A nice practice that we usually have here at the start of every month is wishing those celebrating a birthday in the month, happy birthday. As happy as those well wishes are, it can be bitter-sweet when we recall those who have left. The Bothwell’s just celebrated such a special birthday over their first child, Benjamin. Had he survived infancy, he would now be 17. The hope and consolation for the Bothwell’s and for all those who have had loved ones die in Christ, is the promise from Scripture, to see them again in Heaven.
Just as a person preparing to travel to a foreign country desires information about that country, so believers long for a glimpse of that glorious place where they will live eternally. Knowing their eager sense of anticipation, God has provided believers with a description of heaven. Though only a select few details are given, they are staggering, mind-boggling, and overwhelming.
As the vision of the New Jerusalem unfolds, history has ended, and time is no more. John and his readers are transported to the eternal state. Having described the fearful eternal destination of the damned, the lake of fire (v. 8; 20:14–15), the vision takes the beloved, exiled apostle to the blissful eternal resting place of the redeemed. Because it is the capital city of heaven and the link between the new heaven and the new earth, the New Jerusalem is central to the vision and is described in far more detail than the rest of the eternal state.
John’s vision of heaven’s capital includes several features: 1) Its General Appearance (Revelation 21:9–11), 2) Exterior Design (Revelation 21:12–21a), 3) Internal Character (Revelation 21:21b–27)
1) Its General Appearance (Revelation 21:9–11)
Revelation 21:9-11 [9]Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, "Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb." [10]And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, [11]having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. (ESV)
As the vision opened, an angel appeared to call John’s attention to the city. Angels play a significant role in Revelation, and this particular angel was involved in the Great Tribulation judgments. Those judgments unfolded in three telescoping series: the seal, trumpet, and, climactically, the bowl judgments. This angel was one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues (cf. 15:1). Either he or another of those seven angels also introduced the impending judgment of the harlot city of Babylon (17:1), making the contrast between the two cities apparent.
Inaugurating John’s personal tour of heaven’s capital city, the angel came and spoke to the apostle, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” Chapter 21:2 notes how the New Jerusalem is described as a bride because it draws its character from its occupants. Those occupants consist of the bride of the Lamb, a title originally given to the church (19:7), but now enlarged to encompass all the redeemed of all the ages, who live there forever. The New Jerusalem is likened to a bride because the redeemed are forever united to God and the Lamb. It is further defined as the wife of the Lamb because the marriage has taken place (19:7).
John’s incredible vision began when the angel, as it now says in verse 10, carried him away in the Spirit. When he received the visions that comprise the book of Revelation, the aged apostle was a prisoner of the Romans on the island of Patmos (1:9). But he was transported from there in an amazing spiritual journey to see what unaided human eyes could never see. John’s visions were not dreams, but spiritual realities, like those Paul saw when he was also caught up to the third heaven (2 Cor. 12:2–4).
The first stop was a great and high mountain. From that vantage point, the angel showed John the holy city, Jerusalem. The new Jerusalem is called holy, which means that the city has been consecrated by God as a place without sin; in other words, it is perfect in every respect…At one time in human history, people started building the tower of Babel to reach heaven, but God frustrated their efforts (Gen. 11:1–9). By contrast, God now takes the initiative to bring the new Jerusalem down to earth. It is the city of God that descends to earth, not human beings who decide to link their city to heaven. The old Jerusalem ravaged by sin could no longer be called holy after the death of Jesus (11:2). The new Jerusalem is free from sin and resumes the name the holy city (Simon J. Kistemaker. Exposition of the Book of Revelation: NEW TESTAMENT COMMENTARY BAKER BOOKS. Grand Rapids, MI 2001).
The apostle repeats his observation from verse 2 that the New Jerusalem came down out of heaven from God. That emphasizes its divine origin; it is the city “whose architect and builder is God” (Heb. 11:10). It should be noted that what is described here is not the creation of heaven; it is merely the descent of what already existed from eternity past, and is now situated in the center of the new heaven and the new earth.
