In chapter 21 we are going to take a look at the wonderful city that God has prepared for you and me. This chapter is the culmination of all that God has promised.
Revelation 21:1-2 "1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. 2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband."
Christ is the bridegroom and He has prepared a place for His bride. And now this city is coming down to the earth, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Verse 3 proceeds with Christ reaffirming a commitment He made to Hs people. Years ago He said this to His people.
So God made a covenant with His people, all those down through the ages that have accepted Him, walked with Him, followed Him - these are His people, and He makes that covenant with you and me. So the 21st chapter opens with God restating that covenant, because He says:
Revelation 21:3 "3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God."
Sin is no more, it has been done away with, a sinless eternity is beginning, and God says; these are My people and I will be their God and I will dwell with them.
We see that the City is also called the Temple of God, but not until the saints are raised, and gathered up into the City, where they will serve God "day and night". Then the Holy City alone, will be the Tabernacle, or Temple of God.
Just as the most holy place in the earthly sanctuary was where God dwelt and was where His throne was, so the New Jerusalem will be where God dwells and will be where His throne will be. So there is no need of a temple there because the New Jerusalem is the temple.
God promised something to the children of Israel, but unfortunately they never got hold of it, they never really saw what God wanted them to do. In Ezekiel chapter 47, God gave Ezekiel a vision of the temple, and outlined in detail how it was to be built. But it was never built; it was never done, because they couldn’t grasp the vision that God had in mind. They were to be a kingdom of priests, and God had given them the privilege of taking the message of God’s love and sacrifice for them to the whole world. And the temple that God described to Ezekiel was to be the place where all the nations would come into. So, just as the sanctuary on earth was a type of the sanctuary in heaven, so the temple shown to Ezekiel was a type of the New Jerusalem.
Notice the similarities between the visions given to Ezekiel and to John:
| Ezekiel | John |
|---|---|
Ezekiel's vision of the temple |
John's vision of the New Jerusalem |
| Taken to a high mountain (40:2) | Taken to a high mountain (21:10) |
| A heavenly being is there to measure the temple (40:3) | A heavenly being is there to measure the temple (21:15) |
| Great and high wall (40:5) | Great and high wall (21:12) |
| Twelve gates with the name of a tribe of Israel over each (48:31-35) | Twelve gates with the name of a tribe of Israel over each (21:12) |
| City is a square (48:20) | City is a square (21:16) |
| In the city is the throne of God (43:7) | In the city is the throne of God (22:3) |
| Most holy place is a cube (41:4) | New Jerusalem is a cube (21:16) |
| River flowing out of the temple (47:1) | River flowing out into the city (22:1) |
| Trees bear their fruit each month (47:12) | Tree bears its fruit each month (22:2) |
| Leaves are for healing (47:12) | Leaves are for healing (22:2) |
All these things are exactly the same, because God intended Israel to take the gospel to the whole world. Unfortunately that earthly city was never built. But we can look forward to one that has been built.
Revelation 21:4 "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."
Sin has ended, there is no more sorrow or pain, all those things have passed away. This is how the chapter begins, with God saying that you and I can rejoice because the sin that has existed for 6,000 years has come to an end, and now eternity can begin, in which righteousness, peace and joy will reign.
Revelation 21:5 "And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful."
God is emphasising for you and me the fact that He will make all things new, He’s saying; this is true, you can depend upon it.
Age certainly has an effect on each one of us, but a day is coming when we will be made new, and ageing pain and suffering will no longer be a problem.
Never again throughout eternity will death ever be a problem or ever even be thought of – it will be no more.
God will take our bodies and make them brand new. There will not be such a thing as age. Age only comes to us because we have an end, but when we get to eternity there will be no end and so there is no ageing. No longer will we have the sad experience of growing older and seeing our friends and loved ones grow older and pass away.
Not only that, but God is going to take this old earth and make it brand new too, and it will be like something that we have never seen or that we could imagine.
It will take a miracle of God to make a desert blossom like a rose – but it will!
So our bodies will be made brand new, the earth will be made completely new, God will recreate it and everything will be perfect and will work as it should, there will be nothing that interferes with or disrupts that perfection. This is what God has promised.
Sometimes we imagine how things will be, then when we experience the reality it often turns out to be less impressive than we thought, but, that is not the way it will be in the heaven and earth made new, it will be greater and more glorious than we could ever dream of.
Revelation 21:6 "And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely."
"I have become the Alpha and the Omega" - What God had promised through His holy prophets and which His righteous people have looked forward with eager anticipation will finally become an accomplished fact. The preview given to John is a guarantee of the final accomplishment yet to be carried out.
