Revelation 21
Notes
Transcript
1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
3 And I heard a loud voice 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.
4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
5 And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
6 And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment.
7 The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.
8 But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”
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.
In this chapter, we see fulfillment of one of the most wonderful promises in the whole Bible. Those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ will spend eternity with God in a place called heaven. Paul tells us, that as believers
20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
We do not belong of this world, this is not our residence. We have the promise of eternity in heaven. Our future home and our HOPE, and it should be something we thing about and how our lives today impact eternity.
C.S. Lewis, in his book Mere Christianity has this to say “A continual looking forward to the eternal world is not (as some modern people think) a form of escapism or wishful thinking, but one of the things a Christian is meant to do. It does not mean that we are to leave the present world as it is. If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next. The Apostles themselves, who set on foot the conversion of the Roman Empire, the great men who built up the Middle Ages, the English Evangelicals who abolished the Slave Trade, all left their mark on Earth, precisely because their minds were occupied with Heaven. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this. Aim at Heaven and you will get earth “thrown in:” aim at earth and you will get neither.
We see an ending of the Apocalypse, and the end of the Bible. We see a new heaven and earth, we see no more curse, we see no more death, we (mankind) are restored, there is no need for sorrow, tears, and pain end, and we see the devil and his influence gone. There is a restoration that takes place. A return of a heaven and earth as God had originally intended.
New Heaven and New Earth
New Heaven and New Earth
1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
3 And I heard a loud voice 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.
4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
5 And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
6 And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment.
7 The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.
8 But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”
What is the new heaven and new earth going to be like? Will there be a complete destruction of this earth as we know it and a total recreation? Will it be a restoration of the heaven and earth as we know it?
17 “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind.
The former things shall not be remembered. Create “bring into existence”. So, what is going to happen?
35 But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?”
36 You foolish person! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.
37 And what you sow is not the body that is to be, but a bare kernel, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain.
38 But God gives it a body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body.
39 For not all flesh is the same, but there is one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish.
40 There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is of one kind, and the glory of the earthly is of another.
41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.
42 So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable.
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.
I think we see a picture of a renewal of the earth into a sin-free creation as God had originally intended instead of “ex nihilo” from nothing. As this verse shows, there is a transformation from a plant to seed, and from seed to plant. There is a transformation, but not a recreation from nothing. I have heard the argument “God can’t come back to a sin stained world”, but yet we see Christ coming to earth in his glorified body to be with His church during the 1,000 year that satan and sin is bound. Regardless of whether it is transformed or recreated, doesn’t really matter. We are in heaven, with our Savior, for eternity.
Sin and death has been overcome. There was no need for the sea (the place of the dead) anymore.
13 And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done.
We are looking at a picture of the new heaven and new earth, as God had originally intended in a pure, unadultered, and sinless state.
New Jerusalem
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.
What will the city be like? It is indescribable. How could anyone possibly describe the city of God and of Christ? Think of the stars in the sky, the billions and billions of galaxies scattered throughout the universe. Picture them for just a moment: the vastness, the enormity, the endlessness of the universe. Remember that God is the Creator and Force of the universe, the Sustainer of all things. He is the Intelligence and Power that made all things and keeps all things operating. How could human language describe God? How could human language describe the city where God’s presence is centered and where Jesus Christ dwells? This is the problem that John had in trying to describe the New Jerusalem. The city and the presence of God within the city are so glorious that they are just indescribable. There are no earthly things beautiful enough nor valuable enough to be a part of God’s city. Therefore, John did all he could: he used the most beautiful and precious things upon earth to describe the city. This passage tells us about the city of God. It tells us what God showed John, what God wants us to know about the New Jerusalem, the city of God, the city where Christ will live and where the presence of God will be centered in the new heavens and earth. Note how it stirs our hearts when we study this passage knowing that we shall be a part of so glorious a future. God has given us the wonderful privilege of being a citizen of God’s great city, the wonderful city of Jesus Christ. This is the description of the New Jerusalem, the city of God.
This is the last vision that God gives John, and it is the most glorious of visions. God shows John the New Jerusalem, the great city of God that will be the capital city of the new heavens and earth in the recreated universe. Note who it is that God sends to take John to the city: one of the seven angels who had cast one of the bowl judgments upon the earth. There is symbolism in this: God has a message of warning for the earth—judgment is coming. But God also has a message of hope and glory for the earth: the New Jerusalem, the city of God’s very own presence, is also coming to earth; and every person can live with God in the glory of that city. Citizenship is available to all if they will believe in the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, and seek to live in the city with God and His Son. The angel carries John away in the spirit to a high mountain and shows him the glorious city of God. Eight descriptions are given.
Glory of the City - The glory of God lights the whole city, to the point there is no need for the sun or any other heavenly body to give the city light.
City Walls - Great, mighty, and high walls. There may be an idea here of the protection and perfect security in their Heavenly Jerusalem.
Twelve Gates - The gates have the names of the twelve tribes of Israel upon them. This symbolizes that the only way to come to God is through the Messiah of the twelve tribes, the Messiah of the Jews, the Lord Jesus Christ. Scripture says, “Salvation is of the Jews”. God sent His salvation, His own Son, into the world through the Jews. Therefore, the entrance into the Heavenly Jerusalem is only through the Messiah of the Jewish nation. No person can enter the heavenly city unless he comes through the gates of salvation provided by God.