Please turn to Isaiah 60 (p.620)
The most distinguishing characteristic of the capital city of eternity is that it is the throne of the eternal, almighty One as noted in verse 11, and therefore had the glory of God in it. That glory will reach its fullest expression there (John 17:24); it will be unlimited and unconfined, flashing from that city throughout the re-created universe. The glory of God is the sum total of His attributes (cf. Ex. 33:18–19) and is manifested as blazing light (Ex. 13:21; 19:18; 24:17; 34:29–30, 35; 40:34; 1 Kings 8:10–11; Ps. 104:2; Isa. 4:5; Ezek. 10:4; Hab. 3:3–4; Luke 2:9) and in His Son (Matt. 17:2; 24:27, 30; 1 Tim. 6:16). Sadly, though God revealed His glory, disobedient, rebellious people rejected Him. Radiating from the New Jerusalem will be the brilliance of the full manifestation of God’s glory, so much so that “the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb” (v. 23). Isaiah foresaw that same reality:
Isaiah 60:18-22 [18]Violence shall no more be heard in your land, devastation or destruction within your borders; you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise. [19]The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light; but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. [20]Your sun shall no more go down, nor your moon withdraw itself; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended. [21]Your people shall all be righteous; they shall possess the land forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I might be glorified. [22]The least one shall become a clan, and the smallest one a mighty nation; I am the LORD; in its time I will hasten it. (ESV)
• Even the Lord Jesus Christ, the embodiment of God’s glory in human form (John 1:14), “was despised and forsaken of men” (Isa. 53:3).
• We will never be able to appreciate the glory of God if we cannot appreciate the in glory in human form, through the person of Jesus Christ.
Describing the effect of God’s glory radiating from the new Jerusalem, John notes that its radiance/brilliance was like a most rare/very costly jewel/stone, like a jasper, clear as crystal. Phôstçr (radiance/brilliance) refers to something from which light radiates. To John, the heavenly city appeared like a giant lightbulb, with the brilliant light of God’s glory streaming out of it. But that light did not shine through the thin glass of a lightbulb, but through what looked to John like a most rare/very costly jewel/stone, like a jasper, clear as crystal. The city appeared to the apostle like one gigantic precious stone. Jasper does not refer to the modern stone of the same name, which is opaque; it is a transliteration of the Greek word iaspis, which describes a translucent stone. The word jasper in this passage is best understood as referring to a diamond, a very costly one because it is clear as crystal and unblemished. Heaven’s capital city is thus pictured as a huge, flawless diamond, refracting the brilliant, blazing glory of God throughout the new heaven and the new earth.
Poem: Elizabeth Mills, who herself died in her twenties, wrote on her anticipation of this glorious city: “We speak of the realms of the blest, That country so bright and so fair; And oft are its glories confessed— But what must it be to be there? We speak of its pavements of gold, Its walls decked with jewels so rare; Its wonders and beauties untold— But what must it be to be there? We speak of its freedom from sin, From sorrow, temptation and care From trials without and within— But what must it be to be there? We speak of its service of love, The robes which the glorified wear; The church of the first-born above— But what must it be to be there? Do thou, Lord, midst pleasure and woe, For heaven our spirits prepare; And shortly we also shall know, And feel what it is to be there. (Recorded in Richard Brooks. Revelation: The Lamb is All the Glory. Evangelical Press. Faverdale North Industrial Estate, Darlington, DL3 0PH, England. 2002)
2) Exterior Design (Revelation 21:12–21a)
Revelation 21:12-21 [12]It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed-- [13]on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. [14]And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. [15]And the one who spoke with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. [16]The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal. [17]He also measured its wall, 144 cubits by human measurement, which is also an angel's measurement. [18]The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, clear as glass. [19]The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, [20]the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. [21]And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, (and the street of the city was pure gold, transparent as glass). (ESV)
That the city had a great, high wall indicates that it is not an indefinable, floating place. It has specific dimensions; it has limits; it can be entered and left through its twelve gates. At those gates twelve angels were stationed, to attend to God’s glory and to serve His people (cf. Heb. 1:14). The gates have names … on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, celebrating for all eternity God’s covenant relationship with Israel, the people of the promises, the covenants, the Scriptures, and the Messiah.
Verse 13 notes how they are arranged symmetrically; on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates and on the west three gates. That arrangement is reminiscent of the way the twelve tribes camped around the tabernacle (Num. 2), and of the allotment of the tribal lands around the temple (Ezek. 48). The three gates on each side of the city symbolize “perfect, unhindered access to the New Jerusalem”. Indeed, there is a parallel here to Jesus’ invitation: “People will come from east and west, from north and south, and will eat in the kingdom of God” (Luke 13:29)((John R. Yeatts. Revelation: Believers Church Bible Commentary. Herald Press, Scottdale, Pa. 2003).