The true believer is not eager to amass the things of this world, to be rich in worldly goods. Rather he is eager to drink deeply of the spiritual riches from God.
Revelation 21:7 "He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son."
According to the Greek it means continually conquers or habitually conquers. The Christian lives the victorious life by the power of the Holy Spirit. He may make mistakes, (1 John 2:1) but his normal life presents a picture of spiritual growth (Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 26; 3:5, 12, 21).
His God, My son - Compare Genesis 17:7; 2 Samuel 7:14. The promise of intimate family connection is set forth here. The sinner saved by grace will be received into the family of God and be brought into a relation as close as if he had never sinned. The inhabitants of unfallen worlds cannot be closer to God and Christ than will be the redeemed sinner.
Revelation 21:8 "But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."
A strong contrast is now presented to what we saw in the previous verse.
Fearful - Greek "deiloi" - Meaning "cowardly", "fearful". The word is always used in the sense of cowardice or unwarranted timidity. Compare its use in Matthew 8:26; Mark 4:40, the related verb in John 14:27 and the related abstract noun in 2 Timothy 1:7. In each instance cowardice is the basic meaning. Owing to cowardice, moral faintheartedness, many fail to overcome in the Christian warfare. They give up in the time of trial. Compare Matthew 24:13.
Unbelieving - Those who lack faith in the sense of not remaining faithful. They do not trust God to the end. They prove to be untrustworthy.
Abominable - Greek "bdelusso" - Meaning "to make foul", "to turn away in disgust from", "to detest", The noun bdelugma occurs in Luke 16:15; Revelation 17:4-5; 21:27.
Murderers - These include the persecutors and murderers of God's faithful children throughout history.
Whoremongers - Greek "pornoi" - Meaning "fornicators" (1 Corinthians 5:9-10 etc). The feminine form is translated "harlots" in Matthew 21:31-32; Luke 15:30. Compare Ephesians 5:3,5.
Sorcerers - Greek "pharmakoi" - Meaning "practicers of magical arts". The root refers to magic, enchantment, sorcery and to the use of drugs to produce a stupefied condition. A modern counterpart of the ancient practice of sorcery is spiritism.
Idolaters - A reference to heathen people as well as to Christians who practice heathenish rites. Compare 1 Corinthians 5:10; 6:9; 10:7.
Liars - Including those who preach false doctrines. See Exodus 20:16.
Second death - Revelation 20:6.
Revelation 21:9 "And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife."
One of the seven angels - One of the plague bearing angels had already shown John the judgment of the great harlot. (see Revelation 17:1) Now one of them (possibly the same angel) directs John's attention to the New Jerusalem being the center and seat of the eternal kingdom. It is of interest to note that in the first instance it was a plague bearing angel that presented mystical Babylon to the prophet. Whereas now it is one of them who shows him the New Jerusalem. Historically, ancient Babylon and Jerusalem were traditional enemies and figuratively they represent the two sides of the great controversy between good and evil. The one is represented as a fallen woman, (Revelation 17:5) the other as an honorable woman (Revelation 19:7; 21:2)
The Lamb's wife - Revelation 19:7; Revelation 21:2.
Revelation 21:10 "And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,"
In vision John seemed to be placed upon a "great" and high mountain. From this vantage point he beheld the details of the city.
Revelation 21:11 "Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;"
The glory of God; His abiding presence with His people throughout eternity. The glory that denotes His presence will never leave the New Jerusalem. Compare Exodus 40:34; 1 Kings 8:11.
So let’s take a look at this city.
Revelation 21:12-13 "12 And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: 13 On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates."
In the wall that surrounds the city there are twelve gates. At each gate is an angel, and over the top of each gate is the name of one of the tribes of Israel.
So the city has three gates on each side, and the names written on the gates are the names of the 12 tribes of Israel. And yet the city is supposed to be a city for all people. So which gate will you go through? Each of us must go through one of the gates; we can’t crawl over the wall! To make sense of this we must understand that each one of the 12 sons of Jacob was different in character, and in Genesis chapter 49 we see Jacob foretelling the character of each of his sons, and there are other places in scripture where it details the characteristics of his sons. So our character, our personality, will determine which of the 12 gates we will go through to enter the city, as all of us will fit into one of the character patterns represented by the 12 gates. This is showing us that God has made provision for every one of us to be saved there are no human characteristics that God in His grace can’t change – He can change any of us.
Revelation 21:14 "And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb."
The number "twelve" is given five times in verses 12-14. For twelve as a significant number, Revelation 7:4 (12x12).
