Introductory Remarks:
We have reached the final chapter of this great book. The first 5 verses are a continuation of chapter 21, which is a description of the New Jerusalem. We not only come to the end of Revelation, but we come to the end of the Word of God, for Revelation is the last book written.
"The Bible opens with God on the scene: In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth (Gen. 1:1). It concludes with Him on the scene and in full control of His own. He suffered, He paid a price, and He died - but the victory and the glory are His, and He is satisfied, Isaiah 53:11 puts it like this: He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied: by His knowledge shall My righteous servant justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities" (McGee).
This is the final description of the eternal state, verse 1-5, and then in verses 6-21 the conclusion of the book. As I have mentioned before I have no idea why this chapter commences with verse 5, because this last chapter should begin with verse 6 to the remainder of the book. Remember the chapters and verses are not inspired so it makes little difference.
Verse 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."
LGT "And he showed to me a river of water of life bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and the Lamb."
"And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal,"
In the Garden of Eden there was a 'tree of life' and after man had sinned he was driven out so that he could not eat of it; now that sin is no longer the issue we will be able to drink of that water of life. So far we have seen that everything in this New Jerusalem is bright and shining and represents that all we hold dear in this earth will be materials for this great and beautiful city.
"Proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb."
Jesus systematically referred to Himself as that 'Water of Life.' The river goes forth from the throne of God and the Son as the eternal source.
"The earthly paradise was well watered: no place can be pleasant or fruitful that is not so. This river is described. 1. By its fountainhead - the throne of God and the Lamb. All our springs of grace, comfort, and glory, is in God; and all our streams from Him are through the mediation of the Lamb. 2. By it's quality - pure and clear as crystal. All the streams of earthly comfort are muddy; but these are clear, salutary, and refreshing, giving life, and preserving life, to those who drink it" (Matthew Henry).
Verse 2, "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."
LGT "In the midst of its street, and on this side of the river and that, was the tree producing twelve fruits, yielding its fruit each month, and the leaves of the tree [are] for the service [attendance] of the nations."
"In the midst of the street of it,"
"Professor Stuart renders this, 'between the street thereof and the river;' and says that 'the writer [John] conceives of the river as running through the whole city; then of streets parallel to it on either side; and then, on the banks of the river, between the water and the street, the whole stream is lined on either side with two rows of the tree of life.'
"And on either side of the river,"
"The writer undoubtedly conceives of a single river running through the city - probably as meandering along - and the river lined on both sides with the tree of life. This gives great beauty to the imagery" (Barnes).
"Was there the tree of life,"
"The eternal state is guaranteed by the water of life forever, and just as the rainbow was God's guarantee that the earth would never again be destroyed by water, so the water of life is the eternal guarantee of the eternal state. The river runs down the middle of the street from which the throne of God the Father and God the Son is located. They are the source. Hence, the street, which begins at the throne, is divided by a median and the median is the river of life. The presence of the tree of life is the second symbolic guarantee that all believers in the eternal state, cannot lose it, couldn't lose it in time, can't lose it in eternity" (RBT).
"Which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month;"
This phrase is literally 'twelve fruits'; the words manner of fruits is not in the Greek. "The word 'manner' has been introduced by the translators without authority. The idea is that the tree bore every month in the year, so that there were twelve fruit-harvests. It was not like a tree that bears fruit but once a year, or in one season only, but it constantly bore fruit - it bore every month. The idea is that of abundance, not variety. The supply never fails; the tree is never barren. As there is but a single class of trees referred to, it might have been supposed, perhaps, that, according to the common method in which fruit is produced, there would be sometimes plenty and sometimes want; but the writer says that, though there is but one kind, yet the supply is ample. The tree is everywhere: it is constantly producing fruit. The word 'and' in the phrase and yielded her fruit every month is also supplied by the translators, and introduces an idea which is not in the original, as if there was not only a succession of harvests, which is in the text, but that each one differed from the former, which is not in the text. The proper translation is, 'producing twelve fruits, yielding or rendering its fruit in each month'" (Barnes).
"And the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations."