Please turn to Ephesians 2 (p.977)
The massive wall of the city in verse 14, was anchored by twelve foundations/foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. Those foundations/stones commemorate God’s covenant relationship with the church, of which the apostles are the foundation:
Ephesians 2:19-22 [19]So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, [20]built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, [21]in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. [22]In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. (ESV)
At the top of each gate was the name of one of the tribes of Israel; at the bottom of each gate was the name of one of the apostles. Thus, the layout of the city’s gates pictures God’s favor on all His redeemed people, both those under the old covenant, and those under the new covenant.
Then a curious thing occurred. Verse 15 records that the angel who spoke with John had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, and its gates and its wall. This interesting event is reminiscent of the measuring of the temple (Ezek. 40:3ff.) and the measuring of the Tribulation temple (11:1). The significance of all three measurements is that they mark out what belongs to God.
The results of the angel’s measuring revealed in verse 16 that the city lies foursquare/is laid out as a square, and its length the same/is as great as the width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia/1,380 miles (a stadion was about 607 feet/185 meters. Thus, the city walls are about 1,380 miles in each direction); its length and width and height are equal. The dimensions of the city parallel the 12,000 sealed from each tribe who occupy the city (7:4–7). Moreover, a cube of 12,000 stadia on each of its 12 edges totals 144,000 stadia, the number that symbolizes the faithful saints who overcame the great tribulation, still another parallel with chapter 7 (7:4; see also 14:1–7; Farrer, 1964:217). In short, the symbolic meaning of the dimensions of the cube-shaped city is the splendor and perfection of the New Jerusalem (Ezek. 37:26–28). (John R. Yeatts. Revelation: Believers Church Bible Commentary. Herald Press, Scottdale, Pa. 2003)
Quote: Henry M. Morris points out: “the language of the passage being naturally understood to mean a cube, …the shape specified by God for the holy place … in Solomon’s temple (1 Kings 6:20), where God was to “dwell” between the cherubim. (Henry M. Morris: The Revelation Record [Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale, 1983], 450)
Quote: Morris also points out that a cube-shaped city is well suited for the existence of glorified beings: It should also be remembered that the new bodies of the resurrected saints will be like those of angels, no longer limited by gravitational or electromagnetic forces as at present. Thus it will be as easy for the inhabitants to travel vertically as horizontally, in the new Jerusalem. Consequently, the “streets” of the city (verse 21) may well include vertical passageways as well as horizontal avenues, and the “blocks” could be real cubical blocks, instead of square areas between streets as in a present-day earthly city. (The Revelation Record, 451)
Quote: Based on certain assumptions about the design of the city and the number of the redeemed who will live in it, Morris calculates that each person’s “cube” would be approximately seventy-five acres on each side (The Revelation Record, 451). He also estimates that the total population of the world, past, present, and future, will be about one hundred billion. If 20 percent ultimately become residents of the New Jerusalem, then the city will have to accommodate twenty billion people. If residences occupy 25 percent of the space in the city (leaving 75 percent for avenues, parks, public buildings, and other areas), then each residence, or cubical block, would be about one-third of a mile on each face of the cube. Compare one-third of a mile, or 1,760 feet, to the width and depth of lots (which might range anywhere from 60 to 250 feet) on which homes are typically built today (The Revelation Record, 451). Were that city to be superimposed on the present-day United States, it would extend from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico, and from Colorado to the Atlantic Ocean (The Revelation Record, 450).
• Obviously, God will design the new Jerusalem with plenty of room for all the redeemed (cf. John 14:2–3).
The angel next measured the city’s wall in verse 17 at 144 cubits/seventy-two yards (a cubit was about 18 inches/45 centimeters). This most likely represent its thickness. Then, as if to emphasize that the city’s dimensions are literal and not mystical, John adds the parenthetical footnote that those dimensions were given according to human measurements, which is also an angelic measurement. A meter is a meter, a kilometer is a kilometer, whether for humans or angels. The numbers 12,000 and 144, in verses 16 and 17, may have symbolic value, since they are both multiples of twelve (×; ×), a number in the Bible that indicates completeness. (Robert G. Bratcher and Howard A. Hatton. Revelation A Translator’s Handbook On The Revelation To John. United Bible Societies
New York . 1993)
Verse 18 notes that the material that the massive city wall was built of jasper—the same diamond-like stone mentioned in verse 11. Not only was the wall translucent, but also the city itself was pure gold, like clear glass. Because we are so accustomed to clear glass, we have a hard time remembering that ancient glass was usually dark and filled with flaws. Only kings and the extremely wealthy had anything like clear glass. Thus, for the city street to be transparent as glass (revealing that it was flawless) shows that every citizen of the heavenly city will have access to far more than the wealthiest human who ever lived. It is also worth noting that in the ancient temple of Israel, the priests walked on gold floors; now every citizen has the same privilege and beyond (1 Kgs. 6:30) (Kendell H. Easley. Revelation: HOLMAN New Testament Commentary. Broadman & Holman Publishers. Nashville, Tennessee. 1998) .