The New Testament church is built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets. (Ephesians 2:20)
Revelation 21:15 "And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof."
Compare Ezekiel 40:3; Revelation 11:1. Here the act of measuring and the stating of measurements are no doubt to give assurance of the adequacy and sufficiency of the heavenly home. (John 14:2)
Revelation 21:16 "And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal."
Foursquare - There is beauty inherent in right proportion, perfect balance and congruity. For various foursquare items, see Exodus 27:1; 28:16; 30:2; 39:9; 2 Chronicles 3:8; Ezekiel 41:21; 43:16; 45:2; 48:20.
Whatever uncertainty there may be as to the exact proportion or size of the city, it is certain that the glories of that celestial city will far exceed the fondest imagination. No one should be concerned, for there will be room enough for all who desire residence. In the Father's house there are "many mansions.” (John 14:2) There is room in this city for every man, woman and child that has ever lived. There is room enough there for you and me.
Revelation 21:17 "And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel."
So the city has a great wall all around it. On the basis of the New Testament cubit, which was about 17 1/2 inches (44.5 cm), 144 cubits, would be about 210 ft (64 metres). John does not say that this measurement represents the height of the wall. Some have conjectured that it may be that of its thickness.
Revelation 21:18 "And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass."
Human beings do not understand how gold can be refined until it becomes clear, but evidently God does, because it says that the streets of the city are pure gold, and its walls are pure gold, like clear glass.
Revelation 21:19-20 "19 And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; 20 The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst."
Twelve kinds of precious stones are listed as being in the foundation. Not all of these can be identified by the modern jeweler, nor is much to be gained by making a comparison with the jewels of the high priest's breastplate. (Exodus 28:17-20) Neither ancient sources nor modern scholars agree as to the identification of all the stones and even if they could these will far outweigh anything we see here on earth, suffice to say the foundations of the city are made of precious stones, and these stones have all the colours of the rainbow.
Revelation 21:21 "And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass."
Each individual gate is one pearl. Considering the size of the wall, these gates must be huge and yet each gate is made out of one pearl. What you and I consider of great value today will have no value there, because even the streets of the city are made of pure gold, all these things are way beyond anything that we have ever seen here on earth.
Revelation 21:22 "And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it."
So in the New Jerusalem there is no temple. John does not tell us what had become of the heavenly temple; but he is saying that he saw no Temple therein at that time, indicates that he had seen one there before. The Holy City is called the Tabernacle of God in Revelation 21:3.
When sin has been removed, the church will again be able to dwell in God’s presence and no structure will be required to symbolize the dwelling of God.
Revelation 21:23 "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."
Now this verse does not say that there is no sun or moon. It simple says that the sun and moon are not needed to provide light for the city. Light giving bodies will not be imperative for the illumination of the city. The glorious radiant splendour of the presence of God will give more than sufficient light (Isaiah 60:19-20). Material things are not indispensable in God's plan. In His presence they are put to shame (Isaiah 24:23). Created light cannot outshine the uncreated glory of the divine presence.
Revelation 21:24-25 "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. 25 And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there."
Here is a description of the redeemed from "all nations, kindreds, people and tongues". (Revelation 7:9; Isaiah 60:3, 5) This picture is drawn from the Old Testament (see Isaiah 60:11).
So we have this marvellous city that God has prepared for you and me to live in. The righteous will live in that city for a thousand years, before they come to this earth. At the end of the thousand years, that city of New Jerusalem will come to this earth, and then the righteous will be able to live in the city, or will have the privilege if they wish of living out on the earth, the earth that has been made brand new, and the scripture says that the righteous will build houses and live in them.
Christ built each of us a dwelling place in the city, but we will also be able to build one out in the country. Unlike now, resources will not be a problem. Anything that you can imagine, you can do. Also time will not be a factor. If you want to take a thousand years to build your house then that will be your privilege. You can build it however you want to, and that will be your home in the new earth, and it will be your home for eternity.
There will also not be the need of shut gates which are used as protection, because there will be no more sin and there will not be any night there because God is its light.
Revelation 21:26 "And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it."
All the saved from all nations will come into the New Jerusalem.
Revelation 21:27 "And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life."
Anything that defileth - No doubt an allusion to Isaiah 52:1.
So all these people down through the ages that have followed the Lord and walked with Him, they will make up God’s people and they will come and live in the city, and they will live in that city throughout eternity. And we will be kings and priests to God, and the New Jerusalem will have a special name:
God will come and dwell with His people, He will be their God, and we shall be His people.