This phrase 'for the healing of the nations' in the Greek is literally: for the service of the nations. McGee suggests that it will be at the disposal of the nations to come up to the New Jerusalem and partake of the 'tree of life' and the benefits from the fruit and the leaves for their healing. The reason he believes the nations need healing is because he believes the earth dwellers in eternity have bodies that differ from the church. I don't know if this is true or not, but I believe as I stated before that the river and the tree will represent our eternal fellowship with the Godhead Three. There is nothing conclusive that this description represents eternity before or after the final judgment; what we have is a description of the New Jerusalem. The New Jerusalem will last for eternity, so what we are looking at is a description of the New Jerusalem not chronological events.
Verse 3, "And there will be no more curse: but the throne of God and the Lamb shall be in it; and the servants shall serve Him
LGT "And every curse will absolutely no longer be: and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His servants will do [keep on doing] Him service."
"And there will be no more curse:"
The earth was affected with a curse in the Garden of Eden after Adam and Eve committed sin. Eve was cursed with pain in childbirth, and being in submission to her husband; Adam was cursed with having to work the earth, that is, toil for his bread by the sweat of his brow, working 6 days with the Sabbath for rest, and having to contend with the beasts of the fields and the elements; the earth was cursed with thorns and thistles, and man would have to contend with them to make his living; Satan was cursed above every beast of the field and would have to crawl on his belly and eat dust; Jesus Christ would deal the fatal blow to the serpent's head [a lethal blow, by the way] at the cross. Now because Satan has been judged and cast into the lake of fire, and sin has been judged at Calvary, man will no longer be under the curse of sin, and so the earth will also have its curse lifted. During the Millennium the curse from the earth will be lifted, but not from man. RBT explains it thus: "During the Millennial reign of Christ the curse was lifted from the planet earth, that is from nature, but not from the people. People still had their old sin natures. Man was still born with the old sin nature, the body of corruptibility, and the concept of total depravity. The demonstration of the Millennial reign of Christ is that man in total depravity cannot enjoy perfect environment. The difference in the eternal state from the Millennium is now 'perfect people in perfect environment', so that perfect environment will be enjoyed by perfect people with perfect capacity."
"But the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it:"
This will be the eternal insurance that there will be no more curse of sin on the earth and man. "The throne of God and the Lamb are in the New Jerusalem. It is general headquarters for God the Father and the Son. The notable absence of any reference to the Holy Spirit does need some explanation. You see, in the first creation the Holy Spirit came to renovate and renew the blighted earth: The Spirit of God brooded over the face of the waters (see Gen. 1:2). He is the instrument today of regeneration in the hearts and lives of sinners. There will be no need of His work in the new creation in this connection; therefore the silence of God at this point is eloquent" (McGee).
"And His servants shall serve Him:"
This phrase is literally; His servants will keep on doing Him service. The Greek word for 'doing service' is latreusousin future active of latreuo, the linear idea of continuous action. From this phrase we see that we will be continually active for there will be no night there; what we will be doing can only be speculated upon, and I don't waste my time with speculation.
Verse 4, "And they shall see His face; and His name shall be in their foreheads."
LGT "And they will see His face, and His name [is] on their foreheads."
"And they shall see His face;"
"They shall rejoice with confidence, have boldness undismayed [absolutely no frustration], and gladness unafraid, for they shall hasten to behold the face of Him whom they served in life" (4 Esd. Vii. [78]. By Oriental usage, no condemned or criminal person was allowed to look on the King's face: Now when the king returned from the palace garden into the place where they were drinking wine, Haman was falling [laying] on the couch where Esther was. The king said 'Will he even assault the queen with me in the house? As the word went out of the king's mouth, they covered Haman's face (Esther 7:8) (The Expositor's Greek Testament).
"And His name shall be in their foreheads."
Christ owns the church, and as we read in 3:12; 7:3; 14:1, His name will be on each and every believer's forehead, proving we belong absolutely to Him.
Verse 5, "And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever."
LGT "And there will be night no more, and they will absolutely not have a need for light of a lamp. And light of sun, because the Lord God will give light upon them, and they will reign unto the ages of the ages."
"And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither the light of the sun; for the Lord giveth them light:"
The curse has been lifted from man and from the earth, so neither man nor the earth will ever wear out, and there will be no need for sleep; our toil in heaven will be wonderful above the imagination. The Holy Trinity will provide all the light the new heaven and the new earth will need.
