the river of the water of life, flowing from the throne of the Giver of life. There will be a continuous flow from the throne of God.

This speaks of the eternal life that we’ve been given in Christ our Lord.

I know that it is hard to comprehend, but heaven will never end; we shall never die; it will be just an eternal day with the Lord.

▪ Aren’t you glad that you’ve tasted of the living water that Jesus gives? John 4:14—But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. There was a day when I stood at an empty earthly well seeking to find what my soul needed.

I rejoice for the day that Jesus came by and offered me that living water.

The river of life will serve as a reminder of the life that we’ve been given in Christ our Lord.

All who have tasted of the water that Jesus gives shall never die.

Treasures from Revelation Chapter 31: The River and Tree of Life (Revelation 22)

Treasures from Revelation Chapter 31: The River and Tree of Life (Revelation 22)

Here, however, is a river whose streams make glad the city of God.

Treasures from Revelation Chapter 31: The River and Tree of Life (Revelation 22)

This is no muddy, filthy stream, but a pure and crystal river containing the very essence of life itself.

It flows from the throne of God.

That throne, such a source of terror to evildoers, is the source of life to those who know and love the Lord.

The Lord Jesus likened the Holy Spirit to a river (

Revelation: Unveiling Christ and His Prophetic Program The Delights

1. A pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

The river speaks of both pleasure and prosperity. (

22:1–5 The Grandeur Of The City—These verses give us a glimpse of a few of the sights of that city.

These few thoughts here reveal the grandeur of our heavenly home.

a. 22:1 The River—A pure, crystal river flows from God’s throne.

The throne is a source of life and the river that flows from it is symbolic of the kind of life it delivers. That heavenly city is a place of peace, prosperity and pleasure.

This river is filled with “the water of life”.

It is symbolic of the unending flow of everlasting life given to all those who have believed in Jesus.

There is life flowing from the throne to all who will believe!

b. 22:2 The Tree Of Life—In the New Jerusalem man will have access to the “Tree of Life”.

When Adam sinned in Eden, he was removed from that place to prevent him from eating the fruit of the tree of life and thus living forever in his fallen condition, Gen. 3:22–24.

In Heaven, access to the tree of life will be restored.

This amazing tree will yield its precious fruit each month of the year.

It will bear twelve types of fruit throughout the year. This reminds us that Heaven will be a place of plenty.

Obtaining food has always been one of man’s chief occupations.

In Heaven, the tree of life will always bear its fruit.

We are told that the leaves of the tree will be used for the “healing of the nations”.

This does not mean that people in that day will get sick. As we saw in Rev. 21:4, sickness and disease are all banished from Heaven.

The word translated “healing” gives us our word “therapeutic”.

It literally means “service rendered to another”. In other words, the leaves of the trees will serve to enhance our lives in eternity.

They will make life there more pleasant.

. The Benefit of the Tree (2b)—The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. What is it that this reveals to us? The Lord has promised no tears, no death, no sorrow, or pain. The former things are passed away. This is not a contradiction of Scripture; it speaks of the abundance of life that we shall enjoy. The leaves of the tree of life will make our eternal life more enjoyable. This reveals to us the quality of life that we shall enjoy in the heavenly city. Never again will we experience any type of ailment or pain.

▪ Do you remember reading about the Garden of Eden? As Adam and Eve enjoyed its bounty, there was only one thing that God had forbidden; they were not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The Lord said nothing about the tree of life in the midst of the garden. Aren’t you glad that they were cast out of the garden before they had eaten of the tree of life and lived forever in a sinful state? In heaven we will live forever free of sin

Benfield, Chris. 2015. “The View from the Throne (Message # 48) (Revelation 22:1–5).” In Pulpit Pages: New Testament Sermons, 1915. Mount Airy, NC: Chris Benfield.

c. 22:3 The Curse Removed—There will be “no more curse”. When man sinned, the ground was cursed and man was forced to grow his food by the sweat of his brow.

Part of the curse also involved the presence of weeds and thorns that would make man’s job harder.

The curse brought sickness, violence, chaos and death to the world, Gen. 3–9. In eternity, this curse is lifted.

The earth will be restored to the perfect state it was in before sin entered.

There will be no weeds, thorns, sickness, violence, war, chaos or death in that world!

Notes For Verse 3

A. The Absence of the Curse (3a)—And there shall be no more curse: The curse of sin will be no more. We will not experience the devastation that sin has brought to all of creation.

▪ There is nothing in this life that isn’t affected by sin.

Notice in Gen. 3:16–19 what sin caused in the life of mankind. This isn’t all. Adam and Eve had children and their firstborn Cain killed his brother Abel.

Adam lived and toiled in a sin cursed world and soon felt the deep pain that sin causes.

▪ We too live in such an environment.

There isn’t a one of us here tonight whose life hasn’t been touched in some way or another by sin.

Many live lives of deepest despair because of the curse of sin and the consequences it brings.

Praise God in heaven the curse will be gone. All that brings heartache and misery to us down here will not be found in heaven

a [no more curse] There will be no more of the curse that came as a result of Lucifer and Adam’s rebellion.

Conditions as before will prevail eternally and things will continue as if the curse had never been. All rebels will be confined to the lake of fire as an eternal monument of God’s wrath on sin and as a warning to coming generations in all eternity that sin does not pay.

The New Heaven and New Earth and the new peoples will be the same ones we have today only in a new state.

All things will be made new, not new things will be made to take the place of the old (Rev. 21:5; 22:3).

b [servants shall serve him] The servants will be the faithful angels, redeemed people, and all other creatures that have not rebelled or that have been redeemed from all possibility of rebellion in all eternity (Eph. 1:10; 1Cor. 15:24–28).

d. 22:5 The Night Banished—The darkness that haunts this world will be banished over there.

There will be no more dark hours when the “prince of darkness” can do his wicked works. No one will need to light a candle to keep from stumbling. There will be no darkness of any sort in that land.

No darkness, either physical or spiritual will be allowed there.

C. The Guarantee Of New Righteousness (21:27)—In that perfect world there will be nothing that can defile it will be allowed inside the gates. There will be no sin, no Satan and no sinners.

Only those who have been washed in the blood of Jesus and justified by the God of Heaven will be allowed in that city.

That truth right there makes Heaven worth going to!