It is the last chapter in the Bible—Revelation 22. What are the messages, and warnings, God chose to conclude “His Book”—the most important book ever written, which has the very words to eternal life? We will analyze the “Final Chapter” of God’s Word on this edition of End of the Age!
Revelation 21 reveals the New Jerusalem is the bride of Christ—the church. We also learn there are two Jerusalems: the physical Jerusalem located in the land of Israel and the spiritual Jerusalem being constructed as God gives birth to His church.
Throughout that chapter, God is describing the New Jerusalem to John:
The Church is the Tabernacle of God – In the great sermon preached by the first martyr Stephen just before he was stoned, he said, “Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet,” (Acts 7:48).
The One escorting John said, “I will show you the bride.” We come to the central purpose of Revelation 21:9-10, “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. 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,”
When Jesus promised to show John the bride, the Lamb’s wife, He showed him the holy Jerusalem. In this scripture we have absolute proof the bride is the holy Jerusalem.
The New Jerusalem has 12 Gates
The New Jerusalem has 12 Foundations
The symbolic measurements of the New Jerusalem
Adorned with precious stones and streets of gold as it were transparent glass.
No Sun or Moon in the City – Jesus will be the light!
The Gates of the New Jerusalem will Never be Shut
This brings us to Chapter 22.
BEHOLD I COME QUICKLY!
John continues to describe the New Jerusalem in Revelation 22:1, “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.”
When Jesus met the woman at the well in John 4:10, He asked her for water to drink. She questioned Him asking her for a drink since He was a Jew and she was a Samaritan. He answered her in John 4:10, “Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.”
Jesus explained further about the living water in John 4:13-14, “Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”
Jesus also spoke of the living water on the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles in John 7:37-39, “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)”
Jesus explicitly stated the living water was His Spirit, the gift of the Holy Ghost. As verse 39 explains, at the time He spoke of this living water, it was not yet given because His Spirit only became available after He was glorified.
Revelation 22:2 goes on to describe the Tree of Life which grew beside the River of Life. We first see the Tree of Life in the midst of the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve were created. Once they disobeyed God by eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, they were forbidden from eating of the Tree of Life lest they should live forever. To the saved who will dwell in the New Jerusalem, they will be given open access to the Water of Life and the Tree of Life. The Tree of Life is described in 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.”
Notice the leaves of the Tree of Life were for the healing of the nations. This is simply reminding us again that there will be no sickness, no pain and no death in the New Jerusalem.
Revelation 22:3-4 provides more information about the wonders of the New Jerusalem, “And 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: And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.”
When this passage says there will be no more curse, it is because Jesus bore the curse for us. Galatians 3:13 says, “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree.”
The passage also reveals we will be the Lamb’s servants and will serve Him. We will have access to His presence continually. I Thessalonians 4:17, “And so shall we ever be with the Lord.” Revelation 22:4 continues to say we shall see His face and His name shall be in our foreheads. Jesus’ name is placed in our foreheads when we are baptized in His name.
John concludes his record of the vision of the New Jerusalem in Revelation 22:5, “And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.”
Just imagine no need for the sun or electricity or for any artificial light! For we will dwell in His presence and He is the light! Finally, we are reminded again we shall reign with Jesus Christ forever and forever!
In Revelation 22, we will hear the admonition of God Himself as He issues His final words designed for those of us who live in the end time, the day of His return to the earth.
As we learned in the last chapter, the first five verses of chapter 22 continue to describe the glories of the New Jerusalem. Then this final chapter of Revelation restates the purpose for which this last book of the Bible was given. Revelation 22:6 declares the purpose very clearly, “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.”
Jesus said He sent His angel to show His servants the things that must shortly come to pass. Our Lord wants His servants to know what the future holds.
Our new series, Revelation – The Unveiling of Jesus Christ Volume 1 and 2, was created to give understanding to all who desire to know the things that will soon come to pass.
In this sixth verse we are also told the identity of the one who has been talking to John throughout the vision. God said He “sent His angel” to show us the things that must come to pass.
Revelation 22:7 gives us the theme of the final chapter of the last book of the Bible, “Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.” Many people have questioned why the declaration, “Behold, I come quickly” would be made when the Book of Revelation was written almost 2,000 years ago. This scripture saying, “Behold, I come quickly,” has proven true for each generation since the Book of Revelation was given to John. Jesus has been calling individuals home for over 2,000 years and it always seems to come too quickly. As James 4:14 says,
“…For what is your life? It is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.”
As the generation who will soon see the physical return of Jesus to the earth, the words have never rung truer, “Behold, I come quickly!” Three times in this closing chapter of the Holy Scriptures, God repeats the phrase, “Behold, I come quickly.” This leaves no doubt the overriding purpose of this final book of Scripture is to warn us to be ready for His coming.
After saying, “Behold, I come quickly,” Jesus went on to say, “Blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.” What does He mean by this statement? How can we keep the sayings of the prophecies given in the Book of Revelation?
In chapters 2 and 3 of Revelation, messages are given straight from Jesus to the seven churches of Asia. We are told what they were doing right and what they were doing wrong. We should learn from these messages and adjust our conduct accordingly.
In chapter 6 of Revelation, the four spirits that seek to control the human race, Catholicism, Communism, Capitalism and Islamism are revealed. We should understand these forces and not allow our lives to be controlled by them.
What about Capitalism? It’s okay to have money, just don’t let the love of it control you. 1 Timothy 6:10, “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”
In chapter 7, God devotes this entire chapter to the great Jewish-Gentile revival that will be poured out in the end time. By revealing this revival to us, Jesus wants us to prepare to participate in this final harvest just before His Second Coming.