"And they shall reign for ever and ever."
This has been the hope of the church since Pentecost. It will be in eternity that the church will reign with Christ. The church will finally find true freedom under the royal Headship of our Lord Jesus Christ; we will be in complete submission to the only 'celebrity in the universe', and will be deliriously happy to submit.
"1. There the saints will see the face of God; there they shall enjoy the beatific [adorable] vision. 2. God will own them, as having His seal and name on their foreheads. 3. They shall reign with Him forever; their service shall be not only freedom but also honor and dominion. 4. All this shall be with perfect knowledge and joy. They shall be full of wisdom and comfort, continually walking in the light of the Lord; and this not for a time, but for ever and ever" (Matthew Henry).
This ends the description of the new heaven and new earth; verse six to the end of the chapter is the conclusion to the Word of God.
The Coming of Christ
Verse 6, "And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to shew unto His servants the things which must shortly be done."
LGT "And he said to me, These words are faithful and true; and the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must quickly come to be."
"And he said unto me,"
This is the same angel as that in the first verse of this chapter (21:9, 15). This verse through verse 11 is a conversation between the angel, John and the Lord Jesus Christ.
"These sayings are faithful and true;"
All that has been shown by vision and communicated to John in this entire Revelation is faithful and true because it comes directly from the throne room of the Godhead Three. The Greek word for 'faithful' is pistoi meaning 'genuine' and 'unadulterated;' the word for 'true' is gr. alethinos meaning 'pure', 'unpretentious', and 'trustworthy;' so what we have the angel saying to us through John is that the entire Word of God is always, that is, now and forever, it will keep on being 'genuine - accurate, and dependable.'
"And the Lord God of the holy prophets"
This phrase in the Greek N.T. is literally: and the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets. This phrase probably means 'the prophets' own spirits enlightened by the Holy Spirit. The same immutable God, who worked through the prophets of the Old Testament, is the God who is the Author and Finisher of this Great Word of God.
"Sent His angel to shew unto His servants"
God sent this angel to show John what he must record for all generations of believers to read and approve for their benefit. "To all His servants - that is, to all His people, by the instrumentality of John. The revelation was made to him, and he was to record it for the good of the whole church" (Barnes).
"The things which must shortly be done."
The Greek word for 'shortly' is and adverb tachos meaning 'quickly', 'speedily', 'hastily' and 'immediately.' The word for 'done' is gr. genesthai, a present infinitive from ginomai meaning 'to come into existence, to be created and to exist:' it is from this word we get our English word 'genesis.' In this phrase then it is best translated 'come to be.' Now what the angel is saying literally, if you would permit me to paraphrase: 'these things [prophecies] which must [of necessity] quickly come to be.' Now I want to make something very plain; this does not mean that what has been related to John will come to pass in a short time, as in his generation, but that when they do come to be, they will be done quickly; I believe it could happen in our time, but it could possibly be in the next generation; I hope it will be soon.
Verse 7, "And Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book."
LGT "And behold, I come quickly: blessed is the one keeping the words of the prophecy of this book."
"And Behold I come quickly:"
In this section from verses 6-11 we have, as we have noted, a conversation between the angel, John and the Lord. In verses 7, 12, 13, 16, and 20 it is our Lord who is speaking. In this phrase the Lord is saying that when He comes again it will happen quickly; He is not saying that 'He is coming soon.' We believe it is going to be soon because of the way prophecies regarding the end times seem to be beginning to come to pass; however, it is a mistake to set times and seasons; we must wait patiently and keep studying God's Word, and realize that when these things [from chapter 4 on] begin to happen, we can be encouraged that everything is happening according to God's time table, not ours. All this statement means is that Jesus' coming is the next prophetical event, and when He does come it will be quickly.
"Blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book."
Jesus is saying that the one who studies this entire book and applies it will find comfort in all circumstances: "This book is Christ's revelation from God, a direct message from God. Part of it is prediction of doom on Christ's enemies, but most of it is a comforting picture of final triumph and bliss for the faithful [the ones studying it] in a time of great distress and persecution" (Robertson). Thieme notes that "the near demonstrative houtos [this] is used signifying that the Lord is referring to this book not just any book."
