We first saw the description of the Bride, the New Jerusalem. We saw that the entire city is an extremely large cube that cannot be made with human hands. It is the Holy of Holies where the Triune God resides. “And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”(Revelation 21:14) We point out the names of the Twelve Apostles are. Second, we notice that the city does not use the sun and moon to illuminate and there are fallen Christians who cannot enter the city. The latter point is very important, so we have repeatedly emphasized this point, because if one cannot feel what the Bible says this way, one will find that the Bible would contradict itself, which isn’t true. If we truly believe that the Bible is inspired by God, we will see that if we do not forcefully interpret the Bible, we will find that what God tells us through the Bible is consistent and not literal. In addition, we noticed that in addition to the word nations, the original text of the Strong’s Concordance used another word. We explained why the Concordance was correct. We see that the Book of Life is only a sufficient condition for entering the city and cannot be equated to the condition entering the city. We also explain how this way of looking at the Bible can cause problems in interpretation. Finally, we talked about the river of water of life flowing out from the throne, carrying life, and the tree of life being nourished by the river water. The difference between the tree of life and the tree of the world is the fruit they bear and the function of their leaves. The text clearly explains what happens to a man of God.
1. The description of the bride is the New Jerusalem
”Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper. It had a great and high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names were written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. There were three gates on the east and three gates on the north and three gates on the south and three gates on the west. And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. The one who spoke with me had a gold measuring rod to measure the city, and its gates and its wall. The city is laid out as a square, and its length is as great as the width; and he measured the city with the rod, fifteen hundred miles; its length and width and height are equal. And he measured its wall, seventy-two yards, according to human measurements, which are also angelic measurements. The material of the wall was jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass. The foundation stones of the city wall were adorned with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation stone was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the gates was a single pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.”(Revelation 21:9-21)
We saw before that the church of God is the bride, and now we know that new Jerusalem, the holy city that came down from heaven from God, is the bride. It is also the place where God is present with man. Of course, there will be the glory of God, and it is described with words ‘was like’ when talking about the glory of the city, so the scripture does not say that it is exactly like this, but uses what humans can describe. We don’t know how tall that gate is. The importance of the gates is there are the names of the twelve tribes of Israel on them. Therefore, in the Old Testament era, Israel was the chosen people and one had to enter the city through those twelve gates. If the foreigners submit willingly, God will accept them with no partiality. As the scripture says, “But if a stranger sojourns with you, and celebrates the Passover to the LORD, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near to celebrate it; and he shall be like a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person may eat of it. The same law shall apply to the native as to the stranger who sojourns among you.”(Exodus 12:48-49)
As mentioned before, the tribe of Dan in the Old Testament was “So they set up for themselves Micah’s graven image which he had made, all the time that the house of God was at Shiloh.”(Judges 18:31) One of the two golden calves that Jeroboam used to make all the people sin was also placed in Dan (see 1 Kings 12:25-33). It is further stated in book of Revelation in the New Testament, the tribe Dan has been replaced (see Revelation 7:1-8). No wonder Jacob prophesied about Dan, saying, ““Dan shall judge his people, As one of the tribes of Israel. “Dan shall be a serpent in the way, A horned snake in the path, That bites the horse’s heels, So that his rider falls backward. “For Your salvation I wait, O LORD.”(Genesis 49:16-18) It is not that God did not give the tribe of Dan a chance, but that they have always followed their own rebellious path.
Please note, “And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”(Revelation 21:14) Isn’t this what is said in the New Testament, the church is “…of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord.”(Ephesians 2:19-21) We have mentioned many times before that these are the Twelve Apostles of the Lamb, who were chosen by the Lamb himself. Therefore, Judas, the traitor to the Lord, was replaced by the apostle Paul, who was chosen by the Lord in great light after His resurrection. Matthias was not among them because he was chosen by lottery. Although “…they prayed and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two You have chosen to occupy this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.””(Acts 1:24-25) But the Bible never says that this prayer was answered. Like Jesus’ prayer, the Bible clearly says, “In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His piety.”(Hebrews 5:7) In fact, we see that the Bible does not record the deeds and words of Matthias, but uses those of Paul. From here, we can also know that Paul is one of the apostles mentioned in Ephesians 2:19, not Matthias. Paul knew very clearly, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.”(2 Timothy 4:7-8) What a great crown of righteousness it is to have Paul’s name on the twelve foundations of the city wall! What God tells us through the Bible is consistent!
In the era of the Old Testament, the Holy of Holies was a place where God was present. They were all cube-shaped. This was the case in the Tabernacle, and the same was true in the temple built by Solomon. However, the size of the Holy of Holies was much larger than that in the Tabernacle. Now the city itself is a cube, and we note that the city was so large that no man could build it, that it came down from heaven, and that the whole city was the Holy of Holies where the presence of the Trinity God was present. No wonder “I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.”(Revelation 21:22) The Holy Spirit is not mentioned here yet, but look at this verse, “The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost.”(Revelation 22:17) How could the Holy Spirit not be in the city?