The new Jerusalem’s walls and buildings must be clear for the city to radiate the glory of God. Some may be concerned that the city’s translucence will preclude any privacy. There will be nothing in heaven, however, that calls for privacy.
John next turns his attention in verse 19 in the vision to the foundations/foundation stones of the wall of the city, which he describes in amazing detail. Jerusalem’s first-century walls and foundation stones have recently been excavated. Huge stones, some of which are about five feet wide, four feet high, and thirty feet long, weighing eighty to one hundred tons each and going down some fourteen to nineteen layers below the present ground level, have been found (Alan F. Johnson. Revelation: The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 12. Zondervan. GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN. 1981).
The foundations/foundation stones of the wall of the city, in verse 19 were adorned with every kind of jewel/precious stone, twelve of which the apostle names. The names of some of the stones have changed through the centuries, making their identification uncertain. Eight of these stones were mounted on the high priest’s breastpiece (Ex. 28:17–20; 39:10–13). The first foundation stone was jasper which, as previously noted, is best identified as a diamond; the second was sapphire, a brilliant blue stone; the third was agate/chalcedony, an agate stone from the Chalcedon region of what is now modern Turkey, sky blue in color with colored stripes; the fourth was emerald, a bright green stone; the fifth was onyx/sardonyx, a red and white striped stone; the sixth was carnelian/sardius, a common quartz stone found in various shades of red; the seventh was chrysolite, a transparent gold or yellow-hued stone; the eighth was beryl, a stone found in various colors, including shades of green, yellow, and blue; the ninth was topaz, a yellow-green stone; the tenth was chrysoprase, a gold-tinted green stone; the eleventh was jacinth, a blue or violet-colored stone in John’s day, though the modern equivalent is a red or reddish-brown zircon; the twelfth was amethyst, a purple stone. These brightly-colored stones refract the shining brilliance of God’s glory into a display of beautiful colors. The scene was one of breathtaking beauty, a spectrum of dazzling colors flashing from the New Jerusalem throughout the re-created universe.
The next facet of the heavenly city that caught John’s eye in verse 21 was the twelve gates, which were twelve pearls. Pearls were highly prized and of great value in John’s day. But these pearls were like no pearl ever produced by an oyster, because each of the gates made of a single gigantic pearl nearly 1,400 miles high.
Quote: There is a spiritual truth illustrated by the fact that the gates were made of pearls, as John Phillips explains: How appropriate! All other precious gems are metals or stones, but a pearl is a gem formed within the oyster—the only one formed by living flesh. The humble oyster receives an irritation or a wound, and around the offending article that has penetrated and hurt it, the oyster builds a pearl. The pearl, we might say, is the answer of the oyster to that which injured it. The glory land is God’s answer, in Christ, to the wicked (men) who crucified heaven’s beloved and put Him to open shame. How like God it is to make the gates of the new Jerusalem of pearl. The saints as they come and go will be forever reminded, as they pass the gates of glory, that access to God’s home is only because of Calvary. Think of the size of those gates! Think of the supernatural pearls from which they are made! What gigantic suffering is symbolized by those gates of pearl! Throughout the endless ages we shall be reminded by those pearly gates of the immensity of the sufferings of Christ. Those pearls, hung eternally at the access routes to glory, will remind us forever of One who hung upon a tree and whose answer to those who injured Him was to invite them to share His home. (John Phillips: Exploring Revelation, rev. ed. [Chicago: Moody, 1987; reprint, Neptune, N.J.: Loizeaux, 1991], 254)
3) Internal Character (Revelation 21:21b–27)
Revelation 21:21b-27 [21] (And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl,) and the street of the city was pure gold, transparent as glass. [22]And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. [23]And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. [24]By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, [25]and its gates will never be shut by day--and there will be no night there. [26]They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. [27]But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life. (ESV)
As if just seeing the magnificent capital city of heaven from a distance was not privilege enough, John’s angelic guide took him inside. As he entered the city, the apostle noted that the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. The streets in the New Jerusalem were made of the highest quality pure gold which, like everything else in the heavenly city, was transparent like glass. Translucent gold is not a material familiar to us on this earth. But everything there is transparent to let the light of God’s glory blaze unrestricted.