"The Lord Jesus puts His own seal upon this book: These words are faithful and true means that no man is to trifle with them by spiritualizing them or reducing them to meaningless symbols. Our Lord is talking about reality. At the beginning of this book, there was a blessing pronounced upon those who read and hear and keep these words. In conclusion, the Lord Jesus repeats the blessing upon those who keep these words. This is a book not to merely satisfy the curiosity of the natural man but to live and act upon" (McGee).
Verse 8, "And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things."
LGT "And I John, am the one hearing and seeing these things. And when I heard and saw, fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who [was] showing me these things."
"And I John saw these things, and heard them."
This phrase is literally, I, John am the one who heard and saw these things. John saw the visions himself and he also heard by the voice of God the things that were communicated to him by way of inspiration.
"And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things."
John, in emotionalism, wanted to worship the messenger, rather than the message and its author. The angel, will identify himself as John's fellow servant, even though he was created a little above man; there is no way the angel would accept John's adoration; how different that is from our modern day preachers who thrive on approbation [admiration] from their congregation and their fellow preachers.
Verse 9, "Then said he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellow-servant. And of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God."
LGT "And he said to me, See [you do it] not: I am your fellow-servant, and with your brothers the prophets, and with the ones who are keeping the words of this book. Worship the God."
"Then he said to me, See thou do it not;"
The angel gives the same response in 19:10 forbidding John to pay homage to him, Don't do it.
"For I am thy fellow-servant."
The angel tells John that he is just one of God's servants as John is.
"And of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book:"
The warning of worshipping angels is the same as 19:10, only here he adds that he is a fellow-servant of not only John, but of the O.T. prophets as wells as all believers serving the Lord. "Here the angel says that, in the capacity in which he appeared to John, he belonged to the general rank of the prophets, and was no more entitled to worship than of the prophets had been. Like them, he had merely been employed to disclose important truths in regard to the future; but as the prophets, even the most eminent of them, were not regarded as entitled to worship on account of the communications which they had made, no more was he. The angel says I am a mere creature of God. I like men, am under law, and am bound to observe the law of God. The sayings of this book which he says he kept, must be understood to mean those great principles of religion [doctrine] which it enjoined, and which are of equal obligation on men and angels" (Barnes).
"Worship God."
This last phrase is literally: Worship the God, so it is a command. The command is given twice, here and in 19:10 proves that it is an important issue to keep before us, that is, angel worship is forbidden, and that we should worship God and God alone; there is no room in God's universe for heroes, celebrities, idols, nor in any kind of role models, save in Jesus Christ alone.
Verse 10, "And he said unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand."
LGT "And he says to me, Seal not the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near."
"And he said unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book:"
Unlike Daniel 12:4, who was told to seal up his prophecy, John is commanded not to seal it up. Daniels prophecy is concerning the Seventieth Week, the Great Tribulation, so he was told to seal it up, because the time is far into the future; however, John's prophecy, in the main, is dealing with the church: "The events which John had predicted, though in their ultimate development they were to extend to the end of the world, and even into eternity, were about to begin to be fulfilled, and were to be of immediate use in consoling a persecuted church. John, therefore, was directed not to seal up his predictions; not to lay them away, to be opened, as it were, in distant ages; but to leave them open, so that a persecuted church might have access to them, and might, in times of persecution and trial, have the assurance that the principles of their religion [doctrine] would finally triumph" (Barnes).
"For the time is at hand."
This phrase is literally: for the time is near. The time is reference to the church and its history. John was living in the early portion of the church known as the Apostolic Church, where they had the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit, enabling them to write the N.T. After John had finished this final book, he sent them unto the seven churches in Asia Minor, and the Scriptures were complete, phasing out the supernatural Holy Spirit gifts; now we function in the Word of God and Word of God alone; we do not have the Apostolic gifts, for there is absolutely no need for them; we have Bible Doctrine as our Lamp to guide us.
Verse 11, "He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still."
LGT "The one who is unrighteous let him do unrighteousness yet more; and the one who is filthy let him do filthiness yet more: and the one who is righteous let him do righteousness yet more: and the one who is holy let him be made holy yet more."
