revelation 22 commentary
Anyone who desires salvation in Jesus Christ can come to Him and take the water of life freely. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! c. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations: Why do the nations need healing? 2. In most red-letter editions, these words are in black, indicating that the translators believe that these were not the words of Jesus. a. The river of paradise. iii. In the same way, the angel reminded John that only God is to be worshipped, and that they were both players on the same team along with all who keep the words of this book. One of the gladdest things on earth is water. Salem Media Group. The essence of Christianity is summed up in the idea that God invites us to take the water of life freely. All this shall be with perfect knowledge and joy. Why does it say that all dogs will be outside? So the saints in heaven shall have more knowledge of Christ than the most advanced below. Major Prophets III. a. I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel: As before in Revelation 19:10, John was overwhelmed and bowed before an angel in worship. Revelation 22:2 "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." A symbol of both eternal life and continual blessing (see note on Gen. 2:9). Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer. b. By the integrity of that angel who had been the apostle's guide and interpreter in these visions; this integrity was such that he not only refused to accept religious adoration from John, but once and again reproved him for it. If anyone adds if anyone takes away: This means that there is a high price to pay for tampering with the Book of Revelation specifically, and the Scriptures in general. a. Would you prayerfully consider a gift of support today? Enduring Word Bible Commentary Revelation Chapter 22 Revelation 22 - Come, Lord Jesus A. ii. i. iii. 4. Is this is a refutation of the idea of a heaven for pet dogs? A confirmation of this and all the other visions of this book, ver 6-19. The New Testament And he said to me, Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. But in the new heaven and new earth they are done away with forever. (2.) i. It is of any height and any size. 1 And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. Can you say, Now, Lord, I desire to be saved, give me a new heart; I desire to give up my sins; I desire to be a Christian; I desire to believe and desire to obey. Some people wonder if we will eat in heaven. Minor Prophets 12. Major Prophets And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things. iii. Also by his messengers; the holy angels showed them to holy men of God. d. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely: This is an invitation so great that we can glory in it. d. Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book: This blessing reminds us that prophecy gives us a word to keep, not merely material for interesting discussions and debates. In the first paradise there were only two persons to behold the beauty and taste the pleasures of it; but in this second paradise whole cities and nations shall find abundant delight and satisfaction. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! The invitation to come is an urgent command, for the day will arrive when it is too late to come. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website. This tree of life is fed by the pure waters of the river that comes from the throne of God. a. We have now come to the conclusion of the whole, and that in three things:. And behold, I am coming quickly: We can never miss the note of urgency and warning in all what Jesus tells us about His coming. Click to enable/disable essential site cookies. in the resource materials are not necessarily affirmed, in total, by this ministry. The hour of judgment is impending. (Walvoord). Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely. See the notes on Revelation 1:3. i. The supreme felicity of this paradisiacal state. Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain. Little sinners, big sinners, black sinners, fair sinners, sinners double dyed, old sinners, aggravated sinners, sinners who have committed every crime in the whole catalogue, whosoever. (Spurgeon). b. The tension of imminence is endemic to that span of redemptive history lying between the cross and the parousia. (Mounce). Him who thirsts can come to Jesus, but they cant come unless they feel their thirst. Either sense is certainly true. Or is it an invitation to those with a spiritual thirst to come to Jesus? John and the Angel And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things. The states of both the evil and the good are now fixed forever. Revelation 22:1-2. a. In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. It is perhaps the final preview of this heavenly river. We will see Jesus clearly because idols are done away with. 3. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. With a reminder of the blessedness of those who do His commandments, Jesus, who is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last, the Root and Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star, declares that He sent His angel to testify of these things to the churches. (1.) No, but it does show that living faith will have works with it (James 2:20, Titus 3:8). I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last., a. Fittingly, the last words of the New Testament speak of grace, because grace describes Gods dealing with man on the basis of the New Covenant. (Revelation 22:6-7) The angel and Jesus add words of verification, Then he said to me, These words are faithful and true. And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take place. He will not exclude anyone who comes to Him. The term Alpha and Omega is Applied to God in 1:8; 21:6; and here alone to Christ, crowning proof in this book of Christs deity. (Robertson), ii. i. These cookies collect information that is used either in aggregate form to help us understand how our website is being used or how effective our marketing campaigns are, or to help us customize our website and application for you in order to enhance your experience. The apostolical benediction, which closes the whole: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, Amen. The presence of God in heaven is the health and happiness of the saints; there they find in him a remedy for all their former maladies, and are preserved by him in