Sermon Tone Analysis

Last Week

We have now come to the final chapter of the Book of Revelation.

For those who have not been with us, John the son of Zebedee was in exile on the isle of Patmos, and Yeshua revealed Himself to John there.

John was commanded to write to seven communities in Asia Minor (modern day Turkey).

Last week we looked at the new Heavens, the new Earth and the new Jerusalem.

Today we will look at the closing remarks of John, the angel and Yeshua.

Let’s read Revelation 22:6-21.

Angel’s Words: Trustworthy & True

This last chapter is truly a summary of the first.

It forms a book end not only to Revelation but also to the entire Bible.

We begin with the angel that has been showing John all these visions (1:1) stating, “These words are trustworthy and true.”

This formulation of words are similar to our modern-day Statutory Declaration, and “function as an oath formula that guarantees the truth of what has preceded.”

(WBC, Vol.

52C) John started out Revelation by “testifying to the word of God and to the testimony of Yeshua the Messiah (1:2).

Also, Yeshua revealed Himself to the congregation in Laodicea as, “the Faithful and True Witness, the Originator of God’s creation.”

We have just witnessed the creation of the new Heavens, new Earth and new Jerusalem.

We are therefore reminded that Yeshua will accomplish His Word.

Spirits of the Prophets

The angel goes on and reminds John that God is ruler over the spirits of the prophets.

This is a reference back to Amos 3:7 where the prophet Amos declares, “For the Lord Adonai, will do nothing, unless He has revealed His counsel to His servants the prophets.”

Concerning this verse,

It is not that [Adonai] cannot act without the help of prophets or that he is obliged to share his knowledge with them.

Rather, consistent with other prophetical (Jer 7:25; 23:18, 22; 26:5; 35:15; 44:4) and historical (2 Kgs 17:13, 23; 21:10; 24:2) emphases on [Adonai’s] “servants the prophets,” this verse states simply that the prophets carry a message not their own.

[Adonai] does explain his own actions and does use the prophets as his spokespersons.

But he is hardly dependent on them.

The message of this angel who is speaking to John, carries the authority of the One who sent this angel, Yeshua the Messiah.

John’s Response

John’s initial response to this angel, is similar to his response to Yeshua in (Rev.

1:17), he fell down and worshiped.

But the angel reacted by telling him, “Don’t do that!

Worship God!”

This is a good lesson for all of us.

The presence of angels can be very overwhelming, but we are never to worship them.

Worship is reserved for Adonai alone.

In Isa.

48:11b we see Adonai declaring to the prophet, “I will not give My glory to another.”

What is amazing is the rest of this chapter in Isaiah which we will cover in a minute.

The angel tells John to keep the prophesy of Revelation unsealed.

This is exactly opposite from the end time prophesy given to Daniel.

If you remember, Daniel was told twice (8:26, 12:4) to seal up the vision given to him.

This vision of Revelation, however, had already started to come to pass in John’s day, specifically the Mother, Child and Dragon vision in chapter 12.

We are also warned by the angel that there is a point of no return, where evildoers will continue in their evil, and the judgement of Adonai is determined.

Yeshua is the First & the Last

Now in verse 22:12, just like chapter 1:12, we turn from the words of the angel to the words of Yeshua.

Yeshua declares Himself to be the Alpha and the Omega, or in Hebrew, the Aleph and the Tav.

He is the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

This declaration brings us back to the passage in Isaiah 48:10-15

Look at the attributes of the One speaking to Isaiah, firstly He is the one who called Israel.

This is a reference back to Gen. 32:25-33

Next, the One speaking declares that they are "the First and the Last.”

And as the First, this One declares that His “hand founded the Earth” and “spread out the heavens.”

This is the creator of all things, and through His word the heavens and earth “stand together.”

Earlier in the chapter the One speaking argues that Isa.

48:5 “I foretold it to you long ago.

before it came about I made you hear, lest you should say, ‘My idol did them, my carved image, yes, my molded image commanded them.’”

This argument continues in verse 14, as the One mockingly asks who of the false gods declared any of the future events, but then states of the One speaking that, “Adonai loves him,” and that He will accomplish His will against the Babylonians.

We have spent the last several chapters of Revelation discussing the ultimate destruction of the ultimate Babylon, and who is the One that accomplishes this destruction?

Then in verse 16 we have one of the most powerful arguments for the Compound Unity of Adonai in all of Scripture.

Isa.

48:16

The One speaking claims to have existed from the beginning, claims that Adonai Elohim has sent Him, and claims that Adonai Elohim has sent His Ruach.

John 1:1-5 “In the beginning was the Word.

The Word was with God, and the Word was God.

He was with God in the beginning.

All things were made through Him, and apart from Him nothing was made that has come into being.

In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overpowered it.”

Yeshua’s Blessing & Curse

And coming back to Revelation 22, we see Yeshua’s final declaration includes both a blessing and a curse, a encouragement and a warning.

How fortunate are those who wash their robes!

We are called to walk right or righteously, the white robes are the right deeds of the Kedoshim.

Those who walk right have the right to eat of the Tree of Life and to enter the glorious new Jerusalem.

This is another reference back to the Tree of Life in Gen. 2:9 and the restoration of the Garden of Eden.

But then Yeshua warns everyone, in a list very similar to the 10 Words:

that dogs (a derogative reference to the wicked, specifically to male and female cult prostitutes, Deut.

23:17-18),

sorcerers (those who practice witchcraft, Deut.

18:10-11),

sexually immoral (from the Greek word pornos, a word that refers to all sexual behaviour outside of the marriage of one man and one woman Matt.

19:1-12),

murderers (Deut.

5:17),

idolators (Deut.

5:8-10),

loves and practices falsehood (opposite of keeping the faith, 1 John 1:6),

none of these will enter the kingdom of God.

In all of these cases, the reference is to those who continue in the sin.

And from all these sinful lifestyles, Adonai can forgive, and restore us, but we must not continue in these lifestyles.

Yeshua then closes His statement will a list of His credentials.

He is the Root and the Offspring of David, He is the Bright and Morning Star.

This is a reference to Isa. 11:1-5

Testimony of John

John responds to Yeshua’s words with his own call and his own warning.

The call that erupts from his heart is seen in Rev. 22:17

We are all called to come to Yeshua and drink of the water of life, the Ruach HaKodesh!

This is an invitation to all who will have ears to hear.

And finally, John warns his readers, not to ignore, or exclude any of the words of this prophesy, or else.

Application for Today

In looking at the application there are several things that come to my mind.

A blessing, a curse, and a soon coming King!

The first is from Deut.

11:26-28

And Deut.

30:19-20

This was the covenant made with Israel, and it is the call that is set before all of us in the New Covenant.

Choose Life, choose the way of Adonai, choose to follow Him!

And finally I think of the words of C.S. Lewis in the Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

“Do not look sad.