"He that is unjust let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still:"
The thought here is that John is saying that the unbeliever is constantly doing unrighteousness, that is, he is practicing unrighteousness. This is the same picture of unbelief he presents in his first Epistle. The term 'unrighteous' refers to the sin of rejection of truth, that is, unbelief in general. However, here John goes beyond this life and on into eternity and says that the unbeliever will be unrighteous throughout all eternity.
"The word unjust here is a general term for an unrighteous or wicked man. The meaning is, that he to whom that character properly belongs, or of whom it is properly descriptive, will remain so forever. The design of this seems to be, to let the ungodly and the wicked know that there is no change beyond the grave, and by this solemn consideration to warn them now to flee from the wrath to come. And assuredly no more solemn consideration can ever be presented to the human mind than this" (Barnes)
"And he that is filthy, let him be filthy still:"
The first phrase John deals with unbelief in general, and here he deals with the sin of immorality. These two phrases present the unbeliever in the state he will remain throughout eternity: "Probably the most frightful condition of the lost is revealed here, even more so than at the Great White Throne judgment of chapter 20. The sinful condition of the lost is a permanent thing, although it is not static, for the suggestion is that the unrighteous will increasingly become more unrighteousÂ…The condition of the lost gets worse until each becomes a monster of sin. This thought is dreadful" (McGee).
I am amused when I hear an unbeliever spout off, thinking himself to be wise, say: 'When I die I am going to hell with all my friends.' The problem with this foolishness is that hell will be filled with these monsters as McGee described. Friendship is a holy term created by our Righteous Father; hatred is what will prevail in hell, for the 'father of lies' creates it, Satan. Hell, according to God's word, will not be a place where there will be camaraderie and companionship; but there will be only dissention, hatred, backbiting, vengeance, and everything that is opposite of 'Heavenly Bliss.'
"And he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still."
All believers come under this description, because Christ has imputed [placed on us] His righteousness and holiness (1 Cor. 5:21). The wonderful thing that John brings out in this verse is that we won't remain static in heaven either, for when we enter eternity we will be forever progressing in His righteousness; now this doesn't mean that we will be getting better and better, but it does mean that we will progress in our appreciation of our eternal position, and we will grow in this for all eternity. Now we don't even know how to praise God, but then we sure will learn fast.
"On the other hand, neither is the condition of the servant of God static. They will continue to grow in righteousness and holiness. Heaven is not static. Even in the Millennium of the increase of His kingdom there shall be no end. What a glorious prospect this should be for the child of God! We shall have all eternity to grow in knowledge" (McGee).
Now I would like to add something to what McGee has just said here; in order that none of you kids think that as long as you have eternity to grow, you have decided not to study now, I say beware! The fact of the matter is that when we get to heaven, it is true, that we will have eternity to learn, however, remember, what we have learned here from God's Word are eternal truths, and that when we begin to study in eternity we will all grow at the same rate, not like down here; so, you see, the ones who have applied themselves in the study of God's Word will have a great advantage, because the ones who refused to study will have to go back and study the ground some more mature believer has already covered. There won't be any jealousy of those who are more mature, because no one will know what the other one is knowing, because there will be no way one believer will be able to exhibit there knowledge; the advantage one believer will have over another believer will be his own appreciation; I think the mature believer will only have a more mature appreciation of what heaven is all about. This is only something for you kids to ponder, for there is no way I can prove my speculation.
Verse 12, "And behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be."
LGT "Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward with Me, to render to each according as his work is."
"And behold, I come quickly;"
Whether Christ Himself burst through and communicates this great truth, or the angel repeats it from Christ to John is of no matter to me, the important thing is the doctrine of Christ's imminent return is taught.
There are two ways in which to interpret this phrase; (1) that of the imminent return of Christ, that is, that all the prophecies concerning Christ's return have already transpired, and that His return is the next thing that is going to happen, and that it can happen at any time; and (2) that Christ's return is imminent in that it is a sure thing, that is, it is going to happen positively, but no one but the Godhead knows when, and when it does happen, it will happen 'quickly.'
Regarding the importance to this wonderful promise of Christ's soon return to each believer, Barnes note: "In reference to each individual, the period is near when it is to be determined whether he will be holy [and study and apply doctrine] or sinful [and neglect to study and apply doctrine] to all eternity. What thought could there be more adapted to impress on the mind the importance of giving immediate attention to the concerns of the soul?"