the most healthful and vigorous state. Heaven is not a place of indolent leisure, but a place where service is done, centering on God. (L. Morris). Nothing should be more desired by us than that the grace of Christ may be with us in this world, to prepare us for the glory of Christ in the other world. Your partnership makes all we do possible. "The primary purpose of this epilogue ( Revelation 22:6-21) is to affirm the authority of John's book. 10 And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand. Supernatural visions and revelations do not mean that someone is correct in their doctrine, teaching, or practice. ii. Paul also used this phrase as a final word in some of his letters (1 Corinthians 16:23, 2 Corinthians 13:14, 1 Thessalonians 5:28, 2 Thessalonians 3:18). i. i. Thus the very God of all inspiration, and of all inspired men, reiterates and affirms the highest authority for all that is herein written. This solemn promise also implies that the Book of Revelation can be understood. Amen: The book (and the Bible) ends with a word of grace, and grace for all. The main intent of prophecy is to lead us to trust and obey God, and apply His truth to the way we live. Blessed are those who do His commandments: Doing His commandments does not earn us eternal life, but it is evidence that we have been granted eternal life. It shows that Jesus is both the Creator of King David and His descendent. As when he ascended into heaven, after his resurrection, he parted with a promise of his gracious presence, so here he parts with a promise of a speedy return. And let him that is athirst come. ( Revelation 22:2) The tree of life. Even allowing for the small percentage of disputed texts, we can trust our Bibles. We will see Jesus clearly because care and worry are gone. The hour of judgment is impending. (Walvoord). If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book: This is another section at the end of the Book of Revelation where it is difficult to tell exactly who spoke. Revelation chapter 22 English Standard Version 1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. This far excels it. The states of both the evil and the good are now fixed forever. b. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. Pauline Epistles The term Alpha and Omega is Applied to God in 1:8; 21:6; and here alone to Christ, crowning proof in this book of Christs deity. (Robertson), ii. Our website uses cookies to store user preferences. It is a perfect consummation: Throne in their midst Perfect Administration, Servants shall serve Perfect Subordination, Shall see His face Perfect Transformation, Then he said to me, These words are faithful and true. And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take place. By proceeding, you consent to our cookie usage. Pentateuch His servants shall serve Him: Heaven will be a place of work and service for Gods people. b. Revelation 1:8, 17; Revelation 2:8; Revelation 21:6). b. i. By the messengers he chose, to reveal these things to the world; the holy angels showed them to holy men of God; and God would not employ his saints and angels in deceiving the world. Why would God assign such a strong rebuke for the addition to or subtraction from a book that just painted big ideas in wild pictures, or if no one could really understand the book anyway? c. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. In heaven there is not only a variety of pure and satisfying pleasures, but a continuance of them, and always fresh. One might say, I cant repent the way I should. d. His name shall be on their foreheads: Heaven will be a place where Gods people will forever be identified with their God, and there will never be any doubt that they belong to Him. Poetical Books There will be no sea; this aptly represents freedom from conflicting . The Book of Revelation concerns many prophetic events, but the book closes with Johns longing for the return of Jesus for His people he wants the rapture of the church. Minor Prophets We are not rushing towards a distant brink of the consummation of all things; we are running parallel along the edge of that brink, and have been since the time of the apostles. The solemnity of the injunction suggests that the speaker is Christ Himself. (Mounce). (Revelation 22:3-5) What it will be like and what the saints will do. iii. b. Luke-Acts This is a good example of how a copyists error can cloud a text in rather minor ways, without affecting the essential meaning of the passage. It is the hopelessness of the final state of the wicked which is here pictured. Do not seal the words of this prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand: Because the time is at hand, and history now runs parallel to the brink of the consummation of all things, this book isnt sealed. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. Him who hears can come to Jesus, but they cant come unless they hear. Then come. The Bibles Tab is found in the Tools feature on Bible pages: Note: MLA no longer requires the URL as part of their citation standard. Amen. Divines generally do further extend the sense of these two verses, considering this as the last portion of holy writ, not only placed last in our Bibles, but revealed and written last. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. There is no other source. 13. Pauline Epistles Much of the Book of Revelation is either fantastic or seems too good to be true, but it is all true. 2. The New Testament i. John is assured that it is in fact faithful and true. This is in contrast with Jesus, who receives the worship of angels (Hebrews 1:6) and of men (Matthew 8:2, 14:33, John 9:38). One. In 2 Thessalonians 3:17-18, Paul even indicated that this signature no doubt written with his own hand was a mark that the letter was genuinely from him. Anyone who desires salvation in Jesus Christ can come to Him and take the water of life freely. It simply describes the future with the imagery of the present. (Mounce), i. This will be the greatest glory of heaven: to know God, to know Jesus, more intimately and wonderfully than we ever could on earth. All the prophets of the Bible, all the apostles of the Bible, all the threatenings of the Bible, all the promises of the Bible, gather themselves up, and focus themselves into this one burning ray, Come to Jesus. If the whole creation groans and travails together in pain for the manifestation of the sons of God, how much more those sons of God themselves! (Seiss), iii.