Please turn to John 4 (p.889)
Once inside the city, the first thing John noted in verse 22 was that there was no temple in the city. Up to this point, there has been a temple in heaven (cf. 7:15; 11:19; 14:15, 17; 15:5–8; 16:1, 17). But there will be no need for a temple in the new Jerusalem, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. Their blazing glory will fill the new heaven and the new earth, and there will be no need for anyone to go anywhere to worship God. Life will be worship and worship will be life. Believers will be constantly in His presence (cf. 21:3); there will never be a moment when they are not in perfect, holy communion with the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. Thus, there will be no need to go to a temple, cathedral, church, chapel, or any other house of worship. Believers will be the true worshipers God has always sought:
John 4:23-26 [23]But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. [24]God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." [25]The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things." [26]Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am he." (ESV)
• This should have a tremendous impact on our lives today. We are to treat our bodies as the temple of the Holy Spirit, and our lives should be ones characterized by “spiritual service/worship”. When we come together for corporate worship we must remember who we are in the presence of. Should our minds wander or heaven forbid, find it boring, then this should be a warning sign to our hearts and minds, that we are no longer truly considering God or one another.
Returning to the theme of God’s brilliant, shining glory, John notes in verse 23, that the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light/has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb. The new heaven and the new earth will be radically different from the present earth, which is totally dependent on the sun and moon. They provide the cycles of light and darkness, and the moon causes the ocean tides. But in the new heaven and the new earth, they will be unnecessary. There will be no seas (21:1) and hence no tides. Nor will the sun and moon be needed to provide light, for the glory of God will gives it light/has illumined the New Jerusalem and its lamp will be the Lamb. Once again in Revelation, God the Father and the Lamb, the Lord Jesus Christ, share authority (cf. 3:21).
Quote: Commenting on the brilliant light emanating from the New Jerusalem, J. A. Seiss writes: That shining is not from any material combustion,—not from any consumption of fuel that needs to be replaced as one supply burns out; for it is the uncreated light of Him who is light, dispensed by and through the Lamb as the everlasting Lamp, to the home, and hearts, and understandings of his glorified saints. …And with reference to the very time when this city comes into being and place, Isaiah says, “the moon shall be ashamed and the sun confounded,”—ashamed because of the out-beaming glory which then shall appear in the new Jerusalem, leaving no more need for them to shine in it, since the glory of God lights it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. (J.A. Seiss: The Apocalypse [reprint, Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1987], 499)
The reference to the nations … and the kings of the earth in verse 24 has the word ethnos representing the word Nations, which can also mean “people,” and is most frequently translated “Gentiles.” The idea is not that national identities will be preserved in the eternal state, but rather the opposite. People from every tongue, tribe, and nation—both Jews and Gentiles—will be united as God’s people. Every believer will be fully equal in the eternal capital city.
• Part of advancing the Kingdom of God here and now is to break down
It may be that the truth that the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it offers further proof of the absolute equality in heaven. That phrase may indicate that there will be no social or class structure, that those who enter the city will surrender their earthly glory. Thus, everyone would be at the same level.
Then John adds another detail to his description of the New Jerusalem in verse 25. Throughout the never-ending daytime of the eternal state (there will be no night there) its gates will never be shut by day/closed. In an ancient walled city, the gates were closed at nightfall to keep invaders, marauders, criminals, and other potentially dangerous individuals from entering the city under cover of darkness. That there will be no night in eternity, and the gates of the New Jerusalem will never need to be closed, depicts the city’s complete security. It will be a place of rest, safety, and refreshment, where God’s people will “rest from their labors” (14:13).
The kings will not be the only ones to surrender their earthly prestige and glory when they enter heaven. As verse 26 indicates, the glory and the honor of the nations will also dissolve, as it were, into the eternal worship of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Like the twenty-four elders, all who enter heaven “will cast their crowns before the throne” of God (4:10).
Finally, we conclude knowing in verse 27, that all in heaven will be perfectly holy. Thus, nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false/practices abomination and lying. The only ones there will be those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
The eternal capital city of heaven, the New Jerusalem, will be a place of indescribable, unimaginable beauty. From the center of it the brilliant glory of God will shine forth through the gold and precious stones to illuminate the new heaven and the new earth. But the most glorious reality of all will be that sinful rebels will be made righteous, enjoy intimate fellowship with God and the Lamb, serve Them, and reign with Them forever in sheer joy and incessant praise.
(Format Note: Outline & some base commentary from John MacArthur: Revelation 12–22. The MacArthur New Testament Commentary. MOODY PRESS/CHICAGO. 2000)