"And I bring My reward with Me,"
The Greek word for 'reward' is misthos, and it means wages, reward or punishment. In this context it will be that Christ will reward the saints at the 'Bema Seat' after the rapture, and the ones on earth when He returns to the earth to set up His Millennial Kingdom.
"To give every man according as his work shall be."
Paul taught this same doctrine in 2 Cor, 5:10: For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what has been done, whether good [divine good] or bad [human good]. There is a distinction that Christ makes of all human works; (1) the works that are produced by the Holy Spirit [the fruits of the Spirit] in the believers life will be rewarded as divine good; (2) the works produced through the energy of the flesh [what society deems as good] will suffer loss, because this is human good. As I have noted many times, the Holy Spirit produces in the submissive believer divine good, even when he is not aware of His working, and then at the Judgment Seat Christ will reward us; is this grace or what?
Verse 13, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last."
LGT "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end."
As there will be no end, that is, eternity goes on unto the ages of the ages, what Christ is saying is that God the Father created the universe through Him [John 1], and that He is the consummation of the world as we know it, He began it, fulfilled it, and now He is finishing it. This could also reference salvation of man; He completed the work He began at the cross; at the cross man was purchased with His precious blood, and now man is redeemed for eternity.
Verse 14, "Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city."
LGT "Blessed are the ones who wash their robes, in order that they may have authority over the tree of the life and may enter by the gates into the city."
"Blessed are they that do His commandments,"
This phrase in the Greek is literally: Blessed are the ones who wash their robes. There are two interpretations to this phrase: (1) This includes all believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, because we all have been washed in the 'Blood of the Lamb, and (2) this refers only to mature believers, and that only mature believers will enter the New Jerusalem as part of their reward for maturity. This view is based on the grammatical structure of this sentence; you see, the word 'wash' in the Greek is plunontes a present active articular participle, meaning, the ones who wash or are washing their robes, and therefore, the ones who take this view say that this is reference to confessing sin (1John 1:9), and that the washing of their robes is referring to daily cleansing. I believe that this phrase is probably more accurately to be taken as referring to all believers; however, I do believe that we should spend the maximum time in fellowship and the study of God's Word, so if the second view is correct, I hope I'm safe. The proponents of this second view include R. B. Thieme and Joseph Dillow, so if your interested in these views please give me a call and I will provide you with the resources to study, because I don't want to spend time now in this paper.
"That they may have the right to the tree of life,"
The word 'right' in the Greek is exsousia meaning 'to have authority.' The 'tree of life' in the first Paradise on earth was forbidden territory for Adam and Eve, but here in the New Jerusalem it will open to all freely because we are going to live forever. The ones who believe that this tree is for mature believers only are going to be quite surprised when they see me eating of its fruits.
"And may enter in through the gates into the city."
The city of course is the 'New Jerusalem', which we will live in for all eternity (21:2).
Verse 15, "For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie."
LGT "Outside are the miscreants [trouble makers], and the sorcerers, and the fornicator, and the murderer, and the idolater, and everyone that loves and practices a lie."
The Greek word for 'dogs' is kunas and it means a 'miscreant', that is a troublemaker, a scoundrel, and a mischief-maker. The rest of these superlatives, describing unbelief, we have considered before
This verse identifies the unbeliever in that these are the habitual activities of unbelief. Here again we have two interpretations of this verse. (1) These are outside of heaven in the lake of fire, and (2) these are the believers who spent their time in these activities so they are not allowed in the New Jerusalem, because they did not reach spiritual maturity. I find this second view a little too forced for me to accept. The same offer stands, that is, if you are interested in this view I would be more than happy to provide you the resources to study. By the way, if you are interested in being spiritually mature, keep studying and confessing so that you might spend the maximum time in fellowship and you will be safe either way. I really don't have time to argue with those who differ, and I certainly don't have time to speculate, because I consider both a terrible waste of time.
Verse 16, "I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star."
LGT "I Jesus sent My angel to testify to you these things in the assemblies. I am the offspring and of the family of David, the star, the bright one, the one of the morning."
"I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto these things in the churches."