Gates Guarded by Twelve Angels - this symbolizes that the entrance to the city is protected. No person is allowed to enter the city unless he is approved by God. A person can enter only if he comes through the salvation that God gave through Israel, through His own Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Everyone on earth is invited to enter the city. There are walls that face everyone in the east, everyone in the north, everyone in the south, and everyone in the west. And there are three gates facing everyone. Everyone on earth can enter the city. There is no discrimination or prejudice, no partiality or favoritism shown by God. All can come and live as citizens of the city. The only requirement is that they come through the Messiah, the Savior of the world, the Lord Jesus Christ.
The City’s Twelve Foundations - They have the names of the twelve apostles inscribed upon them. Note: the twelve apostles are clearly identified as the apostles “of the Lamb.” This means that the foundation of the city is the testimony of the twelve apostles, the testimony that declares Jesus Christ to be the Lamb of God. It is the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ as the lamb of God that makes the city available to people.
City’s Shape and Size - There is one side each facing to the east, north, south, and west. Again, the city faces in every direction. Citizenship within the city is available to every nation, city, tribe, language, and person upon earth—available if a person will approach the city through the salvation God Himself has provided for the earth. The city is enormous and, as we would expect of the heavenly city, its size is beyond anything we would ever dream (v.16). It is 1500 miles long and wide and high. It towers 1500 miles high! This is a total of 2,250,000 square miles or 3,375,000,000 cubic miles (almost four billion cubic miles)! Picture a huge space station that man might build in a century or two and orbit around the earth. If Jesus Christ delays His coming long enough, the idea that man might be forced to build a large city in outer space to handle the population has already crossed the mind of man. The God who created a moon to orbit around the earth and planets to orbit around the sun has created a city that is far more beautiful than any city man will ever build. It will someday descend from heaven to earth and be the capital city of the universe. God is going to reclaim the earth from all the evil that has engulfed it, and He is going to do the most marvelous thing: make the earth the center of the universe, the place where His very presence will be centered. The earth will be the throne of the Lord Jesus Christ. And the capital city of His rule and reign will be the New Jerusalem. What a glorious picture of the great salvation and sovereign majesty of God! (The thickness of the wall and gates is 144 cubits or 216 feet thick.)
City’s Materials - We must keep in mind that in some cases the gems or precious stones that are mentioned in this passage differed from the valuable stones that we know today. The stones seem to be as follows. (Note the spectacular beauty and variety of color in the city.)
The walls are made of jasper: a crystal-like rock that is green in color. The crystal green walls sparkle with the most beautiful color as the reflection of God’s glory strikes them.
The city is made of pure gold, a gold that is as clear as glass. There is no gold on earth as clear as glass. Imagine a city many times larger than New York or Tokyo or any other major city being made out of pure gold, a gold so pure that it would be crystal clear. Imagine the dazzling gold color of the New Jerusalem as the glory of God strikes it.
The twelve foundations are decorated with every kind of precious stone (vv.19–20. This information is gathered from William Barclay. The Revelation of John, Vol.2, p.273f.)
The first foundation is jasper: a green rock-like crystal.
The second foundation is sapphire: a sky blue spotted with gold (see Ex. 24:10).
The third foundation is chalcedony: a green stone like the green on a peacock’s tail.
The fourth foundation is emerald: a green, the greenest of all greens.
The fifth foundation is sardonyx: a stone that has different shades of color, basically white with layers of red and brown breaking the white background.
The sixth foundation is sardius: a blood-red stone.
The seventh foundation is chrysolite: a shining stone with a gold radiance.
The eighth foundation is beryl: a sea blue or sea green stone.
The ninth foundation is topaz: a greenish-gold stone that was transparent (see Jb. 28:19).
The tenth foundation is chrysoprasus: an apple green stone.
The eleventh foundation is jacinth: a violet, bluish-purple stone.
The twelfth foundation is amethyst: also a violet, bluish-purple stone, but more brilliant than the jacinth.
The twelve gates are twelve huge pearls. What magnificent beauty!
The streets are made of pure gold, but again the gold is transparent, as transparent as glass.
This is a staggering picture of beauty and variety. Imagine the fiery brilliance and splendor as the glory of God reflects off the glistening stones. The beauty is bound to be the most dazzling and staggering sight in all the universe. Do the stones and color symbolize anything? There is bound to be at least this meaning behind such magnificent beauty: the heavenly city is worth any price to enter. It is priceless. No matter what a man has to sacrifice, he is a fool if he does not give up everything he has to enter the heavenly city of God.
8. City’s Worship - There is no temple in the heavenly city, for both God and Christ are there. Their presence will be so manifested
• that the very atmosphere will be heavy with their spirit
• that every person will be filled with God’s Spirit, perfectly filled
• that every person will be perfectly conscious of God’s continued presence
No believer will be without the full and perfect knowledge of God’s Spirit and presence. Therefore, there will be an unbroken worship, communication, and sharing with God and Christ. No matter what service or work the believer will be performing, and no matter where the believer is serving throughout the universe, he will be in unbroken fellowship and communion with God. Therefore, there is no need for a temple and its ceremonies and rituals to pull the human mind into the worship of God.