REVELATION SIMPLIFIED

 

CHAPTER 21.22

Gleanings from the Book of Revelation:

A Weekly Verse-by-Verse Bible Study Series

 

The

REVELATION TO JOHN

 

Chapter Twenty-One

The Eternal State

New Jerusalem – The City of God

Continued…

(The Internal Character of the City)

 

Review

New Jerusalem, the holy capital city of the new Heaven and earth, is described by John thus far as having several unimaginable features:

1. No more sea (v. 1)

2. God’s glory shining as a clear diamond (v. 11)

3. Great walls about 1500 miles high (v. 16)

4. Twelve Gates of Pearl (Vv. 12, 21)

5. The wall’s twelve-jeweled foundations (Vv. 19-20)

6. A transparent golden street (v. 21)

7. A pure, clear, golden glass display (v. 18)

 

Thereupon, the appearance of the city eternally radiates all God’s glory. It shines with absolute moral purity, characteristic of eternal life.

 

 

Next, John will detail the inside of the believer’s eternal home…

(Verse 22)

 

And I saw no Temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the Temple of it.

 

As John writes the next phase of his vision, something inside New Jerusalem is missing. Unlike earthy Jerusalem, the new holy city has no Temple. On earth, the Temple of the Old Testament or the Church of the New is a sanctuary primarily for worship.

 

Temple in Greek is naos; a word for a shrine, but biblically it is used for the Holy of Holies, a place where God’s presence appeared. In the Old Testament at the dedication of Solomon’s Temple, Israel could visibly observe His manifestation in a cloud of glory.

2 Chronicles 7:1-2 - Now when Solomon had made an end of praying, the fire came down from Heaven, and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the LORD filled the House.

 

The Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the Temple of it

However, in New Jerusalem the Lord God Almighty Himself and the Lamb, Jesus Christ function as the Holy of Holies. More interestingly, the furnishings of the Tabernacle and Temple are obsolete and no longer essential. Listed are seven articles:

1. The brazen altar (cf. Exodus 27:1-8)

a.  Where animal sacrifices were burnt for the atonement of sin (cf. Leviticus 17:11)

 

2. The brazen laver (cf. Exodus 30:17-31)

a.  Where only the priests thoroughly cleansed themselves for purification before or during the service

 

3. The gold-covered table of showbread (cf. Exodus 25:23-30)

a.  Where twelve consecrated loaves of bread for the meal-offering were contained (cf. Leviticus 24:8)

 

4. The golden lampstand (cf. Exodus 25:31-40)

a.  Where God gave perpetual light to the holy place (cf. Exodus 27:20-21)

 

5. The golden altar of incense (cf. Exodus 30:1-10)

a.  Where the smoke from burning incense was symbolic of Israel’s prayers to God

 

6. The veil (cf. Exodus 26:31-35)

a.  Where the multicolored embroidered veil separated the holy place (people) from the holy of holies (God)

 

b.  When at the death of Christ, the veil was rent (cf. Matthew 27:51)

 

7. The golden ark of the covenant (cf. Exodus 25:10-22)

a.  Where a fifteen-by-fifteen cube served as the anthesis of God’s Throne and presence

 

Summary

The place of worship in Heaven will be the Lord Himself. All previous structures are eliminated. Having no Temple signifies full and free access to God. No longer will He be isolated from His people. His fullness will be continually present and completely expressed. Everyone will worship God in perfect spirit and truth in His eternal presence.

 

Consequently, Jesus’ priestly prayer to His Father becomes apparent:

John 17:24 - Father, I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am; that they may behold My glory, which Thou hast given Me: for Thou lovedst Me before the foundation of the world.

 

 

(Verse 23)

 

And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.

 

Only the direct light from the glory of God and the Lamb will illuminate New Jerusalem. The sun and the moon are needless, for no darkness will ever exist.

 

Prophesied

Psalm 36:9 - For with Thee is the fountain of life: in Thy light shall we see light.

 

Isaiah 60:19-20 – The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.

 

John 8:12 - Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

 

 

(Verse 24)

 

And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.