"It is the Jesus of history here speaking, who is also the Christ of theology and the Lamb of God" (Robertson). Jesus is the cause of the entire book of Revelation, and He here confirms or authorizes everything the angel has revealed to John. The Revelation closes as it opens centered on the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
"Apparently the Lord Jesus had sent His angel with this personal message. I Jesus - He takes the name of Saviorhood, the name He received when He took upon Himself humanity, and the name that no man knows but He Himself. You and I [by this phrase McGee is admitting that he is speaking to Christians alone] are going to spend eternity just centering on Him and His person. My friend, if you are not interested in Jesus today, I do not know why you would want to go to heaven. That is all we are going to talk about up there; we are going to talk about him" (McGee).
"I am the root and the offspring of David,"
The Greek word for 'root' is riza and it means in this context offspring, progeny, and a descendant. The word for 'offspring' is genos meaning 'family, kindred, lineage, race, and nation.' So this phrase is literally: I am the offspring and of the family of David. This phrase connects Jesus with the Messianic prophecies of the O.T.
"And the bright and morning star."
"To call someone a morning star was to class that person very high among the heroes. The Rabbis, for instance, called Mordecai by that name. More than that, this would recall the great messianic prophecy: a star shall come out of Jacob (Numbers 24:17).
This would awaken other areas of thought. The morning star is the herald of the day, which chases away the darkness of the night; confronted by Jesus, the night of sin and death flees away.
Surely this would awaken still another memory. In His days on earth, Jesus had said: I am the Light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the Light of life (John 8:12). When the risen Christ said that He was the morning star, He claimed to be the Light of the world and the conqueror of all the world's darkness" (Barclay).
Verse 17, "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely."
LGT "And the Spirit and the bride, say, Come. And the one who is hearing let him say, Come. And the one who thirsts let him come. The one who wills let him take the water of life [without cost] as a gift."
"And the Spirit and the bride say, Come.
The Spirit and the bride, the church, say come. This is an answer to what Christ says in verse 12-a. McGee says, this is a twofold invitation of the Spirit and the church inviting Christ to return and sinners to come to Christ. Robertson says, this is a response to the words of Christ just heard, and that the bride is longing for the consummation of all things, and they are appealing for the Lord's soon return. This first part of the verse is the Spirit and the church joining in testifying to the truth of Christ's words, and they say, Yes Lord, Come.
"And let him that heareth say, Come."
Now begins the appeal to anyone who will hear and believe what Christ, the Spirit, and bride have said, Come. The one who hears and believes will join in, as part of the church, saying, Come. "Now the memory of these oracles (revelations) fresh in his mind, the prophet applies it to the church on earth, as Paul has already done" (TEGT).
"And let him that is athirst come."
Now the appeal goes out to anyone who has a desire. Jesus told the woman at the well that if she so desired she could drink of the water that He provides and never thirst again; Christ offered her salvation that He alone provided; this appeal goes out to the whole world that is athirst, for they can exercise their free will and drink of the same water and live forever in bliss. "Whoever desires salvation, as the weary pilgrim desires a cooling fountain to allay his thirst, let him come as freely to the Gospel as that thirsty man would stoop down at the fountain and drink" (Barnes).
"And whosoever will,"
This is the universal plea that has gone into the world since Adam and Eve; 'whosoever will may come', this includes everyone.
"Let him take the water of life freely."
"The Holy Spirit is performing His work in the world today in converting and convicting men. He works through the Word and through the church, which proclaims His Word. The invitation to men is to come and take the Water of Life: Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters . . . without money and without price (Isa. 55:1). The Lord Jesus stood and said, . . . If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink (John 7:37). That is the invitation that goes out today. If you are tired of drinking at the cesspools of this world, He invites you to come. What an invitation this is to come to Him!" (McGee).
Verse 18, "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:"
LGT "I testify to every man hearing the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone should add unto these things, God will add unto him the plagues which are written in this book."
"For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book:"
Here we have a solemn warning to everyone who hears these words; John is saying that these words are faithful and true and must be guarded against those who would pervert their meaning, and most definitely from those who would attempt to make them say anything contrary from their intended meaning.
"If any man shall add unto these things,"
Although John is dealing here only with the book of the Revelation because the entire Bible had not been collected into a single volume as we have it today, the principle applies to the entire Word of God. Paul has a similar warning in Galatians 1:9, . . . If any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to that which you received let him be accursed.
