Main news for 25 August 2023

King James Version (en)

King James Version (en)

Revelations, Chapter 22, verses 1-3

¹ The river of the water of life, ² The tree of life

¹And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

²In 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.

³And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:

Read more:Revelations, Chapter 22

Comments:

Comments on the current fragment

Comments on the book

Comments on the part

22

22:1 And he showed me a river of the water of life - The ever fresh and fruitful effluence of the Holy Ghost.See Eze 47:1-12; where also the trees are mentioned which "bear fruit every month," that is, perpetually. Proceeding out of the throne of God, and of the Lamb - "All that the Father hath," saith the Son of God, "is mine;" even the throne of his glory.

22:2 In the midst of the street - Here is the paradise of God, mentioned, Rev 2:7. Is the tree of life - Not one tree only, but many. Every month - That is, in inexpressible abundance. The variety, likewise, as well as the abundance of the fruits of the Spirit, may be intimated thereby. And the leaves are for the healing of the nations - For the continuing their health, not the restoring it; for no sickness is there.

22:3 And there shall be no more curse - But pure life and blessing; every effect of the displeasure of God for sin being now totally removed. But the throne of God and the Lamb shall be in it - That is, the glorious presence and reign of God. And his servants - The highest honour in the universe. Shalt worship him - The noblest employment.

NOTES

The heavenly Jerusalem is shown to the apostle in a vision in considerable detail. And at the foundation of its architectural dimensions lies the number twelve, a number, of course, symbolic, connected both with the fullness of the people of God...

The heavenly Jerusalem is shown to the apostle in a vision in considerable detail. And at the foundation of its architectural dimensions lies the number twelve, a number, of course, symbolic, connected both with the fullness of the people of God, consisting of twelve tribes, and with the fullness of the messianic community, consisting of twelve apostles.

The fullness of the Church is shown to John as the unity of the fullness of the people of God and the fullness of the messianic apostolic community that grew out of it. There can be no doubt that the heavenly Jerusalem is an image of the heavenly Church: it is called "the bride of the Lamb," and in the New Testament books this is precisely what the Church of Christ is called. The precious stones mentioned in the book, with which the foundation of the city is adorned, are the same sacred stones used to adorn the Tabernacle: thus the whole city is revealed to the apostle as one great sanctuary.

The river of living water mentioned in the book recalls Ezekiel's vision, in which he sees this river flowing from under the foundation of the Temple; in John's vision it flows through the city, sanctifying it and giving it life. The trees along the riverbanks are the same as in Ezekiel's vision. There is no uncleanness, "nothing accursed," in the city: the Kingdom and abiding in it are incompatible with any evil and any sin.

But purification and transfiguration are possible for everyone who wants them, and only those who are "devoted to abomination and falsehood," who have chosen them and do not want to part with them, remain outside the Kingdom. As for the Temple, the sanctuary, there is no sanctuary in the earthly sense in the Kingdom; it is not needed there. The sanctuary of the Kingdom is that very Throne of glory which some saw in the Temple during worship as if from afar and through a barrier. Now there is no barrier, and the Throne of glory as the spiritual center of the Kingdom is open to everyone. In this way, in the form of the Throne, the point in creation where God's will meets the world created by God, determining its being, is revealed to the inhabitants of the Kingdom.

This point is the spiritual center not only of the Kingdom, but of the whole universe. And the King of God's Kingdom becomes the Messiah risen from the dead - now, at last, no longer hidden, but manifest to everyone. And the light of the heavenly Jerusalem is not the physical light of the untransformed world, but the light of God's presence, the very light that permeated the world on the first day of creation. The world regains the fullness of being and is transfigured by the breath of the Kingdom, which has become the center and meaning of its existence.

In the picture of the heavenly Jerusalem that we find in Revelation, there is much in common with the prophetic tradition and prophetic symbolism...

As is known, the word "apocalypse" means in Greek "revelation". And, when we pronounce this word, we have in mind rather often the corresponding biblical book. But even more often - disasters, universal cataclysm, the end of everything and all. This point of view is spread today even among Christians, not talking of others...

As is known, the word "apocalypse" means in Greek "revelation". And, when we pronounce this word, we have in mind rather often the corresponding biblical book. But even more often - disasters, universal cataclysm, the end of everything and all. This point of view is spread today even among Christians, not talking of others. And however the book of Revelation ends with the description not of disasters, but of complete and definitive renovation of the world, the triumph of the Kingdom, about which the Christians of the first generation dreamed, hoping that it will occur during their life. And what about man in this renewed world? Physically he is obviously renewed in the same way as all the rest of the universe; and spiritually?

Here is, John speaks about this spiritual side, by describing a new spiritual quality of life of the faithful in the Kingdom revealed till the end. There is nothing "cursed" in the Kingdom. There is nothing and anybody opposing God there. In the current period, at the time of the Kingdom to come, opposition is present, and the more it is remarkable and the more it is lively, more the Kingdom reveals itself in the environment, which is hostile to it. But after the complete transformation of the world, as we see, there is no place in it for any strength hostile to God.

But it is the picture of the New World in general; what about man particularly? For man, as we see, change qualitatively, are renewed the relationships with God and with Christ (in John’s visions, Christ often appears in the form of the Lamb). Now they see the Savior face to face, see Him all the time, and not sometimes, as it was before when the world was transformed, but was not yet totally transformed, and see clearly, and not as it was often done before when His face appeared, as through a fog. And the problem here is of course not only in the change of the physical nature of the man.

The problem is above all, particularly in the renewal of the spiritual life, in the renewal of these relationships, which connect man with God and with Christ, in this renewal of the union-covenant, about which spoke again Jeremiah. Relationships new not darkened by any sin form the spiritual basis of this new union-covenant. And indeed, the Kingdom is based in particular on relationships - of its inhabitants with God and with one another, they with Christ, finally Christ with His Heavenly Father. And when these relationships become complete, then the Kingdom reveals itself to the world in all its transformative fullness.

${currentDateString}