 

The mention of nations (ethnē; race, tongues, tribes, Gentiles) suggests there will be various peoples (plural) on the earth. Many are those who were spared from the Millennium. Nations will come, walk in His light, and bring glory to God and the Lamb.

 

And the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.

Kings, who once had authority in the Millennium, give up their honored positions, bring their glory, and lay it down at the feet of God and the Lamb. All become equal in the eyes of the Lord.

 

Perhaps the psalmist was looking ahead when he stated:

Psalm 68:29 - Because of Thy Temple at Jerusalem shall kings bring presents unto Thee.

 

Additionally, Isaiah voiced this prophecy:

Isaiah 60:3 – And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

 

 

(Verse 25)

 

And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.

 

In old Jerusalem, gates were shut at night for protection from invaders and criminals, but in New Jerusalem, the gates remain open. Perpetual access is extended to all in the city of God.

 

For there shall be no night there

As verse 23 indicates, if there is no need for the sun or the moon, and the great pearl gates are wide open (v.25), and there is an angel at each one (v.12), then the darkness of night is nonexistent. The holy city is a perfect sanctuary for rest and peace.

 

Isaiah’s prediction is thus confirmed:

Isaiah 60:11 - Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces (wealth, riches) of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought [forth].

 

 

(Verse 26)

 

And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.

 

The Lord God Almighty and the Lamb will receive their due glory (doxa, worship, dignity) and honor (timēn, reverence, esteem, wealth) continuously from the nations of the earth, those habituating outside the city walls. Heaven intimates one great global family of transfigured souls living in one accord, God’s original intention.

 

 

(Verse 27)

 

And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh (doeth) abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.

 

In God’s perfect environment, there is absolute holiness in the presence of God. Recall, the city is God’s Holy of Holies. Absent are three main impurities in the city of New Jerusalem:

1. Anything that defiles

a.  Something unclean

 

2. Anything shameful or detestable

a.  Primarily idolatry

 

3. Anything false or deceitful

a.  A deception, untruth, or falsehood

 

Outside the city wall in Old Jerusalem, there remained a receptacle for the city’s refuse (where dead bodies of animals, criminals, and all kinds of filth were disposed of and burned) called the Valley of Gehenna – A place of destruction, analogous to Hell.

 

Recollect: Evil has already been obliterated:

Revelation 20:15 - And whosoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the Lake of Fire.

 

Accordingly, in New Jerusalem, various forms of evil are eliminated. Anything unholy cannot coexist with a holy God. Eternal life solely endures in absolute moral purity. This is the object of God’s grace.

 

But they which are written in The Lamb's Book of Life

Solely the redeemed written in the Lamb’s Book of Life shall enter into God’s eternal rest and peace, i.e., Heaven.

Hebrews 4:3 - For we which have believed do enter into rest, as He said, As I have sworn in My wrath, if they shall enter into My rest: although the [His] works were finished from the foundation (creation) of the world.

 

The Lamb’s Book of Life is a register of names of the redeemed of all ages. Interestingly, six times the Book of Life is mentioned in Revelation (cf. 3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:12, 15 and here). This is the only time the Book of Life is identified as the Lamb’s Book of Life.

 

Exclusively, those who have accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Saviour are found written in this Book. Those who have not accepted Christ, the unregenerate, dead in Christ, and unsaved are blotted out from this Book and cast into outer darkness and the eternal Lake of Fire:

Revelation 20:12, 15 - And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the Book of Life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works…And whosoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the Lake of Fire.

 

 

Living conditions inside New Jerusalem, its eternal character, and its landscape continue until verse 5 of Chapter 22. The following study will elaborate on this extraordinary environment.

 

 

QUESTIONS:

1.   What is the purpose of having a clear golden city?

2.   Describe the unique Temple in New Jerusalem.

3.   What is missing from the new Temple?

4.   What were the purposes of sacrifices in the Temple?

5.   What remarkable light replaces the sun and the moon?

6.   Will any darkness prevail in New Jerusalem?

7.   What unholy things are lacking from the City?

 

 

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