"God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:"
John was aware that it would be the laborious job of the scribes to copy these words into transcripts to record them for posterity and therefore it would be the obligation of the copyist to be as accurate as he could possibly be; however, this warning goes beyond just the copyists, it would go on to include those enemies of the church who would pervert Bible doctrine; these are the scoundrels that God would bring judgment upon, the judgments that has been enumerated in the book.
"Verse 19, "And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book."
LGT "And if any one will take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the city, the holy one, the ones who are written in this book."
"And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy,"
"It is conceivable that, from the remarkable nature of the communications made in this book, and the fact that they seemed to be unintelligible, John supposed there might be those who would be inclined to omit some portions as improbable, or that he apprehended that when the portions which describe Antichrist were fulfilled in distant ages, those to whom those portions applied would be disposed to strike them from the sacred volume, or to corrupt them. He thought proper to guard against this by this solemn declaration of the consequences, which would follow such an act. The whole book was to be received - with all its fearful truths - as a revelation from God; and however obscure it might seem, in due time it would be made plain; however faithfully it might depict a fearful apostasy, it was important, both to show the truth of divine inspiration and to save the church, that these disclosures should be in their native purity in the possession of the people of God" (Barnes).
"God shall take away his part in the book of life,"
This phrase is literally: God will take away his part from the tree of life. Now when taken in its original form this gives a different viewpoint on the ones that might add or subtract from the book. It seems that this is making reference to believers who are distorting doctrine, and the consequence would be, not that their names would be taken away from the book of life [an impossibility, by the way], but that they would lose rewards, and be restricted from the new Jerusalem and partake of the fruit of the tree of life.
"And out of the holy city."
Here we have a continuation from the last phrase, that is, it would be the same ones referred to, the ones who would lose rewards and be forbidden to enter the holy city and eat of the fruit of the tree of life, are believers who distorted the Word of God. Unbelievers have no desire to distort the Word; they hate God's Word, and therefore, have no use at all for it.
"And from the things which are written in this book."
This last phrase states that they will loose out on the glories that are described for the mature believer. These warnings are not to someone who inadvertently makes a mistake in copying the manuscripts, or to the one who teaches the Word and makes mistakes, especially in our 'age of grace' where we do not have the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit to assure that we would not make mistakes; who of us has not changed our mind regarding Bible doctrine through the years; this is not a warning to a Christian that makes a mistake, but to the Christian who deliberately perverts the truth.
"To have a share in the tree of life and in the holy city does not refer to going to heaven. Rather, it refers to the privileged position of the metechoi [mature believer]. The danger is disinheritance and not loss of salvation. A share in the tree of life is always in Scripture an additional blessing which comes to those who are already saved" (The Reign of the Servant Kings –Joseph Dillow).
Verse 20, "He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Even so, come, Lord Jesus."
LGT "He who testifies of these things says, Yea, I Am coming quickly. Amen, Come Lord Jesus."
"He which testifieth these things saith,"
This could be the angel speaking for Christ. This entire book of the Revelation is the 'Revelation' of Jesus Christ to His apostle John.
"Surely I come quickly, Amen."
This phrase 'I come quickly' means that when these prophecies begin to come to pass, Jesus Christ will come suddenly, that is, 'He will be at the door', as McGee says. The word 'amen' means that Jesus Himself verifies the fact.
"Even so, come, Lord Jesus."
John responds for himself, as all who believe in Christ do, or should do, with this final plea: Come Lord Jesus. As we grow older our hearts are encouraged, longing for this blessed reality of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Verse 21, "The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen."
LGT "The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you all."
John signs off with one of the most profound words ever 'Grace' gr. charis; the undeserved favor of God manifested on all who believe; we who believe are the beneficiaries of all the 'divine riches of His grace.' What a fitting word to be used to end the Divine Revelation. Without grace we would not even be able to comprehend God's wonderful Word.
There is a great deal of satisfaction I feel at completing an exposition of another of John's writings; I feel that I not only have a better understanding of our Lord, but I feel I know John a little better, and it will be quite a wonderful reunion when I see My Lord face to face, and have Him introduce me to His apostles. Now that I have completed this book I feel as though I have just cracked the surface, for I will have eternity to fill in all the details I am unable to understand now. I say with John: " The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be unto you, and be your guide."
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