We saw descriptions of city gates and streets, and saw that the foundations of the city were made of various beautiful gems. If we compare the gems on the breastplate of judgment mentioned in the Old Testament, we will know that they are different, so they are talking about different things (see Exodus 28:15-21). Of course, some gemstones are mentioned in both places, because there are not too many gemstones that people are familiar with, which is inevitable.
2. People who do not use the sun and moon to illuminate the city and those who cannot enter the city
“I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations (G1484) will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth (G935, noun, plural) will bring their glory into it. In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations (G1484) into it; and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”(Revelation 21:22-27)
We have already shared that the entire cube-shaped city is the Holy of Holies, and of course there is no need for a temple. This also explains why the light of the sun and moon was obviously not needed at that time. Here, in addition to using the word nations (G1484), the Strong’s Concordance also uses an additional word G4982. However, in another original version, just like the translation of the Union Version, this word does not exist. Therefore, we must decide whether there is this word?
First of all, we see that the word G4982 appears 118 times. Its meaning is very obvious. A typical example is as stated in the following verse, “She (Mary) will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins (G4982).”(Matthew 1:21) Therefore, adding this word refers to the saved nations. At that time, everyone in the city was saved, so there should be this word! We can reach the same conclusion based on the consistency of what God tells us through the Bible. Let’s look at this verse, “And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign (G936, verb) forever and ever.”(Revelation 22:5) At the beginning, it is said again that the Lord God will enlighten them. Let’s look at the word G936 again. It is the verb of king (G935, noun, plural) mentioned earlier. Because the noun is plural, it is in G936 and thus this word here refers to them, and those who can rule as kings forever and ever are obviously saved. They are all the people in the city. At that time, everyone will be the king of the nations. No wonder the same word G1484 is used later. So the nations gave glory and honor to that city.
Finally, it was clearly stated that there are people who cannot enter the city, and the verse briefly mentioned those people, and then said, “…only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”(Revelation 21:27) This is a verse that some people will misread. Yes, “only” those whose names are in the Book of Life can enter the city. It does not mean that everyone in the Book of Life can enter. In other words, being in the Book of Life is only a sufficient condition, not a necessary condition, and cannot be equated. If we draw an equal sign, there will be a problem in the future when we specify those who cannot enter the city. At that time, it said, “Outside are the dogs and the sorcerers and the immoral persons and the murderers and the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying.”(Revelation 22:15) It is hard to imagine that those outside the city are fallen Christians gnashing their teeth outside the city!
For example, how could anyone like to tell lies? Know that “… Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”(1 Peter 5:8) Satan does not always work in vain. Didn’t we see that Demas was originally a co-worker of Paul, a Christian, a person who came out of the world, and later returned to the world? What is this if not depravity? (See Philemon 1:24, 2 Timothy 4:10) But God will not deceive people. Once saved, you are saved forever and participate in the book of life, because the Bible clearly says, “If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.”(1 Corinthians 3:14-15) And Paul said very clearly, “Indeed, true companion, I ask you also to help these women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel, together with Clement also and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.”(Philippians 4:3) Therefore, Demas was once a co-worker of Paul, but now, even though he has fallen to the point where he is a Christian who cannot enter the city, he is still much better than the non-Christians who went down to the lake of fire and brimstone!
3. The river of water of life and the tree of life
“Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever.”(Revelation 22:1-5)
The river of water of life flows from God, the source of life, and from the throne of the Lamb, so it carries life. Although the Bible does not clearly say where the river of water of life ends, it is believed to be within the city that has four thousand miles in length and width. Because if the river goes outside the city, people outside the city can drink the water of the river of life for free, and people outside the city has no life. This leads to a contradiction.
Someone told me that this tree of life must be a strange tree, because its roots must come from the throne to have life, and every tree must have life, so its roots must be the same as the roots of the previous tree. Connected, that is to say, the tree of life will be a whole tree with roots connected to each other. This is a tree that does not exist in the world today. It seems to make sense, but it forgets that trees are nourished by rivers of life water. Each tree can be similar to today’s trees and still have life. What is different from the trees of the world is the fruits they bear and the functions of their leaves.
We have said before, “and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”(Revelation 21:4) Of course there will be no more curses. But it is also said that the leaves on the tree of life are for healing all nations, so it does not mean that you will not get sick, but you can just use the leaves on the tree of life when you are sick.
The scriptures clearly explain what happens to people of God, including what Paul said, “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.”(1 Corinthians 13:12) We have just discussed the matter of reigning forever, so we won’t repeat it.
(Verses refer to those in NASB95 unless otherwise specified.)
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